How to write Actionable copy for marketing materials-Copywriting techniques

If you are in the copywriting business, writing a good copy for marketing materials is your most powerful weapon.

There as so many ways to market a product, a service, or just put out a piece of new information in the market.

I have always loved the subject of marketing but never liked the process of interacting with the clients directly. You know, some introvert kind of thing. But in the whole universe of marketing, do you know what is the common thing, skill, or technique we use daily?

Yes, no, or maybe!

Of course, it depends on the person initiating the marketing plan and the reaction of the target personas.

For me, It has always been the written materials used in the process.

Why?

Because it can be seen.

Because, I do not have to directly interact with the clients ( even though I do sometimes, it is necessary cannot be ignored but minimized to some extent )

And, Because, it has a long-lasting effect ( due to the time readers put to listen, see or read the materials)

1. Things to keep in mind during the creation process of marketing material

Marketing or Sales email marketing is one of the most successful mediums of marketing out there. Of course, making them land on our website is the first step.

But there are some rules to follow or keep in mind that can make your email, sales pitch, or marketing material to success from a spam folder or block list.

1a. Engagement:

More than anything, you want your reader to open, click, share, watch or reengage. When your customers engage with you and take some actions on your marketing materials, it not only shows your internet service provider about bits and cookies but also you should focus on what your customers like about you and your products.

It brings us to the next segment, which is segmentation

1b. Segmentation:

You may really don’t wanna share the same information, with the same person, at the same time to the same group. That’s what is the spray and pray kind of marketing.

Nahh,…

Let’s say you send an copy email on marketing material to your people along with a content post and most of them click on copywriting and your system notes that.

Next time, if you got any new offers on copywriting, you might wanna send those readers targeting their interest.

You can do the same thing for your next service or offer type. And that’s how you can send the right message, to the right people at the right time

1c. Consistency:

You wanna be feel connected with your copy email lists or subscribe list and make sure that you are in touch with them. We recommend you to send at least once a week. You can send any information.

Just make sure that they are useful, and relevant using segmentation, regular with consistency.

If you keep these 3 points in your copy emails or marketing messages every time. It will make your copies out of the spam world and into the welcome mailbox

2. How to be clearly understood

Are you someone who is a rule breaker?

I am gonna make you break a rule today. If you are someone who follows vis a vis rule and quotes every point in your copy emails or marketing messages , I am gonna tell you which rules you are going to break and which you should follow no matter what the situation is.

2a. Write one sentence paragraph

Most of the writers do discourage writing only a single line but imaging a busy person looking around their copy emails or marketing messages in their phone and then there is a long email about the offer with no to little space between them’

What will happen? The person might save it for later and the later never comes.

If we use one small sentence with proper white space and a clear layout, it is more understandable and easy to grasp the main information. Also, the one-sentence rule encourage or make us to create our message more concise, clear in a small space, which is also a good thing

2b. Use numbered lists or bullet points to keep it concise

Lists and bullets give readers a visual clue to give attention

Now there are some  rules which you may consider as old fashion but if applied correctly they can turn you as a writer into almost immediately

2c. Additional Rules:

Point 1: Only 1 exclamation “!” point per email, copy, or message

Point 2: Use stronger language- If a person needs to use more than one, make sure to use first strong language. Strong language should be first.

Point 3: Too many exclamations make us feel like you are being yelled at but a hyperactive cheerleader.

Point 4: Use caps lock, bolding, and colors sparingly- The same goes for small locks and color fonts.

Use them sparingly if you at all.

Point 5: Avoid using “it” and “ they”- do not use words like it was, it will, they were, it’s unclear, and make sure that your readers have to go back and double-check who it was. SO make use of the specific noun now

Be obvious!

Point 6: Avoid fillers- avoid filler  words like “ really, just, so “

If it is possible to remove or eliminate the use of adverbs completely- do it.

For example,

She said, really cautiously

Simple is better

3. Be clear and Bold? ( Not Pushy or Whiny)

3a.  Good Copywriting =good education

I never had an interest in maths. It was a difficult subject for me and hard to understand. Later in my school years, I had a school teacher who wore very funny specs and had hair only at the back part of the head.

He was funny and in his fun ways, he made me learn maths and had fun with it too.

Do you have any such kind of teachers in your school days?

Anyways, the way he intrigued me into learning the subject I hated the most, you too can make your message interesting to your readers. With your passion for writing and pure concern, you too can make them indulge in your message without interrupting them.

The best way to do this is to talk about your customer and ask them questions about themselves- to be precise talk about them and their issues way more than your products or services,

Asking questions In your emails is a great way to make it interactive. But how much is a question?

As a general, we should check how many sentences we have started with I versus you

Considering having 3U for every I

3x “ you” sentences

1x “I” sentences

Do not think to use the word “ We”. We have this concern. Nope. Not we, You have this concern and I have this answer.

3b. Appeal to their best qualities

Appeal to their best qualities with genuine praise and flattery- always have this appeal to their best and don’t be afraid to speak. Just be mindful that you are genuinely speaking about their qualities.

Have a clear objective and communicate that clearly- Just like your teacher, have clear and desired results of what you want the outcome and make sure that they know what you are looking from them

Combining these aspects with your own style of writing and personal touch will help you create a compelling copy emails or marketing messages that people would love to read

4. The art of graceful interruption

You are busy… I am busy. The people reading this copy emails or marketing messages are busy. But do you know what busy people hate? Interrupting

They especially do not like to be interrupted unnecessarily and to increase their workload. On the other hand, if you are bringing a jar of cookies or an emergency then you are considered a genuine emergency. What?

Be entertaining- everything thing is entertainment, I don’t care if it is chemistry writing, it should entertain. Now, it does not mean that it should be funny, light, or overly emotional, I mean it’s better if it’s not. But you need to be engaging.

But do we do that?

Well, let’s use neuroscience.

The brain is motivated towards something it wants and getaways from something it doesn’t want

Desire —-motivating ( Thumbs up)

Unwanted –demotivating( Thumbs down )

If you paint a picture in your copy emails or marketing messages of what they want and equally create a vivid picture of what they don’t want, you have engaged their attention

Here are the simple fill in the blanks sentences that works almost every time

It goes like this:

HI…..

Do you want……?

Here’s how to do it without…………..?

Do………………, now!

5. The number one question

When you start asking clients, it can be hard to say.

So here it is the zillion-dollar secret to writing. It can be used anywhere any websites copies, any keynotes, anything written.

It was so much used by me and attached at the top of my desk that it became natural to automatically ask this question

Are you ready?

Here it is:

“How are they misunderstanding their problems?”

“How are they misunderstanding their problems?”

How they are misunderstanding their problems? Because they are. If they aren’t they might have solved = it early on. After all, we all are smart human beings

Identifying customer blind spots helps identify opportunities-Allowing how they are misunderstanding their problem allows them to know where they are.

It allows you to already enter their conversations that are going inside their head.

Let’s say you are very tired and need some energy in your brain. You would not say every time that I need some pills or gummies which help in increasing brainpower. Why? Because they do not just think of popping pills when tired.

What are they thinking?

How are they misunderstanding their problems?

5a. What are they thinking?

5b. How are they misunderstanding their problems?

Would they think that I need a cup of coffee at 4 am or like gosh I am getting old and I just keep forgetting things?

You may wanna use any one of them as your subject line or first line in your copywriting or marketing materials. And copies will get their interest.

You tell them hey it’s ok, many people have the same issue. You are not alone and then blah blah

And then you give them the benefits the name of the products and a call to action.

Name the benefits and add a call to action- you can mention as if you need to remove XYZ and save from ABC consequence click right here

And what about the HQ ( Head Quarter ) meeting?

So what are they thinking?

They had to travel

How are they misunderstanding?

They need to speak in the meeting

So after understanding these two questions( 5a, 5b) you automatically understand where the problem is.

To solve you can simply revert the way you might have explained the meeting earlier and tell them the purpose and importance of their presence.

Like hey, I know it’s troublesome to come here at the HQ and we understand you. But the purpose of the meeting is to get more clarity on the ideas and a new collaborative type of creative space. It will help generate new ideas and of course, you might need to speak as your opinions matter.

See much of the difference that the previous one which you might normally send, right?

5c. Acknowledge the problem they think they have

Acknowledge the problem they think they have.—make them feel that they are being seen and heard and be much more responsive to your answers.

Try this and see how it changes your games

6. How to get them to write you back?

Sending them copy emails or marketing materials and getting no response is half as much frustrating as a game of catch.

I mean you have thrown the ball and they haven’t and just catch the ball and you are now thinking like I don’t know maybe they don’t like you.

Before you take things personally, I want you to check these 3 things first.

6a. Did they know you expected a response

Did you make it clear in the first and last sentences of your copy emails or marketing messages?

6b. Did they know when to respond by?

Did they know by when the response is needed?

And it is always great to let them the reason on why you need the response by then.

6c. Was there an easy way for them to respond?

Was there an easy way?

Did you say the action clearly and super obvious on what they need to do? If not fix those elements and resend the copy emails or marketing messages.

Now, if you have done all those fixes and still not getting replied, please do not take things personally and resend the original copy emails or marketing messages with this sentence on the top:

“Hi, there! I just wanted to bubble this up in case it had slipped through the cyber cracks!”

Even if you do not use the exact same words, you need to make sure that you are very straight but not violent and make sure to tell them that they did miss replying without telling them directly

If they still did not reply keep trying.

Actually, you can try reaching them out with another medium like a phone call or a direct message

Either way, keep going till you get a response, never give up

7. Where to find a sure-fire copy

Have you ever wondered if there is any genie who would tell us what our customers are exactly thinking?

 I am going to tell you a completely free, specific and exactly what you customer is thinking of.

No not that boring and useless survey.

Yes, you heard it right. I said useless, Useless because

Surveys are ….Done on those who are there and there only.

They are there only for monetary purpose

They are asking the wrong questions

So the magical place is amazon yes amazon reviews. With so many customers posting their voices issue you can directly see what they are thinking what their problem is and how you can solve them.

Of course, you can use the same line in your copy words anonymously

Then, also, you have their own voices, their own slang, and their own adjectives, Better more if you use them, their language

Bonus point:

8. How to make a Copy blast feel personal

Do you know the secret to make feel your copy emails or marketing messages every time someone reads?

It is: To write about them to them

Simply to use the words you more than I in any copy emails or marketing messages

If you talk about them, your copy emails or marketing messages is gonna do its job

For example, if you write,

” Hey xxxx, I am a health and coach “

Nah, If you write, I am a health and coach working with a postnatal mother and specialize in weight loss, a nice try but cancel it.

I would prefer,

Sounds better?

The all-important call to action:

Be clear about what, how, why, and when you wanted them to do something

You want engagement you want them to

Engage

.

Clicking, forwarding, sharing, replying

.

Call to action

.

Click

So get into the habit of having a clickable link. Also, say what will happen if they click.

We apply all these techniques.

We keep all these points in our mind, whenever we start creating copy materials for marketing.

Know that things change not because you KNOW

But because, you APPLY.

We want you to apply them to see the desired changes, to see the likely improvement.

When I had no experience, not that great portfolio, I still tried my best to follow the steps and keep applying, reapplying.

Sure, they are not a result of first time attempt.

If you also are in the same situation and would like to become an expert from that point, we have created a well depth post on it. Here’s a clickable link for your ease of access.