But last Thursday, at 5:30 pm, it was my turn to squirm. Copywriting and marketing superstar Dan Kennedy called to interview me for his apparently information-starved Copywriting Students. In my world, being interviewed by Dan Kennedy is like having Jimmy Johnson ask you to drive him around the block.
For one hour, I had to fake my way through sounding intelligent. And in this smart, tough crowd with a fairly expensive $30,000 annual tuition, that wasn’t going to be easy. So, in-between making up big words and ending every other sentence with “in this economy” to sound relevant, I attempted to offer advice.
The REAL reason I was on the call was for having been the idiot who won a new car last year, but turned it down in exchange for an equal amount ($35,000) of copywriting work from contest sponsor Kennedy. Yes, I – the self-proclaimed copywriter – sort of “paid” 35 large for 8 pages of work.
Whatever. I didn’t need the car, but felt I could use learning from a good coach. (Can’t we all?) Of course, those winnings became yours because we took what we learned and applied it to not only our marketing, but to what we offer you.
But during the interview, amid all these people ‘tuned in’ to hear the answers, Dan throws me a curveball. He asks, “If you had all your copywriting tools taken away except 3, what would they be?” There I am, mildly choked to answer, clock ticking, sweat forming. And it’s below.
Whether you’re copywriting “student” or not, the answers still go to the core of marketing. Remember, this was not a “beginner” crowd, so my answers aren’t the normal “big headline, bold guarantee, and hot bullet points” that you’re sick of hearing. And shockingly enough, in the light of day, I still stick by these answers…
Below, you’ll see my answer. I’ve put in italics how you can use this hint in your business, whether marketing, selling, or negotiation. They work for all, and that’s a promise. So, a peek behind the marketing curtain…
AH: “Well Dan, I’m a big fan of the Provocative Headline, Big Promise Headline, The Killer Offer, Powerful Guarantee, and all that, but I assumed – hopefully correctly – that your students (and I frankly) have enough resources on those topics from you and other training. Here are the ones I consider more advanced, more stealthy, that you do NOT hear about much, but generate massive results for us and our clients -
1. I’ll call the first one ‘Planting Psychic’ Seeds. Some may call it ‘empathy’ but its more than that. I like to write as if I’m listening in on what keeps these guys up at night, and shock them with the well placed ‘prediction’ of that state.
The “You’re probably wondering…” is a nearly worn-out but effective version of that. I want to let my clients know that I understand what keeps them up at night, or the problems they’ve faced, or even where their mind is at the moment.”
Contractors – you too want to do this. Force your marketing language, website, sales presentations to enter your customer’s subconscious. Make them say, ‘YES! That’s what I was just thinking!” and you will magnetically gain acceptance. People want to be understood without having to explain themselves.
2. Curiosity Accelerators – I often drop in a foreshadowed thought, hinting at something yet to come. I try to give the readers’ subconscious a moment to dwell, then DESIRE the object of their curiosity. Such as, “I’ll explain that
Contractors – This is done WAY too little in your websites, and especially your sales presentations. Your Maintenance Agreement forms are the WORST at this. Why? They tell too much, too quickly, ending forever the ability to let the customer ‘weigh’ out the value before you blurt it in their face OR attempt to defend it! An example:
Websites stupidly put, “Read what others say” as if anyone really goes to read a bunch of bragging. Curiosity is OVER. We all know it’s awesome or you wouldn’t put it there. Instead, pepper it ‘inside’ the message, such as “You’re probably thinking I’m full of beans, but so did David Wanker from Canker who said…”
See the difference? Don’t make ‘em hunt it down. Make them want it. Also…
Most Agreements typically line up a bunch of gobbledegook on a page that is SUPPOSED to seem beneficial, but it’s tiresome, boring, hogwash to a customer. All they’re scanning for is the price, but nothing else means anything to them. Instead, you should line up and explain why the bullet point is tantalizingly valuable, THEN put your price in the two-tier method, compared against an UNmaintained system failure.
3. My next most crucial element is “The Turn” as Maxwell Sackheim called it. This is very difficult for most amateur marketers and salespeople. This is where you go from consultive coach to presenting the offer they should accept. I mean, if they’ve expressed a need, it is your duty to present a viable offer.
Contractors – too much of your marketing, and many of your “salespeople” simply spout off specs, scribble something down, and blurt out a price as if magically people’s Visa cards will float from their highly guarded wallets. Ain’t gonna happen. That’s called “Order taking” not “Selling”.
The turn is where you skillfully build a communication “bridge” from “I know you, and know you have this problem” to “Now that we know each other, here’s how to solve it. Just look.”
Your presentations and marketing sales pieces have 3 parts: the opener, the presentation, and the close. These are essentially seamless except for a clinical sales discussion, and the turn is between presentation and close. So, if you’ve got great presentation skills and a lousy closing ratio, it is THE TURN that is causing you to fall flat.
All successful infomercials have “the turn”; watch them. (Heck, all great movies and books have “the turn”) Become a student of the turn.
So, there’s your look into a formerly secretive ‘list’ of items I use to persuade you, and you to persuade others, now advising you to use in your marketing and selling. Happy Sales!
Adams Hudson
Questions:
□ If I took all your marketing tools away except 3, what items would YOU keep?
□ How effectively are your sales presentations at any of the 3 items on MY list above?
□ Do your sales presentations need a makeover?
□ Does your marketing need to be polished up for 2010?
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