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by Robert W. Bly 22 East Quackenbush Avenue, 3rd Floor, Dumont, NJ 07628 (201) 385-1220, Fax (201) 385-1138 e-mail: rwbly@bly.com, web: www.bly.com
TableofContents
Section1 Section2 Section3 Section4 Section5 Section6
HowtoPrepareforaCopywritingAssignment ............. 3 TheFundamentalsofPersuasiveWriting ......................... 6 FeaturesbeforeBenefits ..................................................... 23 HowtoWriteaGoodAdvertisement .............................. 28 TheMagicofFalseLogic..................................................... 35 HowtoWriteSubjectLinesThatGetYour EmailOpenedandRead .................................................. 38
Section7 Section8
Section1 HowtoPrepareforaCopywritingAssignment
Businesstobusinesscopypersuadesreadersbygivingthemuseful informationabouttheproductsbeingadvertised.Themorefactsyouincludein yourcopy,thebetter. Whenyouhaveafilefulloffactsatyourfingertips,writinggoodcopyiseasy. Yousimplyselectthemostrelevantfactsanddescribetheminaclear,concise, directfashion. Butwhencopywritersdontbothertodigforfacts,theyfallbackonfancy phrasesandpuffedupexpressionstofilltheemptyspaceonthepage.Thewords soundnice,buttheydontsellbecausethecopydoesntinform. HeresafourstepprocedureIusetogettheinformationIneedtowrite persuasive,factfilledcopyformyclients.Thistechniqueshouldbehelpfulto copywriters,accountexecutives,andadmanagersalike. Step#1:Getallpreviouslypublishedmaterialontheproduct. Foranexistingproduct,theresamountainofliteratureyoucansendtothe copywriterasbackgroundinformation.Thismaterialincludes: Tearsheetsofpreviousads Brochures Catalogs Articlereprints Technicalpapers Copiesofspeeches Audiovisualscripts Presskits
Swipefilesofcompetitorsadsandliterature
DidIhearsomeonesaytheycantsendmeprintedmaterialbecausetheir productisnew?Nonsense.Thebirthofeverynewproductisaccompaniedby moundsofpaperworkyoucangivethecopywriter.Thesepapersinclude: Internalmemos Lettersoftechnicalinformation Productspecifications Engineeringdrawings Businessandmarketingplans Reports Proposals
areexclusive?Whicharebetterthanthecompetitions?) Iftheproductisntdifferent,whatattributescanbestressedthathavent
Howdoestheproductwork? Howreliableistheproduct? Howefficient? Howeconomical? Whohasboughttheproductandwhatdotheysayaboutit? Whatmaterials,sizesandmodelsisitavailablein? Howquicklydoesthemanufacturerdelivertheproduct? Whatserviceandsupportdoesthemanufactureroffer? Istheproductguaranteed? Step#3:Askquestionsaboutyouraudience. Whowillbuytheproduct?(Whatmarketsisitsoldto?) Whatisthecustomersmainconcern?(Price,delivery,performance,
Twotipsongettingtoknowyouraudience: Ifyouarewritinganad,readissuesofthemagazineinwhichthead
willappear. Ifyouarewritingdirectmail,findoutwhatmailinglistswillbeused
Section2 TheFundamentalsofPersuasiveWriting
Whatarethecharacteristicsthatmakecopyeffective?Whydoesonead makealastingimpressionandsellmerchandise,whileanotherfallsflatand doesntgenerateenoughrevenuetopayitsowncost? Virtuallyallpersuasivecopycontainstheeightelementsdescribedinthisarticle. Thesuccessfulad: 1. Gainsattention 2. Focusesonthecustomer 3. Stressesbenefits 4. Differentiatesyoufromthecompetition 5. Provesitscase 6. Establishescredibility 7. Buildsvalue 8. Closeswithacalltoaction Alladsdonothavealleightcharacteristicsinequalproportions.Depending ontheproduct,someoftheseelementswillbedominantinyourad; otherssubordinate.
Letstaketelephoneserviceasanexample.IfyouareAT&T,MCI,or
withexamplesofhowtoachieveeachinyourcopy. Element#1:Gainattention.
Ifanadfailstogainattention,itfailstotally.Unlessyougaintheprospects
Sincesomuchadvertisingisvagueandgeneral,beingspecificinyourcopy
outstandingdebtfordentalpracticesnationwide. Thats$20millionthesedentistsmightnototherwisehaveseeniftheyhad
nothiredICSystemstocollecttheirpastduebillsforthem. Whatgainsyourattentionisthespecificfigureof$20milliondollars.Every
question.Bits&Pieces,amanagementmagazine,beginsitssubscriptionmailing
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ComplementaryMedicine...revealedatlast! ThetraditionalMadisonAvenueapproachtocopysubtlewordplayand
Clever?Yes.Butasformerkidneystonepatients,wecantellyouthat
thisaudience. Element#2:Focusonthecustomer.
Whenwritingcopy,startwiththeprospect,notwiththeproduct.Your
professionalsinthecountrywillbeabletotakeadvantageofthisyear.... Theheadlineiseffectivebecauseitfocusesontheprospects(Information
GuardaHealthEmployeeBenefitProgrambutAtlastyoucancombatthehuge
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Copythatfailstofocusontheprospectoftendoessobecausethe
Although,dependingonyouraudience,yourprospectsmaybeinterested
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CDMAgivesyouupto10timesthecapacityofanalogcellularwithmore
engravedandpreprintedstationery. Now,inasweepingtrendtocutcostswithoutsacrificingprestige,many
Element#4:Differentiateyourselffromthecompetition.
Todayyourcustomerhasmoreproductsandservicestochoosefromthan
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IPOInsideristheonlyindependentresearchandanalysisserviceinthe
Element#4,justdiscussed,claimsproductdifferentiation.Element#3
collectedpastdueaccountsreceivablesfor45,717dentalpracticessince1963.Over 20statedentalassociationsrecommendourservicestotheirmembers.
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ICSystemscancollectmoreofthemoneyyourpatientsoweyou.Ouroverall
readerrichifheorshesubscribes.Sinceeveryonesaysit,thestatementisusually greetedwithskepticism.ThenewsletterGoldStocksAdvisorycombatsthis skepticismbyputtingtheirrecentsuccessesrightontheouterenvelopeandatthe topofpageoneoftheirsalesletter: AsampleofPaulSarnoffsrecenthighprofitgoldstockpicks: Company: Purchase Price: Gold Canyon C70cents Year High: %Increase /Timeframe: Potentialprofit* on10,000shares:
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US$1 US$4.81
Themostpowerfultoolforprovingyourcaseistodemonstrateagood
Inadditiontothebenefitsyouoffer,theproductsandservicesyoudeliver
influencingpurchasedecisions.Intheearlydaysofpersonalcomputing,IBMwas
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Credentialsyoucanlistinyourcopyincludeyearfounded,numberof
Itsnotenoughtoconvinceprospectsyouhaveagreatproductora
leasttoown;oftentimes,itisthemostexpensivetoown! Example:Severalcompaniesarenowsellingartificialbonesubstitutesfor
canbetakenfromothersitesinthepatientsownbody,andthereisnocostfor thismaterial.
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Butistherereallynocost?Collectingbonegraftfromthepatientsown
moreexpensiveproductsorservicesthataddressthesamebasicneed: ThecostofTheNovellCompanion,includingthe800+pagereferencebinder
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Ifyourproductorserviceisusedoveraperiodoftime,asmostare,you
Copyiswrittentobringaboutachangethatis,tocauseprospectsto
Thinkitstimetotalkwithagassupplierthatreallyknowsyourbusinessandhas
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realsolutionstoyourproblems?CallyourBOCGasesrepresentativetoday.Or visitourWebsiteathttp://www.boc.com.
Section3 FeaturesbeforeBenefits
Perhapstheoldestandmostwidelyembracedruleforwriting directresponsecopyis,Stressbenefits,notfeatures.Buteventhissacred commandmentdoesntalwaysholdtrue. Asadirectresponsecopywriter,Idomybesttowritecopythatfocuseson
givenequal(ifnottop)billingoverbenefitsandpromiseorientedcopy. 1.Sellingtoexperts.Asanewhomeowner,Iknowbeansaboutinsulation.
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Theseinsulationexpertsareinterestedinonlyonething:Doyouhavethe
quitealientotherestofus.Butveryrealtothem.
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Forinstance,adiscussionofwoofersandtweetersmaybeboringtothe
stressthebenefits,butitmustalsodescribehowtheproductworksandwhat
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home,hewouldlookatyourproductwithmuchmoreattentiontodetail.Here, copywouldhavetoconcentrateonexplainingtechnicalfeatures,andonbuilding
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thepressuregrows,sodoesthevalvesperformance.
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Section4
HowtoWriteaGoodAdvertisement
Todefinewhatconstitutesgoodprintadvertising,webeginwithwhata
basicadvertisingclassorasatraineeinoneofthebigMadisonAvenueconsumer adagencies.
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Okay.Sothatswhatanadshouldntbe.Asforwhatanadshouldbe,here
aresomecharacteristicssharedbysuccessfuldirectresponseprintads: Theystressabenefit.Themainsellingpropositionisnotcleverlyhidden butismadeimmediatelyclear.Example:HowtoWinFriendsand InfluencePeople. Theyarousecuriosityandinvitereadership.Thekeyhereisnottobe outrageousbuttoaddressthestrongestinterestsandconcernsofyour targetaudience.Example:DoyouMakeTheseMistakesinEnglish? appealstothereadersdesiretoavoidembarrassmentandwriteand speakproperly. Theyprovideinformation.TheheadlineHowtoStopEmissionProblems atHalftheCostofConventionalAirPollutionControlDevicesluresthe readerbecauseitpromisesusefulinformation.Prospectstodayseek specific,usableinformationonhighlyspecializedtopics.Adsthatprovide informationthereaderwantsgethigherreadershipandbetterresponse. Theytalktothereader.Whyaresomanysuccessfulcontroladswrittenby directresponseentrepreneursratherthetopfreelancecopywritersand directresponseagencies? Mytheoryisthatwhenpeopleseeanondirectresponsead,theyknowits
justaremindertypeadandfiguretheydonthavetoreadit. Because,althoughtheseentrepreneursmaynotbeprofessionalwriters,
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offerthemsomethingespeciallyifitisfreeandhashighperceivedvalue. Writersofimageadvertisingmayobject,Butdoesntmakinganoffer
cheapenthead,destroyourimage?Afterall,wewantawareness,notresponse. Buthowdoesofferingafreebookletweakentherestofthead?Itdoesnt,of course.Theentirenotionthatyoucannotsimultaneouslyelicitaresponseand communicateamessageisabsurdandwithoutfoundation. Theyaredesignedtoemphasizetheoffer. Graphictechniquessuchaskickersoreyebrows(copylinesabovethe headline),boldheadlines,liberaluseofsubheads,bulletedornumbered copypoints,coupons,sketchofatelephone,tollfreenumberssetinlarge type,picturesofresponsebookletsandbrochures,dashedborders, asterisks,andmarginalnotesmakeyouradsmoreeyecatchingand responseoriented,increasingreadership.
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Why?Mytheoryisthatwhenpeopleseeanondirectresponsead,they
knowitsjustaremindertypeadandfiguretheydonthavetoreadit.Butwhen theyseeresponsetypegraphicdevices,thesevisualssaytothereader,Stop!This isaresponsead!Readitsoyoucanfindoutwhatweareoffering.Andmailthe couponsoyoucangetitNOW! Theyareclearlyillustrated.Goodadvertisingdoesnotuseabstractartor conceptsthatforcethereadertopuzzleoutwhatisbeingsold.Ideally,you shouldbeabletounderstandexactlywhattheadvertiserspropositionis withinfivesecondsoflookingatthead.AsJohnCaplesobservedalong timeago,thebestvisualforanadforarecordclubisprobablyapicture ofrecords. Ataboutthispoint,someonefromDDBwillstandupandobject:Waita
7waystocreatebusinesspublicationadvertisingthatgetsresults Howdoyoucreateanindustrialortradeadthatgetsattention,winshigh
inyourheadline,thendeliveritinyouradcopy. Foranadofferingbusinesspeopleabookonhowtocollectoverduebills,
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Offeringsomethingtangibleabrochure,booklet,informationkit,
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Next,setinlargertype,comesyourmailheadline,whichstatesyourcentral
benefitormakesapowerfulpromise.Then,inthesubhead,youexpandonthe benefitorrevealthespecificnatureofthepromise.Examples: $500ADAYWRITERSUTOPIA Heresthebreakthroughofferthatopens upawholenewworldforwritersorthose whohopetobecomewriters: FORHIGHSPEEDHIGHPERFORMANCE DATAINTEGRATION,LOOKINTOMAGIC MIRROR.Nowyoucanmovedatainstantlyfrom oneprogramtoanotherrightfromyourPCscreen. Ifyourheadlineisdesignedtoarousecuriosityorgrabattentionanddoes
Section5 TheMagicofFalseLogic
Falselogic,atermcoinedbymyfriend,mastercopywriterMichael
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AcatalogforHarry&Davidsaysofitspears,Notonepersonin1,000has
thatthepearsarenotverypopularalmostnoonebuysthem. Itspossibletoarguethatsomefalselogicbordersondeception,butthe
marketerhastomakethatcallforhimself. Ametalsbrokeradvertised95%ofordersshippedfromstocktoindicate
Thereisanongoingdebateaboutwhetherpeoplebuyforemotionalor
marketersuseitroutinely,somewithgreatsuccess. Foryears,McDonaldsadvertisedbillionssoldtopromotetheir
opinion,no. Acopywriter,likealawyer,isanadvocatefortheclient(orhisemployer).
immoral,thoughonemansVictoriaSecretscatalogisanothermanssoftporn.
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Buttonotuseallthetoolsatourdisposal(includingfalselogic)topersuadethe buyeriseitherincompetence,failuretodischargefiduciaryduties,orboth.
Section6
HowtoWriteSubjectLinesThatGetYourEmail OpenedandRead
Whenprospectsgetyouremailmarketingmessage,theymakeaquick decision,usuallyinacoupleofseconds,toopenordeleteitbasedlargelyonthe subjectline.Butgiventheglutofpromotionalemailtoday,howcanyouconvince abusyprospectinjustafewwordsthatyourmessageisworthyofattention? The4Uscopywritingformulawhichstandsforurgent,unique,ultra specific,andusefulcanhelp. OriginallydevelopedbymycolleagueMichaelMastersonforwritingmore powerfulheadlines,the4Usformulaworksespeciallywellwithemailsubject lines.Illshareitwithyounow. Accordingtothisformula,strongsubjectlinesare: Urgent.Urgencygivesthereaderareasontoactnowinsteadoflater.You cancreateasenseofurgencyinyoursubjectlinebyincorporatingatime element.Forinstance,Make$100,000workingfromhomethisyearhasa greatersenseofurgencythanMake$100,000workingfromhome.A senseofurgencycanalsobecreatedwithatimelimitedspecialoffer,such asadiscountorpremiumifyouorderbyacertaindate. Unique.Thepowerfulsubjectlineeithersayssomethingnew,orifitsays somethingthereaderhasheardbefore,saysitinanewandfreshway.For example,WhyJapanesewomenhavebeautifulskinwasthesubjectline
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inanemailpromotingaJapanesebathkit.Thisisdifferentthanthetypical Save10%onJapaneseBathKits. Ultraspecific.Boardroomistheabsolutemasterofultraspecificbullets, knownasfascinations,thatteasethereaderintoreadingfurtherand orderingtheproduct.Examples:Whatnevertoeatonanairplane,Bills itsokaytopaylate,andBesttimetofileforataxrefund.Theyusesuch fascinationsindirectmailasenvelopeteasersandinemailassubjectlines. Useful.Thestrongsubjectlineappealstothereadersselfinterestby offeringabenefit.InthesubjectlineAnInvitationtoSki&Save,the benefitissavingmoney. Whenyouhavewrittenyoursubjectline,askyourselfhowstrongit isineachofthese4Us.Useascaleof1to4(1=weak,4=strong)torankitin eachcategory. Rarelywillasubjectlineratea3or4onallfourUs.Butifyoursubjectline doesntratea3or4onatleastthreeoftheUs,itsprobablynotasstrongasit couldbeandcanbenefitfromsomerewriting. Acommonmistakeistodefendaweaksubjectlinebypointingtoagood response.Abetterwaytothinkisasfollows:Iftheemailgeneratedaprofitable responsedespiteaweaksubjectline,imaginehowmuchmoremoneyyoucould havemadebyapplyingthe4Us. Asoftwaremarketerwrotetotellmehehadsentoutasuccessfulemail marketingcampaignwiththesubjectlineFreeWhitePaper.Howdoesthis stackupagainstthe4Us? Urgent.Thereisnourgencyorsenseoftimeliness.Onascaleof1to4,with 4beingthehighestrating,FreeWhitePaperisa1. Unique.Noteverysoftwaremarketeroffersafreewhitepaper,butalotof themdo.SoFreeWhitePaperratesonlya2intermsofuniqueness.
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intellectual,emotional,andpersonal. Intellectualisthefirstleveland,whileeffective,notasstrongastheother
personalyoumustunderstandwhatcopywriterMichaelMastersoncallsthe
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buyersCoreComplex.Thesearetheemotions,attitudes,andaspirationsthat drivethem,asrepresentedbytheformulaBFDbeliefs,feelings,anddesires: Beliefs.Whatdoesyouraudiencebelieve?Whatistheirattitudetoward yourproductandtheproblemsorissuesitaddresses? Feelings.Howdotheyfeel?Aretheyconfidentandbrash?Nervousand fearful?Whatdotheyfeelaboutthemajorissuesintheirlives,businesses, orindustries? Desires.Whatdotheywant?Whataretheirgoals?Whatchangedothey wantintheirlivesthatyourproductcanhelpthemachieve? Forinstance,wedidthisexercisewithITpeople,foracompanythatgives
seminarsincommunicationandinterpersonalskillsforITprofessionals.Heres whatwecameupwithinagroupmeeting: Beliefs.ITpeoplethinktheyaresmarterthanotherpeople,technologyisthe mostimportantthingintheworld,usersarestupid,andmanagement doesntappreciatethemenough. Feelings.ITpeopleoftenhaveanadversarialrelationshipwithmanagement andusers,bothofwhomtheyservice.Theyfeelothersdislikethem,look downuponthem,anddonotunderstandwhattheydo. Desires.ITpeoplewanttobeappreciatedandrecognized.Theyalsoprefer todealwithcomputersandavoidpeoplewheneverpossible.Andthey wantbiggerbudgets. Basedonthisanalysis,particularlythefeelings,thecompanycreateda
Beforewritingcopy,writeoutinnarrativeformtheBFDofyourtarget
newneedleusedbydiabeticstoinjectinsulin.Whatwasthekeysellingpoint? ThediabeticsSaccotalkedtoallpraisedtheneedlebecauseitwassharp.
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Section8
TipsonUsingTestimonials
Wheneveracustomersendsaletterwithpositivecommentsaboutyour companyorproduct,immediatelyseekpermissiontousethistestimonialinyour ads,brochures,directmail,andotherpromotions. Theeasiestwaytodothisistosendareleaselettertotheclient(along
withaphotocopyofthetestimonialletter,withthepassagesyouwanttoreprint highlightedinyellow). Mr.MikeJones AdvertisingManager WorldEnterprises Anytown,USA DearMike: Thanksforyourletterof12/12/87(copyattached).Imglad yourepleasedwithourproduct! Idliketoquotefromyourletterintheads,brochures,directmail, andotherpromotionsweusetomarketourproductwithyour permission,ofcourse. IfthisisOKwithyou,wouldyoupleasesignthebottomofthisletter andsenditbacktomeintheenvelopeenclosed. Thesecondcopyisforyourfiles. Manythanks,Mike. Regards, JaneSmith
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Yourreleaselettercanfollowthisbasicformat:
youcanaskthemtogiveyouatestimonial.How?Simplysendalettertoclients andcustomerswhoarehappywithyourproductorserviceandaskfortheir comments.HeresaletterIuse(feelfreetocopyoradaptit): Mr.AlexSamuels ProductSupervisor XYZCorporation Anyplace,USA DearAlex: Ihaveafavortoaskofyou. Imintheprocessofputtingtogetherabookletoftestimonials acollectionofcommentsaboutmyservices,fromsatisfiedclients likeyou. Wouldyoupleasetakeafewminutestogivemeyouropinionofmy consultingservices? Theresnoneedtodictatealetterjustjotyourcommentsonthe backofthisletter,signbelow,andreturntomeintheenclosed envelope.(Thesecondcopyisforyourfiles).
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IlookforwardtolearningwhatyoulikeaboutmyservicebutI alsowelcomeanysuggestionsorcriticisms,too. Manythanks,Alex. Regards,BobBly YOUHAVEMYPERMISSIONTOQUOTEFROMMY COMMENTS,ANDUSETHESEQUOTATIONSINADS, BROCHURES,MAILANDOTHERPROMOTIONSUSEDTO MARKETYOURSERVICES. Signed___________________Date_________________ NotethatIamaskingforanopinioninsteadofatestimonial,andthatI
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Alwaysgivethesheetandaduplicateofyourfulltestimonialfiletoanyad
superlative.Whichbringsusto.... 3.Preferspecific,detailedtestimonialstogeneralorsuperlativetestimonials.
specific,detailedcommentsourclienthasmadeabouthowourproductorservice helpedhim.Afterall,theprospectswearetryingtoselltomayhaveproblems similartotheoneourcurrentcustomersolvedusingourproduct.IfweletMr. CustomertellMr.Prospecthowourcompanycametohisrescue,hellbehelping usmakethesale.Forinstance: WehaveinstalledyournewChemiCoatsystemineachofourbottlinglinesandhave alreadyexperienceda25percentsavingsinenergyandmaterialcosts.Thankstoyour system,wehavenowaddedanadditionalproductionlinewithnoincreaseinenergycosts. Thishasincreasedprofits15percentandalreadypaidbacktheinvestmentinyour product.Weareverypleasedwithyourproduct. Again,donttrytopolishthecustomerswordssoitsoundslike
professionaladcopy.Testimonialsareusuallymuchmoreconvincingwhenthey arenoteditedforstyle.
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4.Usefullattribution.Weveallopeneddirectmailpackagesthatcontained
reprinthiswordsbeforeincludinghistestimonialinyourcopy. Isuggestthatyousendaletterquotingthelinesyouwanttoreprintand
Abouttheauthor:
BOBBLYisanindependentcopywriterandconsultantwithmore
astheU.S.Army,IndependentLaboratoryDistributorsAssociation,American InstituteofChemicalEngineers,andtheAmericanMarketingAssociation.
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