#113: Transcending the Printed Word

“This is the challenge of writing. You have to be very emotionally engaged in what you’re doing, or it comes out flat. You can’t fake your way through this.”
–Anonymous author of RealLivePreacher.com

In This Issue:

Transcending the Printed Word
by Krista Jones

Copywriting can be pretty heady stuff. You have to conduct the proper research, decide what’s useful and what’s not, and follow (or at least be aware of) several copywriting formulas to do well.

Of course, none of that matters if you don’t know the person you’re writing to. You must know his feelings, desires, and beliefs so you can relate to him. Your goal is to connect with him on an emotional level and then get him to take the desired action—buy now, fill out a form, pick up the phone and make a call.

But let me ask you something. As you sit down to share ideas, benefits, and proof, should you be acutely aware of your own feelings and emotions?

Absolutely.

I know from firsthand experience that how I feel when I write or revise copy transcends my words. And now I am witnessing it in others through the Copy Protégé Mentoring Program.

Within moments of starting to read someone’s draft copy, I can usually get a clear sense of the writer’s feelings about the product—no matter what the experience level of the copywriter might be.

That’s surprising to some, but it’s because when you communicate with someone, what you say and how you say it is less important than how you feel when you are saying it. Or, in this case, how you feel when you are writing it. When your feelings aren’t congruent with your words, it comes across as insincere.

If you’re sending mixed messages with your copy, it could just be that you haven’t yet convinced yourself that the product is—or can be—all the things you’re saying it is. And if that’s not it, it’s likely that you’re not a prospect for the product so you’re having a hard time getting genuinely excited about it.

Here are a couple of ways to fix it. Do more research (whatever it takes) until you are confident that the product can deliver what it’s supposed to. Then find people who are prospects for the product. Talk to them about all the ways the product could help them. Get excited for them, and keep them firmly in mind as you write.

Before you send the copy off to your client, do one final thing. Ask a friend or copy buddy to review it, not just for holes in logic or awkward wording, but for believability and sincerity.

This might sound like a lot of work to you, but it will be worth it. Because even if you know all the rules of copywriting and say all the right things, if what you feel doesn’t match what you put out there, your reader won’t buy what you’re saying. And that’s a good thing, right?

Resource Referral: What The Secret is Missing

I sat in on a teleconference Saturday morning that was, without a doubt, one of the best calls I’ve ever listened to. It was a 50-minute talk given by Michael Losier. The subject was the law of attraction—what it is and how you can use to get the things you want.

Even though I loved The Secret DVD, it didn’t tell the whole story. It stopped short of telling us how to apply the law of attraction in our daily lives.

Well, Michael not only explained what the law of attraction is, but he very clearly told us how to live the law of attraction in every area of life. He’s even more explicit in his book called Law of Attraction: The Science of Attracting More of What You Want and Less of What You Don’t.

If you like the idea of deliberately attracting the things you want into your life, but are having trouble making it happen, I think you’ll love this practical “plain English” book.

Reader Feedback: Terrific Advice for the Job Fair

Here’s terrific advice for you first-time Bootcampers. Enjoy—and happy job hunting!

“Even though I’m a designer, I still read and recommend your newsletter (especially to designers who should always understand what the challenges are for copywriters.)

Seeing your Bootcamp reports, I thought I’d toss in my 2-cents based on the three Bootcamps I attended when AWAI also ran the Graphic Design Bootcamp.

For first-timers, like I was in 2004, the Job Fair can be very overwhelming. I found that copywriters, not surprisingly for people who work with words, are a talkative bunch. So when those Job Fair doors open, there’s a mad dash of people to every table and if you’re not among the first to hit a table, you can stand there a long time waiting for your chance to talk to the vendor.

By the second year, I figured out that if you wait around long enough, the crowd starts to thin out and it’s much easier to talk to these vendors one-on-one. Last year, by waiting until most other copywriters and designers had left, I was able to talk to just about every vendor with no one else around.

Remember, there’s no prize for being the first one in the door. You’ll generally get a better quality conversation if you wait a bit to hit each table. And you can learn just as much about the vendors’ needs listening to the questions other copywriters are asking them.

Also, if nothing else, make sure to pick up the business cards of the vendors at Bootcamp. That way, you can contact them down the road when they’re not being mobbed by a group of other copywriters. This was important for my first Bootcamp since I wasn’t really ready for jobs at that point. But because I got everyone’s contact info, I could contact them directly when I was ready.

As I found, the Job Fair can be a career-changing experience, but it pays to go in calm and with a plan so you can make the most of the opportunity.”

Mike Klassen
Klassen Communications
http://www.mikeklassen.com