Sales Letters And The Cost Of Integrity
Sales Letters And The Cost Of Integrity Written by Ginger
Geracitano
Agonizing, isn't it? The entire process of deciding on which
words to use when presenting your product or service to
potential clients is probably the most critical process that any
business owner faces. Although the majority of my experience is
based on offline efforts, I'm finding that sales strategies on
the internet aren't much different. Why?
Simply put, to effectively sell anything, you must appeal to
your prospect's emotions. Human nature doesn't distinguish
between cyber space and the 3D world! How Successful Can An
Honest Salesperson Be?
I hate hype, and headlines that blow reality right out the
window. Popular theories dictate that we model our own efforts
after what has already proven to be successful.
Successful should, in this case, translate into actual sales
made, resulting in satisfied customers. Just because you see a
sales letter plastered all over the internet, does not make it
successful! Some people would have you believe that marketing is
a numbers game, you know... 'those with the most ad exposures
win'.
If your sales letter isn't effective, it doesn't matter how many
times it's exposed... it just fails that many more times!
Exaggerated claims and outrageous headlines may appeal to your
prospect's emotions, but do they lead to satisfied customers?
You tell me. Do you think the person that bought the product
claiming to earn them $10,000 by next Tuesday was satisfied?
Probably not.
So, how do we effectively write an honest sales letter? Some
people will tell you that there's no place for honesty in
advertising. I don't believe that's true today.
I believe that today's consumers are better educated, and more
cautious about any purchase they make. I've found that not only
is an honest approach effective, but I have no problem sleeping
at night.
Simple Guidelines Of Writing An Effective Sales Letter, While
Keeping Your Integrity In Tact: (*) Establish "NEED": Right off
the bat, you need to make sure that your reader realizes that
they have a need that you can fill. This is done most
effectively by introducing the 'need' in your headline. Don't
assume your prospects are aware that they have this need! (*)
Establish "TRUST": Before rushing right into how you can solve
your prospect's need, tell them why they should trust you enough
to continue reading your offer. How you do this depends on the
method of delivery of your Sales Letter. A letter to your
established customer base, or list subscribers may not
concentrate as heavily on this point. On the other hand, the
home page of your sales site, which is most likely to be visited
by strangers would need to be stronger in this area. One way I
establish trust, is by admitting a downfall or imperfection in
the product. Backed up by an offsetting benefit that outweighs
the defect will prove to your reader that you are indeed keeping
their best interest in mind by NOT insulting their intelligence
by assuming they won't notice the defect. Strengthen your
endorsement by being honest. (*) Establish "YOUR BRAND": This is
a topic that entire businesses have been built on, so to remain
very basic for the purpose of this article, let me just put it
to you this way; don't use the words of another! Your own
personal testimonial, outlining your own experience with the
product or service will serve you much better in the long run,
than for example, the letter recommended for use by the
affiliate program you're writing about. How many affiliates
before you have used that same letter? Do you trust someone that
doesn't think enough of a product to devote their time to
experiencing it? (*) Establish "EXCITEMENT": Don't misunderstand
me here, I don't mean the dreaded, and *abundantly abused* hype
that we see every single day here on the internet! By
'excitement', I mean BE excited about your product... convey
*why* you're so excited about it to your readers by thinking
like a customer. What is it that made you believe in your
product enough to buy it yourself, or to develop it, if it's a
product of your own creation? What is it about your product that
is going to make your prospect say to themselves, "I've GOT to
have this"? The one rule I never see anyone mention on this
topic is that you MUST state the obvious when writing a sales
letter! Never assume that your reader will immediately see the
value in your offer. S-P-E-L-L it out for them! (*) Establish
"EASY FOLLOW UP": I don't believe that "less is more" when it
comes to sales letters, but I do believe that you don't have to
state your entire case in your first page. Your own 'style' will
dictate how long your sales letter is. To keep your reader
interested, consider the following tactics to keep your sales
letter a reasonable length: - Offer additional information
through the use of an autoresponder. Follow up is the key to
sales success. Don't allow your readers to conveniently forget
that they have a need that you can provide a solution for! - Use
text links to more information. If you feel that there is an
aspect of your product that needs to be explained in detail, but
don't want it to break the focus of your sales letter, lead to
the information through a link that reads something like this...
"For more info, click here." (It's SO important to provide the
information necessary to overcome any possible objections by
your reader. Surveys taken by your target market beforehand can
help to identify possible objections. Once you've identified
them, you can deal with more effectively.) - Always offer to
allow your prospects to get to know more about you, and your
business by inviting them to subscribe to your newsletter. You
do have a newsletter, don't you? (*) Ask For The Sale! Years and
years of sales training offline have this last point echoing in
my ears to this day. Most failed sales attempts are due to a
lack of 'asking for the sale', or as it's referred to online,
'providing a call to action'. Try this... which of the following
'calls to action' do you react open mindedly to? Example 1:
Click Here To Purchase Today! Example 2: You can begin realizing
success immediately by simply clicking => here If you begin the
sales letter process by first being honest with yourself about
your offer, you'll be better prepared to make an honest
presentation to your reader. Keep in mind that your goal is to
produce satisfied customers, not just sales numbers, and I
believe your 'success' will increase on many different levels...
The only things you lose by writing your sales letter with
integrity are dissatisfied customers. I know that my prospects
are informed, and have realistic expectations when they make a
purchase from me. If you can't say the same, maybe it's time to
change your 'style'?