Where’s the Beef? How to Get to the Meat of Your Message

My friend Ed won’t stop talking. Again.

He does this all the time. He’ll ask me a question and as I begin to answer it, he’ll cut me off mid-sentence and launch into a fast-paced monologue that starts somewhere near the subject we were discussing and then takes off like a rocket into an entirely different universe of unrelated ideas, stories and asides.

I try to follow him as he takes off into a fanciful flight up, up, up and away to some other stratosphere of his fast-moving mind. I know he’ll eventually make his descent and come back to the original idea, seemingly without fatigue or comprehension that he’s gone to Pluto and back unaccompanied.

But sometimes, I can’t wait for his return so I’ll just shout at him, “Shut up and get to the point!”

And he’ll hang his head slightly, pretending to feel scolded. Which makes me smile and reach over and tousle his hair.

Conversations with Ed always remind me that while I, too, may like to chatter away and share whatever thought, point, story or insight happens to enter my mind, I do so at risk of  losing the attention (and trying the patience) of whomever happens to be with me at the time.

The same is true when writing any kind of copy or content. You may have a million in one ideas, thoughts and stories you want to cram into one blog post or web page or email. But… don’t.

Respect the time and attention of your reader by quickly getting to the point AND staying true to that point.

No matter what you’re writing, you want your entire piece of copy to be focused around one clear, meaty main point. Don’t diffuse the power and potency of your message by packing in too many different facts, figures or additional information. Don’t lose your reader by jumping around from one thought or idea to another.

Get to the point, and make that one point perfectly clear. 

Now, if you’re writing a long piece of copy or a how-to blog post, you may need to include a number of points to support your main point. That’s fine. Just be sure your main point is always clear.

“Respect the time and attention of your reader by quickly getting to the point AND staying true to that point.”

For instance, if I wrote a sales page for a webinar on how to write headlines that captivate and connect with your reader, I could make several different points, like:

• Why your headline is the most important piece of your copy.
• What master copywriters know about headlines.
• How your headline beefs up the power and strength of your entire message.
• Why you have to know your client inside and out before you write a headline. 

All these points are valid. But I only want to include the ones that support and strengthen my one main point.

So, How Can You Write a Great, One-Pointed Message?

• You have to know, inside of yourself, what the main, meaty point of your message is. Can you state it in one simple sentence? Can you state it so simply that a 5^th-grader high on too many cans of Coke understand? 

• Once you’re clear on the main point, think of how you can best communicate your point so it relates to your client or reader’s life, work or interests. Is there an analogy you can use? A personal story. A case study? A joke, quote or graphic? 

• Once you’ve written the first draft of your copy and you’re in editing mode, be brutal. Cut out any words, sentences and even whole paragraphs that dilute or distract from the power of your main, meaty point. 

• Don’t make the reader wade through too much introductory copy before they get to bite into the meat of your message. Where in your copy does your point become exquisitely clear? If it’s in the 4^th or 5^th paragraph, try to serve it up sooner… no later than the 3^rd or 4^th paragraph. 

Psssst!  If your copy starts with a personal story, your point may be slower in coming. That’s okay, as long as your story is intriguing enough to hold your reader’s interest and hint at a “reward” or juicy point to come.

Remember, when you’re writing copy, you’re creating a conversation. One half of that conversation is the message you’re writing. The other half is inside the head of your reader — the thoughts and reactions he or she is having while reading your message.

You don’t want your reader’s half of the conversation to be “Shut up and get to the point!”

So, let’s practice!

Whatever piece of copy you may be writing right now, whether it’s a sales page, an email, a blog post or a web page, state the main, meaty point of that message below in the comment section. See if you can state it in one, clear sentence that a 5^th-grader could understand (even if that 5^th grader is now crashing hard from a sugar-high).

Come on! It’ll be fun.

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Nancy Tierney is a writer and copywriting coach who gives entrepreneurs the simple steps and creative guidance they need to create their own powerful marketing copy so they are never at a loss for the right words to attract the right clients.

With over 30 years of experience in marketing, sales and public relations, Nancy has written sales pages, websites, emails and social media profiles for some of the most highly respected coaches, consultants and marketing gurus on the Internet scene today.

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