In business you are personally at one of two levels:
- You are well known within your industry, profession or generally. And your company is a household name. You need no introduction because people already know you by reputation. People such as Bill Gates and Richard Branson fall into this category.
- You and your company are known by the people you deal with (suppliers and customers) and the people you target in your marketing (maybe). If you attend a business seminar or business networking meeting there is every chance you will meet people who don’t already know you and don’t know you by reputation.
If you fall into category 2 (as most business people do) then you owe it to yourself to know how to market yourself and your company as effectively as possible at meetings and events.
Meeting New Business Contacts
Business networking is a very popular way of spreading the word about what your business offers, finding new suppliers or even companies you can join forces with in your marketing campaigns. And, like any marketing activity, it needs to be properly planned if it is going to be effective.
Over the next few weeks, interspersed with other posts, I’m going to explore how to get the best results from these meetings and, if you are at all nervous, uncomfortable or just new to business networking, I’ll give you some tips on how to make it less daunting as well.
Here’s some of the posts you can look forward to:
- 9 tips to take the sting out of business networking meetings (specifically for newbies and people who are nervous).
- 8 rules for making business connections.
- Creating rapport with people you meet.
- You met new business people – now what? Getting organised.
- Refer, refer and be referred – the referral matrix – who warrants your valuable time?
These posts will include some useful tools to download, which I will be gifting to you, my blog reader. Make sure you don’t miss these posts because even if you are experienced at business networking there are some copywriting gems and other valuable insights you can apply.
Make sure you get the email announcements about these posts; pop your details in the boxes top right to subscribe.
And pass the word about this blog to your business contacts – they’ll appreciate your thoughtfulness.
This blog is one month old on Friday 23rd and I’m planning a special ‘Thank you for your support’ gift for you, as my regular blog reader – more details later in the week.
~ Carol Bentley
technorati tags: business networking business tips copywriting
The expert advice, if you are looking for a web domain name, is to find one with the specific keyword or phrase your target audience is likely to use in search engines. Plus, to increase your chances with search engine positioning, it’s best (so I’m told) not to separate the words with hyphens or underscores.
As a copywriter I’d add another consideration to that… be careful about the words you choose from your readers’ point of view. Let me explain:
I’m an avid fan of the TV programme QI and I watched the ‘Children In Need’ edition last week on BBC4. Stephen Fry asked the celebrity panel to describe what was being sold on four example websites which were:
- www.therapistfinder.com
- www.whorepresents.com
- www.penisland.com
- www.presentsexchange.com
You can imagine the ribald comments that came out of these names. I’ve capitalised the words to show the true intention of the domain names:
- www.TherapistFinder.com
- www.WhoRepresents.com
- www.PenIsland.com
- www.PresentsExchange.com
Words chosen perfectly innocently can take on a different meaning when they are run together as web domain names. So – before you settle on a web domain name – make sure it’s not going to cause any embarrassment for you.
~ Carol Bentley
technorati tags: copywriting web copy web marketing
After yesterday’s blog I was mulling over what could I do to help you keep your letters interesting and compelling?
You see there are techniques to making your letter flow so your reader is swept through, like a white-water raft on an exciting, fast flowing river. And – not surprisingly – the words you choose to draw your reader from paragraph to paragraph makes their reading an enjoyable experience. At least – they can do.
So a resource that lists words and phrases you can use to bring your letter to life, phrases that have been proven over many years to work; in both on and offline material has got to be a great tool to have, don’t you think?
Well we’re not the only people who do… because fortuitously Rich Schefren, a well-respected internet expert, thought so too and is offering a free download of Phrases That Keep Attention on his blog. The content is aimed at the American market, so you’ll have to be selective about which ones you use. Bu, if nothing else, they should help your creative juices flow.
Why not pop over and have a look? Visit Phrases That Keep Attention
By the way, look out for tomorrow’s post – it might make you cringe or blush!
~ Carol Bentley
technorati tags: copywriting marketing
I’ve just read a post by James Brausch in which he says ‘long copy sucks and other heresies’ and quotes tests and experiments he’s carried out. All of which are web-based.
He points out that he fully expects copywriters to jump on him and say long letters do work. And he’s right. Including me – but let me qualify that a bit further…
Do you remember the Opera Singer turned copywriter I mentioned in a post last week? (read If an Opera Singer can do it… so can you)
One of the first questions Kirsty asked me was:
“What’s your view of long versus short letters? Do you get people arguing about it when they ask you to do the copywriting?”
When I said “I’ve proven long letters work and yes, I do get sceptics!” her face was wreathed in a smile. “What do you say to them?” she asked.
So I told her… Want to know what I said?
“When you’re writing a letter you have to bear in mind that there are two types of people who are likely to read it; the detail people – like engineers. They want to be absolutely sure they understand every detail there is to know about whatever is on offer. Then you have the skimmers; the people who are too busy to read everything in your letter.
Now – think about it; what’s the real purpose of your letter?
It isn’t to be read. Its sole purpose is to get the recipient to take the action you want!
So you’ve got to satisfy both types of audience with one letter. And that’s where the formatting of your letter – as well as the wording – comes into play. (I’m going to assume you are writing an interesting, benefits-crammed, focused-on-your-reader type of letter).
For the detail people you must give the answers to all the questions they are asking themselves;
- ‘How will it help me?’
- ‘Why should I buy this?’
- ‘Will I regret spending the money afterwards?’ (known as buyer’s remorse)
- ‘Who else has got results from this?’ (genuine testimonials are needed here)
- ‘Will I get the same or similar result?’
- ‘What’s the risk I take by buying?’ (your guarantee gets around this concern)
You have to provide all the detail to back up their emotional decision to purchase. You can only do this in a long letter.For the skimmers, your sub-headlines give an overview of what your offer is.
If you get it right, as they scan your letter they will pounce on the sub-headline that is answering their burning question or catches their attention with a promise they like.
This is why it is imperative to make sure at least one of your subheads also clearly identifies how they can take up your offer; your call-to-action. Your skim-reader does not want to waste time searching for how to get whatever you are selling.
Something along the lines of ‘3 Easy Steps to Get Your…‘ or ‘How To Get Your…‘ or ‘What To Do Now…‘ is OK.”
I have had people contact me saying “I got your letter. I didn’t read it, it was too long..”
Do you think I care? Not a jot – they’ve got in touch haven’t they?
So my letter has done exactly what I wanted, it’s compelled them to take action.
Read your letter. Does it answer all the questions your prospect is asking (some people call it sales objections, but that seems a bit harsh to me. After all he just wants to know enough to be sure he’s making the right decision for him). Check your sub-headlines; do they give the gist of what the letter is about? Do they draw the reader in to your letter? Are they succinct and supportive or just cute and clever without any substance?
Try this: Give your letter to other people to read. Then ask them did they read the whole thing or just skim? If they skimmed, did they get a feel of what it was about? If they read the whole thing, did they find it interesting or boring? Use their feedback to fine-tune your content, but don’t let the skimmers persuade you to shorten your letter just for the sake of doing so 
.
How Long is Long?
Again there are different views; some people say anything longer than 1 page is a long letter; others say 17, 20 or more pages have proved to be their best sellers. It’s a matter of testing.
For one client I upped their standard sales letter length from 1 uninteresting page to 4 reader-focused pages and it almost doubled the response for them.
For another client, who always sent out very long letters, we tested a 1-page ‘announcement type’ letter that got a great result. It may be because it was a contrast to what his prospects normally got from him.
There is no definitive answer.
Web Copy Length
So does the same apply to web based copy – should they be long letters?
Perhaps not according to James’ tests. But at the seminar where I met Kirsty, which was hosted by a multi-million $ turnover internet marketing company, they said their best selling letter was 55 ‘printed pages’ long!
As with any advice given by experts the only answer is to check what works for you… test both short and long copy in any marketing campaign regardless of whether it is online or offline.
~ Carol Bentley
technorati tags: copywriting web copy
When I first started studying the techniques of the great copywriters I came across a poem written by Victor O. Schwab in 1942; ‘Tell Me Quick and Tell Me True‘. It completely encapsulates the prospect’s point of view about any marketing material we send out. Here’s a few lines from this famous verse (which is pinned to the wall in my office):
So tell me quick and tell me true
(Or else my love to hell with you!)
Less – “how this product came to be”;
More – “what the damn thing does for me!”
And then I found a modern take on this in Jill Konrath’s letter to a seller.
It certainly struck a chord with me.
One of the tricks of copywriting is to imagine the person you are writing to. Understand what interests them; what sort of person they are; what problems they have; what dreams they have.
In fact some expert copywriters give their prospect a name and write specifically to that person; it makes the letter more personal and conversational.
And Jill’s letter adds an extra dimension to this visualisation of your prospect. Because if you can tell what sort of day your prospect is probably experiencing, what pressures they’re under then your letter, email or telephone call is more likely to stay focused and on track.
And that’s good news for you, because you get a clear message across, and it’s good news for your prospect because they get to understand more quickly how you can make life a little easier for them.
And if you don’t know what the day-to-day pressures of your prospective customers are – why not ask some of your existing customers? If nothing else it will show you take an interest in their welfare and will help cement your business relationship with them even more. (If you’d like to tell me what your working day is like I’m a good ‘listener’ 
. Use my blog contact form or leave a comment below).
By the way if your target market is big companies I highly recommend Jill’s book: Selling To Big Companies
. I have a copy in my reference library and give copies away to my clients who target the corporates.
~ Carol Bentley
technorati tags: copywriting selling techniques business resources business tips
Are you losing customers without knowing why? According to research carried out by TARP 68% of customers stop doing business because of perceived indifference, often because of lack of communication.
Printed newsletters are an ideal way of keeping communication channels open with your customers and prospects. Keep your customer up to date with information about your products or services plus little gems of insights that will help him and anything happening in your company and you make him feel he is important to you and you are interested in him.
BUT – be careful not to fall into the ‘newsletter trap’. Make your print newsletter effective by avoiding the 9 biggest mistakes people make (as described in my book); here are 4 of them:
Mistake 1: Boring Headlines
Use descriptive headlines to attract your reader’s interest. Give the promise of something worth reading. You can turn a boring headline into something more appealing by simply expanding it, as in these examples:
Boring Headline: New XL987 Widget
Interesting Headline: New XL987 Widget Increases Production by 30%
Boring Headline: New Website Launched
Interesting Headline: Download Free Report from Newly Launched Website
Boring Headline: Message from the Managing Director
Interesting Headline: Managing Director Announces New Process Cuts Delivery Times in Half
Use attention-grabbing words to give your Newsletter headline more impact, such as ‘new’; ‘announcing’ and, where possible, be specific. It’s no different to creating headlines for your sales letter. Boring headlines are not going to keep his attention.
Mistake 2: Headlines Are The Same Size
Glance through any newspaper and you see the headlines are different sizes. It makes the paper more attractive to look at and guides the reader to more important articles.
Design your newsletter to do the same. Generate more interest in your main stories with larger headlines and use smaller headlines in those that are less significant.
Mistake 3: Woolly Opening Sentences
Keep your reader’s attention with your opening sentence. Keep it specific and relevant to your headline.
Once your reader has been caught by the headline, don’t disappoint him with a boring statement; it discourages him from finishing the article.
For example if you are writing the article for an in-house company newsletter for the XL987 widget headline an uninteresting start might be:
The new XL987 widget was launched at the company AGM on July 18th in London.
Your reader doesn’t care when or where the new product was launched – the sentence offers nothing of real interest at all – it’s likely to elicit the question “So what?”. Whereas this one clearly states something more remarkable:
“As well as increasing production by 30%, the new XL987 widget will cut costs by 10% and is likely to add £1,747,000 to the company turnover,” claimed Managing Director, Charles Forthwith, at the AGM.
Newspaper reporters know they must get the most important information over first to encourage readers to finish the article. You need to do the same.
Mistake 4: Too Many Font Styles
Resist the temptation to ‘pretty up’ your newsletter with a myriad of font styles and colours. It makes your newsletter too busy and difficult for people to read. It also looks very amateurish.
Choose a maximum of 2 fonts – 1 for headlines and 1 for the main body of the text. You can change the size of the headline font to create variety – as previously mentioned.
Do not change the font size for the articles. Write enough text to fill the space you have. Don’t increase the size to fit a gap or reduce the size to fit more in. It looks inconsistent and unattractive.
The bottom line is whatever you use to communicate with your customers and prospects keep it interesting for your reader; think ‘What’s in it for them?’ why should they spend their valuable time reading it?
~ Carol Bentley
technorati tags: copywriting marketing
Just a quick fun post for the weekend.. although it might send you crazy trying to figure out what’s going on .
I found this post which displays a spinning girl
The direction the girl is spinning in is supposed to show which is the dominant hemisphere in your brain. I only saw one direction. When I got my husband to look he saw her going in the opposite direction and then, after about 15 seconds, she reversed direction!!
Someone in the comments said it was a flash display – but the blog author said it was a GIF graphic image. And it is. I copied the image onto my desktop and popped it into an Outlook email to see if she stopped spinning (hadn’t got a GIF viewer to hand). She didn’t – it’s definitely a GIF image.
I’ve turned comments on for this post so you can share what you experienced…
Have fun with it… oh, and if you’re curious, yes my creative side showed dominant – but when I looked again she had reversed direction which means I rely on realism and words… and you’d expect that from a copywriter wouldn’t you? 
~ Carol
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