Posted by Chris W. on March 26, 2010 · Leave a Comment
How many times have we visited a website when we’re somewhat interested in what they’re offering…only to have it try so hard to sell us we feel like we walked onto a used-car lot?
Too many websites try to act like big ads. In a few cases this works fine (mentioned below), especially if the reader’s need for your product is immediate. Or if it’s a niche audience and their time’s at a premium.
In these cases the need is acute. Visceral. So it makes sense to sell hard-and-fast.
However, that level of need is not always the case. In fact, I think it’s relatively rare online. When I visit a website, it’s for information. That may be information leading UP TO a sale – or it may not.
So I’ve put together four scenarios here, based on this idea:
- Little Need/Soft Sell
- Little Need/Hard sell
- Strong Need/Hard Sell
- Strong Need/Soft Sell
Each of these represents an approach you take in your website’s content (how strong its voice is, if you will), compared to the level of need your reader has while visiting the site. How well does need match up to selling approach? What happens in these situations?
Let’s find out.
1. Little Need/Soft Sell – Promotes Following
Your reader has a low level of need; you’re using a soft-sell approach in your content.
The reader may be here for a little research. Or a link brought him here and he/she isn’t quite sure why yet. The content is a light read. Seems to fit with some things they were thinking about.
They’re likely to bookmark the site, subscribe to email/RSS, or follow you on social media channels.
2. Little Need/Hard Sell – Used-Car Pushy
Your reader has a low level of need; you’re using a hard-sell approach in your content.
If web content tries to sell when there isn’t much need, it’ll chase readers off. It’s doubly worse if the content pushes hard for the reader to buy.
They’ll think, “Woah! Hey, who are you trying to convince here, me or you? I didn’t need this anyway,” and click Back.
3. Strong Need/Hard Sell – Short-Term High Sales
Your reader has a strong need; you’re using a hard-sell approach in your content.
There is a circumstance in which hard sell outperforms soft. That circumstance is the single-page online sales letter. You’ve seen these for things like specialized training programs. They’re popular with healthcare products too. These work because they’re hyper-targeted, usually sell one thing only, and do so (typically) for a short time.
Other circumstances though? If you can demonstrate value right away (and a lot of it), this approach can work. Otherwise…bye.
4. Strong Need/Soft Sell – (Many) Confident Buyers
Your reader has a strong need; you’re using a soft-sell approach in your content.
Now there’s something interesting I’ve found…
With little need/hard sell – i.e. you’re pushing something hard when people are just on your site for information – the content often fails. But with soft-sell content, the content succeeds regardless of the level of need.
If I visit a website with a product I’m a little curious about, and the site doesn’t push a hard-sell at me, I’ll remember it. It fits my future need. It forms an impression in my mind.
If I visit a website with a product I really need, but the site soft-sells me? I appreciate that they’re not pushy. It projects confidence. I think, “Wow, these guys must be confident in their product. I should get this one.” An even better impression forms in my mind. And so I buy.
Soft-Sell Wins Out Online
Content is, way too often, the last thing considered when building a new site or working up marketing campaigns. Sometimes when it’s last-minute, businesspeople will write from a hard-sell approach because they don’t have time to work on more finessed content (or to hire a writer).
Going for a soft-sell content approach, taking the extra time to portray your website as a confident educational resource instead of an ad? You’ll get a better response every time. Why? Because you’re finding out your customers’ level of need, and building a sales approach that matches it.
Which selling approach do you prefer? Comment about it.
Posted by Chris W. on March 10, 2010 · 1 Comment
Earlier today @Medwii, a student in France, followed me on Twitter. He asked me a simple question:
“@blueferret I guess you are an experienced CW. I’m currently studying in France and looking for a CW internship. Got no book, any advices?”
(I do love when people call me ‘experienced.’)
I started to write out a reply for him, pointing him to some books and blogs. Then I realized I was writing way too much for a couple tweets.
Besides, a few more people might like this information. I’ll blog about it instead!
So Medwii, because you asked, I’ve compiled three big resources to help you out here. This is information I’ve used to educate myself on copywriting and writing for the Web over the years.
1. Copywriting Books
The Well-Fed Writer Series
My own introduction to the copywriting field.
Bob Bly’s Publications Page
Bob is one of the legends. He has a legion of copywriting and related books/ebooks on his site. Writing, marketing, you name it (and then some).
Jonathan Kranz’s “Writing Copy for Dummies”
Do NOT let the “Dummies” label fool you on this one. It’s as sharp as an unexpected tack on your seat.
Mike Stelzner’s “Writing White Papers”
Mike is a whirlwind of writing-related activity. He hosts online seminars, huge business summits, etc. He’s billed as “the White Paper Writer.” (Nearly) Everything I know about writing white papers came from this guy.
“How to Be a Rockstar Freelancer”
This ebook covers the business side of freelancing: getting leads, managing clients, building up your brand. It’s worth ten times its weight in bytes.
2. Follow Professional Copywriters/Content Writers on Social Media
The veterans are out there on social media. That’s a veritable goldmine when it comes to up-to-date copywriting knowledge. Here’s the “best of the best” on Twitter:
@BobBly
@copyblogger
@LauraMcNeil
@MenWithPens
@Mike_Stelzner
@nickusborne
@steveslaunwhite
@blueferret
(Hey, had to work myself in here somewhere!)
3. Read Copywriting/Web Writing Blogs
There are a ton of excellent writing blogs out there. I couldn’t hope to put them all down here, so I’ll just list a few I check regularly.
Write to Done
Men With Pens
Junta42 Blog
CopyBlogger
The Writing White Papers Blog
Social Media Examiner (Great place to keep up on using social media)
“50 Open Courses for Web Writers”
(This one has a bunch of links to online courses intended to help you work up writing chops. VERY useful as an introductory resource.)
4. Read Up on Content Strategy
Content Strategy is a newer subtopic in the Web writing/marketing field. It’s gaining attention as companies realize they need to manage their content in order to get the most value out of it. If you’re interested in helping them do that, here’s a few places to bone up on it.
“Content Strategy for the Web” by Kristina Halvorson (book)
“The Discipline of Content Strategy” (Blog post)
The Brain Traffic Blog
“Content Strategy: A Reading Guide”
The Content Strategy Group – LinkedIn.com
Best of luck @Medwii! Hope all this helps you out.
Any more copywriting/writing for the Web resources you’d like to add? Post it in the comments. I’ll update as needed.
Posted by Chris W. on March 2, 2010 · Leave a Comment
Earlier today I had one of ‘those’ moments with a prospective client. You’ll see which one shortly.
I was on the phone with him discussing a new client relationship. He wants to improve his site’s SEO. Sure, no problem. I start asking the usual questions – what kind of content does he want, who’s the audience…
Then I hear this. “Audience? Huh? We just want whatever it takes to get to the top of Google.”
Uhm…
Thinking to myself, ‘Didn’t we dislodge this attitude from the business world in 2002?’ I asked the prospect to clarify. To what kind of customers do you sell? What motivates them to buy?
Dead silence.
Then, he says something that makes my teeth hurt. “I know what the customers want. This is how we’ll do it.”
Er…hold on a second, Mr. Genius. You’ve admitted to me that sales stink. The phones aren’t ringing. Nobody’s updated your website or sent an email in months. You’re after immediate action and (wait for it) – immediate results.
And on top of all this…you already know what customers want?
No. You don’t know what your customers want. You know what YOU want – money, success, days off, etc. Your customers want entirely different things – products that work, services that do such-and-such job, relief from the headache of dealing with Problem X.
They want this relief to come from you. And they don’t CARE what YOU want.
I believe this is the biggest problem with marketing today. B2B, B2C, doesn’t matter. Too many companies fail to consider their customers’ desires. They just superimpose their own.
It’s tough to crawl out of your head and into someone else’s. Very tough to try on a customer’s mindset and figure out what they want, and how to speak to them about it. Believe me, I know. That’s why there are marketing experts (like me) to do it FOR you.
But no. It’s easy (and cheap) to just assume you know what customers want. And then act from there. And then wonder why your marketing doesn’t convert.
It’s entirely possible to get what you want as a business owner/VP/startup guy-of-all-trades. People do every day. But in order to do that you must give customers what they’re after. It takes imagination, effort and patience to link the two up.
Sometimes I’m able to demonstrate how the two link up, and get myself a new client (yay!). Sometimes I’m not (like today).
Here, some free advice. We have dozens of channels to communicate with all types of audiences nowadays (email, social media, phones, old-fashioned networking, etc.). Want to find out what your customers want? ASK THEM.
Now, how many of you were nodding your head at what I’ve said? Please, sound off in the comments. Let’s have a minute of shared frustration before we get back to work.
