10
Simple Ways to Punch Up Your Copy, Redirect Your Website Traffic
and Dramatically Increase Sales
by
Dina Giolitto
You
did what the copywriting masters said to do; you wrote some
fantastic, emotionally-targeted copy for every single page
of your website. Your best friend blogged about it and your
mom cried when she read it. So what's the problem?
The
Problem: Your copy is perfectly strategized to hit
your target market hard... and yet your web stats tell a different
story. Ezine signups are few and far between. Your monthly
promotions get a casual glance, but no one ever seems to take
the bait. You wrote great content... yet folks click away
after reading the homepage. What's a web business owner to
do?
The
Solution: Punch up your web copy and "direct"
your web traffic using a combination of call-to actions and
strategic linking. Here are ten easy tactics that should do
the trick for you.
1.
Include a call-to-action on EVERY page of your website. Ultimately,
what would you like your customers to do? Call for a consultation?
Place their product order now? Then give the order (nicely,
of course!) at the bottom of every single page of your
site.
2.
Add a call to action after every major point you make. Suppose
you've added a section of copy explaining the benefits of
choosing your company over the competitor's. A good copywriter
knows that final "statement" should be punctuated
with a directive. "Call now." "Sign up here."
"Click here to learn more."
3.
Create a sense of urgency. Ensure that your customers
take immediate action; put a time limit on your special promotions.
Which do you think will get a faster response: "This
offer is stands until the end of time," or "Hurry,
this offer will only last until the end of the month"?
4.
Rewrite for the "you" perspective. Scan
your current web copy, noticing how many times you said "I"
or "we." Then go back and fortify every line with
a "you." Remember, the customer always wants
to know what's in it for them. I mean always!
5.
Add the Intangible Benefit. Suppose you're discussing
the safety features on a new model of car. Sure, your reader
wants to know how the technology works, but what will really
snag them is words like SAFETY... YOUR FAMILY... PEACE OF
MIND... SECURITY. These words inevitably go to work on the
psyche, so DO include intangible benefits-- especially in
your headlines.
6.
"Where's the Beef?" The "beef"
is the substance in your copy. We just discussed intangibles,
but if you never cover the practical reasons behind the emotional
promise of your product, your credibility will suffer and
so will your sales. "This new diet plan will help
you look and feel sexier." How? "Clinical tests
prove that it effectively speeds up metabolism and boosts
fat burning capabilities safely and effectively, helping you
LOSE MORE WEIGHT."
7.
Direct traffic via your ezine. You'll be shocked
at how many more clicks you can get out of a few strategically-placed
links in your ezine. Mention your latest offer in your ezine
and add links that folks can take directly there. Want your
blog to get read? Think links from your newsletter. Web visitors
are a lot like cattle-- they must be herded via links!
8.
Direct traffic via your blog. Did you create a sales
page pushing an e-book that no one seems to be clicking on?
Don't forget your untapped target audience living in the blogosphere.
Create a short blog post advertising your product and include
a photo and direct link to the sales page. Trust me, web surfers
don't just land there - you've got to show them the way.
9.
Link to your sales page via an article. A good internet
marketer always communicates in articles. Include new,
original articles each time you send out your ezine. Select
certain trigger words that will help sell your product and
link them to your product sales page. Try it; it really works!
10.
Point the resource box of your articles to an ezine sign-up
page. Ezines are a great way to let people "warm
up" to what you can offer them. So each time you write
and publish an article in your ezine (or even your website
or blog), include a call-to-action that encourages readers
to sign up for your ezine. Sure, it may takes some time to
convince folks to buy from you... but slow converts are a
lot better than no converts, and an ezine is the first step
in your long-term plan to increase sales.
It
takes ten times more work to secure a new customer than it
does to convert an existing customer. Are your web materials
doing the job they were meant to do? If not - it may be time
to "plump up the copy" and start directing traffic
--and SALES-- your way.
Copyright
2006 Dina Giolitto. All rights reserved.
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