Will sales copy set the right tone for my website?

Have you seen those long, single page sites on the web and been turned off by what seems like overt sales copy? As a business owner you are right to be concerned about the reputation of your business and how certain kinds of sales copy might be construed.

But there are many creative approaches you can take to sales copy and much can be learned from the tried and tested methods of direct sales techniques.

First things first - longs sales copy actually works

Those long pages (known as landing pages, and usually focused on a single product connected with wealth creation, education or self-improvement) - they have a very high strike rate.

Pitched in the right way, at the correct target audience, long sales copy hits the mark. People prefer to read a lot of testimonials than a few and they associate information rich pages with authority.

It's the style of sales copy that can be adjusted to suit the tone and personality of your business.

You need to understand the function of sales copy

Sales copy is all about action - moving people through a process. Read more here about how to motivate your audience to take action through engaging the audience.

Here are the four steps that sales copy needs to move a reader through:

A (attention)

Attention starts with SEM, the keywords and messages that bring people to your site. The next step is headlines. The headlines on your website must provoke interest.

Good sales copy headlines ask a question (what if, are you tired of, do you want to), make a promise (how to, the secret of, top tips for) or command attention (breakthrough, save, guarantee, discover).

I (interest)

Interest must be established in your introductory paragraphs. Expand on the promise of your headline. Use sales copy to speak directly to your reader in a language they understand about things that matter to them.

And make it very clear what it is that you can offer, solve, fix, help with.

D (detail)

You establish your authority. This is why those long sales copy pages have so many testimonials (still just about THE most powerful tool of persuasion). Detail also means you prove your worth. Provide technical, industrial and other useful information that your reader would not know and/or would have to research elsewhere.

Video and audio are viable and powerful alternatives to the long page. How about a series of audio interviews with key industry experts? A six part video tutorial that people can watch on YouTube?

A (action)

Action is the heart of sales copy. What do you want your visitor to do? You must provide easy to follow instructions, clickable buttons and several opportunities per page. With persuasive enough sales copy people will be ready to take an action. Your responsibility is to make that action clear, easy and safe.

Read more here about how essential these opt-in strategies are to your customer base and list building.

Understand the best online sales copy techniques for your business

Every business is unique. The internet has opened a new world of possibility when it comes to engaging customers and creating unique and powerful sales copy.

If you are uncertain what will be the best fit for your business, please get in touch. Once you know your options you will be in a more secure position to make sales copy decision that will get the best possible results.