When it comes to marketing, there are plenty of tactics out there. And while some might work better for certain products or industries, there is one strategy that works for everybody.
The key to successful marketing? Copywriting.
What is copywriting, you ask?
Simply put, copywriting is the use of words (and sometimes phrases) to persuade potential customers to buy a product or service. In short, copywriting is everything from ads and social media posts to brochures, websites and the like.
The good news is, there is a simple way to utilize copywriting in your marketing efforts. Let’s take a look.
Find The Right Words
The first and most critical step to effective copywriting is finding the right words. What do you mean by ‘the right words’?
You need to find the words or expressions that will appeal to your potential customers. And you should do this through trial and error. Testing different words and phrases to see which ones resonate most with your target audience.
How do you do this? Look at what your competitors are doing and see what phrases and words they are using. And while you’re at it, check out the reviews of your competition as well. You can also get help from word-of-mouth marketing, surveys and polls. Word of mouth and reviews are especially useful when combined with market research.
Make It Simple
When you’re writing copy for marketing purposes, it’s important to keep things simple. Too many words and you’ll lose your reader.
Each word you use in your writing should add value. Think of the readers you’re aiming for and work your way towards them. This means using simple, easily understood language and avoiding complex language. Your writing should be approachable reading for anyone.
So, if you’re writing about investing in gold, your prose should not be excessively technical. Simply recounting the amazing returns of the precious metal could put an interesting spin on an otherwise generic piece of marketing copy.
Make It Actionable
Once you’ve got your words, it’s time to turn them into action. What exactly does that mean?
It means using your words to provoke a positive reaction in your audience. For example, if you are writing about a new diet plan and how great it is for your health, you might want to end the piece with, “With these nutritionally balanced meals, you’ll lose weight without risking your health.”
The reader now has a clear idea of what the diet entails, as well as an opportunity to take action (e.g., purchase the product or service).
This is a crucial step in the copywriting process. You need to be able to connect the information you gave in words to something the reader can actually do. Otherwise, you’re just giving them data without any real added value.
Improve Readability
When you’re looking at the finished product, there are a number of things you can do, aside from just making sure everything is spelled correctly and the grammar is flawless, to improve its readability. You can use white space effectively. White space in between paragraphs or blocks of text can make a huge difference in how easy it is to read. Use of bold, italic or different fonts can also increase the legibility of your text.
When taking into account the style and format of your marketing materials (e.g., websites, social media posts, etc.), you can use your copywriting to inform how your marketing will look. For example, if you’re writing for a blog, you might want to use slightly different text than you would for a brochure.
Link To More Information
When you’ve written your piece, you need to provide the reader with the important information they need to know, including links to more information. But you don’t want to overdo it and make them click away from your piece to find the extra details. So, use your judgment, and provide just enough information for the reader to follow you, while keeping them interested enough to continue reading (or watching) your content.
In summary, when it comes to marketing, there are plenty of tactics out there. And while some might work better for certain products or industries, there is one strategy that works for everybody.
The key to successful marketing? Copywriting. By finding the right words, making it simple and actionable and improving readability, you can use copywriting to influence consumer purchasing decisions.