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3 quick "AHA" moments I got from
the AWAI boot camp!
Hiya CopyStar,
Wow! My head
is about to explode. Just
got back from the AWAI 2008
Fast Track to Success Boot
Camp in Del Ray Beach, FL
and it was nothing short of
PHENOMENAL. Kudos goes to
Denise Ford , Katie Yeakle
and the AWAI team - you guys
ROCKED!
I was
sweating bullets but I
made it through my
presentations. Graphic
designer Lori Haller and
I did our thang with
"The Oprah Story: The
making of a blockbuster
promo - and how we
survived!" Folks really
said they liked it!
By the
way, if you still
haven't gotten a FREE
download of my new Oprah
promo - what the heck
are you waiting for?
Just click here:
Oprah Promo
Then I
was on a panel about
"Niche Marketing" - and
I raved about how NOW is
the time to get into the
alternative health
market. (More on that
in upcoming issues.)
Lots of folks were
pumped after that
session. But my favorite
session was...
... the
early morning breakfast
with "Copywriting Moms".
A group of us moms (and
a brave dad) shared our
stories... struggles...
and successes juggling "kidz
and kopy"
J!
It was also fun to have my
daughter Milan De Her - a
copywriter and a soon-to-be mom
join our group! Remember, my 1st
grandbaby is due in early
February - and don't worry - you
WILL hear about it when he/she
arrives! Also...
...got to meet a few of you
CopyStars during our special
pre-conference get-together. So
let me send a shout out to Debra
Wright... Lee Barlow... Lydia
Mills - remember what we talked
about: Focus on your goals and
GO AFTER those clients...
... Christine Allsop - congrats
on your AWAI award for your
blossoming copywriting skills...
... and sorry to Laura McNeil
who couldn't find where we met -
but caught up with me for a chat
during the boot camp...
... and a special shout out to
our original Copywriting Boot
Camp on Steroids graduates:
Dick Robinson (who didn't attend
the AWAI boot camp but stopped
in just to say 'Hi" to me.
You're a sweetie pie, Dick)...
...Melody Thomas-Scott - who's
more committed than ever to
become a full-time, working
copywriter and reaching her goal
of financial freedom...
... and Sieglinde Wallis - who
says she's been busier than ever
writing copy since our September
boot camp on steroids. You go
girl!
Loved our little mini reunion -
and it was great to see familiar
faces - and meet so many NEW
CopyStar readers!
If you want to see a few candid
shots from the AWAI boot camp -
click here
AWAI Pictures. Ok, ok,
enough of the mushy stuff -
gotta get to get back to work...
I'm sending you this additional
issue of CopyStar 'cause I want
to share with you some really
cool things I just learned from
the AWAI boot camp.
These were "aha" moments for me
- so I figured they may be new
to you too. PLUS - they're E-Z
to do and can make an immediate
impact on your copywriting
business! So here goes...
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Aha moment #1
"F-K" - a simple tool to boost
clarity... readability... and increase your odds
of writing a killer promo package - and it's
absolutely FREE!
Master copywriter Michael
Masterson introduced me to this idea - and I
gotta tell ya - it was worth the time and energy
I spent attending the AWAI boot camp!
I never knew it existed - yet
it was there all along - in my WORD file!
It's called the
"Flesch-Kincaid" grade level rating. It
ranks your copy in terms of readability and
clarity.
The lower your "F-K" rating -
the easier your copy is to read. This is a
really important tool. Here's why:
Simple and understandable
copy sells.
So now, with a few keystrokes
- you can determine if your copy is too
complicated for an average reader - and you
can make easy changes to lower your score.
The goal is to score lower than a 7.5.
Here's how to check your
"F-K" rating:
In your WORD document:
- Click on TOOLS
- Click SPELLING and
GRAMMAR
- Click OPTIONS
- Under GRAMMAR section,
check "show readability statistics". Then
click OK.
- You can make changes to
any words that show up in the GRAMMATICAL
ERROR box - or disregard them. The choice is
yours.
- When the "spelling and
grammar check is complete box" pops up,
click OK.
- Your "F-K" score shows up
at the bottom under the "Readability"
section.
Remember, this is a tool to
help you determine the readability of your
copy. It's not a guarantee of copywriting
success or failure.
If your score is above a 7.5
and you want to lower it. Here's what you
can do:
- Use shorter sentences
- Tell a story instead of
dishing out facts
- Use dialog in your copy
- Find one idea and stick
to it
And remember this: If you
love to use ellipses ("...") like I do -
your "F-K" score will be HIGHER. Why?
Because the computer views
ellipses as longer sentences - which is NOT
TRUE - they actually make your sentences
short and crisp - but who am I to argue with
a computer?
So you can either go into
your document and remove the ellipses
temporarily and get a true score - or say
FORGET IT like I do - and still aim to stay
below 7.5.
Just so you know - my "F-K"
score for this issue is a 6.8 - ellipses and
all!
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Aha moment #2
What to charge your clients
for web copy
Writing for the web is a huge
and profitable area for copywriters but like
you, I was struggling on what to charge for
my work.
But after this session led by
AWAI Vice President and Director of Online
Marketing Rebecca Matter - I saw the light -
and got a little "cheat sheet" to help me
charge fairly for my work. It can help you
too:
à
Writing copy for small websites. 5-6
pages. Nothing fancy: $1,500 - $3,500.
à
Writing e-zine copy: $150 - $750 per
issue
à
Writing e-letters: $50 - $200 per
e-letter
à
Writing special reports/premiums: $250 -
$750
à
Landing page copy:
- Info page: $250 - $750
per page
- Home page or subscription
page: $450 - $4,500 per page
- Sales page: $450 -
$10,000
à
Search Engine Optimizing (SEO) copy:
This is when you add keywords to already
existing sales copy to increase the odds of
success on the web: $100 - $400 per page.
àSEO
Strategy and Training. Includes key
phrase research, training client how to
research on the web and optimizing copy:
$150 - $500 per hour.
à
Pay Per Click (PPC) Ads: $25 - $250 per
ad.
à
Pay Per Click campaigns. Includes
writing landing page copy and PPC ads:
$1,000 - $2,500 per campaign.
Aha moment #3
Add a benefit in the "fine
print"
I got this idea from a
session by veteran and master copywriter
Mark E. Johnson. It was such a "duh"
moment - I just can't believe I never
did it before. But I definitely will in
the future.
Every skeptical
reader is looking for a "catch" in
the "fine print". Go give it to 'em
- with a little twist:
Create a fine print
"catch" but give a BENEFIT instead!
It's simple. Here's an example of a
traditional "fine print" disclaimer:
"This
offer is valid only to U.S. citizens
over the age of 18. Results cannot
be guaranteed. Taxes, airfare, hotel
stay and meals are not included".
Try this instead:
"This
exclusive offer is only for adults
who want to boost energy levels to
new heights... look younger than the
age on your driver's license... and
feel better than ever. Only
interested candidates need apply."
Sneak in a benefit
when the prospect is looking for a
"catch" - how cool is that!
See? I told you these tips are
simple!
So keep 'em in mind while
you're writing - and
charging for your copy! I
sure will! So again, a great
big thanks to the AWAI
speakers for sharing their
secrets.
The truth is: the better we
all get at writing copy -
the better we can all sell
products and services to
keep us all in business!
And the winner for
the Copywriting Boot Camp on
Steroids $1,000 challenge
is...
... going to be announced
in the next issue (haha -
gotcha!)
Seriously - I was blown away
by the number of Copywriting
Boot Camp on Steroids
attendees who took me up on
the $1,000 challenge. Nearly
90% of you sent in your
landing page copy! Woo hoo!
But...
... that means I still have
a LOT of reading to do so I
can pick the winner. Don't
worry - I'll make my
selection and announce the
winner shortly so stay
tuned...
And if you didn't attend the
boot camp...
... don't worry - I'm not
leaving you out. Your
opportunity to enter the
$1,000 spec assignment
challenge runs from
Tuesday, November 18th
and ends Wednesday,
December 17, 2008.
If you missed out on the
details of this amazing
opportunity - click here
CopyStar Mid-October Issue.
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