Words That Sell

USING WORDS THAT SELL
Tips For Writing Promotional Copy

Use words that sell when preparing promotional material for your business or your web site.

To sell more, write better!

Use smartwords to help produce more effective copy. Emphasize benefits that meet your customer's needs. Your material will pack more punch when you write to make every word count.

Online, it's words that sell, not graphics. In a few moments, we'll mention some suggestions for good Netwriting and provide some tips and hints from the masters... and we'll show you why so much web copy fails. But first...

A funny thing happened on the way to bringing our consulting business online...

We know our business, and have some passionate ideas about how we can adapt it to doing business online - just as you do...

We have selling experience - just as you do...

We know how to advertise and promote professional services - just as you do with your product or service...

We knew we had to study how to adapt this knowledge and experience to the online world. But we started to run into problems...

As we studied sites to see what others were doing, we saw a lot that were nothing more than electronic versions of the old print brochures...

Others went on at length about what the product is or what it does...

Some were technological marvels - the latest flashing, dancing, whirling, constantly in motion...

And loud, blasting music and weird sounds that we would never choose to listen to...

And crammed so full we couldn't begin to absorb everything that was there...

Still others were slow - painfully s-l-o-w - as frame after frame filled one at a time...

What the Books Didn't Tell Us
About Words That Sell

So many of the sites didn't speak to us - their visitor. The philosophy seemed to be... we're here, because we're here, because we can do these wonderful things, because there is this new technology and we just have to go along with it...

The books were about words that sell, but they seemed to be re-hashing the copy writing techniques that had been written for print media... including the hype and shrill tone - grab attention, shout out the message...

None of them really seemed to address the issue of knowing or sensing one's customer or client.

We know that our consulting expertise comes partly from the knowledge and information we have to share with you - our client... but it also comes from our ability to be objective and to provide insight that helps you focus on and solve your family business problem. Mutual trust and respect are built, even as we work through difficult problems...

We didn't just want to know about words... that sell... we wanted insight into how we could do the job best.

We do understand family values and business systems, and that distinguishes us in the family business consulting field, but our challenge was to convey that benefit to you. Pictures and graphics won't do it... words that hard sell won't do it...

And we knew that those of you who, like us, have already tried to bring your businesses online, and many others who have yet to make that decision, face the same problem... lack of guidance and useful information in finding and using words that sell. You have family values and business values, you want to treat your customer well, provide a great product... but you watch the kind of hype and the scams that are on the Internet, you are bombarded with a carnival-like atmosphere, and you think, "That's not for me!"

Fortunately for us, before we began to despair, we discovered a book about words that sell that really spoke to us...

A Book That Spoke To Us
About Words That Sell

Written by someone who has walked the walk and can talk the talk from being a successful netpreneur...

It was like a ray of sunshine bursting into what was becoming a rather dull and gloomy space! It really shows how to Make Your Words Sell.

It identifies and shows you dozens of copywriting basics, and more advanced techniques for creating and using words that sell -

It will focus you, and eventually everything you do, on answering the question, "Why should I buy yourproduct from your company?" Your words that sell focus on helping your customer answer this question.

It has some really great insight into how and why to get into your customer's mindset... which also means getting out of your own mindset... which is one of the really fundamental keys to online success. And it

And to wrap up our story... it showed us -

  • "Become Your Customer" is our motto.

    Both on Family Business Experts and even here on our information site, we try to look at the world and present things from your perspective. We no longer felt that we were alien or taking a big risk because we wanted to present ourselves on our site rather the way we are in person... We do care about and respect our clients, and did not want to have to become shrill to compete with that type of site.

  • We focus on your benefits, rather than our features.

    When it comes to words that sell, our job was suddenly much easier... since benefits tell the story; when we aren't sure how to organize or summarize a vast amount of material, we think of it from the perspective of benefits for you, and that gives us valuable direction and focus.

  • How to be sensitive to subtext.

    That's the "hidden message" that's sometimes "between the lines." You think that your words that sell you are saying one thing, but someone else reads a different message. For example, we might be very passionate about some point, but if we use language that's too strong, it sounds shrill and desperate rather than passionate.

  • K-I-S-S. Keep It Simple, Sam.

    Yes, we wondered at first if we would have to either learn or hire the expertise to produce the technical wizardry to compete with so many other sites.

    Ken's experience reminded us of what is really going on with web surfers and potential customers, so we were confident that we could and should develop our sites to help them.

  • Personality type.

    As you plan and develop the web site that you will use for your online business, you have to try to identify the different personality types of your target audience, then write to what you consider will be the dominant personality type. Forget the others - your words that sell must focus on one type. So, what are the four personality types?

    • The Boss
    • The Empathizer
    • The Mixer
    • The Ponderer

    The words that sell will be different for the same product or service being sold to different personality types.

That just about wraps up words that sell... except for one really critical question...

When You Start Business Online,
Who Should Take Responsibility for
Words That Sell?

Easy, you say. The web master, or the Information Technology executive... after all, this is a technology tool. And only the geeks can make it work.

Wrong! Dead Wrong!

Certainly, they must ensure the site works... but are they responsible for sales and marketing strategy? No.

Starting business online is an important strategic move, and the web site is a key element for meeting that strategy. Sales copy is your web site salesman, so, we think that the senior executive responsible for sales and marketing [and in many businesses this is the CEO!] should be responsible. Maybe even write some of it... certainly be part of the editing and testing. The words that sell are mission critical.

And to complete the wrap-up...

How to Learn About Words That Sell

To gain a better understanding, a better overview of the importance of using words that sell, we invite you to learn more about:

THE WISDOM OF KEN EVOY





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