Whoever said, “If it’s not hard, it’s not worth doing” is an idiot.
Because when it comes to connecting with your ideal clients and getting them all hot and frothy for what you’ve got to give, easy-breezy is the way to go.
So today, I’ve got a fun but mighty-mighty copywriting technique for you that’s going to make it soooo much easier for you to find the perfect words to engage your perfect clients.
In fact, this tip is so simple easy and quick that you’re going to be tempted to disregard it, toss it aside under the mistaken impression that anything this straightforward can’t be all that powerful or effective.
Oh, but you’d be wrong, my dear. Dead wrong.
Because as all good copywriters know, the best words are your client’s words. And with this easy but mighty technique, you start with your client’s own words.
I call this technique Flip It, Dip It and Lay It Down™. And it goes like this:
- Write down your client’s most persistent thoughts, urgent desires, obsessive worries and common complaints.
- Flip those thoughts, worries, etc. in to connecting questions and statements.
- Dip those questions and statements into your own personal “style sauce.”
- Lay down those phrases into your copy… as pre-heads, leading questions and statements, subheads, subject lines and more.
Okay… let me elaborate and give you some examples.
Flip It, Dip It and Lay It Down™
First, write down the thoughts, worries, dreams, desires, fears and frustrations of your client.
Okay, do I really need to say this again? Maybe I do.
You have to know what’s going on inside your client’s head and heart. What is she worried about, stressed about, upset about or mad about? What does she keep thinking about? What feels incredibly urgent and important to her right now?
AND… what words and phrases does she use to describe what’s going through her mind and heart?
2 weeks ago, in the last blog post I published, I gave you one of the best ways to discover 1) what your clients really want from you, and 2) gather the words your clients use to describe what’s tugging on the sleeve of their minds, banging at the door of their hearts and screaming from the depths of their soul. Go check it out.
Let’s say your ideal client is a divorced woman in her early 40’s who is re-entering the dating scene after being married for 20-some years. She’s ready to put her hurts and disappointments behind her and get out there to meet (and possibly fall in love with) a really great guy.
But she’s scared. And unsure of herself. The whole online dating world is so foreign and awkward. She doesn’t trust it. Yet she feels it’s her only option when it comes to finding her “one and only”… since she’s not into the bar scene or meetups for singles.
So, if you could read her mind, especially at 2:00 am when she can’t sleep, what might she be saying to herself?
Something like:
“I’d love to find a really great guy, someone steady, responsible and true. Someone I can trust. Someone who likes to go out and have a good time but is also responsible. A real man… not a little boy in a man’s body.
“I’ve heard people have had good luck with Match.com and other online dating sites, but ewww! That whole scene creeps me out. There are so many weirdos and wackos on those things. And it just feels… sad.
“Besides, filling out my online profile … it’s agony! I never know what to say. I hate writing about myself. And to only have my words to present myself, and then be judged and evaluated by a bunch of guys I’ve never met… it’s humiliating.”
Now, out of respect to single women everywhere, I must add this: we have a lot of thoughts that pester us late at night. And very few of them have to do with men, dating or whether we’ll ever find true love. I’m just using this as a convenient example.
Let’s Flip It!
Okay, now that you have your client’s thoughts, worries, fears, etc. written down in her own words, flip those phrases into connecting questions and statements. Here’s how:
Let’s take the thoughts listed above and flip ‘em:
Her thoughts: “I’d love to find a really great guy, someone steady, responsible and true. Someone I can trust. Someone who likes to go out and have a good time but is also happy staying in for a night of TV. A real man… not a little boy in a man’s body.”
Now… we’re going to flip it questions that will connect with her immediately:
Do you want to find a really great guy… someone steady, responsible and true? A guy who likes to go out and have a good time but is also happy staying in for a night of TV? A real man. Not a boy in a man’s body.
And again…
Her thoughts: “I’ve heard people have had good luck with Match.com and other online dating sites, but eww! That whole scene creeps me out. There are so many weirdos and wackos on those things. And it just feels… scary. And sad.”
Now, flip those thoughts into connecting statements:
You know others have had good luck with online dating sites, but the whole scene creeps you out. There are so many weirdos and wackos trolling those sites that you can’t help but feel uneasy. Even a little scared.
Again…
Her thoughts: “Besides, filling out my online profile … it’s agony! I never know what to say. I hate writing about myself. And the fact I’m offering myself up to be judged and evaluated by a bunch of guys I’ve never met… it’s humiliating.”
Now, flip those thoughts into connecting statements:
Besides, you’ve tried to fill out those online profiles, and ugh! You can’t figure out what to say. And the fact you’ll be judged and evaluated by what you write… it’s too much pressure. And kind of humiliating.
Get the idea? Good. Now…
Let’s Dip It!
So, you’ve flipped your client’s words into connecting questions and phrases. Now, dip those questions and statements in your own personal “style sauce.” In other words, use your client’s words but in your own unique voice.
For example, let’s use the second flipped section above:
You’ve heard others have had good luck with those online dating sites, but the whole scene creeps you out. There are so many weirdos and wackos trolling those sites that you can’t help but feel uneasy. Even a little scared.
Now, here’s how I’d say that in my own voice if I were just talking to my client:
Sure, you know all about those online dating sites. Like Match.com and OkCupid. But the whole scene gives you the heepie-jeebies. Too many strange-looking guys that love hunting, horror movies and drinking beer with their buddies. No wonder you feel uncomfortable (and even a little scared).
See, I’m still mirroring what’s going on in her head. I’m just saying it the way I would if I were talking to her in person.
Let me do another:
Here are her thoughts, flipped: “Besides, you’ve tried to fill out one of those online profiles, and ugh! You can’t figure out what to say. And the fact you’ll be judged and evaluated by what you write… it’s humiliating.”
Here it is dipped in my personal way of communicating:
But even though the whole online dating scene is a total turn-off, you thought, I’ll give it a try. But then… you had to fill out a personal profile. What the heck are you supposed to say? How can you write a single coherent sentence when you know you’ll be judged and evaluated by every word?
See what I mean? Now…
Let’s Lay It Down
After you’ve flipped and dipped, you’ve now got captivating and compelling copy you can lay down into whatever project you’re working on. Flipped and dipped copy is especially effective for leads (the first section of copy) in sales pages, opt-in pages, emails, home pages and service pages on your website.
You can also use it for subheads on a sales page. For instance, if you were selling a program that makes it easy, safe and fun for women to get on Match.com and find the man of her dreams, you could edit some of the above copy into a subhead like this:
And if you’re worried about running into a bunch of weirdos and wackos on online, don’t be. I’m going to show you how to filter out the riff-raff and attract the guys who are perfect for you.
And with some editing, you can use the essence of this copy in bullets and even headlines.
How to Meet the Man of Your Dreams Online… Even if the Whole Online Dating Scene Gives You the Heepie-Jeebies.
See, once you know what’s bubbling in the mind of your client, once you know the words and phrases they use to describe what they’re thinking about, all you have to do is Flip It, Dip It and Lay It Down™.
Easy. Fun. Effective.
Let’s try a few! In the comments section below, leave a thought or question that often echoes through your client’s head or haunts her heart. Then, together we’ll flip it and dip it!
Come on! This will be fun.