EmergencyCopywriting

HowToWriteAPersuasiveSalesPitch
InAsLittleAs24Hours...
WithZeroCopywritingExperience

byPaulHancox

2011PaulHancox

Emergency Copywriting 1
YOUR RIGHTS

This electronic publication is for your own personal use only. It does not automatically come
with any rights of distribution. You do not have the right to reproduce, redistribute, resell or
share this publication in any manner, without a resale license from the author.

You must not upload this publication to any file sharing or similar network or service. This
electronic publication may employ watermarking technology to identify the individual
purchaser. Uploading or sharing this file will make you liable to prosecution.

IMPORTANT NOTICE

Whilst the author and publisher has made every reasonable effort to ensure this publication is
free from error, neither author, publisher, reseller nor distributor assume any responsibility for
errors, omissions or contrary interpretation of the subject matter herein. This publication is an
information product, and is not intended for use as a source of legal, accounting or tax advice.
No guarantees of income, sales or results are claimed, and any figures are given for example
purposes only. The reader assumes all responsibility for the use of the materials and
information herein, including adherence to all applicable laws and regulations. Any perceived
slights of persons, peoples or organizations is purely unintentional. The author and publisher
(along with the distributor and/or reseller) assume no responsibility or liability whatsoever on
behalf of any purchaser or reader of these materials.

Emergency Copywriting 2
Contents
Introduction(p4)
1.ConvincingTheNightmareProspectToBuyYourProduct
2.TheHumanMotivationMachineUnderstandingTheDeeperReasons
BehindOurBuyingDecisions(p8)
3.FindingTheMagicSellingIngredientsHiddenWithinYourProductAnd
Story(p27)
4.GettingIntoTheMindOfYourTargetAudience(p32)
5.HowToFireOffBenefitLoadedBulletsIntoYourProspect'sBrain(p35)
6.TheHook:HowToReelInYourProspects(p41)
7.TheMagicHeadlineGeneratorHowToWriteHeadlinesThatYour
Prospects(p43)
8.HowToUseTheSecretsOfNaturalPersuasionToPrimeYourProspects
IntoWantingYourProduct(p51)
9.HowToEliminateTheCompetitionInYourProspect'sMind...SoTheyOnly
WantYourProduct(p60)
10.CreatingARoadmapToGuideYouAndMakeItEasyToWriteYourCopy
(p63)
11.TheRulesTheEliteCopywritersDon'tWantYouToKnow(InCaseYou
PutThemOutOfBusiness)(p69)
12.TheOpener:SevenEasyWaysToStartChattingUpYourProspects(p75)
13.HowToBuildASolidCaseForYouAndYourProduct(AndBuild
AnticipationToKeepThemHooked)(p82)
14.HowToUseStoriesToBuildYourCaseAndMoveProspectsToBuy(p89)
15.IntroducingTheProductAndItsBenefits(p100)
16.HowToBuildYourProspect'sDesireToItsPeak,SoTheyMustHaveIt
Now!(p103)
17.HowToBuildTheValueAndRevealThePrice(p105)
18.HowToUseAStrongGuaranteeToClinchTheSale(p112)
19.TimeToBuy:ClosingTheDeal,AndTheCallToAction(p113)
20.YourLastChance:TheSignatureAndP.S.(p115)
21.HowToWriteSubheadlinesThatStopSkimmersInTheirTracksAnd
ForceThem,KickingAndScreaming,BackIntoYourCopy(p117)
22.HowAndWhereToUseTestimonialsToHelpSellYourProduct(p121)
23.EditingYourCopy(p123)
24.Conclusion(p126)

Emergency Copywriting 3
Introduction
ThankyouforinvestinginEmergencyCopywriting.It'sappreciated.

TherearetworeasonsIwrotethisbook.First,Iwantedtogiveyouaguidefor
whattodoifyouhadnochoicebuttowriteyourownsalespitch,inashort
spaceoftime,andyouhadlittleornoexperienceofdoingthis.

Whatdoyouwrite?Howdoyouwriteit?Howdoyoustructureyoursales
pitch?Wheredoyouintroduceyourproduct?Theanswerisallhere,inthis
book.

Bytheway,inthisbook,whenIrefertoacopywriter,Imeansomeone
whowritessalespitches;andcopysimplyreferstothewordsusedina
salespitch.

Asacopywritermyself,itwouldbenaturalformetotellyouthatyoushould
hireacopywriter.Copywriterswritesalespitchesforaliving.However,I
realizethatsometimesthisisn'tpossible.Maybeyoudon'thavethebudget
rightnow.Goodcopywritersaren'tcheap,becausetheyhavetospendtime
researchingyourmarket,researchingyourproduct,findingthebestwaysto
pitchit,andthenfindingjusttherightwordstoappealtoyourpotential
customers.

Hereyouhaveanadvantage.Hopefullyyoualreadyknowyourmarketand
productquitewell.Nowyoujusthavetofigureouthowtopitchyourproduct.
That'swherethisbookcanhelp.

ThesecondreasonIwrotethisbookistohelpexistingcopywritersmaketheir
lifeeasier,bygivingthemastructuredsystemtheycanusetowritecopy.It'sa
guideyoucanrefertowheneveryougetstuck,andit'scrammedfullofideas
andfragmentsofcopythatwillhopefullygetthebrainjuicesflowingagain.

Whetheryou'veneverwrittenawordofcopyinyourlife,oryou'reaseasoned
copywriter,Ithinkyou'llfindimmensevalueinthisbook.

Emergency Copywriting 4
 I'llsharewithyoudozensofshortcutsthatwillmakewritingyour
salespitchquickerandeasier.

I'llrevealsomeofthetradesecretsofgoodcopywritingthatmost
copywritersdon'ttalkaboutinpublic.

I'llgiveyouplentyoffragmentsofcopyasexamples.Idon'trecommend
youcopythoseexampleswordforword,butunderstandthethought
processbehindthem.

HowI'veStructuredThisBook

Thereisadeliberateordertothisbook.I'vestructureditsothatyoucanread
itfromthebeginning,witheachchapterbuildingonyourunderstandingof
thecopywritingprocess,whileatthesametimeallowingyoutowritesome
partofthesalesletteror,asisthecasewiththeearlierchapters,laythe
importantgroundworkyouneedtounderstandinordertowritegoodcopy.

Ifyoureallydoneedtowriteyoursalespitchrightnow,thenIsuggestyougo
througheachchapterinorder,anddoeachoftheActionStepsthatyou'll
findattheendofmostchapters.Thesewillallowyoutograduallyput
togetheracompellingsalespitch.

I'mgoingtoassumeyouhavezerocopywritingknowledge;butevenifyou're
familiarwithmanyoralloftheprinciplesandtechniquesofcopywriting,I
thinkyou'llfindthisbookveryuseful,asitprovidesyouwithastructured
methodforwritingcopy,alongwithlotsofideasandexamples.

Solet'sgetrightintoit...

1.ConvincingTheNightmareProspect
ToBuyYourProduct

Aprospectisjustapotentialcustomer.ThroughoutthebookI'llusethis
word,becauseit'seasierthantalkingaboutapotentialcustomer.

Emergency Copywriting 5
Beforewebegin,you'llfindithelpfultoknowwhatyou'repotentiallyup
againstwhenitcomestopitchingyourproduct.

Ifyouwanttowritethepitchforaproductyou'vecreated,chancesareyou
thinktheproductisprettygood.Maybeyou'dusewordsandphraseslike
wonderful,revolutionary,uniqueandthebesttodescribeyourproduct
anditseffectonthecustomerandmarket.That'sgreat.

However,youneedtorecognizeacold,hardtruth:Yourmarketprobablywon't
seeitlikethat.Theyneedtobeconvinced.Enthusiasmalonewon'tsellyour
product.Neitherwillsimplyusingtermslikeuniqueorrevolutionary.

Youraimistotakeallofyourenthusiasmfortheproduct,andcombineitwith
apowerfulandpersuasivepitchthatgrabsyourpotentialcustomer'sattention,
offerstosolveapressingproblemorsatisfyaburningneedoftheirs,builds
theirdesiretofeverpitch,andcompelsthemtobuynow,ormissoutonallthe
wonderfulbenefits.

Evenifyou'vewrittenaspectacularsalesletter,itstilldoesn'tautomatically
meanyourprospectwillbesittinginfrontofthecomputerscreen,absorbing
everysingleword.

Let'simaginethenightmareprospect.Let'scallhimBill.HowdoesBillcome
acrossyoursalespitchinthefirstplace?He'ssittingonhiscouch,chugging
backabeer,browsingthroughhisfavouritesportsforumontheInternet,
whereothersportsfanshangout.Hiseyesaredrawntoalinkmentioning
yourproduct.

Outofcuriosity,heclicks...andyoursalespitchappearsinhiswebbrowser.At
thesametime,hehastheTVnewsoninthebackground,whichisconstantly
flashingupthelatestbreakingnews,histwochildrenaredartingroundthe
houseataspeedthatcanonlyendindisaster,andhiswifeishoveringabout,
tryingtodiscusswithBilltheirnextvisittotheirdaughter'sschool,andwhat
theymightsaytotheteacher.

Intruemalefashion,BillmanagestosuccessfullykeepaneyeontheTVnews,
feigninterestinhiswife'squestions,andgiveyoursalesletterapassing
glance,allatthesametime.Here'syourfirsthurdle:gettinghisfullattention.

You'vegothisattentionmomentarily,andsohe'llgiveyoualittletimetohear

Emergency Copywriting 6
whatyouhavetosay...butnotmuch,becausehe'sbusyandotherthings
(potentiallyofmoreimmediateimportance)arecompetingforthatattention.
Ifyoucanpromisetosolveapressingproblem,ortalkaboutsomethinghe
reallywantsorneeds,thenperhapshe'llhearyouout...buthe'sskeptical,and
cynical.

Hestartsreading.Thisisinteresting,hethinks...butthenhewonders:Who
isthisperson,andwhyshouldItrustthem?

Maybeyoushareinsightswithhim,thathelphimtounderstandhisproblem
andwhyhehasn'talreadysolvedit.Hethinks,Thispersonseemstoknow
whatthey'retalkingabout.Maybeyoutellhimthestoryofhowyouusedto
havethesameproblem,howyouovercameit,andwhatlifeislikeforyou
now.Hethinks,I'dlikethoseresults!...butIdon'twanttohavetoworkthat
hardforthem.

Thenyoustarttoexplainwhyyoudecidedtocreatetheproduct(i.e.sohe
doesn'thavetoworkashardasyoutogettheresults),andhisskepticalmind
beginstokickinagain.Hereitcomes...thesalespitch!hethinks.Yetasyou
introducetheproduct,andtalkaboutallthewonderfulbenefitshecouldget
fromit,hefeelsanincreasingsenseofexcitementdeepinside.Couldthisbe
thesolutionI'vebeenlookingfor?hewondershopefully,asyoushowhimthat
thisisTHEproductforhim.

Youthentalkaboutwhathislifecouldbelikewiththebenefitsandtheresults
youoffer.Youshowhimthat,infact,hereallyneedsthisproduct.Yes,hecan
picturetheresultsinhismind...itlooksgood,anditfeelsgood.Itfinallyfeels
likesomethinghecanactuallymakereal.Coulditbe...?

Butwait...there'ssomethinginthebackofhismind.Aquestion.Anobjection.
Willthisworkforme?CanIreallygetthesameresults?Whatarethechances?
CanIusethisinmysituation?Whatifitdoesn'twork?Oh...andhowmuchis
thisgoingtocostme?

Youskillfullytacklehisobjections,andanswerallhisquestions,sothatthe
onlythingnowlefttotalkaboutistheprice.Youremindhimofallthevalue
hewillbegettingfromthepackage,andthenyoupresentthepricetohim,
allowinghimtoseeitinrelationtootherthingshecouldspendhismoneyon.

Youthenshowhimhowalloftheriskisonyou,nothim,byofferingyour
solidmoneybackguarantee.Inotherwords,hehasnothingtolose,butso

Emergency Copywriting 7
muchtogain,hecansimplytryitout,andifhedoesn'tlikeitoritdoesn't
workthenforwhateverreasonhecangethismoneyback.

Youthenputforwardafinalefforttoclinchthesale,remindinghimofthe
wonderfulbenefitshe'sabouttoreceive,andwarninghimgentlyofthe
consequencesifhedoesn'ttakeactionnow.Youtellhimhowtoorder,and
thenyoutellhimtoorder.I'vegotnothingtolose,hethinks.Imightaswell
order!

ThisistheoutlineofthejourneyonwhichyouwanttotakeBill.Don'tworry
ifitsoundslikealot...it'smucheasierthanyouthink,whenyoufollowthe
systemI'llsharewithyouinthisbook.

Theimportantthingtorealizeisthatyou'retakingyourprospectsona
journeythroughseveraldifferentstatesofmind.Atthestart,hemighthave
clickedontoyoursalesletteroutofcuriosity,butinhismindhe'sskeptical.As
yourpitchresonateswithhim,hegrowsmoreinterestedandfascinatedby
whatyouhavetosay.Thedesiretogethisproblemsortedgrowstoitspeak.
Asyouintroduceyourproduct,questionsariseinhismind,whichneedtobe
answeredbeforehewillbuy.Finally,yourpitchmayconvincehimthatyou
havetherightsolutionforhim,butthenhefeelsalastminutehesitation.
Afterall,it'seasiertoputthisoffuntilanotherday.Outofsight,outofmind.

Nowyouunderstandtheoveralljourney,let'sexploredeeperintothehuman
mindandsoul,andwhatmotivatesustobuy.

2.TheHumanMotivationMachine
UnderstandingTheDeeperReasons
BehindOurBuyingDecisions
We'realluniqueindividuals,andyetashumanbeings,weallsharemany
thingsincommon.Wemightlaughandcryatdifferentthings,butweall
laughandcry.

InthischapterI'mgoingtosharewithyouthemajorfactorsthatdriveand
motivateusashumanbeings,thatareusefulinabuyingcontext.Whenyou
understandthesefactors,you'llbeabletopersuadeandmotivatepeopleto

Emergency Copywriting 8
taketheactionyouwantthemtotakewhetherthat'sbuyingyourstuff,or
takingsomeotherformofactionsuchassubscribingordonatingtocharity.

Takentogether,IcallallofthesefactorstheHumanMotivationMachine.For
now,readthroughandenjoythischapter,absorbingallofthelittlelessonsit
contains.Alongtheway,spendalittletimethinkingabouteachone,andhow
itmightapplytotheproductyou'reselling.Makeanoteoftheonesyouthink
apply,andabriefnoteaboutwhy.

Lateronwhenitcomestowritingyoursalespitch,runeverythingyouwrite
throughthisHumanMotivationMachine.Witheverythingyouwriteinyour
salespitch,seeifyoucanappealtooneormoreofthesehumanmotivators.
(I'llgiveyouplentyofexamplesofhowtodothisalongtheway.)

I'veattemptedtoputthesehumanmotivatorsinroughlytheorderof
importanceinwhichIfeeltheyinfluencebuyers.However,thisordermaybe
different,dependingonanumberoffactors.

Forexample,aperson'sownvalues,religion,cultureandethicswillplaya
majorpart.Ifyou'vechosentoliveasahermitinaremotemonastery,chances
arethatfactorslikesexandmoneyaren'tgoingtoplayabigpartinyourlife.
Inotherwords,yourhighervalueslikechastity,orsolitudearegoingto
dominateyourthinking,andinfluencethewayyourespondtothemotivators
listedinthischapter.

Aprospect'sowncircumstanceswillalsodeterminewhat'smostimportantto
thematanyonetime.Amanabouttolosehishomeisprobablymore
concernedwiththeimmediatefuture,wherehe'sgoingtolive,hissafetyand
security...thanwithsex.

Inotherwords,inthischapterI'mnotattemptingtowriteacomprehensive
courseonhumanpsychology.It'sdesignedtogiveyouaquickandsimple
insightintowhatmakesustick.

Selfishness

Basically,we'reallselfish,atleastinabuyingcontext.That'swhy,inyour
pitch,youmustanswerthequestionyourreaderiswonderingrightfromthe
start:WhyisthisimportanttoME?...WhyshouldIcare?...What'sinitfor
ME?

Emergency Copywriting 9
Themostpowerfulwordyoucanuseinanysalespitchisyou.You'retalking
tothemaboutthemostimportantpersonintheirlifethemselves.

Ofcourse,we'renotcompletelyselfish.Weusuallyputourfamily'sneeds
beforeourown.Manyfatherswouldrunintoaburningbuildingtosavetheir
children,andmanymotherssacrificeapartoftheirownfreedomtobringup
theirchildren.Forsomeproducts,youcanthereforeappealtoaperson's
desire(andsenseofduty)toputtheirfamily'sneedsfirst.Don'tyouoweitto
yourfamilytomakesuretheyaresafeandsecure?

Wealsohave,perhapstoalesserextent,asenseofduty,responsibilityand
attachmenttoourcommunityandnation,andmaybetocertaincauses,such
asprotectingtheenvironment.

Nevertheless,evenwhenwe'reactingselflessly,there'sstillabenefitinvolved
tous,evenifit'ssimplythefeelingofacertainsenseofdutypaid,andasense
ofsatisfactionthatwe'remakingadifference.

Just$1aweekwillfeedyourfellowhumanbeinginWindowslandmightbe
apowerfulpitchforacharity,butwhynotspiceitupbyofferingtorelieve
themoftheirburdenofasenseofduty,andofferingthemthebenefitof
feelinggood.Makeadifference...doyourpart.Just$1aweekwillfeed
yourfellowhumanbeinginWindowsland.Itfeelsgreattohelpothers.Please
helpout.

Vanity

Ashumans,wecanbeaprettyvainbunch.Ingeneral,wetendtothinkwe're
alittlebitbetterthanotherpeople.Mostpeopleconsiderthemselvestobe
aboveaveragedrivers,betterthanaverageperformersatwork,betterlooking
thanothers,betterlovers,etc.Don'tfightthistendency.Instead...

>Appealtotheirinnernarcissist.

IrecentlyreadaheadlineintheFemailsectionoftheDailyMail,aUK
newspaper:Theegoepidemic:Howmoreandmoreofuswomenhavean
inflatedsenseofourownfabulousness.[link]

Thearticlestartedoutbysaying:Uswomenaremoreegocentricand
narcissisticthanweeverusedtobe,accordingtoextensiveresearchbytwo
leadingpsychologists.Moreofushavehugeexpectationsofourselves,our

Emergency Copywriting 10
livesandeveryoneinthem.Wethinktheuniverseresolvesaroundus,witha
deludedsenseofourownfabulousness,andbelievewearecleverer,more
talentedandmoreattractivethanweactuallyare.

Tobefair,Ithinkthesameorworsecanbesaidofmanymen.Andwhile
narcissism(thatis,anexcessiveloveofoneself)probablydoesn'tmakefor
wellroundedpeople,whenwe'rewritingasalesletterwe'renotaimingto
eliminatetraitslikenarcissismandvanityinourreaderswe'regoingto
utilizethem.

Appealtotheirvanity.Tellthemtheydeserveit.Notonlydotheyneedthe
product(andtheresultsitpromises),notonlydotheywantit,buttheyalso
deserveit.It'stheirreward,forputtingupwiththeproblemforsolong.
Framingyourproductnotmerelyasasolutionbutalsoasareward,makesit
evenmoredesirable.It'stheirtreat.Itappealstotheirinnernarcissist.

Selfloathing/lowselfesteem.Insomemarkets,yourprospectsmight
suffertheoppositeofnarcissimthatis,theymightdislikeorevenhate
someaspectofthemselves.Thisisespeciallytrueforproblemswhich
involvephysicalormentalchanges,suchasweightloss,muscle
buildingordating.Inthiscase,helpthemtoseethatit'snottheir
fault,thatthey'vebeenletdownbytheauthorityfiguresinthatindustry,
andthattheydeservebetter.

SexandLove

Sexisnature'swayofkeepingthehumanracegoing.Withoutit,we'dbe
extinctwithinafewgenerations.Sexisalsopleasurable.Ifitweren't,the
humanracewouldhaveprobablypassedaway,possiblybythetimewe
inventedTV...andcertainlybyFacebook.

Sexsellsbecauseit'soneofourmostprimalhumanmotivators.Likeitornot,
stickaprettyfemalenexttoaslinkysportscarinanadvertisement,andsee
howmanyadultmaleswillbeabletoresistglancingintheadvert'sdirection.

Formen,thatkindofadvertisadoubleblowtothecranium.Notonlyarethe
advertisersusingtheprettyfemaletograbattention,butthenthey're
suggestingtothemalemind:Hey,buythissportscar,andyoutoocouldhave
thisprettyfemale.Sure,mostmendon'tthinkthey'llfallforthat...butthe
associationisstillmade,intheirmind,atthesubconsciouslevel.

Emergency Copywriting 11
Relatedtosexandlovearethehumanmotivatorsof...

Attractivenesswewanttoappearattractivetoothers.Thinkofthe
lengthssomewillgotoenhancetheirlooks.Why?It'sbecause
attractivenessimpliessexappeal.

Youthfulnesswewanttobeyoung,stayyoung,andfeelyouthful.This
isespeciallytrueaswegrowolder.Peoplewillplasterallkindsofstuff
ontotheirfaces,justtoturntheclockback,orrathertokeeptheclock
fromappearingtobemoving.Youthfulnessimpliessexappeal.

Fitnesswewanttobefit.Everwonderwhysomanyguysareobsessed
withgoingtothegymandworkingontheirpecs?Sure,it'saboutself
respect...butIbetit'sultimatelybecausetheyequatefitnesswithgetting
moresex.Fitnessimpliessexappeal.

Fertilitywewanttheabilitytomakebabiesandbestowtheworldwith
littleversionsofourselves.Hownicefortheworld.

Noticethattheabovefourmotivatorsattractiveness,youthfulness,fitness
andfertilityarealldesirabletraitsinasexualpartner;sowhiletheyeach
confertheirownadvantages(i.e.ifyou'refit,you'relessinclinedtobeill),
theyalsoimplythathavingthosetraits,you'llgetmoresex.

Bottomline,nomatterhowmuchpeopledenylosingweightorgainingmuscle
orlivingmorehealthilyormakingmoremoneyisaboutgettingmoresex...itis,
atleasttoacertainextent.Thepersonlosingweightultimatelywantstolook
andfeelgood,andfeelattractiveanddesirabletotheoppositesex.

Loveandcompanionship.OK,it'snotALLaboutsex.Wealsowantto
loveandbeloved.Wewantthatspecialsomebodywithwhomto
shareourlives,anddoallthatromanticstuff.(Asyoucantell,I'ma
romanticatheart.)Wewanttobecherished,seduced,lovedand
nurtured.Wewantsomeonetocare.

MoneyandWealth

Weallwantmoney,right?Truthis,wedon'tusuallyhavemuchchoice.We
oftenneedmoney,toputaroofoverourhead,topaythebills,andtofeedand
clotheourselvesandourfamilies.

Forthatreason,Ithinkwehavetwocategoriesofmoneyinourheads.The

Emergency Copywriting 12
firstissurvivalmoney.Thisisthemoneyweneedinordertofeed,clothe
andhouseourselvesandourlovedones.Thesecondisdiscretionarymoney
what'sleftafterwe'vepaidthebills.It'sthemoneywecanplaywithaswe
choose;toinvest,togamble,orperhapstosplashoutinfancyrestaurantsor
onrelaxingvacations.

Weneedsurvivalmoney,butwemightwantmorediscretionarymoney.In
otherwords,therearetwomainreasonswewantmoneytoSURVIVE,and
toPROSPER.Thisaffectsourmotivationforgettingmoney.We'llfighttooth,
clawandnailtogetenoughmoneytosurvivebecause,well,oursurvival
dependsonit.Butthat'sasfarasmanypeoplewillgo,whichiswhythey
mightstickwithajobthatpaysthemenoughmoneytosurvive,andmaybea
littleleftovereverymonth.

Ifyou'repitchingamakemoneyproduct,you'renotnecessarilyappealingto
theirselfishside,theirdesiretogetrichformany,it'saboutsurvivalfirstof
all.Theyultimatelywanttosurviveandprosper.

Here'stwootherimportantthingstonoteaboutmoney:

(1)Moneyisjustamediumofexchange.Weuseittobuythingsweneedand
want.I'mnotjusttalkingaboutphysicalobjects.Italsobuysusmore
intangiblethingslikeentertainment,security,peaceofmind.(For
example,youbuyhealthinsurancepartlyforpeaceofmind.)Wecanalso
exchangemoneyforotherpeople'slabor,sointhatsenseitcanalsobuyus
otherpeople'stime.

(2)Affordabilityissubjective.A$7hamburgermightbeanimpulse
purchasetoawelloffAmerican,butitmightbeadayorevenaweek'swages
tosomeoneelsewhere.$7mightbetoomuchevenforacashstrapped
American,strugglingtomakeendsmeet.However,acompulsivegambler
mighthavenomoneytofeedhisfamily,andyetcansomehowaffordto
feedhisgamblingaddiction.

Keepinmindthatmakingyoumoneyandsavingyoumoneyareimportant
productbenefits.Alongwithourdesire(andneed)formoney,theserelated
thingscanmotivateusinabuyingcontext:

Abetterdealwewantourmoneytogofurther.Canyouoffera
betterdealthaneverybodyelse?

Emergency Copywriting 13
 Abargainduringhardereconomictimeswelovefindingbargains.
Somepeoplewillactivelyhuntforthem,andderivegreatpleasurefrom
findingthem.Comingacrossabargainisagreatexcusetobuy.It'swhy
salesaresopopular.Icouldn'tresist,darling...itwasonoffer!

Exclusivitythosewithmorediscretionarymoneyavailableto
them,mayprefertobuythingsthataresomewhatexclusive,not
availabletothemasses.Thisappealstotheirsubtledesiretofeel
superiortoothers,toshowofftheirshinyobjects.

Toavoidbeingrippedoffwedon'twanttobetakenforaride.We
don'twanttobescammed,stolenfrom,orovercharged.Wedon'twant
tofeelstupid.Wedon'twantourfriendsandfamilycriticizingour
purchasingdecisions.Ifyourproductismoreexpensivethanthe
competition,makesureyouexplainwhyinyoursalespitch,inaway
thatyourprospectscanrepeattotheirfriendsandfamily.Otherwise
they'llfeelfoolishwhenthey'retold,Oh,Icouldhavegotthatcheaper
foryou.

SavingTimeAndEffort

Allofushave24hours...1,440minutes...availabletouseachday.Atypical
personmightspend8ofthosehours(i.e.480minutes)asleep,andanother8
hoursinajob.Thatleavesthemwithjust480minutesforthemandtheir
familynotmuch,isit?

Nowonderproductsthatsaveyoutimecansell.Wecan'tgetmoreminutesin
aday,butifyourproductreducesthelengthoftimeittakestodoatask,it
meansfreeingupyourprospect'stime.It'slikegivingthembackmoretime!
Evenbetter,iftheproducteffectivelyoutsourcesthetask,itcouldtakethe
prospectnotimeatall,leavingthemfreetousetheirtimeonmoreproductive
things.Inabusinesscontextthatmightmeanbeingabletofocusonhigher
leveltasksthatbringinmorerevenue.Inapersonalandfamilycontext,that
mightmeanspendingmoretimewithlovedones,anddoingthethingsthey
reallyenjoy.

Giventhatyourprospectonlyhas1,440minutesintheirday,andmaybeonly
480ofthoseminutesareavailabletothempersonally(unlesstheyintendto
readyoursalesletterintheirsleep,oratwork)...don'twastetheirtime.Your
pitchmustspeakdirectlytoyourprospects,andberelevantandinterestingto
them.Otherwisetheywillspendtheirvaluable480minutesonthingsthatare

Emergency Copywriting 14
moreimportantorinterestingtothem,orthatcapturetheirattentionmore
effectively.

Themagicpill.Wewanttheshortcuttofastlearningandsuccess.We
wantthingstobequick,easyandpainless.Thebenefitismakingyour
lifeeasier.Canyourproducttakeyouryearsoflearningand
experience,packageitupforthemanddeliverittothemasaquick
fix,amagicpillfortheirproblems?I'llgiveyoutheshortcutto
successthat'stakenmeliterallyYEARStodiscover.Itwilltakeyoujust
DAYStolearnwhattookmeover5yearstofigureout!

Minimumeffort.IfweHAVEtodoatask,wewantittoinvolveaslittle
effortandworkaspossible.Saveusbothtimeandeffort.Wordsand
phraseslikeeasy,simple,effortless,virtuallynoworkinvolved,without
liftingafinger...allimplythis.Savingyouenergy/workisanother
majorbenefit.It'sincrediblysimple...justfollowthethreeeasysteps
thatwilltakeyoujust7minutesaday...

Fear/FearOfLoss

Weallhavefears.Someofthosefearsmightbeperfectlyrational,suchasthe
fearofdying,orofbeingkickedoutofyourapartmentnextmonthbecauseof
nothavingthemoneytopaytherent.Otherfearsmaybeclosertophobias,
suchasafearofflyingorofpublicspeaking.Somefearsmightbemorevague
andhazy,suchasafearoftheunknownorthefuture.

Wemightreacttofearindifferentways.Wemighttryandignoreit,andhope
theproblemgoesaway,oravoidtheproblemaltogether.Ifwe'reconfronted
withtheproblem,wemightgointofightorflightmode,likeacornered
animalthathasnochoicebuttorunawayorfightback.

Fromacopywritingpointofview,themostusefulresponseisthatoffight.A
runningawayresponsemeansthey'llleaveyoursalespitchwithoutplacing
anorder.Ratherthanallowingthemtorunawayfromorignoretheirfears,
wewanttohelpthemconfrontandovercomethosefears.Ifourproductoffers
anantidotetotheirfears,thenwewantthemjustfearfulenoughthatthey
wanttofightthefear,withourproductastheirweapon.

Wewanttoplayontheirfears,butinacompassionatewaythatcompelsthem
totakeaction,sothatyouultimatelyallaytheirfearsandgivethemhope.You
don'twanttosay,Buythisdatingproduct,oryoumightdiealone.That'sjust

Emergency Copywriting 15
mean!However,youcanhintatthisfear,whilebeingcompassionateatthe
sametime.Nobodylikestobealone...andnobodyneedstobe.Attheend,
whenwelookbackonourlives,everybodywantstofeelliketheylovedand
wereloved.That'swhyRIGHTNOWistheperfecttimetotakeaction,andto
findtheloveofyourlifewiththehelpofmydatingproduct.Don'tmissout...
heorshecouldbewaitingforyourightnow!

Fearoflossisalsoapowerfulmotivator.Ifwehavesomething,wemaybe
moreconcernedwithlosingwhatwealreadyhave,thanofgettingsomething
wedon'tyethave.Don'trisklosingyourhardearnedsavingsjustbecauseyou
madethewronginvestmentchoices.I'llshowyoutheinvestmentsthatare
goingtoperformthebestoverthenext10years...andit'snotwhatthetalking
headsinthemediaaretellingyou.

Missingout.Aswellasobjects,peopleandmoney,fearoflossalso
appliestothingslikeopportunitiesandoffers.Ifwe'represented
withanopportunity,wedon'twanttofeellikewe'vemissedout.We
don'twanttolosetheopportunityorofferandregretnottakingitup.
Weworrythatthepainofregretisgoingtobeworsethanthecostof
takingtheopportunity.That'swhyit'spowerfulwhenyoucanframe
youropportunitywithfearoflossinmind.Ifyoudon'ttakethis
opportunitytoday,you'llloseoutonallthewonderfulexperiencesour
membersareenjoyingrightnow.Signuptoourdatingsiterightnow...
beforeyoumissoutonmeetingthemanorwomanofyourdreams!If
youdon'tplaceyourordertoday,you'llmissoutonthisexclusive,never
toberepeatedoffer.

Beingleftbehind.Fromparentsputtingfearintotheirchildrenby
warningthemoftheconsequencesofnotgettinggoodenoughgrades,
toevangelistswarningofthedireconsequencesifyou'renotpartofthe
elitewhoarerapturedtoheaven(LeftBehindbeingthenameofa
popularseriesoffictionalbookswithanapocalyptictheme),nobody
wantstobeleftbehindinthegreatracetogetahead.Ifyoudon'tget
thisseriesofvideosonhowtodoubleyourbusinessprofitsinthenext2
weeks,you'llbeleftbehindassmartbusinessesupanddownthe
country...someofwhommaybeyourcompetitors...starttoimplement
thesestrategiesandstealprofitsthatshouldrightfullybeyours.Don't
beTHATGUY...youknow,theguywhostandsandwatchesintheclub
asotherguyssweepallthehotwomenofftheirfeet,leavingyouwith
with...toputitcrudely...the'scraps'...don'tbeleftbehindinthedating
game...getmyproductnow.

Emergency Copywriting 16
Greed

Greediswhywholeassetclasseslikerealestateorstockshavetheir
bubbles.Aspricesrise,moreandmorepeoplepileintotheassettomakea
quickbuck,drivingpricesevenfurther,reinforcingthebeliefthatpricesare
onlygoingoneway,andthat'sup...suckeringyetmorepeoplein.

Finally,pricesreachanunsustainablelevel,andthebubblebursts...leavinga
trailofwipedoutinvestors,negativeequityorbiglosses,andbankruptciesall
round,whilethemarketwaitsforthenextgenerationofpeopletocomealong
whocan'trememberthepreviousbubble,andsomakethesamemistakesas
thepreviousgeneration.Greedinflatesthebubble,andfeardeflatesit.That's
whyyou'lloftenhearininvestmentcirclesthatfearandgreedarethetwo
maindriversofstockmarketprices.

Thedesiretomakeafastbuckisverystrong,especiallywhenlotsofother
peopleseemtobedoingit.Itcreatesaherdmentality,andittakesastrong
willtoresistgoingalongwiththecrowd.Afterall,whowantstoloseouton
makingeasymoney?

Getrichquick.Thephraseitselfmaytriggerinstantskepticism
(whichiswhyIwouldavoidusingthisprecisephraseincopy),butthe
underlyingsentimentisstillthere.Peoplestillwantthefastbuck,the
quickriches.It'swhymoneymakingproductsselllikehotcakes;bottom
line,itappealstoourgreed,ourwishforeasymoney,tohaveitall,
withoutreallyhavingtoworkforit.

Hope

Weallwanttobelievethatwecanhaveabetterfuture,thatwearen't
predestinedtobepoor,fatforlife,nevermeettheloveofourlife,ortoalways
bestuckinthesamedeadendjobuntiltheendoftime.Wewanthope.We
wanttobelieve.Wewanttoknowthere'slightattheendofthetunnel,and
notasteelbarrier.

Betheonetoofferthemthebrighterfuture,toleadthemintogreener
pastures.Betheirheroorheroine,theirknightinshiningarmor,andthe
slayerofevildragons.FireYourBoss:Here'sHowToEscapeTheGrindOf
The9To5...AndBeYourOwnBoss,AtLast.

Emergency Copywriting 17
EvenifyourproductdependsupontheFourHorsemenoftheApocalypse
ridingroughshodovertheplanetfirst,showyourprospectshowtheycan
benefiteveninthosedoomandgloomscenarios.HowToProfitFromThe
NextFinancialCrisis.Here'sWhyTheCollapseOfThePropertyMarketIs
ThePerfectOpportunityForYou...

HealthandFitness

OverontheClickBankMarketplace(aplacetoselldigitallydownloadable
products)awholeproductcategoryisdevotedtoheathandfitness,and
that'swhereyou'llfindsomeofthebiggestsellingproductsproductson
musclebuilding,dietingandweightloss,nutrition,andplainoldcuresand
treatmentsforphysicalproblemsrangingfromarthritistoyeastinfection.

Wewanttobehealthyandfit,becauseitallowsustodomuchmorethanif
we'reunhealthyandunfitandofcourse,fitnessimpliessexappeal.

Convenience.Unfortunately,theexistenceoffastfooddemonstrates
thatconveniencecantrumpotherthings,includingnutritionalfood.The
lessonhere?Makewhatyouhavetoofferasconvenienttobuyas
possible.

PreventionVsCure.It'sawellknownfactincopywritingcirclesthat
peopleprefercuresfortheirproblems,ratherthanseekingoutwaysof
preventingproblemsarisinginthefirstplace.Inotherwords,whilein
therealworld,preventionisbetterthancure,solutionsthatpreventa
problemdon'tsellaswellassolutionsthatcure.Thisrelatestoour
wonderfulcapacitytoputthingsoff.We'llcrossthatbridgewhenwe
cometoitisbasicallyourwayofsayingwedon'twanttothinkaboutit,
andprepareinadvanceforwhatmighthappen.

Safety/Security/PeaceOfMind

Weallwanttobeandfeelsafeandsecure,andtokeepourfamiliessafe.You
mightbuyahomesecurityproductbecauseitoffersyouthebenefitsofpeace
ofmindandsecuritythesecurityofyourhome,andthepeaceofmindthat
you,yourfamilyandyourvaluablesaresafe.

Thisisanotherreasonpeoplewantmoney.Havingmoneyprovidesaformof
securityandpeaceofmind,whilealackofmoneycanmeanuncertaintyand
insecurity.

Emergency Copywriting 18
Freedom/Liberty

Freedomisabasichumandesire,bothindividuallyandcollectively;fromthe
moodyteenagerkeentoassertindependencefromthecontrollingparent,to
the13fledglingBritishcoloniesthatdemandednotaxationwithout
representation,andthrewofftheyolkofKingGeorgetofoundtheUnited
StatesofAmerica,basedontheconceptofliberty.

BenjaminFranklinsaid:Theywhocangiveupessentiallibertytoobtaina
littletemporarysafety,deserveneitherlibertynorsafety.Franklin'swarning
wasprimarilymeantasapoliticalproverb;thatnationsareoftenindangerof
exchangingtheirlibertyforsafety.

Nevertheless,itcouldbearguedthatmillionsofindividualssacrificeacertain
amountoflibertyforsafetyeverydayonapersonalbasis,astheydriveto
workandreceiveapaycheckthatallowsthemtopaytheirbillsforanother
month.They'veexchangedthesecurityofastableincomeforthelibertyof
beingyourownboss.

Pleasure

Wegravitatetowardthingsthatarepleasurableforus.That'swhysexisso
popular.Eatingtastyfoodsispleasurable,whichisprobablyafactorwhenit
comestolosingweight.I'msurefewerpeoplewoulddrinkalcoholifitonly
deliveredahangoverthefollowingmorning!

Goodstatesofmind,likejoy,blissandhappinessmightbeassociatedin
ourmindswithpleasure.Weseekoutgoodtimes,happydays,funand
laughter,becausethosethingsarepleasurabletous.

Instantgratification.Whenwewantsomething,wewantitNOW
ratherthanlater.That'swhytheconceptofbuynow,paylaterisso
popular.Yougetthepleasureofowningtheproductnow,anddelaythe
painofpayingforituntilanothertime!Aimtogetyourproductinto
yourprospect'shandsasquicklyaspossible,tosatisfytheirdesirefor
instantgratification.Ifyoursisadigitallydownloadableproduct,pitch
thisasabenefit.Youdon'tevenhavetowaittohavethisdelivered...
themomentyouplaceyourorder,you'llbetakentoapagewhereyou
candownloadthisproductimmediately,andstartgettingthebenefits
rightaway.

Emergency Copywriting 19
AvoidanceofPain

Whilewemovetowardspleasure,we'llusuallymoveawayfrompain.WhenI
wasveryyoung,Irememberacoalfirewherewelived.Irememberpickingup
oneofthehotcoals.Iguesscuriositygotthebetterofme.Thepaintaughtme
aninstantlessonI'llneverforget...don'tpickuphotcoals(justincaseyou
mightbetempted).Iworeasockovermyhandforthenextthreeweeks.
AnothertimeIdecidedtofindoutwhatwouldhappenifIfiredastaplerinto
mythumb.Idiscoveredthatithurt.Likehell.

Painisnature'swayoftellingyounottodostupidthingslikestaplingyour
thumb,ortowarnyouthatsomethingiswrong.That'swhyweflinchwhen
thathandorfistcomesourway.It'sourbody'snaturalreaction.Ourbrainis
hardwiredtoavoidpain.

Andit'snotjustphysicalpain.Paincouldalsomeanemotionalpain,
unpleasantconsequences,thingswewanttoavoid.

Usecopythatmovespeopleawayfrompainorunpleasantconsequences.
AvoidtheTHREEmistakes87%entrepreneursmakethatwillKILLOFFYOUR
NEWBUSINESSfasterthantheIRSevercould.

Einsteintaughtusthateveryactionhasareaction.Inthecontextof
copywriting,I'dalsosaythateveryinactionhasaconsequence.Tellthemabout
theconsequencesofnotdoinganything,ofnotgettingtheirproblemsolved.
Movethemtogetofftheirbuttsanddosomethingaboutit(whichusually
meansbuyingyourproduct).

Procrastination.Isupposethisisreallyanantimotivator.It'sabout
puttingthingsoff....usually,thingsthatarelikelytoinvolvepainor
effort.Whencreatingyoursalespitch,youcan'taffordtoletyour
prospectsputofftheirproblemsanylongerbecauseiftheydo,chances
aretheywon'tbuyfromyou.That'swhyyoumustagitatetheir
problems,rubthewoundalittle,andremindthem(ina
compassionatemanner)ofthepossibleconsequencesiftheydon'tget
theirproblemssortedout.You'renotdoingthistobenasty.It'stoshake
themoutoftheircomplacency,tostopthemprocrastinating,andto
movethemtotakeactionNOW,beforeit'stoolate.

Information/Knowledge/Wisdom/Secrets

Emergency Copywriting 20
Childrenhaveanaturalthirstforknowledge.Ifyou'reaparent,youknowthat
thequestionsyourchildrenaskyoualmostneverseemtoend.That'sbecause
they'reonamissiontomakesenseoftheworld.TheyaskWhy?questions,
totryandunderstandwhythingshappenthewaytheydo.

Asadults,nothingmuchhaschanged,exceptperhapsaslightarrogancethat
we'vefigureditalloutnow,soweperhapsputlesseffortintoacquiringnew
knowledgeandaskingthereallygoodquestions.(Plus,pesteringyourparents
withthosekindsofquestionsaftertheageof,say,30...willprobablyresultin
themchangingtheirtelephonenumber.)

Now,Idistinguishbetweeninformation,knowledgeandwisdom.Tome,
informationislikepiecesofdata.Knowledgeisjustaboutknowingstuff,like
howthingswork.Wisdomisaboutbeingabletoapplythatknowledgetoour
benefit,orthebenefitofothers.

Wewanttoknowhowtodothingsandsolveproblems,andpreferablyina
convenient,easilydigestibleformat.Wewanttohaveabetterunderstanding
oftheworld,sowecanmakebetterdecisionsthatinvolveourselvesandour
lovedones.

Wealsolovesecrets.Wetellonlyourclosestfriendsourpersonalsecrets,and
itcontributestothebondingprocess.Thereisalsoaslightlyperversesenseof
satisfactioninhearingsecretsthatweretoldtosomebodyelseinconfidence.
Theverywordsecretattachedtoapieceofinformationgivesitapremium.
Itimpliessomebodydoesn'twantyoutoknowthisinformation,whichonly
makesitmoredesirable.It'sliketheforbiddenfruit.Don'teatfromthattree,
Eve.It'sforbidden.Afterthat,theserpenthadaprettyeasytime.Forbidden?
Woah...something'sgoingonthere,Eve...justthinkofallthesecretsyou'llget
fromthatfruit...andbesides,you'renotgoingtolethimbossyouaroundlike
that,areyou?

>Drawattentiontotheirknowledgegap

Itbugsuswhenwediscoversomethingismissingfromourpictureofreality,
especiallyifit'sanaspectofrealitythat'simportanttous.Wefeelweneedto
knowthefullstory,soteasethemwithwhattheydon'tknow.Here'sWhat
They'reNotTellingYouAboutYourCurrentHealthInsurancePlan...Don't
BuyAnotherUsedCarUntilYou'veReadThis...TheTruthThey'reNot
TellingYouAboutCopywriting...

Emergency Copywriting 21
>Throwinnuggetsoflogic

Nuggetsoflogicismytermforsimple,logicalargumentsthatarehardto
argueagainst,atleastatfirstglance.Youcanusenuggetsoflogictojustify
whyyourreadersdon'talreadyknowthefullstory.

Forexample,whywouldanexistingauthorityhaveavestedinterestinnot
revealingthefullstory?Whatlogicalreasondotheyhaveforholdingback?
Thedrugindustryaren'tgoingtotellyoutheTRUTHaboutthisdisease...not
afterhavingspentBILLIONSondevelopingproductsandpatentsthatare
designedtokeepyouasapatientinneedofregular(andexpensive)drugs...
ratherthansomeonewhoisCUREDanddoesn'tneedtocomebackrepeatedly
tobuymoreoftheirdrugs.Realtorsareoncommission.They'renotgoingto
tellyouthesepropertybuyingsecrets,becauseifyouknewthem,theymight
losetheircommission.However,youneedtoknowtheseSevenInsider
Secretsbeforeyouinvestasinglepennyintoyournewhome.Here'sSecret
#1...

Confirmationbias.Wetendtofilteroutinformationthatgoesagainst
whatwealreadybelieve,andaremoreinclinedtoacceptinformation
thatsupportsourownbiases.Thisissimplyafactoflife,soratherthan
riskbeingfilteredoutbytellingthemthey'rewrong(becausenobody
likestobewrong),frametheinformationandinsightsyou'rerevealing
tothemasexpandingtheirperspective.Suggestthatthesearetruths
theymighthavesuspectedinthebackoftheirminds,butnever
verbalized.Youcouldevengotrojan...agreewiththeirgenerallineof
thinking,andthenslipinanideathatexpandstheirownthoughtsinthe
directionyouwantthemtogo.Sure...ifyou'renaturallygoodlooking,
thenyou'regoingtofinditeasiertoattractbeautifulwomen.Butthe
goodnewsis...ifyou'renotBradPitt,therearelotsofthingsyoucando
toattractthewomanyoudesire.

Insideinformation.Doesthisinformationcomestraightfromthetop,
orfromaninsidesourcewithherfingeronthepulse?Doyouhavea
redhotsecretknownonlytoanelitefew,theinnercircle?Ifthe
informationisbothexclusiveandbeneficialtothereader,sellitassuch!
Onlyahandfuloftheelitecopywritersknowhowtousethistechnique
withsuchprecisionthatitliterallystopsprospectsmentallyintheir
tracksandhasthemthinking,Oh****...ImustbuythisNOW!

Emergency Copywriting 22
 Controversialinformation.Maybetheinformationiscloselyguarded
bytheeliteforareason.Maybeitcoulddodamageinthewrong
hands.Maybetheydon'twantthemassesknowingaboutit,because
thenthetechniquewouldloseitseffectiveness.I'msharingitwithyou
ontheunderstandingthatyouuseitcaringlyandcompassionately...
becauseit'spracticallyaformofmindcontrol.

Curiosity

Ifweseeacrowdinthestreet,alllookingatsomething,it'salmostimpossible
toresisttheurgetofindoutwhatthey'relookingat.Curiositytugsatus,
pullingustofindoutwhateveryone'slookingat.It'sdifficulttoresist.

Usethepowerofcuriosityinyourheadlinesandinyoursalespitch.Getthem
wondering,WhatISthis...?That'swhythepromisetorevealsecretsknown
onlytotheeliteortoinsidersiscompellingitbothappealstoour
curiosity,andourfearofmissingout.

Justremember,curiosityisgreatforinitiallypullinginthecrowd,andfor
hookingthemin...butyou'dbettermakesureyou'vegotsomesubstanceto
backitup.

Thehumanelement.We'recuriousaboutotherpeople,howthey're
living,howtheyovercametheirchallenges,thestrangeandfunnythings
theygetupto.Ifyou'vestruggledandovercomechallengestosolvethe
sameproblemasyourreader,tellthemyourstory.

Entertainment

Wewanttobeentertained.Wedon'twanttobebored.TheRomanskeptthe
massesfromcomplainingtoomuchbyprovidingbreadandcircuses.
Nowadays,wehaveendlessTVchannelsandwebsitestokeepusentertained.

Canyourheadlineofferthepromiseofentertainment?Canyoumakeyour
salesletterjustprovocativeandinsightfulenoughtoactuallybeentertaining?

Power/Control/Influence

FrankKern'sbestsellingproductintheInternetMarketingnichewascalled
MassControl.Thetitleappealedtopeople'sdesiretowanttobeableto
controllargenumbersofpeopleintobuying.Itsoldprettywell,whichimplies

Emergency Copywriting 23
thisideaofcontrolstillsells.

Ofcourse,it'snotjustaboutcontrollingothers.Oftenitcanmeanasenseof
beingincontrolofone'slifeanddestiny.It'srelatedtothedesireforfreedom
andasenseofempowerment.

Wealsowanttoinfluenceothers.That'scertainlytrueofcopywriters!Wewant
toinfluencepeopletobuytheproductswe'rewritingabout.However,it'salso
trueofalotofotherproducttypes.Amanbuyingadatingproductwantsto
influencewomen,andviceversa.Amotherbuyingaparentingbookwantsto
influenceherchildren.ApersonbuyingaHowToTrainYourDogtype
product,wantstoinfluencetheirdog.Iftheproductinvolvesanykindofa
relationship,thenit'sultimatelyaboutinfluence.Empoweryourprospects.Give
themtheabilitytohaveinfluenceandsuccessintheirworld.

Oneupmanship

Weliketogainanadvantageoverothers,becausethatcanputusinabetter
positiontogetwhatwewant.Thisisespeciallytrueinabusinesscontext,
wherecompetitionisnaturalandtobeexpected;orinenvironmentswhere
thereisnaturalcompetition,suchassportsordating.(Hey,you'renottheonly
onewithyoureyeonthathotguyorgirl!)

Humiliatingthecompetition.Canwegivethecompetitiona
metaphoricalblackeye?We'dlovethetoolsandtechniquestoseeoff
ourrivalswithease,andsendthempacking.

Theunfairadvantage.Welovethingsthatgiveusanedgeoverour
rivalsandcompetitors,especiallywhenit'ssomethingtheycan'tdo
anythingabout,i.e.unfair.

Selfimprovement

Wewanttoimproveourselvesandourprospectsinlife,whichincludes
improvingourbodies(keepinghealthyandfit)andminds(education,training
andsoon).

Sometimesselfimprovementdoesn'thaveaspecificgoalinmind,butusually
itdoes(evenifwe'renotalwaysdirectlyawareofthatgoal).Wemightwant
tokeepfit,becauseultimatelyitgivesusagreatersenseofwellbeing,aswell
asimprovesourchancesofgettingsex.Wemightwanttoacquiremore

Emergency Copywriting 24
information,knowledgeandwisdombecausewemightbemakingaspecific
purchaseinthenearfuture,orsimplysowecanbetterunderstandtheworld
andmakemoreeffectivedecisions.

Newness/Freshness

Wetendtofilteroutoldinformation,inordertopayattentiontothenew.
Newnessgrabsourattention,especiallyifit'srelatedtoasubjectthatinterests
us.StunningNewBreakthroughSkinTreatmentReversesTheEffectsOf
Aging,MakingYouLookUpTo30YearsYounger!

News.Wewanttofeelwe'reuptodatewiththelatestnewsand
information.Thisdriveisevenstrongerincertainnichessuchas
internetmarketing,wherespecifictechniquescangooutofdatefairly
quickly,andnewgimmicksarecomingalongallthetime;orincertain
professionalfieldswherethereisaresponsibilitytokeepuptodate.

RelativeValue

Howdowedeterminethevalueofsomething?DanAriely,inhisbook
PredictablyIrrational,describestheprocess:

"Humansrarelychoosethingsinabsoluteterms.Wedon'thaveaninternal
valuemeterthattellsushowmuchthingsareworth.Rather,wefocusonthe
relativeadvantageofonethingoveranother,andestimatevalueaccordingly.
(Forinstance,wedon'tknowhowmuchasixcylindercarisworth,butwecan
assumeit'smoreexpensivethanthefourcylindermodel.)"

Thisispartlywhypeopleliketoshoparound.Itgivesthemawayof
determiningthevalueofthings,bycomparingprices.

Valuecanalsobedeterminedbywhatsomethingisworthtous,personally.A
cupofwatermighthavelittlevaluetoyouathome,buttosomeonedyingof
thirstinthedesert,itmightbemorevaluablethangold.Atreasuredfamily
heirloommightbeofhighsentimentalvaluetoyou,butworthalmostnothing
tosomebodyelse.

Peopledon'tnecessarilyknowhowtovalueyourproduct,soyoumusthelp
themtodoso.YoucandothatinseveralwaysI'llgetintolater,including
askingthemquestionsthatleadthemtoplaceahighvalueontheproduct.
HowmuchwouldyouEXPECTtopayforaprogramlikethis,thatisgoingto

Emergency Copywriting 25
showyounolessthan17differentwaystomakeyourbusinessmore
profitableinamatterofweeks?Whatwouldthiskindofinformationbeworth
toyou?

Youcanalsomakecomparisons,toshowthatyourproductisactuallya
bargaincomparedtosomealternatives,andthatpeoplespendmoremoneyon
throwawaythingslikemealsatrestaurants.Youcouldspendmonthsatthe
gym,spending$50ormoreamonth($600+ayear!)andnotgetHALFofthe
fatburningresultsyoucouldgetfromthisproduct...andallI'maskingis$47.
That'slessthanthepriceofamealfortwoatadecentrestaurant.

Selfrespect

Wewanttobeabletorespectourselves,knowingthatwehavetolivewith
thisperson24/7.Forexample,partofthereasonwemightwanttolose
weightistobeabletolookatourselvesinthemirrorwithacertainsenseof
satisfaction.

Avoidinghumiliation,embarrassmentandlossofface.Theseare
negativeemotionsandfeelingswewanttoavoid,becausetheymakeus
feelbad,andshowusupinfrontofothers.

I'mright.Wehaveatendencytothinkthatwe'reright,andweputup
resistancetothosewhowanttoproveuswrong.Forthatreason,it's
usuallybettertoframeyourcopynotasprovingthereaderwrong,but
instead,helpingthemtoexpandtheirperspective.

Jealousy/Envy

Wegetjealousofothers,ofwhattheyhave,ofwhatthey'veachieved,ofthe
goodthingstheyhaverightnowthatwedon'thave.

KeepingupwiththeJones'.Forthesakeofappearances(prideand
vanity),wewanttoprojectanimageofsuccesstoothers;andifwecan't
appearbetterthanthem,thenatleastweaimtokeepupwiththem.

Greenergrass.Wethinkthattheotherman'sgrassisalwaysgreener,
thatotherpeoplehavethingsbetterthanus.

Emergency Copywriting 26
 ACTIONSTEPS

(1)Writedownalistofthehumanmotivatorsyouthinkcouldbe
relevantforyourproduct.

(2)Writeabriefnotenexttoeachitemonyourlist,explainingwhyit
couldberelevant,andanyadditionalideasyoucanthinkof.

3.FindingTheMagicSellingIngredients
HiddenWithinYourProductAndStory
Theultimatereasonyouwanttowriteasalespitchistosellyourproductor
service.However,theultimatereasonaprospectwillbuyyourproductisto
satisfyadesireorsolveaproblem.Inthatrespect,yourproductisjusta
meanstoanend,awayforthemtogettheresultstheywant.

Forthatreason,youmustknowyourproduct,andwhatyourprospectwillget
outofit.Thefollowingfivequestionswillhelpyoutoreallythinkaboutyour
productinawaythatwillsellit.

(1)Whatdoesthebuyerultimatelygetoutofyourproduct?

Peoplebuyproductstogetresults,tosolveproblems,tosatisfyaburning
desire.Webuyhomesecuritytogiveussecurityandpeaceofmind,
knowingthatourhome,familyandtreasuredbelongingsareinrelative
safety.Wemightbuyhealthinsuranceforpeaceofmind,andalsoto
actuallycoverusintheeventofillness,meaningwesavemoneycompared
topayingoutrightforthehospitaltreatment.WemightbuyaDVDboxsetof
ourfavoriteTVshowtobeentertained.

19yearoldJackwantstobuythatflashymotorbikebecausehefeelsitwill
givehimasenseofpower,controlandindependenceridingit,andalso
becausehefeelsitwillgivehimsexappeal.Ofcourse,hetellshisparents
thatitwillsavehimtimeandsavehimmoneygettingtowork,whichis
whyheneedsit.

Emergency Copywriting 27
ToparaphraseMarkTwain,apersonhastworeasonsforwhathedoes.The
reasonhecantellhisspouse,familyandfriends...andtherealreason.Thisis
alsotrueinthecontextofbuying.

Thinkaboutwhatyourproductultimatelygivesthem.Getinsideyour
prospect'sheartandsoul.Whydotheywanttoloseweight?Sure,maybeit's
therighttimeforit,andthey'vebeenthinkingaboutlosingweightforawhile
now,andtheywanttofitintothoseslimmerclothes(allthereasonsyour
prospectmighttellherfriends)...butinherheartandsoul,shewantstofeel
moreselfrespectandselfconfidence,shewantstheadmiringcommentsand
perhapstheoccasionalenviousglancefromherfriends,andtolookandfeel
sexyanddesirableagain.

Explorethedeeperreasonsandmotivationsforwhyaprospectmightconsider
buyingaproductsuchasyours.Thatway,whenyouwritethecopy,youcan
touchnotonlytheirmind,butalsotheirheartandsoul.

(2)Whatisthenatureoftheproduct?Whatareyoureallyselling?

Differentproductshavedifferentnatureswhichcanchangethewayyoupitch
it.Aproblemsolvingproducttakesaprospect'sproblemandoffersthema
solution.Ifyou'vestruggledwiththeproblemandsolveditsuccessfully,a
greatwayofprovingyourproductworksistotellyourstory,andshowhow
thesolutionworkedforyou.

Someproductsmightbedesignedforentertainmentpurposes.Gamesandtoys
springreadilytomindhere.Still,evenentertainmentproductsmightsolve
problems,althoughtheyarefirstlyofanentertainmentnature.Forexample,
ifyou'resellingafamilyboardgameandyou'repitchingittoparents,it's
worthnotingthatitsolvesseveralparentalproblems,suchashowtokeep
theiryoungonesentertained,anditprovidesawayforthefamilytoplay
together.

Someproductsmightbeluxury,indulgenceitems,thekindofitemsyou
mightbuytotreatyourselforsomeoneyoulove.Somemightbegiftitems,
expressionsofloveandaffection.

Also,askyourselfthefollowingquestion:WhatamIreallyselling?

Thinkabouttheroseyoumightbuyforyoursweetheart.Totherecipient,it's
hopefullynotjustarose.It'sanexpressionoflove.Itsays,Ithoughtabout

Emergency Copywriting 28
you.Icareforyou.It'sasymbolofaffection,expressedperhapsinthepetals
wrappedtightlytogether.

You'renotjustsellingaweightlossproduct.You'resellinghope.You're
sellingthedreamofbeingslimandsexy.You'resellingthemanewbody,a
newlook,aglamorousnewlifestyle!

You'renotjustsellingamakemoneyontheInternetproduct.You'reselling
themthelazy,beyourownboss,walkaroundinyourunderwear,getup
whenyouwantlifestyle.You'resellingthemfreedom.

Byaskingthisquestion,WhatamIreallyselling?...itwillenableyoutosee
differentideasandwaysofmakingyourproductsoundappealingtoyour
prospects.

(3)What'sunique,specialordistinctiveaboutyourproduct?

Yourproductdoesn'texistinavacuum.Chancesare,otherproductsinthe
marketplacewillbecompetingfortheattentionandmoneyofyourprospects.
That'swhyyou'llneedtodemonstratethatyourproductisspecialor
distinctiveinsomebeneficialway.Ideally,atleastonefeatureofyourproduct
makesitstandoutfromthecrowdofotherproductsinthemarketplace.

Itneedstobesomethingthatgenuinelybenefitstheprospect.Forexample,if
everybodyelse'sproductisred,andyoursisblue,thisdoesn'tnecessarily
benefittheprospect,althoughitdoesmakeitstandout.

Ontheotherhand,ifyourproductshareswiththemasetoftechniquesfor
gettingwebsitetraffic(thatmightnormallycost$0.30avisitor)forjust$0.01,
thenthiswillbenefitthem(i.e.itwillsavethemmoney),andifnobodyelseis
sharingthisinformationwiththem,it'suniquetoyourproduct,makingita
sellingpoint.

Nowadays,especiallywhenitcomestoinformationproducts,theinformation
yousharemightnotbecompletelyunique,whichisalsowhyIusetheword
distinctive.Ifonlyafewotherproductsinyourmarketsharethesourceof
the$0.01traffic,thatstillmakesyourproductdistinctive.

Listasmanyuniqueanddistinctivefeaturesandaspectsofyourproductas
possible,thatarealsobeneficialtoyourprospectinsomeway.Whenitcomes
towritingthecopy,you'llwanttoemphasizeasmanyoftheseuniqueand

Emergency Copywriting 29
distinctiveaspectsaspossible,togiveyourproducttheedgeoverothersinthe
marketplace.

(4)What'syourstory?Howdidyoucomeupwiththeproduct?Whatwas
lifelikebeforeandafterthesolutionyoudiscovered?

Yourstory,andthestoryofhowyourproductcametobe,mayplayanintegral
partofthesalesmaterial,especiallyforproblemsolvingandlifechanging
products.

Ifyouwentfromabrokenewbielivinginyourparent'sbasement,toahigh
flyingentrepreneurmaking$10,000amonthwithoutbreakingasweat,allin
just6months,that'sastoryworthtellinginyoursalespitchifyou'reselling
themyourmoneymakingsystem.Tellingyourstoryaddscredibilitytoyour
pitch,andconveysthatifIcandoit,socanyou.

Icalltheseyourbeforeandafterstories.Yousimplytalkaboutwhatlife
waslikebeforeyousolvedthesameproblemasyourprospect,andwhatlife's
likenowyou'vesolvedit.Youcansharewiththemsomeoftheinsightsyou
gainedalongtheway,whichdemonstratesyourauthorityandexpertise,and
conveysyouasacaring,sharingpersonwhojustwantstohelp.Italsolends
prooftoyourclaimthattheycandothisaswell.Ifyoudon'thaveanystories
yourselfforwhateverreason,youcanalwaysuseclientstoriesand
experiences(withtheirpermission),orjusthypotheticalsituations.

I'llgetintothestorytellingprocessinmoredetailinalaterchapter,but
basicallyhere'saroughoutlineofhowyoucantellyourstoryinasalespitch:

Here'swhatlifeusedtobelikeforme...
Maybethisistrueforyouaswell.
Thensomethingshappenedthatchangedme...
Here'ssomeinsightsIlearnedbecauseofthesethings...
Here'swhatlife'slikeformenow...
Here'swhyyouhaven'tyetsolvedyourproblem...
Here'showIcanhelp....

Ofcourse,itdoesn'thavetofollowthisexactorder,butthat'sbasicallywhat
youcando,beforeyouintroducetheproducttothem.Don'twriteyourwhole
storyatthisstage,justjotdownsomeideas.

(5)What'sunique,specialordistinctiveaboutyouandyourstory?

Emergency Copywriting 30
Yourproductmightbeametooproductthatis,justlikeeveryother
productinthemarketplace(althoughhopefullyitisn't).However,theremight
besomethingspecialaboutyou,andyourstory.

Itmightbeinyourcharacter.ConsidertheRichJerkintheinternet
marketing/makemoneyniche.Heportraysthepersonaofbeingarichjerk,
thearrogantguywhohasthegirls,theyacht,andthewadsofmoney...andhe
isn'tafraidtoshowitoffandboastaboutit.He'swillingtosharehis
knowledgewithyou,soyoucanjointheclub...buthedoesn'tgiveacrap
aboutwhetheryoulistenornot.It'syourlossifyoudon't...carryonenjoying
yourpoverty,loser.(That'shisoverallattitude,althoughnothisexactwords).

ContrastthiswithFrankKern'spersona,theguywhocameupwiththe
productcalledMassControlintheinternetmarketingniche.Hecomes
acrossasachilledoutsurferdude,thekindofguyyouwouldn'tmindhanging
outwithandhavingabeer,whereyou'dprobablychatbrieflyaboutwebstuff
beforegettingoutontothewavesallafternoon.

Now,Idon'tknowhowrealeitherofthesepersonasare.Itdoesn'tmatter.
That'sallpartoftheirstory,orrather,itformsthebackdropandcontextto
theirstory.

Theseinterestingcharactersmakewhattheyhavetosayinterestingaswell.It
addsrichnesstotheirbeforeandafterstories,makingthemmore
compellingandbelievable.

Now,Idon'tmeanyouhavetonecessarilyadoptapersonalikeRichJerkor
FrankKern,oranyotherpersonayoucomeupwith.However,it'sanotherway
youcandistinguishyourselfandyourproductsinthemarketplace.

Itmightbeinyourbackground.DidyougettoworkwithGoogleforthree
years,andgetaglimpseintohowtheyranksitesintheirsearchengine?Did
youworkwithoneofthetoppeopleinyourfieldsforatime?Didyougeta
glimpsebehindtheveilthatothersweren'tableto?Thatgivesyouaunique
anglewhichyoucanusetopitchyourproduct.Thatmightevenbethehook
thatgetstheirattentioninthefirstplace(whichwe'lltalkaboutinalater
chapter).

InConclusion...

Emergency Copywriting 31
ToparaphrasewhatIsaidatthestartofthischapter:Yourproductisjusta
meanstoanend,awayforthemtogettheRESULTS,OUTCOMESand
SOLUTIONSthattheywant.

Youmaybeinlovewithyourproduct,butrememberthatyourprospect
doesn'tsharethatlove,atfirst.It'sgreattobeenthusiasticaboutyourproduct
inyourcopy(becausethatalsobuildscredibility)...butkeepinmindthatyour
prospectcareslessaboutyourproductandmoreaboutwhat'sinitforthem,
whatthey'regoingtogetoutofyourproductthatis,theresults.Be
enthusiasticforyourproduct...butbeevenmoreenthusiasticaboutwhat
they'regoingtogetfromit!

ACTIONSTEPS

Foryourproduct,writedownanswerstothefivequestionsinthis
chapter.

4.GettingIntoTheMindOfYourTarget
Audience
It'sacopywritingclichtosaythatyoumustknowyouraudience.Whenwe
saythat,wemeanmuchmorethanjustknowingwhotheyareasacollection
ofpeople,i.e.internetmarketersoryoungfemales.

WemeanREALLYknowthem,trulyunderstandthemandwhatmotivates
them,holdsthemback,andcurrentlypreventsthemfromsolvingtheir
problemsandgettingwhattheywant.

Whenwetrulyunderstandthematthisdeeperlevel,wecanrelatetothem,
empathizewiththeminawaythatshowsgenuinecompassion,playontheir
fearsandfrustrations,andbuilduptheirhopesandaspirations.Ourwords
canenterandnotonlyappealtotheirlogicalmind,butalsomovetheirheart
andsoul.

Inshort,itallowsustogetintimate(inanonsexualway)withourreaders.

Emergency Copywriting 32
Whatyou'reeffectivelysayingis,Don'tworry...Iknowexactlywhatyou're
goingthrough...andI'mheretohelp.It'stheantidotetoasalespitchthat
conveysthemessage,Hey,buythisstuffbecauseIwanttomakeatonof
moneyatyourexpense.

Solet'sgetintimate.Writedowntheanswertothefollowingquestionsabout
yourtargetmarket:

(1)Whoareyouridealprospects?

Ifyousaysomethinglikebusinessowners,internetmarketers,men,
women...that'stoobroad.Narrowitdown.Getspecific.Whichspecific
businessowners?Whichspecificwomen?Whichspecificsetofinternet
marketers?

Ifyou'resellingadatingproductformen,yourtargetaudiencearen'tmen.
That'stoovague.Notallmenaregoingtowantorneedyourproduct.You're
targetingamorespecificgroupofmenpresumablysingleguys,probablyin
their20'sor30's,whoarestrugglingtogoondates.Theseareyourideal
prospects.

(2)Whataretheirfearsandhopes?

Whatarethefearsandfrustrationsofyourtypicalprospect?Whatkeepsthem
awakeatnight?Whatdotheyworryabout?Whatfrustratesthemabouttheir
currentsituation?

Whataretheirhopesandaspirations?Whatdotheydreamaboutduringthose
quiettimesatwork?Whatdotheyfantasizeabout?Whatdotheywantfor
theirfuture?Whatdotheyultimatelywant,asaresultofsolvingtheir
problems?

(3)Whatobjections,limitingbeliefsandquestionsmighttheyhavein
relationtobuyingyourproduct?

Anobjectionissimplyastatementthatreflectsaperson'sreasonfornottaking
action,suchas...

Ican'taffordthis.
I'mnotpreparedtopaythatmuch.
Ihaven'tgotthetimeforthisrightnow.

Emergency Copywriting 33
Iwanttothinkaboutitbeforecommittingtobuy.
Itsoundstoohardformetounderstand.
Idon'ttrustyou.

Inawrittenoronlinesalespitch,prospectsaren'tgoingtoexpresstheir
objectionstoyouinwords.They'resimplygoingtoBUY,orNOTBUY.Ifyou're
lucky,theymightcontactyouforfurtherinformation;butmostofthetime,if
youhaven'tsuccessfullytackledthereader'sobjectionsinyourcopy,they
simplywon'tbuy.

Writedownallofthepotentialobjectionsaprospectmighthavetobuying
yourproduct.Startwiththefollowing,andaddanymoreyoucanthinkof...

Ican'taffordit.
Ihaven'tgotthetimeforthisrightnow.
Iwanttothinkaboutit.
Idon'ttrustyouenough.
Idon'tthinkthisproductisforme.

Someoftheirobjectionscouldbecalledlimitingbeliefsthatis,beliefsthey
haveaboutthemselvesoroftheworld,thatareholdingthemback.Idon't
havethewillpowerforthisisastatementthattheydon'tbelievethey'regoing
tobeabletostickitout.Itsoundstoohardformemightsoundlikea
statementaboutyourproduct,butit'sreallyareflectionoftheirfearabout
theirownabilitytocomprehendoruseyourproduct.

YoursaleslettermusteliminateALLpossibleobjectionsbythetimeyouaskfor
theorder.Rightnowyoudon'thavetofigureouthowtodothat.Justknow
andunderstandthepotentialobjectionsandlimitingbeliefsthatmustbe
resolvedinthereader'smindbeforetheywillhitthatBuyNowbutton.Write
thoseobjectionsandlimitingbeliefsdown.Forexample,ifyourproductgets
technicalattimes,Thissoundstoohardisapossiblelimitingbelief.Writeit
down.

You'llalsowanttowritedownanyquestionsaprospectmighthave,suchas
whatformattheproductisin(i.e.apdfdocumentorWindowsMediaPlayer
files),howlongtheprogramwilltake,andsoon.Yoursalesletterwillneedto
answerallofthesequestions.Ifthere'salotofthem,youmightwantto
consideraFrequentlyAskedQuestionssectionofyourcopy.

(4)What'sholdingthembackrightnow?

Emergency Copywriting 34
Whyhaven'ttheyalreadysolvedtheirproblem?What'sholdingthemback?
Whatchallengesaretheyfacingatthemoment?

Forexample,ifyou'resellingadatingproductformen,whyisn'ttheprospect
alreadygettingthedateshewants?Maybeit'sshyness,lackofexperience,not
knowingwhattodoorsay,nothavingthetimeormoney,fearofrejection,
andsoon.

Writethesedown.Putyourselfintheirshoes,andthinkaboutallthethings,
realandimagined,thatarecurrentlyholdingthembackfromgettingwhat
theywant.

ACTIONSTEPS

Foryouraudience,writedownanswerstothefourquestionsinthis
chapter.

5.HowToFireOffBenefitLoadedBullets
IntoYourProspect'sBrain
Forproductsloadedwithbeneficialfeatures,orrichwithusefulinformation,
tipsandtechniques,youwanttocommunicateallofthesebenefitstothe
reader.

Thebestwaytodothisisusuallyintheformofbulletpoints(oftensimply
calledbullets)thatlooksomethinglikethis...

Here'safeatureoftheproduct,andhere'swhyit'sofbenefittoyou...

Here'sanotherfeatureoftheproduct,andyou'regoingtofindthis
usefulbecause...

Yetanotherfeatureis[thefeature],andhere'sallthewonderfulthings
youcandowiththis...

Emergency Copywriting 35
Bulletpointsprovideaneasilydigestiblewaytoexplainthebenefitsofeach
aspectoftheproduct.Itcanbeagoodideatocreateabulletforeachand
everyfeatureofyourproduct.

BeforeIcontinue,let'smakesureyouunderstandthedifferencebetweena
featureandabenefit:

Featuresarejustaspectsoftheproduct,suchasalistoftechnical
specifications,ingredients,orcomponents.

Benefitsarewhatthefeaturesdoforthecustomer,whytheyarethere
andhowitwillhelpthem.

Asasimpleexample,lookatthelistofingredientswhenyoubuyafood
product.Thosearebasicallythefeaturesoftheproduct.Itmightcontain
flavoringsthatisafeature.Whatisthebenefitofthisfeature?Whyput
flavoringsin?Whatdotheydoforthecustomer?Howaretheyusefulto
them?Itprobablymakesthefoodtastenicer.That'sthebenefitofhaving
flavoringsincluded.

Yourmilkmightsay,fortifiedwithcalcium.Thatisafeature.Thebenefitof
havingthemilkfortifiedwithcalciumisthatitstrengthensyourteethand
bones,makingyouhealthier.

Now,whenitcomestocreatingasalespitch,Irecommendthatyouwritethe
bulletpointsforyourproductfirst,beforeanyothercopy(includingthe
headline).Why?It'sbecausewritingthebulletpointswillgetyourcreative
juicesflowing,yourmindthinkingalongtherightlines...whichmeansasking
yourself,What'sinitformycustomer?Whyshouldtheycareaboutthis
product,andwhatitcandoforthem?Whyshouldtheycareaboutthis
feature?Howcanithelpthemtogetwhattheywant?

Herearethethreestepsyoucanusetocreateyourbulletpoints:

(1)Identifyeachfeatureofyourproduct.

Fortechnicalproducts,that'seasyenough.Justwritedownalistofthe
technicalspecifications.Togiveyouanexample,IwentovertoAmazon.com

Emergency Copywriting 36
andpickedthefirstdigitalcameraIcouldfind,whichhappenedtobethe
CanonPowerShotA3000IS10MPDigitalCamerawith4xOpticalImage
StabilizedZoomand2.7InchLCD.

Ahandfulofitsfeaturesinclude...

10megapixelcamera
OptimalImageStabilizerTechnology
18ShootingModes
LowLightmode
Large,bright2.7inchLCD

Forinformationproducts,suchasebooksordownloadablecourses,youwant
totreateachpieceofkeyinformationthatyousharewiththecustomerin
yourproductasafeature.

Forexample,youmighthaveachapterrevealing3importantthingstodoin
ordertorecessionproofabusiness.Youmighthaveasimpletechniquefor
legallyreducingtheirfirstyear'staxbillsignificantly.Treateachofthese
nuggetsofusefulinformationasafeature.

(2)Explainthebenefitsofeachfeature.

Youmightunderstandwhythefeatureisinyourproduct,butitmightnot
immediatelybeobvioustothecustomerwhyaparticularfeatureisuseful.In
thecaseofCanon'sPowerShotA3000ISdigitalcamera,whatisOptimal
ImageStabilizerTechnologyandwhyisituseful?Whytheneedfor18
ShootingModes?Whynotjustoneortwomodes?

Smartly,thecopywritersatAmazon.comexplaintousexactlywhythe
OptimalImageStabilizerTechnologyfeatureisuseful:ThePowerShot
A3000ISisalsoequippedwithCanon'sacclaimedOpticalImageStabilizer
Technologythatautomaticallydetectsandcorrectscamerashakeoneofthe
leadingcausesoffuzzyorblurredshots.Evenwhenzoomedin,youcanget
thesteady,crisp,brilliantimagesyou'llbeproudtoshootandshare.

Firsttheytelluswhatthefeaturedoes(automaticallydetectsandcorrects
camerashakeoneoftheleadingcausesoffuzzyorblurredshots),andthen
theytellusthebenefittothecustomer(youcangetthesteady,crisp,brilliant
imagesyou'llbeproudtoshootandshare).

Emergency Copywriting 37
For18ShootingModes,theytellus:Advancedpresetsforthebestpossible
photosundercertainconditions.With18ShootingModesincludingScene
Modes,you'rereadyforwhatevershotcomesyourway.

Herewehavethefeature(18ShootingModes)alongwithanexplanation
(advancedpresetsforthebestpossiblephotosundercertainconditions)and
thebenefittothecustomer(you'rereadyforwhatevershotcomesyour
way).

FortheLowLightmodefeature,theyexplain:Nowevenscenesnotorious
forhavinginsufficientlight,suchasthoselitbycandles,fire,orstreetlamp,
comethroughinfantasticcolorandclarity,withlessnoise.Youcankeepthe
feelofthesceneintactwithoutaddingadditionallight,sotheresultwillbe
sceneswiththevisualaccuracy,depthandclarityyouexpectfromaCanon
camera.

Sothen...don'tjustgivealistoffeatures.Ifthatfeatureistechnicalor
unlikelytobeeasilyunderstoodbythereader,firstexplainwhatthefeatureis,
intermstheycanunderstand,i.e.theOptimalImageStabilizerTechnology
(huh?)featureautomaticallydetectsandcorrectscamerashake(aha!).Then
tellthemwhatthatmeanstothem,howitwillhelpthem,howtheywillfindit
useful.

Forphysicalproducts,tellthemaboutthefeature.Ifnecessary,explainwhat
thefeatureis,andthengivethemthereasonwhythefeatureisincluded,and
howitwillhelpthem.Answerthequestioninthereader'smind,Whyshould
Icareaboutthis?

Forinformationproducts,dothesameforeachkeynuggetofuseful
informationyousharewiththem.Tellthemwhyit'simportanttothem,and
howitwillhelpthem,keepinginmindwhattheyultimatelywant.

Forexample,let'ssayyourebookcontainsachapterthatreveals3important
thingstodoinordertorecessionproofabusiness,youmighthaveabullet
pointthatsays...

Threewaystorecessionproofyourbusiness,whichmeansyourbusiness
canthriveduringhardtimes.

Youhaveasectionthatgivesthemtipsonhowtolegallyreducetheirtaxbill
earlyon.

Emergency Copywriting 38
 Asimpletechniqueforlegallyreducingyourfirstyear'staxbillbyas
muchas80%,enablingyoutokeepmoreofyourmoneyinyour
business.

Yourinformationproductshareswiththemhowtogetandstayatthetopof
Googlefortheirchosensetofkeywords.WecouldgowithaclassicHow
to...bullet,ie.

HowtogetandstayatthetopofGoogleforyourchosenkeywords,
meaningmorepeoplefindingyoursite,andmoretraffic.

Atthisstage,remembertodrawoutthebenefitsofeachfeature...whatthe
featurewilldoforthecustomer,howitwillhelpthem.

(3)Spiceupeachbullet,withhumanmotivatorsanddramaticwords.

Nowwewanttotakeeachbulletpoint,andrewriteittomakeitasappealing
aspossible.TheeasiestwaytodothisistoreferbacktoChapter2andmy
HumanMotivationMachine.Seeifyoucanworkatleastoneormoreof
thosehumanmotivatorsintoeachbulletpoint.

Recessionskill76%ofsmallbusinesses.Don'tletyoursbeavictim.In
chaptertwo,I'llrevealthethreerecessionbustingtechniquesthatwill
helpyourbusinessthriveduringhardtimes,whileyourcompetitorsare
leftinthedust.

OK,Iintroducedthebulletpointwithafact(whichImadeupforthis
example,buthopefullyyou'llbeusingrealfactsandfigures).Ithenhintedat
thefearofthembeingavictimofrecession,andIalludedtothem
humiliatingthecompetitionandperhapsgaininganunfairadvantageover
them.

Don'tlettheGovernmentstealmoneyfromyournewbusiness!Here's
asimple,easytoimplementtechniqueforlegallyreducingyourfirst
year'staxbillbyasmuchas80%,enablingyoutokeepmoreofyour
moneyforgrowingyourbusinessinthatCRITICALfirstyear.

Ididn'tchangethisoneawholelot,butIaddedalittletwist,theideaofthe
Governmentstealingmoneyfromthem,andtheideaofhowcriticalkeeping
asmuchmoneyaspossibleistothemintheearlystageoftheirbusiness.

Emergency Copywriting 39
 Googleinsiderof3yearsrevealstheshockingsecretsofhowtogetand
stayatthetopofGoogleforyourchosenkeywords...bumpoffthe
competitionandscoopupalltheirtraffic!

It'smoreintriguingwhenaninsiderrevealssecrets,andnotjustanyold
secrets,butshockingsecrets!I'malsopromisingtohelpthemhumiliatethe
competitionandgainanunfairadvantage.

Remember,theaimforyourbulletpointsistomaketheinformationsoundas
desirable,appealingandintriguingaspossible.

WhileIrecommendfocusingonwhattheywillgetoutofanynuggetof
information,sometimesyoucanfocusontheconsequencesofnotknowing
thesethings,whichutilizesfearofloss,andtherisksofmissingoutor
beingleftbehind.

Asneakysearchenginetacticyourcompetitorsareprobablyusingright
nowtokeepyououtoftheTop10rankingsforever.(Warning:Ifyou
don'tknowhowthey'redoingthis,you'llnevergetadecentranking.)I'll
showyouhowtobustrightthroughtheirdeceptivetechniquestoget
yourselfupthere,andknockthemdownintothepagesofGoogle
obscurity.

Wheneverpossible,giveyourtechniquesintriguingnamesthatdon'tgive
awaythewholestory.Youcanthenrefertoitinthebulletpoint.

TheHeartToHeartTechnique...howtogetjustaboutANYsingleguy
tofallheadoverheelsinlovewithyou,injustafewshortdays.It's
incrediblysimple,andjustutilizessomebasicmalepsychology.

Remember,wewantthingsthatarequick,easy,convenient...andthatpromise
results.Intheabove,Ijustifiedwhyit'ssimple...itjustutilizessomebasic
malepsychology.

Analternativewayofstructuringyourbulletpointsistogoforonebullet
pointperchapter,moduleorsection.Inotherwords,ifyouhaveanebookof
12chapters,youcanwriteonebulletpointperchapter.

Emergency Copywriting 40
 ACTIONSTEPS

Writeyourbulletpoints,basedonthethreestepsinthischapter.

6.TheHook:HowToReelInYour
Prospects
Thehookisacopywritingtermfortheoverarchingconceptorelementthat
pullsthemintoyourcopybyplayingontheircuriosity.Agoodhookmakes
themslowdowntolook,likeacarcrashontheothersideofthehighway.
Theycan'thelpit.Satisfyingtheirsenseofcuriosityishardtoresist.

Themostoftenquotedexampleofthisinthecopywritingworldisthatof
JohnCarlton'soneleggedgolferhook,formingthebasisofapitchfora
golfingproductthatstartedwiththisheadline:

AmazingSecretDiscoveredBy
OneLeggedGolferAdds50Yards
ToYourDrives,EliminatesHooks
andSlices...AndYouCanSlashUpTo
10StrokesFromYourGame
AlmostOvernight!

Sure,agolferwasnodoubtinterestedinadding50yardstotheirdrives,
slashingupto10strokesfromtheirgameandsoon(i.e.thebenefits)...but
whatparticularlycaughttheirattentionwastheoneleggedgolfer.Intheir
mind,itmadethemgo...Say...what?

Mostgolfersprobablyimaginethattwolegsareneededtoplaygolftoa
decentlevel...soforaoneleggedgolfertodiscoveranamazingsecret,
combinedwithallthosebenefits...itwouldbehardforagolfplayertoresist
reading,justtofindoutwhat'sgoingonwiththeoneleggedgolfer!

Ofcourse,ifyou'renotagolfer,you'relikelytopassthisheadlineby...butif
youAREagolfer,theheadlinesucksyouinwithitscompellinghumaninterest
story,combinedwithanimpliedpromiseofsomebigbenefitsforthereader.It

Emergency Copywriting 41
suggests,ifonlyYOUknewhissecret...

JohnCarltondidn'tfindthishookintheproduct.Hefounditwhile
interviewingtheproductcreator,whohappenedtomention,almostin
passing,thathewaswatchingaoneleggedgolferplay,andnoticedhowmuch
betterhewasatgolf.Whiletheproductcreatordidn'tseethesignificance,
Carltonknewhe'dfoundhishook...thethingwhichwouldgethistarget
audiencecurious.

Thatdoesn'tmeanyouneedtouseaoneleggedaccountant,oraonelegged
internetmarketer.Oneleggedcreatedcuriosityinthecontextofgolfing,
wheretwolegsareseenasnecessary,butdoesn'treallymatterasmuchin
otherfieldslikedating,weightlossormakingmoney.

Thehookisoftenhidingsomewhere,youjustneedtodrawitout.Thisis
especiallytrue,themoredistinctiveyourproductis.Herearesomeideasfor
findingit:

Isitinyourstory?

DidyouworkforGooglefor3years,andgottodiscoverfragmentsof
theiralgorithmfordeterminingsearchengineranking?Thatcouldbe
yourhook.You'retheGoogleInsiderwhocrackedtheirsecretcode
andisnowspillingthebeans.

Irecentlycameacrossanintriguingbookwiththetitle:Heavenisfor
Real:ALittleBoy'sAstoundingStoryofHisTriptoHeavenandBack.
Thetitleincludesanincrediblypowerfulhookthat,whetheryou
believeinheavenornot,makesyoudoadoubletake.

Thinkaboutyourstory,andseeifyoucanfindsomethingthatyour
targetaudiencewouldbeintriguedby.Maybeit'sthestoryitself,orjust
acertainpartofthestory.

Isitintheconceptbehindtheproduct?

Youmaybeabletotakewhatyourproductdoesorisallabout,and
createanintriguingconceptoutofit.

AwhilebackIdevelopedapieceofsoftwarethatcouldgetfeedback
fromreadersofapage,andthengiveareplybasedontheirfeedback.

Emergency Copywriting 42
 Afterabitofthinking,Irealizeditwasalmostlikereadingtheir
minds,andbeingabletoanswertheirobjectionsorconcerns
immediately.Iusedtheideaofreadingavisitor'smind,andresponding
automaticallytotheirthoughts,asthehooktogetthemcurious.My
softwarewaslikereadingyourvisitor'smind!Thiswasthehook,upon
whichtheheadlineandbeginningofthesalesmaterialwasbased.

Isitinadistinctiveaspectoftheproduct?

Ifyourproductcontainssomefairlyuniqueordistinctivetipsand
techniques,orfeaturesthatyourcompetitorsdon'thaveandthatgive
yourcustomersanadvantage,youmightbeabletofindthehookin
there.

Ifahookdoesn'tcometoyou,don'tworry.Youcanstillwriteacompelling
salesletter,basedontheideasI'llsharewithyouinthecomingchapters.
However,asyoucontinuetodevelopyoursalespitch,keepyourmindopento
newideasandthoughts.Youmightfindthehookasyougothroughthe
writingprocess.

ACTIONSTEPS

Seeifyoucancomeupwithacompellinghookthatyoucanuseto
arouseyourprospect'scuriosity.Itmightbebasedonyourstory(orthe
storyofhowyourproductcametobe),ontheconceptbehindthe
product,oronsomedistinctiveoruniqueaspectoftheproduct.

7.TheMagicHeadlineGeneratorHow
ToWriteHeadlinesThatYourProspects
WillFindAlmostImpossibleToIgnore
Theheadlineisyourkeytoolforstoppingprospectsintheirtracks,getting
theirattention,anddraggingthem,kickingandscreaming,intoyourcopy.

Aheadlineisespeciallyimportantinamagazine,whenyouradiscompeting

Emergency Copywriting 43
forattentionwithotherarticlesandads.However,it'sstillimportantevenif
yoursalespitchisonline,andyou'vealreadygotyourprospecttoclickthead.
That'sjustthestart.Nowyou'vegottofollowthroughonanypromisesyou
madeinthead.

Humanbeingsformaninitialimpressionofapersoninlessthanasecond.
Thesameistrueofwebsitesandsalespages.Firstimpressionsmatter.Your
headlinewillformtheirfirstimpressionofyouandwhatyouhavetooffer,
andmaybetheirlast.Ifitdoesn'timmediatelygrabthem,perhapsappealto
somethingtheyreallywantorneed,origniteaburningcuriositywithinthem,
there'snoguaranteethey'llevenreadpasttheheadline.

Professionalcopywriterswilloftenspenddaysjustontheheadlinealone,
becauseagoodheadlinecangiveyouachanceofhookinginthereaderand
compellingthemtoreadtherestofyoursalespitch.

Ofcourse,youprobablydon'thavetheluxuryofspendingthatkindoftimeon
aheadline,sointhenextfewminutesI'mgoingtogiveyouseveralpointers
forcomingupwithgreatheadlinesquicklyandeasily.(Andyouwantthingsto
bequickandeasy...right?)

Whenitcomestoyourheadline,don'ttryandgetcleverorcute.Madison
Avenueadvertisingagenciescanaffordtothrowmoneyaway.Youdon't
havethatluxury.Don'tbothertryingtothinkupcatchyslogansandword
plays.Assumeyourprospectsareonlyevergoingtoreadyourheadlineand
pitchonce,soyouhaveonechancewitheachnewreader.

Takeapieceofpaper,andusethefollowingsevenideastowritedown
thoughtsandphrasesforyourheadline.Youdon'thavetocomeupwitha
completeheadlinejustyet.Justwritedowneveryideathatcomestoyou.
You'regoingtodoabraindumponpaperoryourcomputerscreen,andthen
usethoseideastoputtogetheragoodheadline.Let'sgo:

(1)Writedownwordsandphrasesthatspeakdirectlytoyourprospects.

Inyourheadline,youwanttousewordsandphrasesthatwavetoyourtarget
audienceandsay,Hey...lookhere...thisisforYOU!

Writedownallwordsandphrasesthatwouldsignalrelevanceandattentionto
yourtargetaudience.

Emergency Copywriting 44
Ifyouraudiencearefirsttimehomeowners,wordsandphraseslikenew
homeowner,firsttimebuyer,mortgage,realestateandrealtorcould
signalrelevanceandbeofinteresttothem.

Someofthesewouldclearlydisqualifypeoplewhoalreadyownproperty,so
youwouldn'twanttouse,say,firsttimebuyerifyou'retargetingallhome
owners.Sometermsaredependentuponlocation.Forexample,intheUKa
realtoriscalledanestateagent.RelativelyfewpeoplefromtheUKwould
knowwhatarealtoris.

(2)Provideatantalisingglimpseofyourstory.

Ifyoucantellacompellingstoryinyourcopy,youcanpointtothatstoryin
theheadline.We'llgetintostorytellinglateron,butintheheadlineyoucan
getinasummaryofyourbeforeandafterstories.

Howa32YearOldScrawny,GeekyVirginFromColoradoDiscoveredThe
'MagicalFormula'ForAttractingBeautifulWomen...AndHowYouCanDoIt
Too...

Bytheway,thisiswrittenasifathirdpartyreporteristellingyourstory.Icall
thisreportermode.The32YearOldScrawny,GeekyVirginpartpretty
muchsumsupthebeforestory,andthepartaboutdiscoveringthemagical
formulaforattractingbeautifulwomensumsuptheafterstory.

(3)Talkabouttheresultstheywant.

Remember,peopleusuallybuyproductstogetresultsandoutcomesthey
want.Theybuycosmeticstomakethemlookyounger,healthierandmore
attractive.Thismightgivethemmoreselfconfidence,andafeelingofbeing
moredesirabletoothers.Boastabouttheresultsinyourheadline:ASimple
BeautyCreamThatMakesYouLookUpTo30YearsYounger!

Ifyouhadresultsthereadercanalsopotentiallyenjoy,tellthemthisinyour
headline.Teasethemwithbenefitsandresults.BrokeNewbieWithZeroWeb
KnowledgeDiscoversTheSecretToMaking$1,200AWeekOnTheInternet
LikeClockwork...AndNowYouCanToo...

(4)Workinthehook.

InthepreviouschapterIrecommendedyoutryandcomeupwithahook

Emergency Copywriting 45
thatwouldigniteaburningcuriosityinyourprospects.Ifyouwereableto
findagoodhook,youwanttoworkitintoyourheadline.

Forexample,you'vedevelopedapieceofsoftwarethatcompelspeopletobuy.
It'salmostlikemindcontrol.Thatcouldbeyourhook.Controversyarouses
curiosity.ShouldThisBeBanned?InternetGeekDevelopsSoftwareThatUses
'MindControl'ToVirtuallyCompelYourWebsite'sVisitorsToBuyWithout
Question...

(5)Preempttheirimmediateobjections.

Yourprospectswillbenaturallyskeptical,especiallyoftheideathattheycan
getthesamekindofresultsasyou.Thisiswhyyoumustknowalloftheir
objectionsbeforehand.Ifyoumakeabig,boldclaiminyourheadline,or
promisethemsomethingprettyamazing,youcanpreempttheirimmediate
objectionbeforeithasachancetobecomelodgedintheirminds.

Whatobjectionsmighttheyhavetoyourheadline?Ifitpromisesthemeasy
money....Make$1,200AWeekLikeClockwork...thereadermightbe
thinkingobjectionslike,ItsoundsdifficultorIhaven'tgotanoptinlist.If
thesearen'ttrue,youcanpreempttheseobjectionsinyourheadline,by
simplyaddingsomethinglike:...It'sDeadEasy(AnybodyCanDoIt),And
No...YouDon'tEvenNeedAList.

DiscoverTheSecretsToAttractingBeautifulWomen...EvenIfYouAren'tTall,
RichOrHandsome.ThiswasarealheadlineusedbyDavidDeAngelo,author
ofDoubleYourDating.Itpromisesthebenefit(AttractingBeautiful
Women)andpreemptstheirimmediateobjection(EvenIfYouAren'tTall,
RichOrHandsome).

(6)UsemyHumanMotivationMachinetoworkinasmanyhuman
motivatorsasyoucan.

WiththeHumanMotivationMachine,I'vegivenyouover20coremotivators
thatmotivateusashumanbeings,especiallyinabuyingcontext.Gothrough
eachofthemotivatorsonthelist,andforeachone,askyourselfwhetherit
canbeutilizedintheheadline.

Somewillbeproductspecific.Ifyourproductimprovestheirphysical
appearance,workinthehumanmotivatorsconnectedtovanity,andsexand
love.StunningNewBreakthroughWeightLossSystemFinallyGetsYouThe

Emergency Copywriting 46
BodyYouDeserve...AndMakesYouTwiceAsAttractiveToTheOppositeSex.

Somecanbeusedwithjustaboutanyproduct.Ifyourproductteachesthem
importantnewthingsaboutaparticularfield,playontheirknowledgegap
andtheirthirstforinformationandknowledge.Hintatthesecretstheyare
keepingfromthereader.Don'tInvestAnotherPennyIntheStockMarket
UntilYouKnowThese10MoneyMakingTradingSecretsTheInvestment
BrokersHaveBeenKeepingFromYou...

Don'tforgettheuniversalmotivatorofcuriosity.Canyouaddatwistthatstops
thereaderintheirtracksandforcesthemtodoadoubletake?Imagineseeing
thisheadlineinyourlocalnewsstand,fromTheNationalEnquirerin1964:
DeadlyFliesMakeEveryoneBlind...WholeTownDoomed.Thatmightjust
arouseyourcuriosity!Attheveryleast,youmightwonderwhetherthearticle
istalkingaboutyourtown,orsomewhereelse.

Leavesomethingsunanswered.Forcethemtosatisfytheirburningcuriosity
byreadingintothebodyofyourcopy.

(7)Spiceitup.

Makeyourheadlineevenmoreexcitingandcompellingbyaddingwordsand
phrasesthattellyourreadershowtorespond.It'snotmerelyaNew
Breakthrough...butaStunningNewBreakthrough...Youhaven'tmerely
foundawayofwritingheadlineseasier,theycanactuallyDiscoverThe
ShockingSecretsToWritingHeadlinesFasterAndEasierThanEverBefore
(ThatTheEliteCopywritersPrayYouNeverFindOut)...

Wordslikeshockingandstunningtellreadershowtorespond,andalso
implywhatthey'reabouttoreadisgoingtorocktheirworld.NoticehowI
implyit'sasecretthattheelitecopywritersdon'twantthemtoknow.Weall
wanttheforbiddenfruit!

Getpersonal.Don'tInvestAnotherPennyIntoPropertyUntil...isagood
start,butwhynotgetmorepersonalwithWarning:Don'tInvestOneMore
CentOfYourHardEarnedCashIntoPropertyUntil...

They'renotmerelypenniesanymore,it'stheirhardearnedcash.Noticealso
howIstartwithWarning.Thisisawordthatimmediatelydemands
attention.Whointheirrightmindisgoingtoignoreawarning,especiallyifit
seemstoapplytothem?Someonethinkingofbuyingausedcarisgoingto

Emergency Copywriting 47
payattentiontoaheadlinethatbegins:Warning:Don'tEvenThinkOfBuying
AUsedCarUnless...

Lookateachword,andseeifyoucanreplaceitwithsomethingthatpacks
moreofapunch,andisn'tboring.Let'sgobacktotheDiscoverTheShocking
SecretsToWritingHeadlines...one.

Writingheadlinesisprettyboring.It'sabitbland.WhataboutKnocking
Outheadlines?Evenbetter,wecouldimplytheyvirtuallywritethemselves,
becauseeveryonewantstodominimumwork,andhavethingsquicklyand
easily,remember?DiscoverTheShockingSecretsToHeadlinesThatVirtually
WriteThemselves...

PiecingTogetherYourHeadline

AsIsaidatthestartofthischapter,youdon'thavetotrywritingyour
headlineallinonego.Iprefertowritedownwordsandphrases,fragments
andideasfirst,andthenlateronI'llputtogethermaybe10or15headlines
basedonthesewords,phrasesandideas.

Ifyou'reshortontime,thetricktospeedyheadlinewritingistopickthe
fragmentsandideasthataremostlikelytograbyourprospect'sattention,
arousetheircuriosityandmakethemgo,Hmm...whatISthis?...andthen
putthoseideastogetherintoacoherentandcompellingheadline.

Ifpossible,I'dstartoffwiththehook,theideathatisgoingtoignitetheir
curiosity.Then,I'dwritedownspecificwordsandphrasesthatspeakdirectly
tomytargetaudience.Forexample,ifyou'reaimingforinternetmarketers,
thosemightbe...

internetmarketers,internetmarketing,online,makemoney,income,
business,runningabusiness,entrepreneur,workingfromhome,being
yourownboss,independent,website,list,listbuilding,traffic,
conversions

Bytheway,becarefulwithwordsandphrasesthatmightsoundspammyto
yourtargetaudience.Workingfromhomemighthavenegativeconnotations
inthemindofyouraudience,provokingmoreskepticismthanotherphrases
suchasbeingyourownboss.

Next,I'dwritedownwordsandphrasesthatdescribetheendresultsthe

Emergency Copywriting 48
prospectwants.Foraninternetmarketingproduct,thesemightbemake
$x,xxxamonth,workfromhome,beyourownboss,runyourown
business,havethetimeandfreedomto...

Forabeautyproduct,theycouldbelookandfeelyounger,becomemore
appealingtotheoppositesex,havemoreconfidence/selfrespect,feel
good.

Now,workinyourhookand/oryourstory.Getinthehumanelementthat
createsthecompellingcuriosity.Ifyou'regoingtogetyourbeforeandafter
storyintotheheadline,thinkofwordsandphrasesthatwoulddescribeyou
beforeyouhadtheresults:Ugly,Fat,Skinny,Geeky,Shy,etc.

Havefunwithit.Gonuts.Youdon'thavetouseallorevenanyofthesewords
andideas,buttheymightsparkadditionalideasyoudouse.Fat,Man
Repelling160PoundFemaleMonster...

Dothesameforafteryougottheresults:Beautiful,Skinny,BabeMagnet,Man
Attractor,Sexy,Ripped,PureMuscle,Fit,Smarter,Genius,etc.

Italsohelpsnotsimplytothinkofwordsthatmightdescribeyoubeforeand
after,butalsotothinkofanalogiesandcomparisonsforwhatyouwerelike
beforeandafter;i.e.youwerelikea160poundfemalemonsteruntilyou
madeyourweightlossbreakthrough,andnowyou'realean,meanman
attractingmachine.Idon'tcarehowcheesytheysound,get'emdownon
paper.Theymightsparkfurtherideasforuseinyourheadlineorcopy.(75%
ofcopywritingisaboutcomingupwiththerightideasandknowingwhat
thoughtstoconveytothereader.40.2%ofallstatsarealsomadeup.)

Nowwriteajuicyheadlinethatgetsinthehook,maybetellsthebeforeand
afterstory,orconveysthebenefitsofwhatthey'reabouttodiscover.Promise
thematantalisingstory,oramazingsecrets,orboth.Appealtoasmany
humanmotivatorsasyoucan.

Remember,thereisnoonesinglecorrectheadlineforyourproduct.A
headlinedoesitsjobifitgrabsyourtargetaudience'sattention,compelsthem
tostartreadingthecopy,andsignalsthatwhatthey'reabouttoreadis
profoundlyrelevantandinterestingtothempersonally.

Onefinalthing.Yourheadlineisultimatelymakingapromise.Whenyoutease
themwithastorytheyfeeltheywanttohear,makesureyoutellthatstoryin

Emergency Copywriting 49
yourcopy.Ifyou'repromisingthemamazingsecrets,sharesomeofthemin
yourcopy,althoughyoucanreserveyourbestsecretsandtechniquesfor
withintheproductitself.Don'ttrickthemintoreading,byusingaheadline
thatisunrelatedtoyourcopy.

Here'sasimpleformulatokeepinmindthatwillhelpyoucreateeffective
headlinesthathookinyourtargetaudience:

AUDIENCESPECIFICWORDSANDPHRASES+INSATIABLECURIOSITY+
COMPELLINGSTORY+DESIRABLERESULTS=POWERFULHEADLINE

Inotherwords,ifyouusewordsandphrasesthatspeakdirectlytoyourtarget
audience,arouseinsatiablecuriosityinthemthroughahookand/orsuggest
acompellingstorythatwouldbeinteresting,relevantandevenentertainingto
them,andtalkabouttheresultsthattheyultimatelywant,thenyou've
probablygotyourselfawinningheadline.

Question:Intheheadline,shouldImentiontheproductorgiveawaythe
factthatI'msellingsomething?

Itdependsonhowyou'readvertisingtheproduct.Ifyou'vealreadypre
soldtheproductitself(i.e.you'vetalkedaboutittoyouroptinlist),or
theadvertisingthattookthemtoyoursalesletterreferstoaproduct,
thenyoucanmentiontheproductintheheadline.Makesureyour
headline(andcopy)matchesupwiththemessageyouconveyinany
prioradvertisingorpreselling.

However,ifthey'renotalreadyawarethatyou'resellingaproduct,then
it'sprobablybetternottorevealthisfactuntillateron.AsI'lltalkabout
inthenextchapter,beforeyouintroducetheproduct,youwantto
demonstrateanunderstandingoftheirproblem,makesolvingthe
problemasurgentaspossible,andshowthatyouhavetheauthorityand
expertisetodealwiththeirproblem.

Oncethereaderknowsyou'resellingaproduct,theirnaturalinstinctisto
thenfindouttheprice.Theywilloftenskipthecopytohuntdownthe
price.Then,theywillweighupthepriceanddecidewhethertheycan
affordit,evenbeforetheyfullyknowaboutwhatyouhavetooffer!
Youraimistodelaythisprocessuntilyoucanpitchthevalueofyour

Emergency Copywriting 50
 offer.

However,insituationswheretheprospecthasanobviouslyurgent
problem,andyouofferarelativelylowpricedsolution,itmaybebetterto
signalthatyou'reofferingaproduct(andevenit'sprice)rightfromthe
start,i.e.Here'sTheBest$27SolutionToYourBackPain...

ACTIONSTEPS

Comeupwithoneormoreheadlinesforyoursalespitch,basedonthe
techniquesI'vesharedwithyouinthischapter.

8.HowToUseTheSecretsOfNatural
PersuasionToPrimeYourProspectsInto
WantingYourProduct
Thinkaboutatypicalconversationwithyourfriend.Youmightchatwithno
specificgoalinmind,exceptperhapstopassthetimeandenjoyoneanother's
company.Sometimesyoumighthavemorespecificreasonsforthe
conversation.Youmighthaveagoalinmind.Everymanknowsthatwhenhis
wifesays,weneedtotalk...,it'sprobablynotgoingtobeacasualchat.She
hassomethinginmind.

Yoursalesletterisbasicallyjustawrittenconversationwiththereader,but
withaspecificgoalinmind,thatofpersuadingthemtobuy.Tounderstand
thepersuasionprocessweneedtouseinasalesletter,ithelpstounderstand
howwepersuadeoneanothernaturally.Forexample,takethisimaginary
fragmentofconversationbetweenyouandafriend:

Kathy:Hey,doyourememberthatvacationwehadlastyear?
You:[thinks]Yeah...theBahamas.
Kathy:Wasn'titgreat?

Emergency Copywriting 51
You:Yeah!
Kathy:Imean...boy,wasithot!
You:Itwas!
Kathy:Hey,doyourememberwinningthatKaraokecontest...andallthebar
werecallingout,More...more!
You:[smiles]Yeah...Iremember.
Kathy:Hey,weshouldgothereagain!
You:Yeah...thatwouldbefun.
Kathy:Imean...seriously.Icanbooksometimeoffworkinacoupleof
months,andwecangobacktothatbar...Ihopeit'sstillopen.
You:I'dliketo.Mindyou,Idon'tknowwhetherI'llbeabletoafforditatthe
moment.
Kathy:Aww...comeon.Can'tyousaveup?Ifwebookitfor3monthstime
thatwillgiveyoutimetosaveup,right?
You:[thinks]Isuppose...
Kathy:Andbesides,youdeserveavacation.It'sbeenoverayearsinceyour
lastone,andyou'vebeenworkinghardrecently.
You:That'strue.
Kathy:Ohcomeon...it'llbefun.We'llhaveagreattime.Let'sdoit...whatdo
yousay....please???
You:[thinksforawhile...]Oh,whynot...let'sdoit!
Kathy:Great,let'sbookitrightnow...!

Ofcourse,persuasionisn'talwaysquiteaseasy,butthisisaverybasic
exampleofhowwenaturallypersuadeoneanother.

Takeacloserlookatwhathappened.Bottomline...youandKathytalked
yourselvesintobookinganothervacationtogether!...butlet'slookatthe
processwhichyoubothwentthrough.

Itstartedoffbyyoubothrecallingthegoodtimesyouhadonthelast
vacation.Youpicturedthosegoodtimesinyourmind,andyourbodyrecalled
thegreatfeelingsyouhad.Youwerebothinthisgreatstateofmindwhen
Kathycameupwiththesuggestion,Hey,weshouldgothereagain!

It'shardertosaynotothisideawhenyourmindandbodyarefilledwithall
thewonderfulmemoriesandfeelingsassociatedwiththatlastvacation!
Besides,it'seasytosayYestogoingagainatthispoint,becauseit'spretty
vague,andisn'treallyasolidcommitment.Yes,you'dgoagain...butthere'sno
sayingwhen,isthere?

Emergency Copywriting 52
ExceptthatKathypressedtheissue.Shemeantnow!However,you're
practical.Youraisedanobjection.Idon'tknowwhetherI'llbeabletoafford
itatthemoment.YourheartsaidYes!,butyourmind(andbankbalance)
wasn'tsocertain.

Kathyquicklycounteredtheobjection,bysuggestingyoubookitthreemonths
fromnow,givingyousometimetosaveup.Isuppose...yousaid,wavering.
Yourmindrealizesthisispossible,butyoujustneedthatextraconvincing,
thatextralittlenudge.

That'swhatshedid.Youdeserveavacation...you'veworkedhard...it'llbe
fun...we'llhaveagreattime.Thesewordsmakeabsolutesensetoyou.Yes,
youfeelyoudodeserveavacation,becauseit'sbeenawhilesincethelastone,
andyouhaveworkedhard!Andyes,ofcourseitwillbefun...becauseyouhad
funthelasttime.You'realmostsold.

Finally,comesthefriendlybegging.Let'sdoit...whatdoyousay....please???
Howcouldyouresist?YourheartwantstosayYes.Yourmindwantstosay
Yes.Andnow,it'seasytosayYestoyourfriend,becauseshereallywants
togoaswell!Oh,whynot,yousay.Let'sdoit!

Ofcourse,Kathydoesn'tallowyoutogethomeandlosetheenthusiasm,and
starttothinkaboutit,andfindallthereasonsnottogoafterall.Shepullsout
hersmartphonesoyoucanbothmakethebookingsrightaway.

Theprocessyoubothwentthroughwasentirelynatural,andfolloweda
naturalsequence.Forexample,wouldthishaveworkedifKathyhadsimply
startedtheconversationbysaying,Hey...Ithinkweshouldgotothe
Bahamasagainthisyear?Maybe,maybenot.I'msureyou'dhavestillgivenit
consideration,butbecauseyou'renotridingthesameemotionalbuzz,your
logicalmindisgoingtothrowupallkindsofobjectionsearlieron.Itmayeven
hinderyoufromgettingexcitedinthefirstplace,becauseyourlogicalmind
takeschargeandthinks,Hey...notgoingtohappen.

Instead,theorderwentsomethinglikethis:First,youbothagreedthatyour
previousvacationwasgreat,andyousharedsomeexperiencesfromthattime,
evokinggoodfeelings.OnlythendidKathystartpersuadingyoutogoagain.
Youwerehappytoagreetothat,becauseitwasavaguecommitment,but
whenshepressedyouongoingnow,youraisedanobjection.Shecountered
yourobjection,andthentookyourdesiretoitspeakbytalkingabouthowyou
deservedit,andremindingyouofwhatagreattimeyou'dhave...andthenshe

Emergency Copywriting 53
beggedyouinthatsweetandirresistiblewayofhers.Yougavein,butthat's
becauseyouwantedto.YourmindandheartalreadysaidYes.Youjusthad
tosaythewords.

Asalesletterworksinbasicallythesameway.Wedothingsinacertainorder
becausewe'refollowingthesamenaturalpersuasionprocess.Copywriterstalk
abouttheA.I.D.Aformula,whichstandsforAttention,Interest,Desire,and
Action.Itisthebasicorderinwhichwedothingsinasalespitch.Firstweget
theirAttention,thenwegettheirInterest,thenwebuildtheirDesireforour
solution,andonlyafterthatdowetellthemtotakeAction.

PointsOfAgreement

Thereisanevenmoreusefulwayoffiguringouthowtostructureyoursales
letter,inordertoachievemaximumpersuasiveeffect.

Let'sgobacktoyourconversationwithKathy.Afteraskingyoutorecallyour
vacationtogetherintheBahamas,sheaskedyou:Wasn'titgreat?Yousaid
Yeah.Bam!Thatwasyourfirstpointofagreementwhichledtobookingthe
vacationyouagreedwithherstatementthatthepreviousvacationwas
great.Ifyouhaddisagreedonthegreatnessofthevacation,thewhole
conversationwouldhavebeendifferent,andchancesareyouwouldn'thave
decidedtogoagain.

Alongtheway,youalsohadtoagreethatyoushouldgothereagain,thatyou
couldafforditafterall,thatyou'dhavefun,andthatyoudeservedit.Hadyou
disagreedwithanyofthesethings,chancesareyouwouldn'thavesaidYes
intheend;orattheveryleast,you'dneedmorepersuading.

GoodsalespeopleknowthatgettingtotheYes!attheendofthesales
process(i.e.theactualorder)usuallyrequireslotsofsmalleragreements
alongtheway.Idon'tsimplymeangettingthemtoverballysayYestoevery
littlequestion...ImeanthattheirheartandmindmustsayYestoeachmajor
pointthatdevelopsyourongoingcasefortheproduct.Thisisthekeytoa
powerfulsalespitch.

Firstofall,askyourselfthefollowingquestion:

Whatdoyourprospectsneedtoagreewithalongtheway,inorderforthem

Emergency Copywriting 54
 toviewyourproductasTHEsolutionforthem?

Let'ssaythatKathyhadasneakyagenda;maybeshe'dreadmypersuasion
material,andwasreallyouttopersuadeyoutogoonthatvacationrightfrom
thestart.Theveryfirstthingsheneededtogetyoutoagreewithwastheidea
thatyourpreviousvacationtogetherwasgreat.Fortunatelyforher,shedidn't
reallyneedtopersuadeyouonthatpoint.Youwerehappytoacceptit,
althoughshestillreinforceditbyremindingyouofthatfunexperienceinthe
Karaokebar.

Thenextpointsheneededyoutoagreewithwasthatyoushouldbothgo
back.Thatwasalsoeasytoagreewith,sinceitdidn'tinvolvecommitting
yourselftoaspecifictime.Afterthat,youwerealreadysoldontheidea,and
thentherealpersuasionbegan.Shehadtogetyoutoagreetodefinitelygo,
andactuallybookit,andthisiswhereyoustartedtoputupresistance,soshe
neededtoalsoconvinceyouthatyoucouldaffordit,thatyou'dhavefun,and
thatyoudeservedit.

I'dwritethesedownasspecificpoints:

yourpreviousvacationtogetherwasgreat
youshouldbothgoback
youshouldbookitnow
youcanaffordit
you'dhavefun
youdeserveit

Icallthesepointsofagreement.Ifwewereconvertingthisintoawritten
salespitch,I'dprobablyputthethirdpointofagreement(youshouldbookit
now)last.That'swhenwe'dtellthemtobuynow.Inotherwords,thebest
andmostpersuasiveorderwouldprobablylooksomethinglikethis:

yourpreviousvacationtogetherwasgreat
youshouldbothgoback
youcanaffordit
you'dhavefun
youdeservedit
youshouldbookitnow

Emergency Copywriting 55
Simplybycomingupwithallthepointsofagreement,Ihavethebasic
outlineforasalespitch!

Pointsofagreementarethepointsyouneedtoestablishinordertobuild
yourcase.Iftheydon'tagreewithaparticularpoint,it'sgoingtohinderyour
case.Inasalespitch,youraimistoestablishallofthepointsofagreementin
yourprospect'smind,sothattheyareleftwiththeinescapableandinevitable
conclusionthatyourproductisTHEproductforthem.

Letmeshowyouhowthisworksinthecontextofcreatingasalesletter.Let's
takeanimaginarydatingproduct,aimedatmenwhofeeltheyneedhelpin
theirdatingandlovelife.Let'sask:Whatdotheyneedtoagreewith,inorder
forthemtoviewmyproductasTHEsolutionforthem?

HerearesomeIcouldthinkof:

Theyhaveaproblem.
It'snotjustaboutlooks,money,heightetc.
Confidenceisimportant,butyoucan'tjustbeconfident.
Youneedtechniquestochangeyourstatetooneofconfidence.
Chatuplinesdon'tusuallywork.
ThereAREthingsyoucansaytogetawoman'sattentionandinterest.
Menandwomenaredifferent.
Youneedtoknowwhywomenreactinthewaysthattheydo.
Understandingthefemalemindwillleadtogreatersuccesswithwomen.

Writedownasmanypointsofagreementasyoucanthinkofforyourproduct.
Then,you'llwanttothinkabouteachone,anddeterminehowusefultheyare
inbuildingthecaseforyourproduct.

Forexample,ifmyimaginaryproductcontainedachapteronthe100
greatestchatuplines(ohdear!),thenit'snotgoingtobeparticularlysmart
tomakethepointthatchatuplinesdon'tusuallyworkinthecopy.The
sensiblereaderisgoingtowonder,Whatthenisthepointofhavingachapter
withthe100greatestchatuplines...iftheydon'twork?

Dropanypointsthataren'thelpfultoyourcase.Next,youwanttoputthe
remainingpointsintoalogicalorderthatdevelopsyourcasenaturally.

Forexample,ifyou'regoingtomakethepointthatIt'snotjustaboutlooks,
money,heightetcthenthereaderisnaturallygoingtowonder,OK...then

Emergency Copywriting 56
whatISitabout?SoitmakessensetonexttalkaboutwhatitISabout,i.e.
It'saboutbeingconfident,knowinghowtoadapttothecircumstances,what
todoandsay,etc.Infact,I'dprobablyaddthattomylistofpointsof
agreement.

Now,youwanttothinkaboutthisquestion...

Foreachpointofagreement,whatcanyousharewiththemthatwillconvince
themofthatpoint?

Yourcopyneedstotackleeachpointofagreement,andconvincethemofits
truth.Inotherwords,youwantthemtomentallysayYestothatpoint.You
candosobytellingthemaboutyourinsightsintothatsubject,bysharingfacts
andfigureswiththem,orbyrecountingastoryorexperience.I'lltalkmore
aboutalloftheselateron,soyoudon'tneedtothinktoodeeplyabouthowto
getthesepointsacrossjustyet.

PrimingForTheUniqueAspectsOfYourProduct

WhatI'mabouttosharewithyouisquiteanadvancedcopywritingtechnique,
andyetI'mgoingtospillthebeansbecauseIwantyoutobeabletocreate
copythatkicksass.

Ifyourproducthasuniqueordistinctiveaspectsorfeaturesthatmakeitstand
outfromthecrowdofotherproducts,whileyou'rebuildingyourcaseforthe
product,youwanttogetyourprospectsthinkinginadvanceaboutthe
benefitsofthatfeature,evenbeforeyouintroduceittothem.Then,whenyou
actuallyintroducetheproductandshowthemthatfeature,theyarealready
soldonwhythefeatureisimportanttothem!

OK,let'sgiveyouanexample.IwrotetheHumanMotivationMachine
chapterofthisbookbecauseIrealizedyoucan'twritecopythathighly
influencesandpersuadesyourfellowhumanbeings,withouthavinga
deepinsightintowhatmakesthemtick,whatpushestheirbuttons.

Now,tobefair,someofthehumanmotivatorsareamixtureofelements
thatgoodcopywritersarealreadyfamiliarwith,andcopywriterslikeJoseph
Sugarmanhavewrittenwholebooks(i.e.Triggers)whichgointodetail
aboutsomeofthosehumanmotivators.PsychologistssuchasCialdinihave
writtenwholebooksonsomeofthem.(Probablythebestbookonthesubject
ofhumanmotivationisCialdini'sInfluencestillaclassic,andhighly

Emergency Copywriting 57
recommendedifyoureallywanttogodeepintothissubject.)

Still,that'snogoodtoapersonneedingtobeanEmergencyCopywriter.If
you'reaimingtowriteasizzlingpieceofsalescopyinaslittleas24hours,you
don'twanttohavetowadethroughseveral256pagebooks,justto
understandhumanpsychologyandmotivation.Youwantthisknowledge
quickly,easilyandconveniently.Youwantthemagicpill,thebottomlineon
humanpsychologyinabuyingcontext...

...whichiswhyIwrotethatchapter.Iputallthekeyhumanmotivatorsinto
onesectionwhichcouldbereadandreferencedquickly,andthatcutsout
someofthefluffwhichothercopywritersintheirlongdrawnoutseminars
mightgetinto,suchasMaslow'sHierarchyOfNeeds.I'lladmit,Iwas
temptedtoputinadiagramofthatbutthenIrealized,foranEmergency
Copywriter,knowingallthatdeepstuffisn'tanywherenearasimportantas
knowingwhatultimatelymakesusbuy.

SoIboileditalldown,cutoutthepsychobabble,putitintosomekindof
orderofimportance(althoughasIpointedout,importancedependsupona
person'sspecificneedsandwantsatthetime,aswellastheirownpersonal
values),andgaveitafancylabel...theHumanMotivationMachine...which
Icouldthenuseinthecopytosoundintriguing,andcreateaburningcuriosity
inyou!

Now,gobackandreadtheparagraphaboveinbold,fiveparagraphsabove.
Readitagain.WhatdidIsay?Isaid...Youcan'twritecopythathighly
influencesandpersuadesourfellowhumanbeings,withouthavingadeep
insightintowhatmakesustick,whatpushesourbuttons.

Whensellingmyownproduct,doyouthinkitwouldbeusefulifmypotential
prospectsagreedwiththisstatement,beforeIintroducedthemtomyHuman
MotivationMachine?Theansweryou'relookingforisYes.Sodoyouthink
thisisapointIshouldmakeinthesalescopyforthisproductyou'rereading
rightnow?Again,thecorrectanswerisYes.

SoI'dwanttoestablishapointofagreementthatwentsomethinglikethis...

Youcan'twritetrulypersuasivecopywithoutknowingwhatmotivates
humansinabuyingcontext.

IfIhadoneforthisproduct,I'daddthispointtomylistofpointsof

Emergency Copywriting 58
agreementwhichwouldneedtobeestablishedinthecopy.

Hopefullyyoucanbegintoseewhythisissuchapowerfultechnique.IfI've
gotthemtoagreewiththisthoughtbeforeI'veevenintroducedtheproduct,
thenbythetimeIintroducemyproductandtalkaboutmyHuman
MotivationMachine,theprospectisgoingtobethinking,Wow...thisis
EXACTLYwhatIneed...becauseit'strue...youcan'twritepersuasivecopy
withoutknowingwhatmotivatesusinabuyingcontext!...orhopefully
somethingalongthoselines.

Inotherwords...usetheearlierstageofyourcopy(beforeyouintroduceyour
product)togetthemtomentallyagreewithpointsthatlaterleadthemto
acceptthedistinctiveoruniquefeatureoftheproductassomethingthey
need!

Listen.WhatI'vejustsaidtoyouintheselastfewpagesispurecopywriting
gold.Ifyouhaveoneortwouniqueordistinctivefeaturesofyourproductthat
aregenuinelybeneficialtoyourprospect,youcaninsomecasesliterallybuild
thefirsthalfofthesalesletterjustdoingwhatItalkedaboutabove!

Bytheway,thisiscalledpriming.Youwon'thearmanycopywriterstalkabout
itpublicly,becauseit'soneofthosetradesecretsweliketokeepto
ourselves.Oops.ItalkaboutitinmoredetailinPresellMastery,particularly
inthecontextofpresellmaterialbeforetheprospectevengetstothesales
letter.

Youwantanotherexample,justsoyoucanbecrystalclearonthiscritical
pointthatI'mmaking?Fairenough.OK,let'ssayyou'resellingsplittesting
softwarethatcantrackvisitorseveniftheygetsenttoashoppingcarton
anothersite.Thiswouldbeafairlydistinctive(althoughnotnecessarily
unique)feature,sincealotofsplittestingsoftwarecan'tdothis.

Youwanttoprimeyourreaderstoseehowimportantthisistothem,soI'd
addsomethinglikethefollowingtwopointstomylistofpointsof
agreement:

Manysellersnowadaysuseshoppingcartsonexternalsites,orthankyou
pagesthatareonexternalsites,ormightneedtodosointhefuture.
Mostsplittestingsoftwarecan'ttracktoexternalsitesandpages,butbeing
abletodothisisimportant.

Emergency Copywriting 59
Now,allyouneedtodoiswritesomecopythatpersuadesthemonthesetwo
points.Whenyouintroduceyourproducttothem,andshowthemitcantrack
salesexternally,you'veprimedthemtothink,Ooh..thenTHISisthesolution
forme!

Ofcourse,Ihaven'tyettalkedabouthowtowritethecopy.Fornow,justthink
aboutWHATpointsyouneedtogetacross.I'llshowyouHOWtomakethose
pointslateron.

ACTIONSTEPS

(1)Writedownalistofpointsofagreementthatyourreadersneedto
agreewith,inordertobuildyourcase,andtoleadthemtothe
conclusionthatyourproductisTHEsolutionforthem.

(2)Writedownfurtherpointsofagreementthatwillprimethemtosee
theuniqueanddistinctiveaspectsofyourproductassomethingthey
need.

(3)Putthesepointsofagreementintoalogicalorder.

9.HowToEliminateTheCompetitionIn
YourProspect'sMind...SoTheyOnlyWant
YourProduct
Yourproductdoesn'texistinavacuum.Chancesare,yourprospectshavelots
ofchoicesonwheretoplacetheirbusiness.

Inyourmarketplace,theremaybelotsofproductsthatarecompetingdirectly
withyourproduct.ThisiswhatIcalldirectcompetition.Maybetheydon't
offerthesamewonderfuluniqueanddistinctivefeaturesandbenefitsasyour
product,butyourprospectsmaynotbeawareofthat.Alltheyseeislotsof
choice,lotsofoptions.

Emergency Copywriting 60
Aswellasproductsthataredirectlycompetingwithyours,chancesareyour
prospecthaswhatIcallconceptualalternativestochoosefromthatis,
alternativewaysofgettingtheirproblemsolved,thatmightnotbedirectly
competingwithyou.Forexample,ifyou'resellingagainmuscleproduct,
conceptualalternativesmightbethegym,foodsupplements,andfitness
equipment.

Inyourcopy,youneedtotacklethecompetition.Bycompetition,Imean
bothdirectcompetitionandconceptualalternatives.Therearelotsofways
youcandothis,asI'lldiscussinamoment.

First,awordofwarning.It'sprobablynotagoodideatomentionspecific
people,products,companiesorbrands/trademarksbynameorimplication.
Instead,usegenericdescriptionsofthealternativesavailabletoyour
prospects,i.e.thesearchengines,goingtothegym,themusclebuilding
supplements,thedrugcompanies,thegurusandsoon.

Withthatinmind,here'showyoucaneliminatethecompetitionwithinyour
copy:

Aprimingeducation.Wealreadytalkedaboutcomingupwith
pointsofagreementtoprimethemtoaccepttheuniqueanddistinctive
aspectsofyourproduct,thatgiveyourproductanedgeoveryour
competitors,andoverconceptualalternatives.Youcaneducatethem,
primingthemtoseeyoursolutionasthecorrectone.

Herearethe5dirtysecretsthemusclebuildingindustrydon'twantyou
toknow...

Secret#1Longersessionsinthegymdoesnotmeanmoremuscle.

Ifthatwerethecase,you'dbeinthegymforhours!Truthis,spending
toolonginthegymmayactuallybedoingyoumoreHARMthangood,
asI'llexplain.

HereI'mimplyingthatgoingtothegymisn'ttheanswertotheir
problems.I'meliminatingthisconceptualalternativefromtheirmind,
couchingitintheformofsecretsbeingrevealed.

Inyourbeforestory.I'llgetfullyintostorytellingandyourbefore
andafterstoriesinalaterchapter.Youcaneliminatethealternatives

Emergency Copywriting 61
 inyourbeforestory.Forexample,inyourstruggletoloseweight,you
couldtalkabouthowyoutriedthealternatives,andtheyfailedyou.
(Remember,Istronglyrecommendnotmentioningspecificpeople,
productsorbrand/trademarkednames.)

Isubscribedtomylocalgym,andforthefirstmonthIwasan
enthusiasticregular...butthen,myvisitsfadedout.

Irealizedthataswellascostingmemoneyeachmonth,mygym
membershipcouldn'tmotivatemetogo,norcoulditgivemewillpower
tostayawayfromthosedeadlyfoods.

Itriedallthelatestdiets,butnoneofthemdidanygoodwhenitcame
tonothavingenoughwillpowertostickwiththedietandeatonlythe
rightfoods.

Iwasontheedgeofdespair...until...

NoticeIworkinthespecificreasonsthosealternativesfailedme,and
alsosomeofthenegativeaspects(i.e.gymmembershipcostmoneyeach
month,lackofhelpfortheproblemofwillpower).Thiswould
contributetomakingMYsolution(i.e.anebookordownloadable
program)seemmoreattractiveonceIintroduceit,ifit'saoneoff
payment.

Straighttalk/logic.Youcouldsimplytalktoprospectsoneonone
aboutthereasonsthealternativeswon'tsolvetheirproblem.No
couchingitinsecrets,simplytellthemthewayitis,usinglogical
argumentsthataren'teasytoargueagainst.

Truthis,gymmembershipisn'tgoingtoautomaticallymakeyoulose
weight.

Firstofallyouhavetomakesureyougoregularly...andlet'sfaceit,
whohasthetimetospendanhourormoreadayinthegym...twoor
threetimesaweek...ontopofeverythingelse?

Andthegymstillwon'tsolvetherealproblem...havingthewillpower
tostopeatingthefoodsthataremakingyoufat.

I'mgivingyouexamplesheretoshowyouhowit'sdone,butdon'tworry

Emergency Copywriting 62
aboutgettingintothespecificwordingrightnow.It'simportanttorealizethat,
whenyougetintoactuallywritingthecopy,youmustdealwiththe
alternativesthatareavailabletoyourprospects.

ACTIONSTEPS

(1)Writedownthenamesofthe3competitorsyourprospectsaremost
likelytocomeacross,andwritedownreasonswhyyoursolutionisbetter
thantheirs.

(2)Writedownalloftheconceptualalternativestoyourproduct,that
yourprospectshaveavailabletothem.Foreachone,explainwhythat
alternativeisnotidealfortheprospect.

10.CreatingARoadmapToGuideYouAnd
MakeItEasyToWriteYourCopy
IfyouwantedtogetfromlocationAtolocationBinreallife,youwouldn't
justsetoutandhopeblindlythatyou'darriveatyourdestination.You'dhave
atleastaroughideaoftherouteyouintendedtotaketogetthere.

Thesameshouldbetruewhenitcomestowritingasalesletter.Youwantto
initiallygofromstartingyourletter,andgettothepointofintroducingyour
product,andthenfinallytothepointwhereyou'rereadytoaskthemtobuy.

Inthischapter,I'mgoingtoshowyouhowtowriteaRoadmapwhichwillhelp
youtosketchoutyourrouteforgettingtothepointwhereyou'rereadyto
introduceyourproduct.Thiswillalsomaketheprocessofwritingthecopyso
mucheasier.

TheFiveRoadmapGoals

Firstofall,let'sthinkaboutwhatyouneedtoachievebeforeyoucan
introducetheproduct.Youneedto:

Emergency Copywriting 63
 (1)Demonstrateadeepunderstandingoftheprospect'sproblem

(2)Maketheproblemfeelasurgentaspossible

(3)Showthatyouhavetheauthorityandexpertisetodealwith
theirproblem

(4)Eliminatethealternatives

(5)Provethatyouhavethesolutiontotheirproblem

Let'scallthesetheFiveRoadmapGoals.Youdon'tnecessarilyhavetodo
themintheexactorderthey'representedabove,buttheyallneedtobedone,
andideallybeforeyouevenintroducethemtoyourproduct.Ifyou'vedoneall
ofthesefirst,thentheyareprimedforhearingaboutyourproductandhowit
willsolvetheirproblem.Keepthesefivegoalsinthebackofyourmindasyou
preparetowriteyourcopy.Youmightevenwanttowritethemdownandkeep
themnexttoyourcomputer.

BeTheExpert:DemonstrateASuperiorUnderstandingOfTheirWorld

Assomeonewhoisabouttopromisetohelpsolvetheprospect'sproblems,
youneedtodemonstrateasuperiorunderstandingoftheirworldand
problems.Whenyoucanshowacleargraspoftheirsituation,whythey'reinit
andhowtheycanescapeit,youbecometheirvirtualgotopersonforanswers
andsolutions.

Forexample,takesomeonewhomightconsiderbuyinganinformation
productondatingformen.Hedoesn'twanttoheartheusualclichdadvice
fromwellmeaningfriends,tojustbeyourselforbeconfident.Chances
are,he'salreadytriedthat,anditdidn'twork...becauseperhapshedoesn't
knowwhattodoorsay,hasafearofrejection,lacksconfidence,orisjust
plainshy.Ifyoursalesletterconveysthemessagethatheshouldjustbe
yourselfandbeconfident,thenyourmessagewillfallondeafears,because
yousimplycomeacrossassomeonewithnorealunderstandingofthe
prospect'sworldortheproblemshefaces.

Youneedasuperiorunderstandingofhisworld.Youneedtobetheperson
whopullsbackthecurtainforhim,whoshowsamoreprofoundawareness

Emergency Copywriting 64
andunderstandingofdatingandwomenthanhiswellmeaningfriends.
Afterall,you'retheexpert.You'retheauthority.Don'tjustsaythatyou'rethe
expert,showitintheinsightsyourevealthroughoutyoursalesletter.BEthe
expert.

Ifyou'rethecreatoroftheproductyou'rewritingabout,hopefullyyoualready
havethissuperiorunderstanding.Yousimplyneedtodemonstratethisinyour
copy,bysharinginsightsandperspectivestheymightnothaveconsidered
before.Drawtheirattentiontotheelusiveobvious,thethingsthatseem
obviousoncepointedout,butthatofteneludeusinoureverydaylives.

Forexample,takethewellmeaningfriendwhotellshisshymalefriendtobe
confidentaroundwomen.Theelusiveobvioushere...thethingthatactually
becomesobviousonlyoncepointedout...isthatyoucannotjustbe
confident.Itdoesn'tworklikethat.It'snotsomethingyoucanjustturnon
andofflikealightswitch.Confidenceisastateofmind...andjustlikestates
ofmindsuchaslove,bliss,fearorexcitement,confidencecan'tbe
generatedsimplybyorderingyourselftobecomeit.Youdon'tfallinloveby
tellingyourselftobeinlove.Youdon'tbecomeexcitedbytellingyourselfto
beexcited.That'sthebadnews.Thegoodnewsis...confidenceCANbe
induced,throughaseriesofsteps.I'llshowyouwhatthosestepsareinjusta
moment.

HereI'mpointingoutsomethingthatdoesn'twork,butthateverybodysays
anyway.Oh,justbeyourself...beconfident.ThisallowsmetoexplainWHY
itdoesn'twork(demonstratingmyexpertiseandunderstanding),andtease
themwiththefactthatIknowwhatDOESwork,andthatI'llsharethose
insightswiththemsoon,iftheykeepreading.

Thebasicpatternhereis...Xdoesn'twork...(eventhougheveryonesaysit
does)...here'swhyitdoesn'twork...andlateronI'llexplainwhatDOES
work.

Bydoingthis,youdemonstrateadeepunderstandingoftheirproblem,aswell
asshowingthatyouareprobablytheonetohaveasolutiontotheirproblem,
simplybecauseyoutrulyunderstandwhileothersdon't.

BuildingTheNeedForUrgency

Youalsowanttomaketheproblemfeelurgent,becauseifyoudon't,prospects
mightmentallyacknowledgetheyhaveaproblem,butputoffitsresolution

Emergency Copywriting 65
foranothertime,meaningyoudon'tgetthesale.(Rememberthehuman
tendencytoprocrastinate.)

Howcanyoudothis?Therearethreemainways:

(a)Talkaboutwhatthey'remissingouton,bynothavingtheirproblem
solved.

Rememberthehumanmotivatorsoffearofloss,andnotwantingtomiss
outorbeleftbehind.Tellthemwhatthey'remissingouton,whatthey're
notcurrentlyenjoyingbecauseoftheirproblem.Theaimhereistobuild
massivedesirefortheresultsyourproductoffers,andhenceallthegood
thingsthey'recurrentlymissingouton.

Forexample,you'resellingaproductthatgivesmenadviceonwomenand
dating.Wealreadyknowwhatmightbeholdingthemback,butwhatare
theymissingouton?Chancesare,they'remissingoutonallthosehotdates,
sex,love,romance,thechancetomeettheloveoftheirlife,meetingnewand
excitingwomen,etc.Talkaboutthosethings!Makethemfullyawarethat
they'remissingout,increasingtheirdesiretogetitsortednowratherthan
later.

(b)Talkabouttheconsequencesofnotsolvingtheirproblemnow.

Whathappensiftheydon'tgettheirproblemsorted?Whatislifelikeforthem
atthemoment?Whatmightitbelikenextweek,nextyear,nextdecade...at
theendoftheirlifeastheylookbackontheirwholelife?Mightitgetworse?
Mightitleadtoevenbiggerproblems?Whataretheconsequences,bothnow
andinthefuture,ofhavingthisproblemremain?

Ifyouhavesecret,insideinformation,whathappensiftheydon'tknow
whatyouknow?Willtheybedoomedtomakethesamemistakesaseveryone
else,overandoveragain?

Let'sgobacktothewomenanddatingproductasanexample.Theguyuses
thesameoldstufftotryandgetwomen,andhegetsrejected,maybeeven
laughedat...leadingtofrustrationandanevenworseselfimage.Theseare
theconsequencesofnotknowingtheREALwaytoattractwomenor
whatever.

Youwanttobuildsufficientfearoftheconsequencesofnotsortingthis

Emergency Copywriting 66
problemout.Atthesametime,youwanttobecompassionate.Allowdesireto
trumpfear.AsIpointedoutearlier,don'tsimplytellthem,Ifyoudon'tget
thissorted,youmightdiealone.That'sjustmean.Givethemhope.Gently
playontheirfears,butultimatelybringthemhopeiftheytakeactionnow.
Linktheproducttotheresultstheycouldenjoyiftheytakeaction.Nobody
needstobealone,andmyproductisgoingtoshowyouexactlyhowtoattract
therightkindofwomenintoyourlife.

(c)Useyourafterstorytotalkaboutwhatyou'vegotnow.

Rememberthehumanmotivatorofjealousy.Getthemalittlejealous.Talk
abouttheresultsyouandyourclientsnowenjoy,sinceyoufoundthesolution
totheirproblem.Makethemthink,Wow...Iwantwhatyou'vegot!

HOWTOCREATEAROADMAPFORYOURCOPY

EarlieronIrecommendedthatyouwritedownalistofpointsofagreement,
andthenputthemintoalogicalorder.Nowyoucanusethesepointsto
constructabasicRoadmap,whichyoucanuseasanoutlineforhowtoget
fromstartingthesalesletter,tointroducingtheproduct.Alongtheway,you
wanttoachievetheFiveRoadmapGoals.

CreatingthisRoadmapwillsaveyoualotoftimeandeffortlateron.Itmeans
youwon'thavetostruggletryingtofigureoutwheretogonextwhenyou're
writingthecopy.YourRoadmapwilltellyouwheretogo,andalsokeepyou
ontrack.

TheRoadmapisn'tmeanttobecomplicated.Infact,I'dstronglyurgeyouto
keepittoonelineperthought.Writeonelineforeachkeypointyouneedto
make,basedonthepointsofagreement,andalsoanypointsthatwillhelp
todemonstrateyourexpertise,eliminatealternatives,andincreasethe
urgencyforgettingtheirproblemsolved.Fornow,youonlyneedtogettothe
pointofintroducingtheproduct.Youcanusesquarebrackets[]nexttoeach
point,andwriteinanyideasonhowtoconveythosepointsinyourcopy.

Here'sanexampleofaRoadmapforanimaginarydatingformenproduct:

ROADMAPFORMYWOMENANDDATINGPRODUCTFORMEN

Introducetheproblem.

Emergency Copywriting 67
 Whatgoeswrong?[examples]

It'snotaboutlooksetc.[storyofmyfriendBilltoillustrate]

It'saboutconfidence,awareness,knowingwhattodoorsayetc.

However,youcan'tjustbeconfident.[explanation]

Youneedtechniquestoachieveastateofconfidence.

Lotsofbaddatingadviceoutthere.[examples;whymostpeopleare
wrong;eliminatealternatives.]

WhyIdecidedtogetthisaspectoflifesorted.[mybeforestory]

Whatlife'slikenowIhaveitsorted.[myafterstory]

HowIhelpedotherstogetthissorted.[provingmyinsightswork.]

Shareaparticularinsightwiththem.[demonstratingauthority]

Whyit'surgenttogetthissorted/whatyou'remissingouton.[increases
urgency]

WhyIdecidedtosharethisknowledgewiththereader.[justifiescreation
ofproduct.]

Introducetheproduct.

NoticethatIdevotejustonelinetoeachsection.I'mnotaimingtowritethe
actualcopyhere,thisissimplyaroadmap...aguidetotellmewheretogo,
andhowtodevelopmycasefortheproduct.UsingthisRoadmapIcannow
writeawholesectionofcopyestablishingeachpoint,andifIwonder,Where
amIsupposedtotakethisnow?...IsimplylookatmyRoadmap,andittells
me.

NoticehowIgetinalloftheFiveRoadmapGoals.Istartoutbyintroducing
theproblem,andwhatgoeswrong,i.e.whythey'reinthatsituation.Here's
whereIintendtodemonstratemydeepunderstandingoftheirproblem.Ithen
sharesomeinsights,i.e.it'snotaboutlooksandIbackitupbysharinga

Emergency Copywriting 68
storyofmyfriendBill.Ithensharewiththereadermybeforeandafter
stories,andanotherinsight(whichIhaven'tdecidedonatthisstage),to
demonstratemyauthorityandexpertise.Thebeforeandafterstoriesalso
implythatmytechniqueswork,whichgoestowardsprovingIhavethe
solutionforthem.

Iincludeasectiononwhyit'surgenttogetthissorted/whatyou'remissing
outon,toincreasetheurgencyanddesire.Finally,IexplainhowIdecidedto
sharemyknowledgewiththereader,justifyingthecreationoftheproductI'm
abouttointroducetothem.Andbythatpoint,I'llbereadytointroducethe
product!

ThisRoadmapisn'tmeanttobethefinalsayonhowmysalesletterwill
develop.It'ssimplyausefulstartingpointaroughguideforhowtogetfrom
thebeginning,tothepointofbeingabletointroducetheproduct.It'soneway
ofgettingfromAtoB,butwhenitcomestoactuallywritingthecopy,I'mfree
totakeadiversionorchangesomethingifIfeelit'sjustified.However,when
youknowwhereyouwanttogo,androughlyhowtogetthere,itmakesthe
journeysomucheasier.

ACTIONSTEPS

(1)CreateaRoadmapforhowtogetfromthebeginningofyoursales
letter,tothepointwhereyouintroducetheproduct.Usethepointsof
agreementasthebasisforthisRoadmap,withfurtherpointstohelp
demonstrateyourauthorityandexpertise,eliminatethealternatives,and
increasetheurgency.Limityourselftoaboutonelineperpoint.Donottry
towritethecopyatthisstage.

(2)Insquarebracketsnexttoeachpoint,brieflywriteyourideasonhow
youcouldconveythispointtoyourreaders.Ifyou'renotsureabouthow
tomakeaspecificpoint,don'tworryaboutthatfornow.

11.TheRulesTheEliteCopywriters
Don'tWantYouToKnow(InCaseYouPut

Emergency Copywriting 69
ThemOutOfBusiness)
You'regettingclosetothestagewhereyou'rereadytobeginwritingthesales
letter.I'llshowyouhowtogetstartedwritingactualcopyinthenextchapter;
butfirst,I'dliketogiveyousomeguidelinesonHOWtowritecopyingeneral.

Writingasalesletterisnotlikeotherformsofwriting.Ithasitsownunique
style.Forexample,fictionwritersliketoshowofftheiruseoflanguageand
vocabulary.Theytrytobeclever.That'sOKinthecontextoffiction,because
peoplehavealreadyboughttheirwritingforthepurposeofbeingentertained.
Inthatcontext,beingcleverwithwordscanbeamusingandentertaining.

However,youdon'thavethisluxuryinasalesletter.Yourprospectsmaycome
toyoursalesmaterialcompletelyskeptical,onlymildlyinterested,andthey
certainlydonotwanttoreadanessay,athesis,asciencepaperorthekindof
wordcanvasyoumightseeinanovel.

You'renottryingtocreateaworkofart.You'renotwritingpoetry.You'renot
writinganovel.You'renottryingtoimpressauniversityprofessor,orgetyour
articlepublishedinasciencejournaloranarticledirectorysodon'ttryusing
thesamewritingstructuresandconventionsastheseotherformsofwriting.
Instead,treatitasasalespitch,analtogetherdifferentformofwriting.Viewit
asawrittenconversationbetweenyouandafriend,inwhichyouwanttohelp
themandpersuadethemtotakeaction.

Herearesomeguidelinesforwritingyourcopy,whichyoushouldkeepin
mindfromnowon:

Keepitpersonal.

Don'tspeaktomanypeopleallatonce.Speaktoyourreaderasifyou
werewritingtohimorherpersonally.Don'tsay,allofyoureadingthis
now,becausethatsoundsimpersonal.Speaktotheprospectoneon
one,eventhoughyoumaynotknowtheirname.Ifithelps,visualizea
specificprospectinyourmind,andwritetohimorher.

Keepitsimple.

Don'tusetenwordswhenyoucansayitinfive.You'renottryingtowin
aliteraryaward,you'retryingtomakeasale.Dumbitdownabit.If

Emergency Copywriting 70
 you'regoodwithwordsandlanguage,saveitforwithinthepagesof
yourproduct,notthesalespitch.Thefewerwordsyoucanuseto
conveythesamethought,themorelikelythatallofyoursalesletter's
thoughtswillberead,absorbedandaccepted.Wordswithfewer
syllablesareeasiertoread.Forexample,HoweverandButmean
basicallythesamethings,butbutissimplerandquickertoread.

Losefluffwordsandphrases.

It'simportanttoremember...,whatyoudon'trealizeis...Theseare
wordsandphrasesthatweuseinspeech,butthatcanprobablybe
ditchedwithoutaffectingthemainidea.Also,watchoutforwordslike
that.You'llfindthatyouuseitquitealot,butthatitcanusually(not
always)beditchedwithoutlosingthebasicthought.

Speaktoyourprospectsattheirlevel,intheirlanguage,using
everydaywords.

Evenifyou'readoctorwithsixPhDsunderyourbelt,speaktoyour
prospectsintermstheycanunderstandandrelateto,i.e.intheeveryday
languageofyourprospects.Don'tuseyouracademiclanguagetoshow
offyourknowledge(exceptwhereabsolutelynecessary,i.e.intechnical
descriptions).

Putclarityovergrammar.Iknowthatalotofwritersaretrainedtosee
therulesofgrammarasbeingalmostonaparwiththeTen
Commandments.However,sometimestryingtoforceasentenceto
conformperfectlytotherulesofgrammarcanmakeitsoundclumsy.
Makeiteasyforyourprospectstoreadyourpitch.Ifthatmeans
occasionallyviolatingaruleofgrammar,sobeit.(Ifsomeoneemails
youtocomplainaboutagrammarviolation,pointouthowrightthey
are,andthenpitchthemfurtheronyourproduct.)

Forexample,ingrammarlessonsyouweretoldnottostartasentence
withAnd.Butfromacopywritingpointofview,itcanbeusefultodo
so.It'shardtoresistthenextsentencewhenitbeginswiththatword!
Butdon'tdoitallthetime.Becausethenitjustlookslikeyou'retrying
tobeagrammarrebel.(Oh,andButandBecauseareusefulforthe
samereason.Keepthatinmind.)

Speaktothethingsthatmattertotheminrelationtotheproduct

Emergency Copywriting 71
 you'reselling.

Yourprospectswillkeepreading,aslongaswhatthey'rereadingis
interestingandrelevanttothem.Yourbeforeandafterstoriesmay
berelevanttothem,buttheyprobablydon'tcarewhatyouhadfor
breakfastthismorning(unlessperhapsyou'resellinganewhealthy
breakfastordiet).Anddoesyourpoliticalrantaboutthelatestanticsof
yourgovernmentreallymatterifyou'resellingadatingproduct?
Probablynot,althoughitmightberelevantifyou'reselling,say,an
investmentproduct.Keepitontopic,interestingandrelevanttoyour
prospectsrightnow.

Keepitinthefivesenses.

Don'tspeakinabstractlanguage.Writeusingtheirfivesenses:sight,
sound,feeling,taste,andsmell.Don'tjusttalkaboutapowerful
technique.Makeitatechniquethat'sgoingtosmackthecompetition
andbringthemtotheirknees,shakeyourworldtoitsfoundations,
showyouhowtomakemouthwateringappetizersthatwillamazeyour
friends,haveyourenemiestearingtheirhairoutinfrustration,send
thatmanintoalustful,dreamyobsessionoveryouetc.Noticeallof
thoseutilizedatleastoneofthefivesenses.

Don'ttrytobeclever.

Don'twastetimethinkingupslogans,rhymesormemorablephrases.
Unlessyou'retheCocaColaCorporationandhaveabilliondollar
marketingbudget,nobody'sgoingtorememberyourcleverpunsand
rhymeswhenusedinasalesletter.Don'ttryshowingoffwithyour
language.Inthecontextofasalesletter,wordsaremerelytoolsfor
conveyingpersuasivethoughtsandideasthatleadthemtobuy.

Shortsentencesarefine.

Listen.Don'tbeafraidtouseshortsentencesattimes.Evenoneword
sentences,likelisten.Theywork.See?Theymakeyourwritingeasier
toread.Again,don'tdoitallthetime,becauseitwilllookandsound
odd.Butonceinawhile,ashortsentencecanbeusefulforbreakingup
largersentencesandparagraphs.Talkingofwhich...

Don'twritelongwindedsentencesandparagraphs.

Emergency Copywriting 72
 It'squitecommontoseelongsentencesandparagraphsinbooksand
articles.Butinsalesletters,keepsentencelengthfairlyshort,and
especiallyparagraphs.Thismakesitlookeasiertoread.Ifyouwritea
longparagraph(ofthreelinesormore),seeifyoucanbreakitupinto
twosmallerparagraphs.

WritewithSowhat?inmind.

KeepinmindtheNightmareProspect.Thinkofthemasking,Sowhat?
aftereverysentenceyouwrite.Whyshouldtheycareaboutwhatyou're
goingtotellthem?What'sinitforthem?Whydoesitmattertothem?
Sowhat?Often,thiswillgiveyoucluesastowhattowritenext,and
warnyouwhenyou'redriftingawayfromwhatyouhavetosaybeing
relevantandinterestingtothem.

Establishyourpoints,butdon'tbeatthemtodeath.

Youhavepointsyouwanttomake,andyouneedtomakethem.There
aredifferentwaysyoucanmakeyourpoints,aswe'lltalkaboutshortly.
Forexample,youcoulduseoneortwoanecdotes.However,you
probablydon'tneedtosubjectyourprospecttotwentyanecdotesto
makethesamepoint.Afterthefirsttwoorthree,yourprospectisgoing
tomentallysay,OK...Igetit!That'sthenaturaltimetomoveonto
yournextpoint.Thereisnoeasywaytodeterminethismoment,
becauseitwilldependoneachindividualprospect.However,ifyour
copyhasdoneitsjob,theyshouldgetyourpointafteroneortwo
examples,orthreeatapush.

Avoidambiguity.

Afterthevicarcomesroundforlunch,we'llbegoingthroughacts
together.I'msurethevicarwasrelievedtodiscoveryoumeantthe
BookOfActs.Ofcourse,itwouldhavehelpedifI'dcapitalizedthefirst
letterofthebooktitle.However,otherambiguitiesareeasierto
overlook.Maybeyoucouldreadbackwhatyou'vewrittentoafriend,to
makesurethereisnoambiguity,becausethey'reeasytomiss.Your
friend,thatis.Ambiguitiesslowdownthereader,astheirmindhasto
tryandfigureoutwhichversionofthesentenceiscorrect.Ithindersthe
slipperyslide.(Incidentally,therearetimeswhenambiguityisuseful,
suchasmakingsuggestionstothesubconscious.However,that'sawhole

Emergency Copywriting 73
 otherbook.)

HOWTOTALKTOYOURPROSPECTS

Ifinditusefultothinkofasalesletterasaconversationwiththereader;a
conversationinwhichyou'resimplytryingtoestablishaseriesofpoints,
whichleadthemnaturallytoconcludethatyourproductistherightonefor
them.

Therearelotsofwaysyoucanmakeeachofyourpoints.I'llsummarizethem
here,althoughI'llgointomoredetailaboutsomeofthemlateron:

Straighttalk.Thisisthesimplestwayofdemonstratingan
understandingoftheirproblems.Justtalkaboutthemfranklyand
compassionately,asonefriendtoanother.Ineffect,you'resayingto
them...Hey,youhaveProblemX...itsucks...itmeansyoudon'thaveA
andBandC...andthatcanleadtoDandEandF.

Stories,experiencesandanecdotes.Thesecanshowyour
understandingoftheirproblem,buildurgency,andalsodemonstrate
yourauthorityandexpertise.It'sbasicallyadifferentwayoftellingthem
howitis,andestablishingpointsofagreement.Youcanuseyourown
stories,orthestoriesofyourclients,friendsorcolleagues.Here'savery
basicexample:Irememberonetimeaclientcameintomyoffice,she
hadProblemX...andshetoldmehowitaffectedher...

Hypotheticalscenarios.Ifyoudon'thaveaspecificstoryforthe
situationyouwanttodescribe,youcouldgiveahypotheticalexampleof
whatcouldhappen,akindofforexample.Getrightintoitaftergiving
themsomeindicationthattheyneedtoimaginethescenario.Pictureit.
It'saSaturdaynight.You'reatthebar,andyoureallywanttotalktothat
hotgirl.Youknowshe'sjustrightforyou.Yourhandsgrowsweatyand
yourmindracestofindjusttherightwords...butitremainsblank.
Nothing.

Factsandfigures.Thesecanbeusefulinbuildingyourcase.Youmight
besurprisedtodiscoverthatover92%ofproductsellersstilldon'tsplit
testontheirwebsites...meaningthey'rethrowingawaymoney.This
meansyoucouldgainamassiveadvantagebysplittestingonyoursite.
Bytheway,whenitcomestostatistics,ifyoucangivethesource,itadds
tothecredibilityofthestatistic.Arecentsurveyconductedbythe

Emergency Copywriting 74
 pollingcompanyXYZPolling,Inc.showedthat87%of...

Usefulinsights.You'resupposedtobetheexpert,right?Ifyoucan
sharewiththemusefulinsightsthathelpthemunderstandthenatureof
theirproblembetter,youbothdemonstrateyourunderstandingofthe
problemandshowyourauthorityandexpertise.

Nuggetsoftruthandlogic.Remember,youwanttheprospecttoagree
withyou,evenwhenyou'representingsomethingneworinsightfulto
them.Thisiswherelogicisyourfriend.Makeyourargumentssound
logical.LookatthesplittestingargumentImadeabove.90%ormore
siteownersaren'tsplittesting,meaningthey'rethrowingawaymoney,
meaningyoucangetamassiveadvantageoverthembysplittesting.It's
alogicalargument,andhardtoargueagainst.Keepthrowinginnuggets
oftruthandlogicthattheycan'teasilyargueagainst.Listen,ifyou
don'tgetyourproblemwith'womenanddating'sortedout,whatwill
change?Sure,youmightgetluckyandmeetthewomanofyourdreams
tomorrow,orthenextday...butchancesare,it'snotgoingtohappen...
becauseitdidn'thappenyesterday,orthedaybefore...sowhyisit
suddenlygoingtohappentomorrow?Ifyoudon'tchangesomething,
you'llgetthesameresultsyou'vealwayshad...unless...

Useamixtureoftheabovetohaveaconversationwiththereader.That'sreally
allasalesletteris:aconversationwiththereader,thatleadsthemalmost
naturallytoconcludethatyou'retheexpertandthatyou(andonlyyou)have
THEsolutionforthem,whichtheyneednowratherthanlater.

OK,sonowI'veprimedyoutounderstandwhatyou'reaimingfor,you'reready
togetdressedupandgooutonthatdate.You'lldiscoverthatallthisbuildup
hasbeenworthit.It'stimefortherealfuntobegin!Let'sdosomepersuading!

12.TheOpener:SevenEasyWaysToStart
ChattingUpYourProspects
Let'sgetthispartystarted.Andwherebettertostartthanatthebeginning!

Icallthefirstfewparagraphsoftheactualsaleslettertheopener.Theopener
needstomakethemsitupandpayraptattention.Inaddition,eachsentence

Emergency Copywriting 75
andparagraphmustcompelthereadertoreadthenextone.Copywriter
JosephSugarmancalledthistheslipperyslide.

IrecentlycameacrossagreatopenerbyfellowcopywriterPaulHooperKelly.
Aftertheheadlineandgreeting,theopenerread...

Areyourichyet?

Ifnot,it'sprobablynotyourfaultandit'ssimpletofix.

Becauseyou'relookingforwealthinthewrongplace.

Thisisagreatexampleofanopener,forseveralreasons.Theopeninglineis
incrediblyshort,atjustfourwordsandyetitasksabeautifullyrelevant
questiontoitstargetaudience,thosewhoarelookingtomakemoneyonline.
Thesecondlinereassuresthem,it'sprobablynotyourfault,andgivesthem
hope:it'ssimpletofix.Thethirdlinethenexplainswhyit'snottheirfault
andissimpletofix.Becauseyou'relookingforwealthinthewrongplace.

Thisbegsthequestion:Ifthey'vebeenlookingforwealthinthewrong
place,wherethenistherightplacetofindwealth?Theimplicationis,read
onandyou'llfindout.

Thisishowtheslipperyslideworks.Writeinsuchawaythatcompelsthem
toreadon.Takethemonabreathlessjourneythatmakestheireyesslide
easilydownthepage,compellingthemtogonaturallyfromonesentenceto
thenext.

Keepinmindthatyou'renottryingtowriteanarticleoressayforsubmission
tosomeacademicbody.You'retryingtowinheartsandminds,andultimately
asale.Keepyourfirstcoupleofparagraphsassimpleaspossible,inorderto
hookthemin.

OK,let'sgetintoactuallywritingtheopener...

SEVENWAYSTOOPENYOURSALESLETTER

It'sworthspendingsometimecraftingagoodopener,becauseit'susuallythe
secondthingthey'llread,aftertheheadline.Yourheadlinemustpullthem
intotheopener,andtheopenermustpushthemintotherestofthecopy.

Emergency Copywriting 76
Herearesomegreatwaysofopeningyoursalesletter:

Askthereaderquestionscommontotheirproblemandsituation.

Questionscompelareadertothinkabouttheirsituation,atleast
momentarily.Areyourichyet?isnotadeepquestion.Mostpeople
knowinstantlywhetherthey'rerichornot.Thequestionforcesthe
readertorealizetheyhaven'tyetachievedwhattheywant.

Youcouldaskmultiplequestions,somethinglikethis:

Letmeaskyousomequestions.Thinkcarefullyasyouanswer...

Doyouoftenstruggletosleepatnight?

Haveyoueverfoundyourselftossingandturning,stillwide
awakewhenyouknowyoushouldbefastasleep?

Areyouoftenlackingenergyduringtheday,becauseofyourlack
ofsleep?

IfyouansweredYestoanyofthese,thenpayattentiontoeveryword
I'mabouttotellyou.

Youcanaskmultiplequestions,theideabeingthatyouwantmanyor
evenallofthemtoringtruewiththeprospect,sotheymentallysay
Yestoasmanyofthequestionsaspossible.ThisputstheminaYes
mindsetfromthestart,itdemonstratesyouhaveanunderstandingof
theirproblem,andshowsthatwhatyou'reabouttotellthemisrelevant
tothem.

Don'tgettoospecific.Haveyoueverbeenupat2.37amandfound
yourselfhavingtowatchEpisode4,Series2oftheLostreruns?...is
probablytoospecific.

Relatethequestionstocommonexperiencesandsituationsthereaderis
likelytohavefaced,inrelationtohavingtheproblem.Haveyouever
foundyourselfallalonewithnodateonaSaturdaynight?mightbea
commonexperienceforapersonthinkingofbuyingadatingproduct.

Stateyourcase.

Emergency Copywriting 77
 ThisisequivalenttowhatIcallstraighttalk,exceptthatyousimply
stateyourcasefromthebeginning.Tellthemwhatyou'reaboutright
fromthestart.

Hi,I'mDrSallyPeppercorn,andI'vediscoveredarevolutionarynew
systemthatallowsanybodytofallasleepwithin17minutesofhitting
thebed.Here'swhatit'sallabout...

Iftheyhavesleepproblems,thiscanhookthemintoreadingon.You
couldthengostraightintothestoryofhowyoudiscoveredyoursystem,
orexplainwhythey'resufferingatthemoment.

Makeapromise.

Thisisaprettysimpleone.Justtellthemtheirproblem,andpromiseto
solveitforthem.Thisisparticularlyeffectiveforproblemswhichare
alreadyurgentintheprospect'smind.

Ifyou'veeverstruggledtofallasleepatnight,payattentiontoevery
wordinthisletter.

I'mgoingtoexplainpreciselyWHYyou'vehadthisstruggle,andWHAT
todoaboutit.

Thereare3reasonsyou'restrugglingrightnow...

Alwaysremembertodeliveronyourpromises.Naturallyyouwon'twant
togiveawayeverythinginyoursalesletter,butmakesureyougivethem
enoughoftheWHYsothey'llwillinglypayyoutoknowWHATtodo
aboutit.

Reassurethem.It'snotyourfault.

ThisistheapproachusedintheexampleIgaveatthebeginningofthis
chapter.They'renotrichyet?Itwasn'ttheirfault,becausethey're
lookingforwealthinallthewrongplaces.

Forthisopener,justbrieflystatetheirproblem,explainthatit'snottheir
fault,andWHYit'snot.Maybeit'ssomepowerfulforceslinedupagainst
them,ormaybeit'ssimplythebadadvicethey'vebeengiveninthepast.

Emergency Copywriting 78
 Areyoustrugglingtofind,meetanddatetheRIGHTkindofwomen?

That'snotsurprising.Andtruthis...it'snotyourfault.

Fordecadesnow,menhavebeensubjectedtoallkindsofbaddating
advicefromthemedia,parentsandwellmeaningfriends.

Someofthatadviceisjustplainnonsense!

Taketheclassicone...justbeyourself.Here'swhythisisBADadvice...

Asyoucansee,thisopenergivesmetheperfectopportunityto
demonstratemydeeperunderstandingoftheirproblems,andthusset
myselfupastheexpert.

Getthemtousetheirimaginationtopicturedesiredresults.

IcallthistheWhatif...frame.Getthemtoaskthemselves,whatIF
theycouldhavetheresultstheyreallywanted.Whatwoulditbelike?
Pictureit.Imagineit.Thinkaboutit.Wouldn'titbegreat?

Justthink.Howgoodwouldlifebe...ifyoucouldstepoutona
Saturdayafternoon...maybetoyourlocalshoppingmall...

...andEASILYgetyourselfahotdatelinedupforthesameevening?

WhatifyouhadtheCONFIDENCEtojustwalkuptoanywomanyou
wantedtogettoknow...andhavehertelephonenumberwithin5
minutes?

Iknow...soundstoogoodtobetrue,right?

Well...it'sperfectlypossible.Here'show.

Bytheway,listencarefully...becausewhatI'mabouttosharewithyou
inthenextfewpagesisgoingtoblowyourmind.

Whenyougetthemtoimaginethesethingsatthisearlystage,beaware
thatyou'llprobablytriggeraYeah,rightmentalresponseifthe
scenarioyou'redescribingisnotintheircurrentscopeofreality,the
rangeofwhattheyfeelispresentlyachievableforthem.What?Me?

Emergency Copywriting 79
 Havetheconfidencetoapproachawomanandgethertelephone
number...allin5minutes?Yeah,right.

Soyouneedtorecognizethislikelyresponserightaway.Acknowledge
it,anddealwithit.That'swhatIdidintheexampleabove.Iknow...it
soundstoogoodtobetrue,right?AndthenIusedthatopportunityto
tellthemtopayattentionandlistenup.Next,Icouldchoosetoshare
withthemsomeinsightsorastory,orwhateverwasnextonmy
Roadmap.

Beginwithastory.

Let'sfaceit,storiescanbefuntohear.I'llgetintostoriesacoupleof
chaptersfromnow,butyoucanalsostartyoursalesletterwithan
intriguingstoryeitherarealonebasedonanexperience,ora
hypotheticalsituation.Makesureyourprospectcanrelatetoit.

It's5am,andyou'reinbed...stillawake.

Youknowit's5ambecauseit'sthefifthtimeyou'velookedatyourclock.

You'vebeeninbedforhours...andyetyoujustcan'tsleep.Youknow
tomorrowisgoingtobeanothernightmaredaywithouthavingagood
night'ssleep.

Doesthissoundatallfamiliar?Ifso,IhavesomeGOODNEWSforyou.

Commentateonyourheadline.

Ifyou'vewrittenagoodheadline,youcansimplyfollowupor
commentateontheheadline.Forexample,ifyou'vemadeabig,bold
claimintheheadline,commentonwhatthey'relikelytobethinking.

NewBreakthroughForInsomniacsAllowsYouToFallAsleep
EasilyAndNaturallyInAsLittleAs17Minutes

DearSleepDeprivedFriend,

17minutes?Itsoundstoogoodtobetrue,doesn'tit?

Andyetinarecenttestconductedon100insomniacsusingthisexciting
newbreakthrough,theaveragetimeittooktofallasleepwas32

Emergency Copywriting 80
 minutes,andthequickestwasjust17minutes!

Myname'sDr.PeterSnoozemaker,andinamomentI'lltellyouhowyou
canbenefitfromthisremarkablebreakthrough.

First,youneedtounderstandWHYyou'rehavingsleepproblems.

Noticehowtalkingaboutthisremarkablebreakthroughcreates
anticipation.Theprospecthastoreadontofindoutwhatitis,andhow
itworks.(We'lltalkabouthowtobuildanticipationinthenextchapter.
You'lllovesomeofthetechniquesI'llsharewithyou.)

Keepinmindthatthesearejustideas.Youdon'thavetouseanyofthem,you
canpickjustone,oryoucanusemorethanone,andmixthemup.It'supto
you,aslongasyouhooktheminwithanopenerthatpunchesafistthrough
theircomputerscreen,grabsthembythelapels,pullsthemtowardsthewords
andsays,Readthisnow!...withouttheactualviolenceorbrokencomputer
screen.

Question:WhenamIsupposedtointroducemyself?

Youcouldintroduceyourselfandstateyourcaserightfromthestart,asin
theearlierexample,i.e.

Hi,I'mDrSallyPepperson,andI'vediscoveredarevolutionarynew
systemthatallowsanybodytofallasleepwithin17minutesofhittingthe
bed.Here'swhatit'sallabout...

However,youcandelayyourintroductionuntilyou'vefullyhookedthem
intoreadingyourcopy.Forexample,ifyouwantedtogothequestions
route,youcouldaskthequestionsfirst,buildanticipationforwhatyou're
goingtosharewiththem,andthenintroduceyourself.

Letmeaskyousomequestions.Thinkcarefullyasyouanswer...

[questions]

Ifanyofthesearetrueforyou,thenlistenverycarefullywhatI'mabout
totellyou.Ipromiseyou'llthankmeforit.

Emergency Copywriting 81
 MynameisDrSallyPeppercorn,andthreeyearsagoIusedtostruggle
withtheexactsameproblems.[tellthebeforestory]

Inotherwords,aslongasyouintroduceyourselfatsomepointfairly
earlyon,youdon'thavetodoitrightatthestart...butatsomepointthe
readerwillnaturallywonder,WhoISthis,anyway?soyou'llneedto
introduceyourselfsomewherealongtheline.

ACTIONSTEPS

Writeyouropener,perhapsusingoneoftheseventechniquesI'vegiven
youinthischapter.

13.HowToBuildASolidCaseForYouAnd
YourProduct(AndBuildAnticipationTo
KeepThemHooked)
Aswellasbeingaconversationwithyourprospects,Ialsoseeasalesletteras
buildingacaseforyouandyourproduct.Agood,solidcaseusesastrong
logicalandemotionalappeal.Everythingyousayupuntilyouintroducethe
productisprimingyourprospectstoseeyouastheexpert,buildtheirdesire
forasolution,increasetheurgency,andpointtoyourproductasthesolution
forthem.

Ifyou'vealreadycreatedaRoadmap,thegoodnewsisyou'vealreadygotthe
keypointsofyourcase.Nowit'ssimplyaquestionofturningeachpointin
yourRoadmapintoactualcopy,tocreateapersuasivecase.

Theprocessissimplerthanyoumightthink.Here'showyoudoit:

Emergency Copywriting 82
 ForeachpointinyourRoadmap,useoneormoreofacombination
ofstraighttalk,stories,experiencesandanecdotes,hypothetical
examples,factsandfigures,usefulinsights,andnuggetsoftruthand
logic...inordertofirmlyestablishthatpoint.

InChapter11,Igaveyoualistofwaysinwhichyoucouldtalktoyour
prospects,inordertogetacrossthepointsyouwantedtomake.Ihavea
specificchapterdevotedtostoriescomingup,becauseitrequiresabitmore
skill,butbuildingyourcaseisreallyquiteeasyonceyouknowwhatpoints
youneedtomake.

OK,let'stakethefirstsixpointsoftheRoadmapIcameupwithformy
imaginarywomenanddatingproductaimedatmen:

Introducetheproblem.

Whatgoeswrong?[examples]

It'snotaboutlooksetc.[storyofmyfriendBilltoillustrate]

It'saboutconfidence,awareness,knowingwhattodoorsayetc.

However,youcan'tjustbeconfident.[explanation]

Let'sstartwritingsomecopy!Firstofall,IneedtodecidewhatopenerI'm
goingtouse.Let'sgowithaskingthereaderquestionscommontotheir
problemandsituation.

DearFriend,

Thinkcarefullyasyouanswerthefollowingquestions:

Haveyoueverfoundyourselfwantingtoapproachawomanyou
liked...butsimplydidn'tknowwhattodoorsay?

Doyousufferfromalackofconfidenceinbeingabletoapproach
andattractwomen?

Doyoufindyourcurrentdatinglifeseriouslylackingornon

Emergency Copywriting 83
 existent?

Wouldyouliketobeabletonaturallyattractthewomanofyour
dreamsintoyourlife?

IfyouansweredYestoanyoftheabove,thenyouneedtoreadevery
wordofwhatI'mabouttotellyouverycarefully.

Ipickedthequestionsbasedontypicalfearsandfrustrations,andhopesand
aspirations,ofpeoplewhowouldconsiderbuyingmyimaginarywomenand
datingproduct.Thefirstquestionwasbasedontheproblemofnotknowing
whattodoandsay,thesecondwasbasedonlackofconfidence.Ialso
addedaquestionthatappealedtotheirhopeofbeingabletonaturallyattract
thewomenofyourdreamsintoyourlife.IfIwerewritingthissalesletterin
reallife,Imightaddseveralmorequestions.

Towriteyours,simplylookthroughyourprospect'slistoffearsand
frustrations,andhopesandaspirations,andaskthemquestionsbasedon
those,andcommonsituationsthatrelatetothosefearsandhopes.

Remember,thisisjustonewayofopeningthesalesletter.Icouldhavestarted
outwithastoryorexperience,ormaybetoldthemtoimaginewhatlifewould
belikeiftheyhadthisproblemsortedout.

OK,withthisopener,I'veintroducedtheproblems,andnowIcangetintothe
secondpointontheRoadmap,i.e.whatgoeswrong?,perhapswithsome
examples.Let'scontinue:

IfyouansweredYestoanyoftheabove,thenyouneedtoreadevery
wordofwhatI'mabouttotellyouverycarefully.

IhavebothGOODandBADNEWSforyou.

Thebadnewsisthatsociety,themedia,andevenwellmeaningfriends
andfamilyhaveprogrammedyouforfailure.

You'vebeenbombardedwithrichandhandsomecelebritieswhoseemto
beabletogethotwomenatthedropofahat...

...andatthesametime,wellmeaningfriendsandfamilyhavegivenyou

Emergency Copywriting 84
 basicallyuselessadvicelikeBeconfident...andJustbeyourself.(I'll
explainwhythesepiecesofadviceareuselessinjustamoment.)

Nowondersomanymenstrugglewiththisthingwecallwomenand
dating!

YourheadhasbeenfilledwithBADadviceandimpossiblerolemodels
fromthemomentyoufirstnoticedtheoppositesex!

That'sthebadnews.ButIhavesomeWONDERFULNEWSforyou...

Thegoodnewsis,I'mabouttosharewithyouhowyoucandumpallof
thatuselessprogramming...

...andturnyourself,almostinstantly,intothekindofmanthatnaturally
attractswomen...andisattractivetowomen...almosteffortlessly.

Truthis,itisn'treallyaboutlooks,height,money...oranyofthethings
societyandthemediasayitis.

OK,let'sstophereforthemoment.Overall,whatI'vewrittensofarisan
exampleofwhatIcallstraighttalk.I'mjusttalkingtothem,onefriendto
another,abouttherealityoftheirsituation.I'mthrowinginnuggetsoftruth
andnuggetsoflogic,whileatthesametime,explainingtheirworldfromthe
vantagepointofsomeonewithasuperiorunderstandingoftheirproblems
(withoutcomingacrossasarrogant).IwantedtoconveythatIfully
understandtheirsituationandthatI'montheirside.

Let'saskthekeyquestion...Sowhat?WhyamItellingthemallthis?I'm
demonstratingmyexpertiseandunderstandingoftheirproblem,whileatthe
sametimebuildingacase.I'mimplyingthatwhatthey'velearnedupuntilthis
pointismostlybadadvice,andtheyfinallyneedtogetsomegoodadvice
andasuperiorunderstandingoftheirsituation...andthatIcanhelpthemin
thatregard.

EventhoughIdon'tdirectlysayithere,I'mimplyingthatit'snotyourfault,
shiftingtheblamefortheirfailureelsewhereinthiscase,wellmeaning
friends,society,andthemedia.Thesethingsbecomethecommonenemy,
whichIcanusetojustifywhythey'vebeengivenbadadviceupuntilnow.(I'll
getintothisconceptofthecommonenemyinthenextchapter.)

Emergency Copywriting 85
Ifyougenuinelyaretheexpert,it'seasytotalkaboutwhytheyhavetheir
problemsandwhytheypersist.Justremember,you'reaimingtodemonstratea
deepunderstandingofthoseproblems.

NoticeIalsogavethemhopeearlyon.IpromisedthatIwouldshowthemhow
todumpallthatuselessprogramming,andthusturnyourself,almost
instantly,intothekindofmanthatnaturallyattractswomen...andisattractive
towomen...almosteffortlessly.

Thisisgettingtotheirhopesandaspirations,whattheyreallywant.Lookhow
thissentenceisalsolacedwithhumanmotivatorsthedesireforsexandlove
(andattentionfromtheoppositesex);instantlyplaysontheirdesirefor
instantgratification;withnaturallyandalmosteffortlessly,becauseweall
wantquickandeasyresultsthatinvolveminimumeffort.

Thinkofwritingcopyaslikemixingacocktail.Youwanttoblendinadashof
talkingabouttheirproblems,stirringgentlytheirfearsandfrustrationsand
hopesandaspirations,andaddingashotofhumanmotivators.Delicious!

DidyounoticealsohowIpromisedthemgoodandbadnews?Thisisawayof
buildinganticipation.Itkeepsthemhooked.Italkfirstaboutthebadnews,so
thattheyanticipatethegoodnews.Theycan'teasilystopreadinguntilthey've
satisfiedtheircuriosityastowhatthegoodnewsis.Infact,nowisagreat
timetointroducethissubject...

HOWTOBUILDIRRESISTIBLEANTICIPATION

It'snotenoughtogetthemtostartreadingyoursalesletter;youneedtokeep
themreadinguntilyou'vefullybuiltyourcase,introducedtheproduct,
rampeduptheirdesiretoitspeak,andaskedfortheorder.Iftheystop
readingbeforethis,chancesaretheywon'tbuybecausetheyhaven'tbeen
fullysold.

Soyouneedtokeepgivingthemgoodreasonstocontinuereading.Buildtheir
anticipationforwhatistocomeinyoursalesletter.Hereareanumberof
waysyoucandothis:

Makeapromisethatwillbenefittheminabigway.Ofcourse,the
biggestpromiseyoucouldmakeistosolvealltheirproblemsandgive
themtheresultstheydesire.Youcouldsaysomethinglike,Ifyouread

Emergency Copywriting 86
 thisallthewaythrough,IpromiseI'llgiveyouTHEsolutiontoallyour
problemswithX.Justmakesureyoudeliveronanypromisesyou
make.

Hintatwhatyou'regoingtorevealshortly.Youcanmakeshorter
termpromisestocompelthemtoreadon.InjustafewmomentsI'm
goingtosharewithyou3thingsaboutthefemalemindthatmostmen
don'tunderstand.Knowingthesewillgiveyouamajor
advantage
inthe
datinggame...butfirst,letmetellyouaboutmyfriendBill.They're
goingtohearyourstoryaboutBillbecausetheywanttoknowthe
knowledgeyou'vepromisedthem,togivethemamajoradvantagein
thedatinggame.

TalkaboutX,builditup...butdon'texplainXrightaway.Let'ssay
you'reyoung,male,single,hungryforlove(orsex),andI(asthe
expert)knowyourlocalareaprettywell.IfIsaidtoyou,Listen...I
knowthisgreatnightclubinyourarea.It'sabsolutelycrammedfullof
hotwomen.Doyouthinkyou'dbehappyifIjustleftitatthat?Of
coursenot...you'dbebuggingmeandpesteringmeforthenameofthe
club.Icouldspendminutesreallybuildinguptheclub,tothepoint
whereyou'dpracticallypunchmeifIdidn'ttellyouitsname!Ifyou
haveakeypieceofinformation,seeifyoucanbuilditupandwithhold
itfromthemtemporarilyatthesametime.Youcanalsousethedelayto
talkaboutwhatit'snot(andwhyit'snotthosethings).

Letmetellyouthebiggestsecretofalltolosingweight.You'llbe
surprised.

It'snotdiet.Sure,eatingtherightfoodisimportant,butnotnearlyas
importantasthissecretI'mabouttosharewithyou.

It'snotexercise.Again,exercisecanhelpyouloseweight,butthere's
somethingfarmoreimportant.

Whenyouknowthisonesecret,you'llfinditEASYtoloseweight.Itwill
requirealmostNOEFFORTwhatsoever.

LetmetellyouhowIdiscoveredthissecret.

Seehowthatworks?Likethenightclubexample,I'mteasingthem.I'm
takingabouthowwonderfulthissecretis.I'mtellingthemwhatit'snot,
butI'mwithholdingwhatitis,atleasttemporarily,tobuildmassive

Emergency Copywriting 87
 anticipation.Icannowcontinuethisteasebytellingthemthe
backgroundbehindthesecret,andiftheywanttoknowwhattheactual
secretis,theyhavenochoicebuttokeepreading!

Leaveunansweredquestionsintheirmind.Onaslightlymoresneaky
butevenmorepowerfullevel,makethereaderaskimportantquestions
intheirmind,anddon'tanswerthem...atleast,notstraightaway!This
requiresabitmoreskill,buttheeasiestwaytodoitistoleaveoutan
importantpieceofthepuzzle.

Myclientwasstrugglingtoclosehisclientsinfacetofacesettings,
untilIgavehimmythreemagicalclosingquestions.

Theveryfirsttimeheusedthesequestions,hecouldseehisclient
hesitateforafewmoments...andthenhesaidYes!Thedealwas
closed.

Eversincediscoveringmythreemagicalclosingquestions,hisclosing
ratehasgonefromabout10%toover40%.Thatgoestoshowthe
ridiculousimportanceofaskingtherightquestions.

Ofcourse,itisn'tjustaboutclosing.Youhavetogettherestofthepitch
rightaswell.LetmetellyouabouthowIsolvedoneclient'sproblem...

HereImentionedmythreemagicalclosingquestionsthatsealedthe
dealforhisfirstclient,andthattookhisclosingratefrom10%to40%.
Inthebackoftheirmind,Iwantmyreadertowonder,Whatarethese
threemagicalclosingquestions?Ileavethequestionunanswered!Now,
Icouldchoosetorevealthemlaterinmypitch,orIcanusethisas
anotherreasonforthemtobuytheproduct,i.e.theyonlygettofindout
whattheyare,bypurchasingtheproduct.IfIlaterincludeabulletpoint
pitchingthethreemagicalclosingquestions,I'veprimedthemtowant
thisparticularfeature,increasingthechancesofclinchingthesale!

Leaveastorytemporarilyunresolved.Don'tyoujusthateitwhen
someonetellsyouastory,buttheydon'tgetachancetofinishit?You've
investedyourtimeinhearingthestory,andifit'sinteresting,youwant
toknowtheoutcome.Usethistoyouradvantage.Tellthemastory,but
leaveittemporarilyunresolved.Usethetimeinbetweentofurtheryour
case...andthentellthemtheoutcome.We'llgetintostorytellinginthe
nextchapter.

Emergency Copywriting 88
 Badnews/goodnews.Yousawmeusethattechniqueinthesectionof
copyIjustwrotealittleearlier.Ibasicallysaid,IhavebothGOODand
BADNEWSforyou.ThenItalkedaboutthebadnewsfirst,leaving
themanticipatingthegoodnews.

Wrongthing/rightthing.Thisissimilartothepatternforbadnews/
goodnews.IshowedyouanexampleofthisatthebeginningofChapter
12,wherethecopysaid,Becauseyou'relookingforwealthinthe
wrongplace.Bydiscussingthewrongplace,itinvitesthereaderto
wonder,Whatistherightplace?Youcouldtalkaboutwrongadvice
they'vebeengiven,thingsthey'vebeendoingthatdon'tworketc,in
ordertobuildanticipationfortherightadvice,therightthingsthat
reallywork,andsoon.

TheXessentials.IfIsaid,ThereareFOURthingsyouneedto
understandaboutthemalebrain,ifyouwanttowinhisheart...the
readerisgoingtohavetostickaroundtofindoutwhatallfourofthem
are.Thisisespeciallytruethemorenecessarywemakethemsound.
ThereareFOURKEYStounderstandingthemalebrain.Ifyoueven
wantaCHANCEtowinhisheart,it'sabsolutelyvitaltoknowallfourof
thesekeys.Key#1is...Bytheway,I'dperhapsbesneakywiththis.I'd
revealthefirstthreekeysfairlyearlyon,andleavethemhanginguntil
theendofmysalesletter,forthefourth!Ormaybesaveitforwithinthe
product.(HowcantheystopreadinguntiltheyknowKey#4...you've
toldthemit'svital!)

Don'tunderestimatetheimportanceofbuildinganticipation.Itcompelsyour
prospectstokeepreading.Itgreasestheslipperyslide.

14.HowToUseStoriesToBuildYourCase
AndMoveProspectsToBuy
Storiesareanimportantpartoftheprocessofwritingcopy.Welltoldstories
haveentertainmentvalue.Theycanbuildanticipation,asprospectshaveto
keepreadingtofindouttheending.Theycanbuildrapportwithprospects,
especiallyifyou'resharingexperienceswithwhichtheycanrelate.

Forme,themostimportantthingisthatstoriesareanotherwayyoucan

Emergency Copywriting 89
conveythelessonsandpointsyouwanttomake.Forexample,formy
imaginarydatingproductformen,Ilistedoneofthepossiblepointsof
agreementastheideathatmenandwomenaredifferent.Icouldtalkabout
thatusingstraighttalk,butanotherwayofestablishingthispointmightbe
torecountastoryorexperienceinwhichmenandwomentypicallyrespond
differentlytosomething.Thestorycouldbeusedtomakeorreinforcethe
point.Inthischapter,I'mgoingtoshowyouhowtousestoriestomakepoints,
andalsodiscussthedifferenttypesofstoriesyoucanuse.

Bytheway,storiesworkbestforproblemsolvingproducts,especiallywhen
theproductistacklinghumanflaws.Forexample,aweightlossproducthas
todealwithseveralpossiblehumanflaws,includingnothavingenough
willpower,beingdrawntobadfoods,andplainoldlaziness.

GETTINGTOTHEPUNCHLINE

Justlikejokes,thestoriesyoutellinyourcopyshouldhavegoodpunchlines.
Whilethepunchlineinajokeisdesignedtogetalaugh,yourstory'spunchline
shouldbedesignedtomakeapoint,toconveyalessontothereader.Unlikea
joke,youcangettothepunchlineeitheratthestartortheendofyourstory.

Let'slookattheRoadmapIsetoutearlier,formyimaginarydatingproductfor
men.TheRoadmapstartedofflikethis...

Introducetheproblem.

Whatgoeswrong?[examples]

It'snotaboutlooksetc.[storyofmyfriendBilltoillustrate]

It'saboutconfidence,awareness,knowingwhattodoorsayetc.

EarlieronIgottothepointaboutit'snotaboutlooks,andintheRoadmapI
indicatedtomyselfthatIcouldrecountastoryaboutmyfriendBill,that
wouldillustratemypoint.I'lltakethecopyfurthernow.Intheexamplebelow,
Imaketheit'snotaboutlookspointfirst,andthenusemyfriendBillto
illustratemypoint.

Truthis,itisn'treallyaboutlooks,height,money...oranyofthethings
societyandthemediasayitis.

Emergency Copywriting 90
Sure,thosethingscangiveyouanadvantage.IfyoulooklikeBradPitt,
you'reobviouslygoingtoattractwomenwithoutmucheffort.

Butmostmendon'tlooklikeBradPitt.

AndI'veseenfairlyuglyguyswithstunningwomenhangingontheir
arms.Inthosecases,mostguysassume,Oh...thenhemusthavemoney.

That'snotalwaystrueeither.LetmetellyouaboutmyfriendBill.

Billdidn'thavemoney.HeworkedalateshiftatWalmart,andonlyjust
managedtopaythebillseachmonth.

Asforlooks...well,Iknowhewouldn'tmindmetellingyouhe'snothing
specialinthelooksdepartment...afairlyshort5foot4inches...skinny...
glasses...definitelynoBradPitt.

Yethehasnoproblemmeetinganddatingbeautifulwomen.

WewereinabarrecentlyinManhattan,NewYork...chattingwitheach
otheratthebar,whenoureyesstrayedovertoagroupofthreestunning
womensittingatatableinthecorner.

Iwasabouttocommenttomyfriendabouthowlovelytheylooked,but
beforeIcouldopenmymouth,Billhadalreadygotupandwasstrolling
casuallyovertothem!

AfewyearsagoImighthaverolledmyeyes,butnotanymore.Iknow
thatwhenthishappens,chancesare,I'mabouttowitnesssomemagic.

Sureenough...withinaboutaminutetheyweresmiling,laughingand
oneofthemwasplayfullytouchinghisarm.

Tenminuteslater,hecamebacktome,grinninglikeaCheshirecat,with
threepiecesofpaperandatelephonenumberwrittenoneach.Iwon't
beabletomeetyouafterworktomorrow,heapologized.Ihaveanew
hotdate.

Whatwashissecret?Didheflashawadofmoneyatthem?Washe

Emergency Copywriting 91
 wearingsomesuperpheromonesthatdrovewomenwild?

No.

Itwasmuchsimplerthanthat.Itwas,infact,thereasonwebecamegood
friends.

Twoyearsearlier,IwasaTOTALMESSwhenitcametowomenand
dating...

OK,let'sstopherefornow.NoticeattheendofthisanecdotehowI'veopened
upthewaytobeabletotellmybeforestory.Thisisabitearlierthaninmy
Roadmap,buttheRoadmapisjustaguide.Youdon'thavetofollowitexactly.

Let'stalkaboutwhatI'vewrittenhere.FirstIstartedoffwiththepointI
wantedtomake.ThenIfirstthrewinanuggetoflogic.Yes,ifyoulooklike
BradPittit'sgoingtohelp(acknowledgingthatlooksaren'tatotally
insignificantfactor),butitisn'teverything(becausemostpeopledon'tlook
likeBradPitt).It'soneofthosethingstheycan'teasilyargueagainst.Igavean
exampleofuglyguysbeingwithbeautifulwomen,andIagainacknowledged
thepossibleobjectionthatitmightbebecauseofmoney.

ThenItalkedaboutBill,usinghimasanexampleofsomeonewhodidn'thave
looks,moneyorheightonhisside;andIsharedananecdotetoillustratehow
hewasabletoeasilyandconfidentlyapproachagroupofattractivewoman
andgetadate.

IntheRoadmap,Iintendedtogetintothepointaboutconfidence,butwhen
itcametoactuallywritingthecopy,IdecidedtotalkabouthowImetBill,and
getintomybeforestory,savingthediscussiononconfidenceforabitlater,
perhapsasoneofBill'srevelationsthathelpedmetogettheresultsIwanted.

Now,inthisinstance,Istartedwiththepunchline,andthenjustifiedit.I
couldhavesavedthepunchlineuntiltheend.IcouldhavetalkedaboutBill,
andthensaid,Truthis,it'snotreallyaboutlooksandsoon.Whatmatters
hereisthatIusedtheanecdotetoestablishthepoint,toconveythelesson
thatit'snotaboutlooksetc(thepointIneededtoestablish,basedonthe
Roadmap).

THETHREEMAINSTORYLINES

Emergency Copywriting 92
Everygoodstoryhasastoryline,akindofoverallthemethatrunsthroughout
thestory.Forexample,ifwehadtosumupthestorylineforTheLordOfThe
RingsbyJ.R.R.Tolkien(thesecondbestsellingnoveleverwritten,withover
150millioncopiessold),itwouldgosomethinglikethis:

UnlikelyheroFrodoBagginsstumblesacrossaringofunimaginablepower.The
enemywantstogetholdofthisringforitsowndarkends,soourheroFrodois
chargedbythegoodguyswiththedestructionofthering,whichmeansalong
journeyintothelandoftheenemy.Despitetheoddsbeingagainsthim,he
eventuallymakesit.Theringisdestroyed,MiddleEarthissaved,andhecomes
backtoareluctanthero'swelcome.

Nowlookatthefollowingthreemainstorylinesyoucanuseinyourowncopy,
andseehowthiscompares.Bytheway,IcreditmarketinggeniusFrankKern
foridentifyingthesethreemainstorylines:

1.UsVersusThem

Everygoodstoryhasanenemy,whichtheheroeitherhastofightinsome
way,orwhichisopposedtotheherosucceedingontheirquest.Yoursales
letteristhesame.Youandyourreaderwanttoshareacommonenemy.This
allowsyouandthereadertobond.Itbecomesyou(whowantstohelpthe
reader)andthemteameduptogether,versustheenemywhowantsto
hinderthemgettingtheresultstheywant(anddeserve).You'reontheirside,
andyoucanpintheblameforthereader'sproblemsontheenemy.It'snot
yourfault.It'sthem...[theenemy]

Thisgoesbacktothereasonswhytheyhaven'tyetsolvedtheirproblem.
What'sstoppingthem?Whoorwhatishinderingthem?Whydon'tyour
prospectsalreadyknowthetruthsyou'reabouttorevealtothem?Whoor
whatisperhapsconcealingthisinformationfromthem?Whatvestedinterests
areoutthere,thatmightnothavethereader'sbestinterestsatheart...and
why?

InthecopyI'vewrittensofarformyimaginarywomenanddatingproduct,I
saidthattheirproblemsstemmedfromthemedia,society,andwell
meaningfriendsandfamily.Forthepurposeofthissalesletter,thesebecome
thecommonenemy.It'snottheprospect'sfaulthe'safailurewithwomen...it's
thatofthemedia,societyandwellmeaningfriendsandfamily,andthe
badadvicethey'vebeengivingtotheprospect,andthebadrolemodelsputup

Emergency Copywriting 93
bythemedia.Inthecaseofwellmeaningfriendsandfamily,theyhaven't
necessarilybeenhidingthetruthfromourprospects,they'vejustbeengiving
outmisguidedinformation.

Let'sthinkofenemiesforothertypesofproducts.Inthehealthandfitness
niche,theenemycouldbethegovernment,theFDA,drugcompanies,the
healthandfitnessindustry,themedia,healthandfitnessmagazines,andso
on.

Ofcourse,Iputthewordenemyinquotesherebecause,they'renotreally
enemiesintheabsolutesenseoftheword.Theprospect'sfamilyandfriends
areprobablynotouttodeliberatelysabotagehisorherlovelife.The
governmentprobablyisn'touttogetthempersonally.Themediaprobably
doesn'thaveapolicytoscrewupmen'schanceswithwomen,andsoon.

You'renotaimingtoturnyourprospectagainstfamilyandfriends!Inthe
contextofmywomenanddatingproduct,Isimplywanttohelpthemrealize
thatfamilyandfriendsaren'tnecessarilythebestpeopletoturntofordating
advice.

Theyaretheenemyinarelativesense,inthespecificcontextofthe
prospect'sproblem.Thisiswherenuggetsoflogiccanbeusedtojustifywhy
theyaretheenemy.

Areyourfriendssogoodwithwomenthattheycangointoabarandwalk
outwithtwoorthreenumbers,ormaybeevenagirlontheirarms?Ifnot,
perhapsit'stimetostoptakingdatingadvicefromyourfriends...andlistento
someonewhoCANdothis.Here'show...

Thosemusclebuildingmagazinesmakemostoftheirmoneyfromtheir
advertisers.Nowonderthey'realwayspushingthoseproductsinthearticles!
Truthis,thosemagazinesaredrivenbytheaddollar,anddon'tnecessarily
haveyourbestinterestsatheart.Theywon'ttellyouthebestwaysofbuilding
muscle...they'lltellyouwhatpleasestheiradvertisers.Listen,here'swhat
thosemagazinesaren'ttellingyou...

Weavetheusversusthemstorylinethroughoutyourcopy,pointingoutwho
orwhattheenemyis,whytheyareholdingthereaderback,andhowyou
(astheirfriendaswellastheexpert)aregoingtopullbackthecurtain,and
spillthebeans.Afterall,it'stimetheyknewtheTRUTH...right?Unlikethe
enemy,you'reheretohelp.

Emergency Copywriting 94
2.LossAndRedemption

Withthisstoryline,you(astheproductcreator)aretheunderdog.Maybelike
thereader,youstartedoffwithseveraldisadvantages,oryouusedtobelike
them,sufferingfromthesameproblems.Thenyoumadeabigdiscovery,
breakthroughorhadaseriesofinsightsthatturnedyourlifearoundand
solvedthesameproblemyourreaderisgoingthrough.Now,becauseyou're
generousandcaring,you'dliketoshareyourdiscoverieswiththereader,so
thattheytoocanbenefitfromthem.

Thisstorylineisgreatforseveralreasons.Welikesupportingtheunderdog,
especiallyifthey'reupagainstacommonenemy.Ifyou'vesufferedthesame
kindofproblemsasyourreaders,itallowsyoutobuildrapportwiththem.
Youhaveacommonbondnamely,yourlifeexperiences.You'rebasicallyjust
likethem.

Italsogivesthemhope.Ineffect,itsaystothereader,IfIcandoit...socan
you.Thisisevenmoreeffectiveifyousufferedevenmoreextensivelythan
theprospect.Italsojustifieswhyyoucreatedtheproduct.Youwantedtohelp
them,andbenefitfromtheexperienceandinsightsthatyougainedalongthe
way.

3.TheReluctantHero

Withthisstoryline,you'retheordinary,humbleguyorgirlwitharemarkable
story,whojusthappenedtostumbleonsomethingwhichwillsolvethe
reader'sproblems.Wordgotoutaboutyoursolution,andsooneverybody
wantedtoknowaboutit.

Asafavourtotheworldyou'vedecidedtoteachitbut,youwantpeopleto
realizethatyou'renothingspecial,insomewaysyougotluckybystumbling
uponthissolution.You'vegotyourflaws,you'rehumantoo,you'vemade
mistakes.Youdidn'treallyaskforthisleadershiprole,butbasicallyfellintoit
becausethat'swhatpeoplewanted.Youdon'tknowitall,butyou'rehappy
tosharewhatyou'vediscoveredandgivebacktotheworldthatgaveyouthis
luckybreak.

Thisisagreatstorylinebecauseyoucomeacrossashumble.We'renotthat
fondofpeoplewhobrag,boastandclaimtheyknowitall;butthereluctant
heroisendearing.FrodoBagginsfromTheLordOfTheRingsmadeagreat

Emergency Copywriting 95
heropreciselybecausehewasn'tsomemuscular,heroicdragonslayerwho
quiteobviouslycouldslaytheenemy,destroythering,andbebackhomein
timefordinner.Quitetheopposite.Hewassmallandweakincomparisonto
theotherracesintheMiddleEarthenvironment,andhisenemieswere
incrediblypowerful.ThisallowedthereadertoempathizewithFrodo,and
rootforhiminhisnoblequesttodestroythering.

THETYPESOFSTORIESYOUCANUSE

Wetouchedontheseearlier,butnowit'stimetogointomoredetail.Inyour
copy,therearedifferenttypesofstoriesyoucoulduse...

Anecdotes.Thesearestoriesthatdescribespecificexperiencesthat
happenedtoyouoraclient,usuallywithspecificoutcomes.Makethese
relevanttoyourprospect.Aswellasusingthemtoestablishpointsof
agreement,youcanalsousethemforcasestudies,andforhighlighting
specificresultsaclientachieved.

Hypotheticalsituations.Thesearestoriesthataren'tnecessarilyreal,
butareusedtoillustratepossibilitiesandwhatcouldhappen.Youcan
usethesetodescribesituationsprospectsmightcurrentlyencounter,as
wellasgettingthemtothinkaboutwhatlifecouldbelikeaftertheir
problemshavebeensolved.

Yourbeforeandafterstories.Thesearestoriesshowingthereader
whatyouandyourlifeusedtobelikebeforeandafteryousolvedyour
problems.

Clientstories.Ifyouhaven'texperiencedaproblempersonally,youmay
beabletouseastoryofoneofyourclientswhohashadthatproblem.
Theadviceyougavetoyourclient,andhowyousolvedhisorher
problem,cancontributetodemonstratingyourexpertise.

Thestoryofyourproduct.Thisisthestoryofhowyourproductcame
tobe,whatspecificstepsledtoyourdiscovery,yourbreakthrough,the
insightsthatledyoutothesolution.

BEFORE,AFTERANDCLIENTSTORIES

Forproductsinwhichyou'vegonethroughthesameproblemasthereader,it
canbeusefultotellyourbeforeandafterstories.Thisdemonstratesthat
youcantrulyunderstandandrelatetotheprospect,andshowsthatbecause

Emergency Copywriting 96
you'vebeenthroughitandsolvedtheproblem,youaremorelikelytohave
thesolutionforthem.Inshort,itgrantsyouaformofexpertstatusthrough
theschooloflifeasitwere.Youdon'thavemereacademicknowledgeofthe
subject,you'vebeenthere,donethat,andgotthescarstoproveit.

Tellingyourbeforestoryissimpleenough.Justtellthemwhatyouusedto
belike,beforeyousolvedtheproblem.Weaveinyourprospect'sfearsand
frustrations,andhighlightthereasonsyouhadn'tgotyourproblemsortedout
atthetime,towhichyourprospectscanrelate.Ideally,youwantyour
prospecttothink,That'sjustlikeme!orevenbetter,That'sevenworsethan
thesituationI'min!Themessageyou'llbeconveyingtothemis,Hey...if
evenIcouldsolvethisproblem...andlookatthebadsituationIwasin,then
youcertainlycan.Here'show.

Let'sreturntoourimaginarydatingproductformen.Igotuptothispointin
writingthecopy...

Twoyearsearlier,IwasaTOTALMESSwhenitcametowomenand
dating...

NowI'mreadytotellthebeforestory.OK,sinceI'mmakingthisup,let's
havesomefun!

Forone,Iwasincrediblyshy.IttookaMAJOREFFORTjusttoeven
approachawomanIliked...andifshewasastunner,itwasalmost
impossible!

AndevenwhenIdidhavethegutstoapproach,I'dusuallycomeoutwith
somethingreallylameordumb...resultinginembarrassmentforbothme
andher.

Iboughttonsofcoursesandbooksthatweresupposedtoteachmehow
tomasterthisareaofmylife...buttheysimplyleftmeevenmore
confused.Theytaughtallkindsoftechniquesandmethods,butnever
reallyaddressedtherootcausesofmyproblem...myshyness,andmy
lackofconfidence.

Sure,theyditchedtheclichdpickuplinesandreplacedthemwith
moresophisticatedthingslikeopeners,butthebottomlineis...Ifound
theywerebasicallyjustmoresubtlepickuplines.Theyweremorelike
pickupparagraphs.

Emergency Copywriting 97
 Andbesides,onceI'drunoutofthishotnewmaterialtothrowatwomen
(andthatwouldusuallylastabout10minutes)...mymindwouldgo
blankagain,andIwasbacktosquareone.

Nothinghadreallychanged...exceptI'dlearnedacoupleofslightlymore
sophisticatedpickuplines.

IrealizedIneededREALchange...nottheartificialchangeIwasbeing
taughtbythesesocalledsystemsandmethods.

Idon'tknowwhetheritwascoincidenceornot,butitwasalmostatthat
time...ImetBill.

Billwasthenewguyatwork,andafteranightoutwiththeguysand
girlsfromtheoffice,ItoldBillmyproblemswithwomen,overacoupleof
drinks.

Look,saidBill.You'vegotitallwrong.Butit'snotreallyyourfault.

ItwasBillwhotoldmeaboutconfidence,andhowit'snotsomething
youcanjustBE...atleast,notunlessyouknowspecificallyHOWtodoit.

Billshowedmeaseriesoftechniquesheusedtogetintoaconfidentstate
ofmind.Theysoundedamazing,eventhoughIwasstillskeptical.

Butthen...

OK,let'sstophere.Thisismybeforestory,anditalsoexplainshowI
discoveredthetechniquesIsharewiththeminmyimaginaryproduct.The
ideaisthatBillwasmymentor,andperhapsIlearnedfromhisideasand
maybeevenrefinedthemforotherstobenefitfrom.Inotherwords,it'salso
thestoryofhowmyproductcametobe.

Ialsousedtheopportunityinthisstorytobegineliminatingthealternatives.
I'dboughttonsofbooksandcourses,buttheyhadn'treallyhelped...infact,
theyhadconfusedmattersandmadeitworse.Ijustifiedwhytheydidn'twork
forme,thussettingupmysolutionastheonethatdidwork,andwill
hopefullyworkfortheprospect.

Emergency Copywriting 98
Wheredoyoustarttellingyourbeforeandafterstories?It'suptoyou.I
usuallyfinditmakessensetodosoafteryou'verevealedsomeinsightstoyour
prospectsthatmakethemseetheirproblemsfromadifferentperspective,
buildingyourauthorityandexpertise.Afterthat,theywillnaturallywantto
know,Howcomeyouknowallthis?Wheredidyougettheseinsights?It
makessensetotellthemyourstoryatthispoint.Whatyou'resaying,ineffect,
is:HowdoIknowallthis?BecauseI'vebeenthroughwhatyou'regoingthrough
rightnow.Here'smystory.

Notallproblemsrequireyoutohavepersonallygonethroughthesamethings
asyourprospects.Forexample,youmightbeamarriageguidancecounselor
whohascreatedaproductonhowtosaveamarriage.Youmightbeanexpert
inyourfield,andyethaveneverexperiencedaprobleminyourownmarriage.
Youcouldstilluseyourclient'sstoriesinyourcopy,althoughmakesureyou
concealyourclient'sidentity,unlesstheyhavegivenyouspecificpermissionto
sharetheirstory.Youstillneedtoshowthatyou'reanexpert,andyoucando
thisbydemonstratingyoursuperiorunderstandingoftheprospect'sproblems.

Finally,aquicknoteonwritingcopy.Ifyou'renothappywithwhatyouwrite
atthisstage,putsomecurlybrackets{}aroundthepartyou'renothappy
with,toremindyourselfthere'sroomforimprovement.Youcanalwayseditit
later.Ifinditimportanttokeeptheflowgoing,soifyoucan'tfindtheright
words,justwritesomethingthatgetsacrosstheessenceofwhatyou'retrying
tosay,andedititlater.(Ihaveachapteroneditingcomingup.)Don'taimfor
perfectionthefirsttimeround.Mostgoodcopywriterswriteseveraldrafts
beforethey'rehappywiththeirwork.Evenifyoudon'thavetimeforthis,
comebacktothepartsyou'restrugglingwithlateron.

ACTIONSTEPS

Bynow,youhaveallthetoolsyouneedtowriteafirstdraftofyoursales
letterupuntilthepointwhereyou'rereadytointroduceyourproduct,so
goaheadanddothis!(Youdon'thavetointroducetheproductjustyet,
I'llshowyouhowtodothatinthenextchapter.)

Asyouwrite,alwayskeepinmindtheFiveRoadmapGoalswediscussed
inChapter10.You'reaimingto(1)demonstrateadeepunderstandingof
theirproblem,(2)maketheproblemfeelasurgentaspossible,(3)show
thatyouhavetheauthorityandexpertisetodealwiththeirproblem,(4)

Emergency Copywriting 99
 eliminatethealternatives,and(5)provethatyouhavethesolutionto
theirproblem.

UseyourRoadmapasaguide,makingsureyoufirmlyestablisheach
pointandbuildyourcase,usingacombinationofstraighttalk,stories,
hypotheticalsituations,factsandfigures,usefulinsights,andnuggetsof
truthandlogic.UsethetechniquesIsharedwithyouinChapter13to
buildanticipationalongtheway.

Don'tworryaboutbreakingupyourcopyintosectionswith
subheadlinesjustyet.I'llexplainhowtodothatinalaterchapter.

15.IntroducingTheProductAndIts
Benefits
Hopefullybythisstageyou'vewrittenthecopy(oratleastafirstdraft)up
untilthepointwhereyou'rereadytointroducetheproduct.You'vetalked
aboutthereader'sproblems.You'vesharedsomeinsightswiththem,and
perhapsyou'vesharedyourstorywiththem.

Beforeyouintroducetheproduct,it'sagoodideatojustifywhyyoudecided
tocreateit.Bearinginmindthethreemainstorylineswediscussedinthe
previouschapter,thereareplentyofreasons(otherthanwantingtomakea
fastbuck)youcouldhavedecidedtocreatetheproduct:

Theenemyhashinderedprospectsfortoolong.It'stimetofightback,
andthat'swhyyoucreatedtheproduct;asablowtotheenemy,andto
helptheprospect.(Usversusthem.)

You'vebeenthere,withthesameproblems,andyouwanttoshareyour
experienceswiththeprospect,sotheycanbenefitfromthem.Youwant
tohelp.(Lossandredemption.)

Wordgotoutaboutyoursystem,andsoonlotsofpeopledemandedto
knowit,soasafavortotheworld,you'resharingit.(Reluctanthero.)

Emergency Copywriting 100

Makesureyoujustifywhyyoucameupwiththeproduct,inyourcopy.
Ultimately,youwanttoconveythat(a)it'sbecauseyoucare,and(b)because
you(andideallyonlyyou)havetherequiredexpertiseandexperience.

Onceyou'vedonethat,it'sperfectlynaturaltointroducetheproducttothem,
andit'sveryeasytodoso.Onceyou'veintroducedtheproduct,Irecommend
writingaparagraphwhichbasicallysumsuptheproduct,andwhatitcould
givetheprospectormaybeacoupleofsmallbulletpointssummingupthe
productandtheultimatebenefits.

Here'sacoupleofexamplesshowinghowyoucoulddothis:

Idecidedtocreateaprogramwhichwouldhelpguystogetwhatthey
wantwhenitcomestowomenanddating.

IcallitMultiplyYourDating...

It'sacompletesystemshowingyouhowtohavesuccesswithwomen
anddating...startingfromwheretogo,whattodo,whattosayto
attractwomen...rightthroughtofindingandkeepingthewoman(or
women!)ofyourdreams.

Sincesomanypeoplewantedtolearnmyweightlosssystem,Idecided
toputallofthetricks,techniquesandtacticsIdiscoveredforeffectively
losingweightintoonecomplete82pageebook.

IntroducingWillpowerFreeWeightLoss...

howtoloseweightquicklyandeasilywithouttheneedfor
willpower...finally!

howtomaketherightfoodsjustastastyanddesirableasallthebad
foods

shedasmuchas20poundsinaslittleas28days!

Iwantedtohelppeopletowritecopyquicklyandeasily,perhapsinas
littleas24hours,withouthavingtospendhundredsofdollarsona
copywriter,ormonthsandyearsstudyinghowtowritecopy...

...whichiswhyIcreatedEmergencyCopywriting...agetmeresults

Emergency Copywriting 101

 NOWcrashcourseoncreatingmindblowinglypersuasivesalespitches
quicklyandeasily.

Simple,right?Ifyoutrulyknowyouraudienceandwhattheywant,bothon
thesurfaceandatadeeperlevel,youcanmakethesummaryofyourproduct
soundasappealingaspossible.Usingtherightwords,workinthosehuman
motivatorswheneverpossible:Quick,easy,effortless,timesaving,
moneymakingandsoon.Getintheaspectsthatmakesyourproductstand
outfromthecrowdinabeneficialway,andthethingsyourprospectswant
anddesire.

Incidentally,whenyouputthiscopyonline,here(attheintroductionofthe
product)isagreatplacetoshowanimageoftheproduct.Showthemwhat
theproductlookslike.Ifit'sadigitalproduct,getagraphicalecovermade,
thatrepresentsyourproduct.Youcertainlydon'thavetopayafortune...I've
haddecentecoversmadeforunder$50.Anecoveraddstotheperceived
valueoftheproduct,andgivesitsubstance.

Onceyou'veintroducedtheproduct,thenextlogicalstepistotalkaboutthe
benefitsoftheproduct,andwhattheycanexpecttogetoutofit.Thisis
whereyourbulletpointscomein.Hopefullyyou'vealreadywrittenthem!In
whichcase,it'ssimplyaquestionofintroducingthebulletpoints.(Ifyou
haven'tyetwrittenthebulletpoints,seeChapter5onhowtowritethem.)

Here'ssomesimplewaysyoucouldintroducethebulletpoints:

Here'swhat'sinside:

Here'sjustasmallglimpseofwhatyou'llgetfrommyproduct...

Lookatwhatyou'llgetfrom[productname]:

Takeaglimpseinsideeachchapter...

ACTIONSTEPS

Writeasectionofcopythatjustifieswhyyoucreatedtheproduct,and
thatintroducestheproduct.Followitupwiththebulletpoints.

Emergency Copywriting 102

16.HowToBuildYourProspect'sDesireTo
ItsPeak,SoTheyMustHaveItNow!
Ifthebulletpointshavedonetheirjob,younowhaveakeenprospectsitting
infrontoftheircomputerscreenthinking,Wow...thissoundsgood!

Butdon'tstopthere!Nowyouhavetheopportunityoframpinguptheirdesire
toitsmaximum.Thebulletpointshaveshownthemallthewonderfulbenefits
theycangetfromeachaspectoftheproduct;nowyouwanttoputthepieces
backtogetherforthem,andgetthemtothinkaboutwhattheyultimately
want,andhowyourproductwillgiveittothem.

Therearemultiplewaysyoucandothis.Useasmanyofthesetogetheras
possible:

Getthemtoimaginelifewiththeresultsyourproductoffers.

Oncetheycanimaginehavingtheresults,itbecomesmorerealforthem,
sopaintawordpictureofwhatlifecouldbelikeforthem.Appealto
theirhopesandaspirations.

Justimagine...finallybeingabletoslipintothatslinkydress.Yournew
slimfigureisthetalkofyourfriends(andmaybethesubjectofsome
jealousglances).

Andyou'vesuddenlynoticedguysarepayingthatmuchmoreattention
toyou...no,you'renotimaginingit.

Younotonlylooksexier,youfeelsexieraswell...anditshows,bothon
theoutside,andinyournewfoundselfconfidence.

Bestofall,youfeelhealthier.Youhavemoreenergytodowhateveryou
want,whichhelpstokeeptheweightoffpermanently.

Soundgood?I'msureitdoes...andthisrealitycanbeginforyoujusta
fewmomentsfromnow.

Emergency Copywriting 103

 NoticehowIwriteasifit'salreadyarealityforthem.Whynot?Itcould
betheirreality,iftheybuytheproduct!Allowthemtohaveasampleof
howthatrealitycouldbeandfeel,bydescribingittothem.

Don'tgettoospecificwhenpaintingyourwordpicture.Allowthem
roomtoinserttheirownpreferencesintothepicture.

Remindthemofwhattheycouldhave.

Thisistheequivalentofstraighttalk.Justtalktothemaboutwhat
theycouldhave.

Justthink.Injustthreeorfourweeksyoucouldstarttohavethekind
ofslimbodyyou'vealwaysdreamedof...

...thekindofslimbodythatturnsheads,getsyourfriendsalittle
jealous,andwillallowyoutofeelsexierandhealthier.

Getthemjealous.Remindthemofwhatyou(oryourclients)have
rightnow,andwhatthey'remissingouton.

Jealousyisapowerfulhumanmotivator.Wewantwhatotherpeople
have.Becompassionate,butshowoffwhatyouandyourclientshave,
andpointoutthattheycanhavethis,too...ifonlytheytakeaction.

IhelpedJennytolosetenpoundsinjust28days.Hernewslim,sexy
bodyaddedanewdimensiontohersexlife:

'SinceIstartedtheHancoxQuickSlimSystemIhaverenewedenergy,
andI'vefoundmypartnerandIhavebecomemuchmorepassionate.
Wherebeforewemighthavesexonceortwiceaweek,we'renow
makinglovefiveorsixtimesaweek!(Itwouldbeseven,butheworks
alldayandnightMonday.)'

Listen.Ican'tguaranteeyou'llhaveexactlythesameresultsasJenny.I
can'tmagicallypromiseyouaninstantlybettersexlife.

Butletmebeblunt:Havingaslimmer,sexierbodyishardlygoingto
hinderyoursexlife...isit?

HereIusedaclient'sresultsbasedtestimonialtopointoutwhatthe
producthasdeliveredforthisclient(i.e.animprovedsexlife),along

Emergency Copywriting 104

 withanuggetoftruththatIcan'tguaranteeanimprovedsexlife,but
it'shardlygoingtohinderit!

Turnitintoaneed.

Usenuggetsoftruthandlogictotaketheproductbeyondsomething
theywantanddesire,andturnitintosomethingtheyactuallyneed.This
iswhereyoucangentlypointouttheconsequencesofnottakingaction,
butinacaringandcompassionatemanner.

Weightisn'tgoingtoloseitself.Ifyouwantthekindofslimandsexy
bodyyou'vedreamedof,youneedtotakeactionnow.

Myproductistheonlyonethatwillshowyouhowyoucanloseweight
fastwithouttheneedforwillpower...whichisthecauseofsomany
dietingfailures.

It'salmostimpossibletofailwithmysystem!That'swhyyouneeditright
now.Ifyoudon't,you'regoingtobestuckwiththatweight...andkeep
onstrugglingwithallthelatestdietfadsthatcomeandgo.

ACTIONSTEPS

Writeasectionofcopybuildingyourprospect'sdesiretoitspeak.

17.HowToBuildTheValueAndReveal
ThePrice
OK,sotheyreallywantyourproduct...andtheyevenfeeltheyneedit.Great.
There'sstillonesmallproblem...theprice.Willtheythinkit'stoomuch?Can
theyevenaffordit?Iftheydon'tfeelyourpriceisworthit,orsomething
theycanafford,thentheywon'tbuy.

Alotofpeoplewhoaren'tcopywriterswonderwhywecopywritersfeelthe
needtotakesolongbeforegettingtotheprice.Well,partofthepurposeof
yourcopyistobuildvalueforwhatyouhavetoofferbeforeyourevealthe

Emergency Copywriting 105

price.

Thisiswhyyoubuythingsinthefirstplace.Youexchangesomenotes,coins
anddigitsinabankaccountorcreditcardforsomethingelsethathasvalueto
you.Butifyoudon'tknowthevalueofthethingyou'rebuying,whywould
youexchangeanymoneyforit?Youwouldn't,unlessyouwereforcedto(asin
thecaseoftaxesandmuggings,whichsomemightargueisthesamething).

Iappreciatethattheimpatient,skepticalprospectwantstoknow,Justgetto
thepoint...tellmewhatyou'reselling,andtellmethepriceasquicklyas
possible.Theproblemis,ifyoudothistooquickly,withoutbuildingvaluein
theprospect'smind,theymayincorrectlydecidetheycan'tafforditorit's
notworthitbasedsolelyontheprice.

NowlistencarefullytowhatI'mabouttotellyouhere:

It'syourjobtodelaythepricediscoveryprocess,inordertobuilddesire,andto
buildacaseforthevalueoftheproduct.

We'veallbeenthatimpatient,skepticalprospectwhojustwantstoknowthe
price.WhatI'vejustsaidsoundscounterintuitivefromacustomer'spointof
view,almostcontrarytocommonsense.Surelyifyoudon'twastetheirtime,
tellthembrieflywhatyou'reselling,andthengivethemthepriceasquicklyas
possible,they'llrespectyouforit,andrewardyoubybuying?

Sadly,no.Itdoesn'tworklikethat.Ifitdid,copywriterswoulddothatinstead.
Believeme,itwouldmakemyjobasacopywritermucheasierifthat'sallI
hadtodo.

Yes,insomelimitedcircumstancesyoucangetawaywithsimplydoingthat.
Forexample,ifyouhaveanemaillistofprospects,you'vebuiltupagood
relationshipwiththem,you'vepresoldthemontheproductyou'repitching,
andtheproductisquitelowinprice,thensure...youcanprobablyjustsum
thingsupinashortsalespitch,givethemtheprice...andyou'llgetsales.

Inmostothercircumstances,you'repotentiallydealingwiththeNightmare
Prospect.He'simpatientandskeptical,andalsoaprocrastinator.He'llput
thingsoffforaslongaspossible,andthatincludessolvinghisownproblem.
Afterall,unlesstheproblemiscriticaland/orputshislifeinimmediatedanger,
hecanputitoffuntilanotherday.Hemighthavespentseveralyearswiththe
problem,sowhat'sonemoreday,weekormonth?

Emergency Copywriting 106

Besides,evenifhewantedtogethisproblemssortedoutsoonerorlater,why
you?There'slotsofotherweightlossormakemoneyorwomenand
datingproductstochoosefrom.

That'swhyyoushouldn'tworrytoomuchaboutthelengthofyoursalesletter.
Makeitaslongasitneedstobetobuildyourcase.Onlyonceyou'vedoneall
that,areyoureadytogivethemtheprice.Eventhen,wemustputthepricein
thebestpossiblelight.Itdoesn'tmatterifyourproductisjust$7,it'sstillthe
prospect'shardearnedcash...andthat'strueeveniftheyputitonacredit
card.Theystillhavetopayoffthebalanceontheircreditcardoutoftheir
hardearnedcash.

Andit'sevenmoreimportanttogothroughthisprocessifyourproductis
$700or$7,000.Peopledon'tpartwiththatsortofmoneyunlessyouhave
somethingtheyreallywant,desireandneed.

Givethemthegiftoffeelingtheyaregettingimmensevaluefortheirhardearned
cash.Pileonthevalue,andmakethepricefeelalmostlikeabargain...toogood
tomiss.

HOWTOHELPYOURREADERSUNDERSTANDVALUE

Herearesomethingsyoucando,beforeyouintroducetheprice,to
demonstratethevalueofwhatyouhavetooffer:

Theexperiencecost.Ifprospectsweretodothesamethingsasyou,
havethesameexperiencesorgothroughthesameeducationalprocess
asyou,whatwoulditcostthem?Themessagehereis,you'rebasically
savingthemallthatmoneybynothavingtogothroughthesamethings.

IttookmeYEARStodeveloptheinsightsandtacticsI'msharingwith
youinthisproduct.

DuringthattimeImusthavespentthousandsofdollarspayingfor
drinks,mealsandotherstuffthatresultedinnicedates,butverylittle
elseforme...

...untilIrealizedIwasjustbuyingmywayintoherheart(andnotvery
effectively).Iwanttosaveyouallthatmoney,byshowingyoutheREAL
thingsthatwillwinherheart,withoutitcostingyouasmallfortune...

Emergency Copywriting 107

 Breakitdownandcostupthecomponents.Aretherespecific
componentsofyourproductthatwouldcostmore,ifsoldseparately?If
so,pointthisout,alongwithitsvaluewhensoldseparately.

Johnnormallycharges$200anhourforhistime,butwiththisoffer,
he'sagreedtoincludea30minutetelephoneconsultation.That'sa$100
valuerightaway.

Developmentcosts.Didyourproduct,orspecificcomponentsofyour
product,costyoualotofmoneytodevelop?Ifso,pointthisoutto
them.Itmeanstheydon'thavetospendthatmuchmoneytogetthe
samething,becauseit'sapartofyourproduct.

Ispent$5,395developingthissoftware,tomakesureitwillrun
smoothlyonyourwebsite.Youdon'thavetopayanywherecloseto
that.

Pricingtheconceptualalternatives.Aswediscussedearlier,your
prospectsprobablyhaveconceptualalternativesavailabletothem,i.e.
ifyourproductisadownloadableweightlosssystem,alternativesmight
includereallifeweightlossprograms,goingtothegym,andother
diets.Highlightthecosts(aswellasthedisadvantages)ofthe
alternatives,iftheyaremorehighlypricedthanyourproduct.Ifthe
paymentsforthesealternativesaremonthly,pointoutwhattheywould
payoverayear,orevenovermanyyears.

Yes,youcangotothegym.Butyou'relikelytobespending$50a
monthormore(that's$600+ayear!),andmostpeoplestopgoing
within3months...whilethosepaymentsarestillgoingoutoftheir
bank...andbesides,thegymstilldoesn'tsolvetheproblemsof
overeatingandresistingthosefattyfoods.

Askthemhowmuchtheywouldexpecttopay.Dothisonlywhenyou
havefullybuiltupthevalue.Here'sthebestwayofphrasingthis
question:Howmuchwouldyouexpecttopayfor...andthen
summarizewhatyou'reoffering,alongwiththekeybenefits.Tellthem
explicitlywhattheyshouldreallybepaying,ifyouwerechargingthefull
valueoftheproduct,makingsureyoujustifyyourfigureswhenever
possible.

Howmuchwouldyouexpecttopayforasystemthatenabledyouto

Emergency Copywriting 108

 loseweightquicklyandeasily,withouthavingtorelyon'willpower'?

Quitefrankly,manyofmyclientswerepayingmethousandsofdollars
tohelpthemloseweight...soevenifIchargedjust$497(whichI'm
not),Ithinkthatwouldstillbeexceptionalvalue.

Justifyyourlowerpricingdecision.Whatcouldyoupriceitat,and
whydidn'tyou?Didyouwanttomakeiteasilyavailabletothemasses?
Didyouwanttosuckittotheenemybyexposingtheirsecretsatsuch
alowprice?It'snogoodtosay,Hey...Icouldhavepriceditat$997,but
insteadI'llgiveittoyoufor$17.Thatjustsoundsridiculous,and
makesthehigherfiguresoundpieinthesky.Alwayshaveagood
reasonforthedifferencebetweenwhatyoucouldsellitfor,andwhat
youaresellingitfor.

Iaskedtheadviceofacoupleofothercopywriters,andtheysaid
EmergencyCopywritingwaseasilyworth$1,000ormoreand
recommendedthatIchargenolessthan$197...afterall,theypointed
out,it'spracticallyacrashcourseoncopywriting!

Plus,therewasacertainelementofselfinterest.Theydidn'twantsome
ofthetechniquesIrevealinthisbookreachingthemasses.We
copywritersneedourtradesecrets!

However,chancesarethepeoplewhoneedthisthemostmightfindthat
$1000oreven$197tobeaseriousbarriertobuying.Iwanttogiveyou
thebestopportunityofsucceedingwithyourownproduct,whichiswhy
Idecidedtopriceitmuchlower.

Youraimhereistowriteasectionofcopythatbuildsupthevalue,justifies
whatyoucouldchargeforit(butaren'tgoingto)andleadsuptotheactual
price.Allthewhileyouwanttobuildanticipationforwhattheyreallywantat
thisstage,whichistheactualprice.Todothis,youcouldusephraseslike...

...butyou'renotgoingtopayanywherenearthat.
...butno,that'snottheprice.
I'monlyaskingafractionofthat.
Ithinkyou'llbepleasantlysurprised.

INTRODUCINGTHEPRICE

Emergency Copywriting 109

Onlyonceyou'vehelpedthereadertofullyunderstandthevaluethey're
gettingfromyourproduct,areyoureadytointroducetheprice.You'llbe
pleasedtoknow,that'ssimpleenough...justtellthemtheprice!

Atthesametime,helpthemtoputyourpriceintoperspective.$97might
seemlikealotofmoneytotheprospectwithoutallthebuildup,butnowthat
you'vebuiltthevalueanddesire,surelyit'salmostnothing,comparedtothe
lifetimeofbenefitsthey'llgetfromyourproduct.Besides,theamountyou're
askingisreallyjustthepriceofacoupleofconcerttickets,ormaybeacouple
ofmealsatafancyrestaurant.It'saninvestmentinthemselves,ratherthana
disposablepurchasewhichcanbeforgottentomorrow.

Ifyourproductcanhelpthemincreasetheirincomeorsales,comparethe
pricetothekindofincomeboosttheymighttypicallyexpectoveraperiodof
time,i.e.6monthsorayear.Ifyoucanmakethemsubstantiallymoresavings
thanthepriceoftheproduct,pointthatouttothem.Here'sacoupleof
examplesofintroducingtheprice:

Thepriceofthisproductisjust$97,whichisnothingcomparedtothe
lifetimeofvalueyou'llgetfromit.

You'llbeabletoreferbacktoittimeandtimeagain,andunlikemost
productsthatgooutofdatewithinafewmonths,thetechniquesyou'll
learnherewillworkyearsfromnow.Thisisaninvestmentinyour
businessthatwillpayyoubackmultipletimes.

Idecidedtopricethisproductatjust$47,becauseIwantedyouto
havetheopportunitytograbitrightnow.

$47isjustadropintheoceancomparedtothebenefitsyou'llreceive.
Let'ssayyouonlymakeafractionofthemoneyImadefromthis
system...say,just$500amonth...that'sTENTIMESwhatyoupaidfor
it...andthiscouldbecomingintoyouasrepeatincome...monthin,
monthout!

Youcandownloadthiscompletesystemforonly$67.Justthink...
you'regettingallthismassivevalueforthepriceofamealfortwoata
fancyrestaurant!Wouldyourathersplashoutonacoupleofmealsthat
areforgottenafewdayslater...orgetyourproblemssortedoutright
now,andbenefitfortherestofyourlife?It'sreallyanobrainer.

Emergency Copywriting 110

Remember,yourultimateaiminthissectionistomakethepricesoundlikean
almostunbelievable,toogoodtomissbargain.Whatyou'rebasicallysayingis:
Look...you'regettingallthismassivevalue...forthislow,lowprice!It's
practicallyanobrainer...sobuynow!

Shouldyouputthepriceinbold?Iwouldsuggest,No.Thereasonissimple.
Unlessthepriceisverylow,youdon'twanttodrawattentiontoit.Youdon't
reallywanttheskimmertofinditeasilyandevaluateyourproductonprice
alone.Ifyoudon'tgooutofyourwaytohighlighttheprice,theskimmerwill
havetoworktofindit,andhopefullythey'llgethookedbackintothecopyby
oneofyourintriguingsubheadlines(whichwe'lltalkaboutlateron),rather
thanfindingtheprice.Youdon'tnecessarilyhavetohidetheprice,justdon't
gomakingitstandouteither.

STACKINGBONUSES

Youmighthavebonusesthatyouwanttoinclude.Youcouldtalkaboutthem
anytimeafteryou'veintroducedthemainproduct.Soafterthebulletpoints,
youcouldhaveasectionpitchingeachofyourbonuses.However,Iusually
prefertoincludebonusesafterI'veintroducedtheprice.Thisisamorenatural
location,becausehopefullythey'rejustaboutsoldonyourmainproductat
thispoint.Thebonusescantipprospectsovertheedge.

Ifthebonusesareofgoodquality,youcouldstacktheminaspartofyour
productoffer.Inotherwords,insteadofpitchingthemasbonuses(which
peopletendtotreataslessvaluable),includetheminyourwholeproduct
package.

Youcouldsaysomethinglikethis:Andthat'snotall...ifyouorderrightnow,
I'malsogoingtoaddthefollowingtworeportstoyourpackage...

Makesureyoupitchthepracticalvalueofeachbonustotheprospect.Tell
themwhyit'sofbenefittothem.Maybeyoucouldincludeasmallselectionof
bulletpointspitchingitsbenefits.

Attachadollarvaluetoit.Ifpossible,justifywhyyou'veusedthatdollar
value.Saying,Bonusreport,$27valueisn'tanywherenearascompellingas
saying,JustafewyearsagoIsoldthisreportfor$27.Sincethen,I've
revampeditanddecidedtoincludeitinthispackage,whichnicely
complementsthemainproduct.Witha$27value,it'snowyoursFREEwhen
youplaceyourorder.

Emergency Copywriting 111

 ACTIONSTEPS

Writeasectionofcopythatbuildsthevalue,introducesthepriceofyour
product,andthatstacksthebonuseswhereappropriate.

18.HowToUseAStrongGuaranteeTo
ClinchTheSale
Havingastrongguaranteeisanimportantpartofdoingbusiness,especially
online.It'stheultimateformofproofthatyoubelieveinyourproductand
standbehindit.

Afteryou'vegiventheproduct'sprice,andperhapsstackedadditionalbonuses
ontop,yourguaranteeistheultimatewayofclinchingtheirbusiness.In
effect,you'resayingtothemthattheycantryoutyourproductcompletelyrisk
free!

Yourguaranteesectionofcopydoesn'thavetobecomplicated.Simplytell
themwhatyourguaranteeis.Keepinmindthatastrongguaranteeisalsoa
majorbenefit,sodon'tbeshyinproclaimingyourconfidenceinit.
Satisfactionguaranteedoryourmoneybackdoesn'treallysoundlikemuch
ofaguarantee.Here'sanexampleofthekindofwordingI'drecommend:

Butitgetsbetter.Ireallybelieveinthisproduct,andI'mconfidentyou'llget
results.

That'swhyI'mwillingtoputmymoneywheremymouthis.I'mwillingto
offeryouacompletelynorisk,noquestionsasked,100%moneyback
guarantee.

Ifyoudon'tbelievethisproductisworthTENTIMESwhatyoupaidforit...or
you'renothappywithitforanyreason...I'llrefund100%ofyourmoney,no
questionsasked...anytimewithin90daysofyourpurchasetoday.

Emergency Copywriting 112

Inotherwords,thereisnoriskonyouwhatsoever.I'mtakingalloftherisk...
andalloftheresponsibility...foryou.

Youcouldalsodisplayyourguaranteeintheformofafancycertificate;but
ultimately,makeitclearthattheyhaveabsolutelynothingtolosefromtheir
purchase(becauseyou'retakingalloftherisk)andeverythingtogain.

ACTIONSTEPS

Writeasectionofcopythatpresentsyourguarantee.

19.TimeToBuy:ClosingTheDeal,And
TheCallToAction
Bythisstageyou'vebuilttheprospect'sdesiretoitspeak,andyou'veoffered
anironcladguaranteethatprovesyourproductistherealdeal,andifthey're
nothappy,theycangettheirmoneyback.

Evenatthispoint,theymightstillhavethatfinalhesitationaboutbuying.This
isthemomenttheyactuallyhavetomakethedecisiontobuy,andit'seasyto
getcoldfeethere.Afterall,notbuyingiseasy.Theyjustdon'tbuy!Buying,on
theotherhand,meansmakingamentaldecisiontosay,Yes...tohittheBuy
Nowbutton,togothroughtheorderprocess(whichmightinvolvehavingto
findtheircreditcardandtypeintheirdetails),perhapsdownloadorwaitfor
theproduct,gothroughandapplyitmuchmoreeffortinvolved!

That'swhy,afterintroducingthepriceandtheguarantee,Iliketowritea
sectionofcopywhichIcallclosingthedeal.Thisiswhereyouovercomeany
lastminutehesitationordoubts.Reassurethemthatthey'redoingtheright
thing.Remindthemoftheultimatebenefitstheycouldgetfromyourproduct.
Ifyourproducthasuniqueaspectsthatarebeneficialtotheprospect,remind
themofthebenefitsofthese.Gentlyhintattheconsequencesofnotgetting
theirproblemsortedrightnow.Makeyourstrongestlogicalappealforthemto
buynow.Ifyouhaven'talreadydoneso,makesureyoualsoanswerany
questionstheymighthave,thattheyneedtoknowtheanswertobeforethey

Emergency Copywriting 113

willbuy.

Thissectionisreallyjustarecapofallthebestreasonstobuynow,rather
thanlater(ornotatall).Remembertoweaveinthosehumanmotivators.If
yourprospectshavereadthisfar,theneveryadditionalmotivatoryouemploy
couldmakethedifferencebetweenasale,andnosale.

Atlast,here'saweightlosssystemthatdoesn'trequirewillpower.This
iswhatyou'vebeenlookingforallthistime.

Justimaginehavingthefigureyou'vealwayswanted;anew,slimmer,
sexieryou...thatgetsheadsturningandyourfriendslookingin
admiration(andperhapsabitofjealousy).

Ifyoudon'tgetthisproblemsortedrightnow,what'sgoingtochange?
Nothing.You'llstillbethesameweight,andthemirrorwon'tbeyour
friend.Maybeyou'llstruggleeverysooftenwiththosediets...and,like
mostpeople,you'llfail.

Listen.Itdoesn'thavetobelikethis.Youdeservebetter.It'stimetomake
aREALchangeandgetyourweightlossproblemsortedoutonceandfor
all.Thisisyouropportunitytodoso,righthere...rightnow.

It'seasytomakeexcuses,butdeepdownyouknowthatyoureallywant
this.Youwanttoloseweightquicklyandeasily,andyouwantthefigure
toproveit!

SotherighttimeisNOW.Let'sgetyouslim...andfast.

Finally,you'rereadyforwhatcopywriterscallthecalltoaction.Thisis
whereyoutellthemtotakeaction,inthiscasetogoaheadandbuy!Just
beforedoingthis,Irecommendtellingthemspecificallyhowtoorder,what
happensoncetheyhittheBuyNowbuttonandhowtheygettheirproduct,
theformatoftheproduct...andthenIwouldtellthemtogoaheadandclick
theBuyNoworAddToCartbutton.

ClicktheBuyNowbuttonbelow.You'llbetakentooursecurepayment
processorwhereyoucanpay,andthenyou'llbetakentoapagewhere
you'llbeabletodownloadtheprogramontoyourcomputer.

Sogoahead...clickthebuttonbelowtoplaceyourorderandbegin

Emergency Copywriting 114

 downloading,andI'llspeaktoyouagaininjustafewminutes:

ItmaybeagoodideatohavemultipleBuyNowbuttonsthroughoutyour
salesletterafteryou'veintroducedtheproduct.Forexample,youcouldhave
onerightafteryourbulletpoints,forthosewhoaresoldbythebulletsand
wanttoorderrightaway.Youmightputanotheronejustafterthesection
whereyouintroducetheprice,forthosewholikethepriceanddon'tneedany
furtherconvincing.

ACTIONSTEPS

Writeasectionthatclosesthedealandasksfortheorder.

20.YourLastChance:TheSignatureAnd
P.S.
Weoftencallonlinesalespitchessalesletters,becausetheyfollowasimilar
formattophysicalletterssentoutbydirectmailmarketingcompanies.These
companiesspentmillionsofdollarstestingtheircampaignstofindthebest
formatsthatworkedforthem,andsowhenwewriteanonlinesalesletter,
we'rereallyfollowingmanyoftheconventionsusedbythedirectmail
companies.

Oneofthoseconventionsisendingtheletterwithasignature,andaP.S.The
signaturegavetheletterapersonaltouch,makingitmorelikelytoberead,
andthemarketingcompaniesalsofoundthattheP.S.tendedtobeoneofthe
earliestpartsofthelettertoberead.That'sbecausepeoplewouldopenthe
letter,scanperhapstheheadlineandintroduction,andthenskiptotheendto
findoutwhowaswritingtothem.TheP.Swouldthereforegetnoticedearly
on,becauseitimmediatelyfollowedthesignature.

Thingsworkalittledifferentlyonline.Readersaren'topeningaletter,and
theycan'tjustfliptheletterovertofindoutwhowroteit.Theyhavetoscroll
downinstead.Still,there'sastrongpossibilitytheymayreadtheP.S.earlyon,

Emergency Copywriting 115

simplybecausetheymightscrolldowntofindaprice,ortofindananswerto
theirquestion,ortofindoutwhowrotetheletter.

Wecallthesepeopleskimmers.They'reskimmingthelettertogetthegistofit,
ortofindaspecificpieceofinformationsuchastheprice.Now,inreality,the
majorityofyourprospectsmightbeskimmersatsomepoint.Nomatterhow
compellingyoumakeyoursalesletter,there'snoguaranteeyourprospectswill
readeveryword.Somereaderswillskipsomeparts,andsomemayskimright
downtothepriceearlyon.Youcan'taltogetherstopthisprocess,butthereare
thingsyoucandototakeadvantageofthisnaturaltendencytoskim.Forone,
youcanwriteintriguingsubheadlinesthatpullthembackintothecopy.(We'll
talkabouttheseinthenextchapter.)

Forthosewhoscrolldowntothebottom,youcanalsowriteaP.S.thatmakes
afinalappealtothosewhodidreadyourletterinfull,andalsoencourages
skimmerstogobackandreadthecopy.

Idon'trecommendmentioningthepriceintheP.S.Thatwouldmakeittoo
easyforskimmers.Instead,youcouldmentionthebiggestbenefitsofthe
product,andbrieflyexplainthatyou'regoingtosolvetheirpressingproblems
andsatisfytheirburningdesiresiftheyreadtheletter.YoucouldusetheP.S.
toansweramajorobjection,andtogivetheprospectonefinalnudgetobuy.
Forthebenefitofskimmers,leavethemwithimportantquestionsintheir
mindthattheycanonlygetanswerediftheyreadthecopy.Useitasakindof
summaryofthesalesletter,butinsuchawaythatitforcesskimmerstogo
backintothecopytofindoutwhatthefussisabout.

Here'sanexample:

P.S:InthisletterI'veshownyouexactlyhowyoucanloseweightquickly
andeasily,withouttheneedofwillpowerwhichstopsmostpeoplefrom
gettingtheslimfiguretheydesire.

I'veshownyoutheFOURSECRETStheweightlossindustrydoesn'twant
youtoknow,that'sholdingyoubackfromlosingweight...andI'veshown
youtheTHREEKEYStoaslimfigure(withoutwhich,yourslimming
effortswillbeatotalwasteoftime).

AndI'vegivenyoutheperfectsolutiontogettingsliminsuperfasttime,
withoutwillpowerandwithoutenduringthosedietsyoucanneverstick

Emergency Copywriting 116

 to.Takeadvantageofmyofferbeforeitexpires.

NoticeIpointoutthatI'veshownthemasolutiontotheirproblems,which
compelstheskimmertogobackandreadtheletter.Irefertothefoursecrets
theweightlossindustrydoesn'twantyoutoknow,andthethreekeystoa
slimfigure,whichbuildscuriosityintheskimmer,iftheydon'tknowwhat
thosethingsare.

P.S:Don'tmakeyourP.S.toolong.It'ssupposedtobeafinalafterthought!Two
orthreeparagraphsisfine,butifitbecomestoolong,itblendsintothecopy
andwon'tstandouttoskimmers.

ACTIONSTEPS

WriteaP.S.foryoursalesletter.

21.HowToWriteSubheadlinesThatStop
SkimmersInTheirTracksAndForceThem,
KickingAndScreaming,BackIntoYour
Copy
Asalesletterneedstobebrokenupintosmallersections,otherwiseitlooks
toolong.Weusesubheadlinestodothis,whicharebasicallysmallerheadlines
withinthesalesletter.

Anotherveryimportantreasonforincludingsubheadlinesistohaltskimmers
intheirtracks.Youwanttocreatesubheadlinesthatpullskimmersbackinto
thecopyoutofsheercuriosity,andmotivatereaderstokeeponreadingyour
copy.

Ifyou'renewtowritingsalespitches,Irecommendwritingallofthecopyfirst
(oratleastafirstdraft),andthenaddingsubheadlinesafterwards.Thisallows
youtogetintotheflowofwritingthecopy,andthenyoucanextractthemain

Emergency Copywriting 117

thoughtsandturnthemintosubheadlines.

Usethesameprinciplesaswritingheadlines.Useeachsubheadlinetosell
thereaderonreadingthenextsection.Givethemacompellingreasontoread
it.Useyoursubheadlinestopointtowhatyou'reabouttosay,withoutgiving
awaythedetails.Buildanticipationforthenextsection.Herearesome
examplesofsubheadlinesthatdothis:

WhatSheSaidNextLiterallyBlewMeAway...

Here'sWhatTheWeightLossIndustryAren'tTellingYou...

TheShockingDiscoveryThatChanged
TheDatingGameForever...

HowToMakeAGoodFirstImpression

TheReasonYou'reStrugglingInBusiness...

WhatHappenedNextSentAShudderDownMySpine...

Aimtomakeeachsubheadlinerelevanttotheprospect.Ifyourprospectwere
toreadaheadlineinisolation,wouldtheycareaboutthemessage?Wouldit
suckthemintothecopy?Ifnot,writeabettersubheadline.

Forexample,thelastoneintheexamplesabovemightbuildanticipation,but
itdoesn'treallyanswerthequestionofwhytheprospectshouldcareabout
that.Wecanchangeitsoweprovidetheprospectwithareasontokeep
reading:

WhatHappenedNextSentAShudderDownMySpine,AsIRealized
I'dBeenDupedByTheWeightLossIndustry...

Nowtheprospectcares,becausetheywanttoknowhowyou'dbeenduped
bytheweightlossindustry,sotheycanavoidthesamefate.

Subheadlinesshouldfollowaspecificformat.Youshoulduseaboldfontand
alignthemtothecenterofthepage.Youshouldcapitalizethefirstletterof
everyword.Ialsorecommendusingadarkredorgreenfontforsubheadlines,
tomakethemstandout.

Usesubheadlinesatleastonceeverycoupleofpagesofcopy,exceptbetween

Emergency Copywriting 118

yourbulletpoints.Atearlierstagesinyourcopyyoucanusethemtobreakup
thecopyandtobuildanticipation.Afteryou'veintroducedyourproduct,you
canusesubheadlinestointroducetheremainingsections,suchasthebullet
points,thesectiononvalueandprice,andtheonewhereyouclosethedeal.
Herearesomeexamplesubheadlinesyoucanadaptforthesesections.

Forthebulletpoints...

Here'sWhat'sInsideTheProduct...

Forthesectiononbuildingtheirdesiretoitspeak...

Here'sWhyYouNeedThis...

Forthesectiononvalueandprice...

OK,SoYou'reProbablyWondering...What'sTheCost?

Forclosingthedeal...

NowIt'sDecisionTime.

Forearlierpartsofthecopy,youcouldextractspecificanticipationbuilding
sentencesfromyourcopyandturnitintoasubheadline.

OK,let'stakethefragmentofcopyIwroteinChapter13...
IfyouansweredYestoanyoftheabove,thenyouneedtoreadeverywordofwhatI'mabouttotell
youverycarefully.

IhavebothGOODandBADNEWSforyou.

Thebadnewsisthatsociety,themedia,andevenwellmeaningfriendsandfamilyhaveprogrammed
youforfailure.

You'vebeenbombardedwithrichandhandsomecelebritieswhoseemtobeabletogethotwomenat
thedropofahat...

...andatthesametime,wellmeaningfriendsandfamilyhavegivenyoubasicallyuselessadvicelike
Beconfident...andJustbeyourself.(I'llexplainwhythesepiecesofadviceareuselessinjusta
moment.)

Nowondersomanymenstrugglewiththisthingwecallwomenanddating!

YourheadhasbeenfilledwithBADadviceandimpossiblerolemodelsfromthemomentyoufirst
noticedtheoppositesex!

That'sthebadnews.ButIhavesomeWONDERFULNEWSforyou...

Emergency Copywriting 119

 Thegoodnewsis,I'mabouttosharewithyouhowyoucandumpallofthatuselessprogramming...

...andturnyourself,almostinstantly,intothekindofmanthatnaturallyattractswomen...andis
attractivetowomen...almosteffortlessly.

Truthis,itisn'treallyaboutlooks,height,money...oranyofthethingssocietyandthemediasayit
is.

IfIwerewritingthissalesletterinfull,Imightturnthegoodnewsandbad
newslineintoasubheadline(becauseit'srelevanttotheprospectandgets
theirattention),andmaybethe...andturnyourself,almostinstantlyline
intoaHowto...subheadline,whichpromisesusefulinformationtothe
prospect.Here'swhatitwouldlooklikewiththesenewsubheadlines:
IfyouansweredYestoanyoftheabove,thenyouneedtoreadeverywordofwhatI'mabouttotell
youverycarefully.

IHaveBothGOODAndBADNEWSForYou.

Thebadnewsisthatsociety,themedia,andevenwellmeaningfriendsandfamilyhaveprogrammed
youforfailure.

You'vebeenbombardedwithrichandhandsomecelebritieswhoseemtobeabletogethotwomenat
thedropofahat...

...andatthesametime,wellmeaningfriendsandfamilyhavegivenyoubasicallyuselessadvicelike
Beconfident...andJustbeyourself.(I'llexplainwhythesepiecesofadviceareuselessinjusta
moment.)

Nowondersomanymenstrugglewiththisthingwecallwomenanddating!

YourheadhasbeenfilledwithBADadviceandimpossiblerolemodelsfromthemomentyoufirst
noticedtheoppositesex!

That'sthebadnews.ButIhavesomeWONDERFULNEWSforyou...

Thegoodnewsis,I'mabouttosharewithyouhowyoucandumpallofthatuselessprogramming...

HowToTurnYourself...AlmostInstantly...IntoTheKindOfManThatNaturally
AttractsWomen...AndIsAttractiveToWomen(AlmostEffortlessly)

Truthis,itisn'treallyaboutlooks,height,money...oranyofthethingssocietyandthemediasayit
is.

Asyoucansee,Ididn'tevenneedtowriteadditionalcopyhere,Isimply
transformedacoupleofsentencesintosubheadlines!Atypicalprospect,who
isinterestedinthesubjectandmightbeskimmingthesalesletter,will
hopefullyseeoneofthesesubheadlinesandgetdrawnbackintothecopy.

Forsubheadlines,Itendtopicksentencesthatoffersomeimmediateincentive

Emergency Copywriting 120

totheprospectforreadingthatsection.TheIHaveBothGoodNewsAndBad
NewsForYousubheadlinepromisestorevealwhatthegoodandbadnewsis,
andtheHowToTurnYourself...subheadlinepromisestorevealhowthey
canturnthemselvesintothekindofmanthatattractswomen.Theyboth
makeimmediatepromiseswhicharedeliveredinthesectionofcopythat
followseachsubheadline.

ACTIONSTEPS

Putwhatyou'vewrittentogetherintoasalesletter,andbreakitupwith
subheadlines.

22.HowAndWhereToUseTestimonials
ToHelpSellYourProduct
Ifyou'veeverseenasalesletter,you'reprobablyfamiliarwiththeconceptof
testimonials.Basically,theyarestatementsfromcustomersthatendorsethe
product,andmightlooksomethinglikethis:

Paul'sproductisutterlybrilliant.Inthefirstmonthithassavedme
over$3k,andI'vealreadyaddedanadditional$5,467ofrevenue
justbyusingafractionofthetechniqueshesharesinthiscourse.
Highlyrecommended.JoeBloggs,Michigan

Weusetestimonialsinsalesletterstoaddtotheproofthattheproductcan
deliverresults.Youcanboastaboutyourownproductallyoulike,but
prospectsarealwaysgoingtobeskepticalofyourownboasts.Afterall,you're
boundtosayyourownproductiswonderful!

However,endorsementsfromyourcustomersaremuchmoreeffective.They
representpeoplenotdirectlyconnectedtoyouoryourcompany,whothink
yourproductisgreat.

Whereshouldyouputthetestimonials?Therearebasicallythreedifferent

Emergency Copywriting 121

thingsyoucandowiththem:

PuttheminaHere'sWhatOurCustomersAreSaying...section.

Youcanhaveasectionofcopydevotedtothetestimonials.Ifyou're
goingtodothis,inmyopinionthemostnaturalplaceforthemwouldbe
afterthebulletpointsandthesectionbuildingthereader'sdesiretoits
peak.

Scatterthemthroughoutthesalesletter.

Ifyou'drathernothaveawholesectiondevotedtotestimonials,youcan
scatterthemthroughoutthesalesletter.Bearinmindthatonce
prospectsseeatestimonial,it'sanindicationthatyou'reselling
something.Soifyoudon'twanttorevealthisfactuntilyou've
introducedtheproduct,don'tusetestimonialsbeforethen.

Usethemtoprovespecificassertions.

Ifyou'vemadeaspecificclaiminyourcopy,youcouldimmediately
followitwithatestimonialthatprovesorsupportsyourclaim.For
example:

UsingmyQuickSalesBoostertechnique,it'spossibletoincreaseyour
salesbyover15%injustafewshortweeks.

Oneofmycustomersrecentlyusedthistechnique,andhere'swhat
happened:

UsingtheSalesBoostermethodthatPaulteaches,Iwassurprisedtoget
arushofnewcustomersinthefirstweek.Threeweekslatermysales
hadgoneupbyover20%.Iwasprettyhappy!JohnSmith,
MyWebSite.com

Howmanytestimonialsshouldyouuse?It'suptoyou.Itendtogowithabout
7to15goodones.

Whatisagoodtestimonial?Ideally,youwanttestimonialsthattalkabout
specificresults,andthatprovetheproductsolvedthecustomer'sproblem.You
alsowanttogetasnamespecificaspossible.Considerthesetwotestimonials:

Emergency Copywriting 122

 It'sagreatproduct...Iloveit!JoeM,California

Thisproducthassavedmycompanyhoursofendlessfrustration,and
we'veimprovedourproductivityatleast10%overthepastfewmonths.
I'mseriouslyhopingourcompetitorsdon'tfindoutaboutthisgreat
product!JoeMakeshift,CEOofSomeNiceCompany.com

Ihopeyou'llagreethatthesecondoneismoreeffective.Itmentionsspecific
results,andthepersonhasafullnameandwebsite.

Youcanenhancetheeffectivenessofyourtestimonialsevenmorebyusing
picturesofthepersonnexttotheircomments,andbyusingwellknownand
reputablepeopleinyourindustry.

Ifyouhaven'tyetgotanytestimonials,I'dstronglyurgeyoutogetsome.You
cangetcommentsaboutyourproductsimplybysendingoutfreecopiestoa
selectnumberofpeople.However,ifyoudothis,don'tcallthemcustomers
becausetechnicallythey'renot.Youcouldstillsaysomethinglike,Here's
WhatPeopleAreSayingAboutMyProduct.

ACTIONSTEPS

Addtestimonialstoyourcopywheneverappropriate.

23.EditingYourCopy
Copywritersusuallywriteseveraldraftsofasalesletter,astheyrefineandedit
whattheywrite.Thismightmeanchoppingoutwholesentencesand
paragraphs,rewritingsomeofthem,insertingadditionalmaterial,and
clarifyingsomeofthethoughtsandideasthataresharedwiththereader.

Chancesare,whatyou'vewrittensofarmayneedediting,inordertopolishit
upandgetitreadyforpresentationtoyourtargetaudience.Gothroughthe
guidelinesIgaveyouinChapter11,andmakesureallofyourcopyfollows
them.Here'sabriefreminderofthoseguidelines...

Emergency Copywriting 123

 Keepitpersonal.
Keepitsimple.
Losefluffwordsandphrases.
Speaktoyourprospectsattheirlevel,intheirlanguage,usingeveryday
words.
Putclarityovergrammar.
Speaktothethingsthatmattertotheminrelationtotheproductyou're
selling.
Keepitinthefivesenses.
Don'ttrytobeclever.
Shortsentencesarefine.
Don'twritelongwindedsentencesandparagraphs.
WritewithSowhat?inmind.
Establishyourpoints,butdon'tbeatthemtodeath.
Avoidambiguity.

Ultimatelyyouwanttoaimforsimplicityandclarity.Thinkbacktothe
conceptoftheslipperyslide.Youwanttomakeitaseasyaspossibleforthe
readertoreadyourwordsandsentences,havethethoughtsandideasslipinto
theirmindandreallyconnectandagreewiththosethoughts.

Everytimeyouuseawordtheydon'tunderstand,aphraseorsentencethat
doesn'tmakesense,orisambiguous,orthatgoesovertheirhead,oristoo
longandboring...youriskinterruptingthatslipperyslideandthuslosingthe
sale.Keepwhatyouwritesimple,clear,andeasytoread.

Don'taimforperfection.Thereisnosuchthingasperfectcopy.Ifyouwereto
giveyourproducttoeverycopywriterintheworld,andaskthemtowritea
salesletterforit,theywouldallwritesomethingdifferent.That'sbecause
therearemanydifferentwaysofmakingthesamepoint,expressingthesame
thought,andbuildingastrongcaseforyourproduct.

SpicingItUp

Asfaraspossible,youalsowanttomakeyourcopyexciting.Ihavesomething
totellyouthatmayimpactyouquitealotmaygettheirattention,butit
soundsfairlysterile.Gettheirheartpounding,theirbloodboiling,theirhands
alittlesweaty.I'mabouttotellyousomethingthatwillprobablygetyouvery
angry...buthey...don'tshootthemessenger.It'sgoingtoshakeyourworldto
itsverycore.Youwon'tlookattheworldinthesamewayagain...

Emergency Copywriting 124

Usewordsandphrasesthatpackanemotionalpunch,especiallywhen
describingyourfeelingsinthecontextofstories,orindescribingresultsand
consequences.Ifelthumiliated...defeated....helpless.ItfeltlikeI'dwonthe
lottery.Itwaslikeahammerblowtothehead.

Thinkofsomeofthewordsthatdescribeextremeemotionalstates,both
positiveandnegative:humiliated,helpless,terrified,shocked,gutted,
exposed,devastated,ecstatic,blissful,amazed,beautiful,calm,relaxed.Where
appropriate,allowyourreaderstoexperiencesomeofthoseemotions,
throughyouruseofwordsthatcarryanemotionalcharge.

Insteadofapowerfultechnique,maybeyoucoulddescribe(withperhapsa
bitofanexaggeration)whatitcoulddo,i.e.insteadofapowerfultechnique
forgettingtheedgeoveryourcompetitors,itcouldbeatechniquethatwill
haveyourcompetitorsquakingintheirboots.

UsingEmphasis

Occasionallyyou'llwanttouseformattinglikebold,italics,underlining,
CAPITALS,colorandhighlightingtoemphasizekeypoints,wordsand
sentencesinyoursalesletter.

Usethesesparingly.Ifyouemphasizetoomanywords,you'llsimplymake
yoursalesletterlooklikeamess.Irecommendemphasizingonlyyourmost
importantpointsusingbold,capitalsunderliningorhighlighting,plus
occasionallyusingitalicsorcapitalstoputemphasisonwordsthatyou'd
naturallyemphasizeifyouwerereadingtheletteroutloud.

NoticehowIdidthisinasampleofcopyIgaveearlieron:
IttookmeYEARStodeveloptheinsightsandtacticsI'msharingwithyouinthisproduct.

DuringthattimeImusthavespentthousandsofdollarspayingfordrinks,mealsandotherstuffthat
resultedinnicedates,butverylittleelseforme...

...untilIrealizedIwasjustbuyingmywayintoherheart(andnotveryeffectively).Iwanttosaveyou
allthatmoney,byshowingyoutheREALthingsthatwillwinherheart,withoutitcostingyouasmall
fortune...

IemphasizedthewordYEARSbecauseIwantedreaderstorealizeittook
mealongtimetodeveloptheinsightsandtactics;thousandsofdollars
becausethatistheimportantpointI'mtryingtomake;buyingmywayinto
herheartbecausethatword(buying)isthewordI'dwantemphasizedifI

Emergency Copywriting 125

werereadingthisoutloud;theREALthingsbecauseIwanttoimplythatthe
thingstheprospectmightcurrentlybedoingaren'treal.

Question:HowdoIputmysalesletterontotheInternet?

Firstofall,you'llneedtoputyoursalesletterintoHTMLformat,whichis
theformatofatypicalwebpage.Youmaybeabletofindfreesalesletter
templatesontheInternet,whichprovidethebasicdesignforyoursales
letter.(DoasearchonGoogleforsaleslettertemplates).

YoucanthenedityourchosentemplateinaHTMLeditor.(Kompozerisa
fairlygoodHTMLeditorthatisalsofree.)Finally,you'llneedtoupload
yoursalesletterinHTMLformatontotheInternet.Whilethetechnical
detailsonhowtouploadawebpageisbeyondthescopeofthisbook,
youcanfindtutorialsonhowtodothisontheInternet.

Manygraphicaldesigners(especiallytheoneswhodesignecovers)are
oftenwillingtodesignsaleslettertemplatesaswell,soyoucouldperhaps
getasaleslettertemplatedesignedatthesametimeasyourecover.

Alternatively,therearealsolotsofsaleslettertemplatesavailablefor
Wordpress.Wordpressisoftenusedasabloggingplatform,butmany
smartdesignershavecreatedsaleslettertemplatesforit.Doasearchfor
saleslettertemplateswordpressformoreinformation.

ACTIONSTEPS

Edityourcopysothatitisreadyforpublication,andthenputitinto
HTMLformattobeuploadedtotheInternet.

24.Conclusion
Emergency Copywriting 126
InthisbookI'vesharedwithyoueverythingyouneedtocreateapowerful
salesletterfromscratch.I'veshownyou...

howtogetstarted,bycreatingapowerfulheadlinethatsucksin
readers,andsevenwaystobeginyoursaleslettereffectively

howtobuildaconvincingcaseforyourproduct,thatprimesreadersto
seeyoursolutionasthebestoneforthem

howtoputthefeaturesandbenefitsoftheproductintheformof
enticingbulletpoints,andhowtotakeyourreader'sdesireforyour
producttoitspeak

howtointroducetheproduct,theprice,buildupthevalue,andclose
thedeal.

Ifyouevergetstuck,thinkfirstofallaboutthethoughtsandideasyouwant
toconvey,andthepointsyouwanttomake.(ThatiswhyIencourageyouto
createaRoadmapfirst,becauseitwilltellyouwhatpointsshouldcomenext.)

Thenthinkabouthowyoucanmakethatpoint.Doyouhaveananecdoteyou
couldshare?Couldyoudescribeahypotheticalsituationthereadermight
potentiallyface?Canyousharesomedeeperinsightswiththemtomakethe
point?Maybetheyjustneedsomestraighttalkfromsomeone(thatwouldbe
you)whocanseetheirproblemsfromabetterperspective.

Finally,keepinmindthefiveroadmapgoalsIdiscussedinChapter10.They
shouldguideeverythingyouwritesoifyou'renotsurewhattowritenext,
takealookatwhichofthefivegoalsyouhaven'tyetachieved.Yoursales
letterisincompleteunlessitachievesallofthefivegoalsinsomeway.

IbelieveI'vedeliveredgreatvalueformoneyforyouinthisbook.For
example,justinthechapteronmyHumanMotivationMachine,I'vegiven
youanintensecrashcourseonhumanpsychologyinabuyingcontext,and
eachmotivatoryouuseinyourcopyhasthepotentialtoboostsales.

Youcanalsousethisbooknotjustrightnow,butalsoformanyyearstocome,
becausethecopywritingprinciplesI'vesharedwithyouwillremainessentially
thesameevenfiveortenyearsfromnow.(Sure,whentherobotstakeover,
andyou'resellingtoapredominantlycyborgpopulation...wemighthaveto

Emergency Copywriting 127

rethinksomeoftheseprinciples...butIthinkwe'resafeforafewmore
decades!)

Ofcourse,evenifyoudecidetohireacopywriteratsomepoint,youcanuse
thisbookasanindicationofwhetheryourcopywriterdidagoodjobornot.

ThankyouforreadingEmergencyCopywriting...andnow,whatareyou
waitingfor?

Getselling!

Formoreinformationonresalelicensesforthisproduct,pleasecontact
meatmycopycoach@googlemail.com

Emergency Copywriting 128