5 Copywriting Secrets for Knowing Your Market
Copyright 2006 Joseph Farinaccio
If you'd like to know 5 copywriting secrets for truly knowing
your niche customer then you're in for a treat. The most
important element in good sales copy is appealing to your reader
-- by writing about something that interests them. In other
words, you have to give them what they want.
This means appealing to their self-interest. Their personal
desires. Getting to know their feelings ... etc. So how do you
do this? By intimately knowing your audience ... which is what
these copywriting secrets are all about.
Here are a few copywriting secrets the pros use on a regular
basis:
1) Read all the best-selling books relating to your subject /
target market. Note the book's title, then any sales copy or
reviews on its back cover. Open it up and review the table of
contents and index. Finally, read the first and last chapters.
Makes notes on all the details / benefits readers are promised
to find inside. These will give you a heads up on what your
market currently desires.
2) Find all the magazines relating to your subject / target
market. If you're at the library get as many back issues as you
can. Leaf through these and note any recurring themes or
subjects. These will be the popular ones ... the ones your
target is hungry for.
3) Even more importantly ... carefully read all the ads in these
magazines. Find the ads appearing over and over in each magazine
- from issue to issue. These ads are probably money-makers. What
do they sell? What are the emotions they appeal to? What are the
key benefits they promise? The key words used? Etc.
4) Hold on ... you're not done with the magazines yet. One of
the most overlooked of all copywriting secrets is reading
letters to the editor. They're filled with strong feelings and
emotions. Emotions powerful enough to motivate a reader to sit
down and write ... then go through the hassle of addressing an
envelope ... stamping it ... and then mailing it.
5) Now you're ready to confirm all the research you've done up
to this point. By using the biggest secret of all - - which is
getting the industry "controls" already being mailed to your
subject / target market.
Direct mail packages that keep mailing over and over again are
surely profitable ... and a winning standard for whoever is
mailing them. These are referred to as "controls" in the direct
mail industry. And the following resources are relatively
inexpensive ones you can use to find such controls:
a) Who's Mailing What! ... found at www.whosmailingwhat.com
You have to pay for a one-year membership. This basic
subscription allows you to get information about direct mailers.
Paying extra fees gives you access to industry controls. They
even identify the "grand controls," which refer to direct mail
packages mailed many, many times ... over a lengthy period.
b) Inside Direct Mail ... found at www.insidedirectmail.com
This excellent resource also tells you what's currently mailing
to your market. Get a hold of these controls. Read them very
carefully. Note every benefit promised. Every emotional hot
button. These mailings can be worth more to you than gold if
you've got a great mailing list and a great offer.
Alright. That's enough for now. Use these copywriting secrets to
your advantage, and enjoy success with your direct mail!