Is there a magic formula for creating copy and content that inspires, compels and connects with your ideal client?
A step-by-step process for crafting magnetic messages that mesmerize and move your clients from where they are now to where they want to be?
Don’t I wish!
As a writer, teacher and lover of creative expression, I am deeply interested in and driven by this desire to know, practice and teach a way of writing copy that does more than sell. I want to master the art of creating messages and experiences that move, inspire and awaken people to the possibility of More.
More of what they want. More of who they are.
As of this moment, I’ve not yet discovered THE perfect, no-fail formula for consistently writing copy that has this magical power to awaken, inspire and motivate people to take action on their own behalf. Sorry.
But this Guide isn’t a formula. It’s a sturdy frame into which you can paint your own vibrant expression. It’s a vase in which to create your own stunning flower arrangement. Because your content, your copy, is your creation. And as such, it needs to bubble up and out of you, fully aligned with your intention and desire to connect with your clients in your own unique way.
A 5-Step Guide To Creating Copy
& Content That Connects
Step One: Lean In and Meet Them Where They Are
I often tell my clients that writing great copy or content isn’t all that different than writing a love letter to a dear friend.
Let’s say your friend just tweaked out her back and she’s been laid up on the coach for a week now. You’d start your letter (or email) with something like:
“Hey Susie!
I heard your back went out last week. I’m so sorry! You must to totally bummed and really frustrated.”
You’d start by talking about her, acknowledging her reality, her experience.
The same is true when writing a sales page, an email or even a blog post. Start with a statement or question or paragraph that speaks to what your client is experiencing right now.
For instance, if you’re a social media coach, and your client is someone who wants to take full advantage of social media to build her business but doesn’t know how to do that, you could start with:
“So, everyone’s telling you you’ve got to play the social media game. But how? You don’t even know the rules. You want to take advantage of everything social media has to offer, but you’re not sure how to get started. Or if you have the time. Or even the desire.”
When you start with what’s on their mind, with what’s important to them, you will get their attention AND inspire them to keep reading!
Step Two: Express Empathy
Once you’ve meet your client right where she is, you want to take the time to express your empathy and understanding of her situation. Let her know you get it. You understand. You’ve been there. Or you know someone who has.
Don’t immediately blast your reader with a sermon on how to fix or change their situation. No, take a moment to be a friend, a fellow human being who knows what it’s like to feel challenged, troubled and in need of support.
Again, going back to your letter to Susie, you might write:
“I know how painful and frustrating it can be to be laid up with a bad back. Especially now, when you have so much going on. What a drag. I felt the same way when I had surgery on my wrist last year…”
By expressing genuine empathy, you stop speaking AT your client and you stand right next to her, shoulder to shoulder, facing the situation together. You’re not preaching at her. You’re extending your hand to hold, your offering of comfort, understanding and support.
This allows your client to breathe a little easier and open to what you say next.
Step Three: Deliver the Promise
With your words, you’ve met your client where she is and expressed your understanding. Now, guide her focus and attention to what’s possible.
For instance, in the case of the client who’s struggling to get a grip on the social media situation, you might say something like:
What if it could be easy and fun for you to get started on Social Media?
What if you only had to spend 10 minutes a day to get remarkable results?
What if you had someone to help you through the social media maze so you never felt lost of overwhelmed?
Or, if we go back to our letter to Susie…
“Hey, I know this may be hard for you to believe right now, but I bet there is a way you can get out of pain pretty quickly… without taking those coma-inducing drugs your doctor gave you. And not only that, I know you can heal the nerves and strengthen the muscles of your back so you don’t end up incapacitated again…”
Notice that in the examples above, I didn’t introduce some product, service or miracle cure as the answer. Because if you move too fast and immediately present your offer as the solution, before you’ve helped your client feel what’s possible, you can come off as pushy, salesy and self-serving.
But by using your words to help your client see and feel what’s possible, you move her from thinking that everything is hopeless and sucky to “Wow, maybe this can be easy. Maybe I can do this!”
Step Four: Give the How
Now your client is open and ready to hear how she can achieve the possibilities you’ve just presented. So, if you’re writing a blog post, this is where you’d give her the information, steps, and suggestions she needs to realize the promise of what’s possible.
If you’re writing a sales page, webpage or email, this is where you’d introduce your product or service as a possible solution.
Let’s go back to your letter to Susie, who’s still flat on her back. But, because of what you’ve written, she’s shifted her focus from her pain to the possibility of quick, drug-free relief.
She’s so ready to hear about HOW she can realize those results you were writing about. So, you tell her about that 5-session acupuncture package, or the chiropractor who helped your Aunt Helen.
Going back to the social media coach, this is where she would introduce her “Get Started With Social Media” home-study program.
Step Five: Tell Them What to Do Next
Tell your client the one thing she needs to do right now in order to get what she needs and wants.
For instance:
Order now.
Request a 15-minute free session.
Go here for more information.
If you’re writing a blog post, tell her where to get more information. Or invite her to leave a comment or a question. Tell her what she can do to take action on her own behalf.
If you’re writing a sales page or email promo, the call to action will be to order your offer. Now.
People want to know what to do next, so tell them!
Ta-Dah! And that, my friend, is your 5-Step non-formula for writing copy and content that connects.
So, whaddya think? Was this helpful? Will you try it on for size the next time you need to write a little copy?
Leave a comment below and tell me how it works for you. I’m dying to know!