home about copywriting services web design web copywriting copy editing email newsletter management blog content article writing sales letter content direct mail copywriting branding campaigns postcard marketing SEO critiques social media profiles resume writing small business advertising testimonials copywriting and marketing articles sign up for our newsletter contact us

Perceived Value: a Sneaky Little Copywriting Trick that Will Help You Be the Guy or Girl With the Happiest and Most Clients

by Dina Giolitto

• Do you create gorgeous sales pages that only get a trickle of responses?
• Do you bend over backwards to deliver quality service, yet lose clients to competing businesses?
• Do you find yourself wondering, "Why aren't more people BUYING?"

If the above questions make you nod your head sadly and maybe even shed a small tear... chances are, you missed something key the first time around in your marketing.

That "something" is a copywriting technique that will help you increase the Perceived Value of your product or service.

Perceived value refers to the perception that the customer has of your end deliverable. You know the blood, sweat and tears that goes into whatever you produce for your clients. But do your customers know?

Ask yourself right now:

What does the customer believe he is receiving from you?

What is his perception of the total worth of your service or products?

Is he aware that you're giving him an excellent rate or deal? If not, what can you say to change his awareness?

When discussing value in your copywriting, you should have one goal in mind:

Make your customer feel as though he's squeezing out the most value he possibly can get, for as low a price as possible.

You might already be delivering the greatest value. But if your clients or customers are not perceiving it, what good will it do you?

What happens when someone else comes along to tempt your client - and he's actually offering THE SAME VALUE that you deliver? Only your customer doesn't recognize the value is identical to what you're offering, because the other guy pointed it out and you didn't bother!

(The above situation is to blame for lost business and straying clients who seek out the competition.)

Perhaps the time has come to give your marketing copy a second look. Enough of the big words and vague promises. You've got to be up-front and crystal-clear about the What You Get and What That's Worth to the people who buy what you sell.

How to Crank Up the Perceived Value in Your Sales Letter Copy:

The first part of your sales letter is always an emotional argument. The second part speaks to the product benefits. The third is the testimonials. The fourth and final is the What You Get. This is where you drive home your points and build a case for VALUE.

Warning: Many people who rush through their sales letter writing lose steam by the end. You do not want to be anti-climactic in your sales letter! The end "brings it all together" and bats it home for the sale.

By the time your readers get to the bottom of your sales page, they've got their finger poised over the mouse. They're vascillating between clicking BUY NOW and jerking that hand upward to close the page. This is the moment where you point-blank tell them What They Get and Why It's Such an Incredible Deal. You will use MATH to illustrate this point.

Try this exercise in Perceived Value:

Calculate the TRUE VALUE of the unparalleled service you deliver to your clients.

Identify each deliverable one by one, playing up the advantage. If you're not sure of your deliverables, think of the BENEFITS - what you give freely that other businesses may not even offer. For instance, if you allow unlimited phone calls at no extra charge, that's a deliverable.

Determine how much each deliverable is worth, and type a dollar value by each item.

Point out any and all EXTRAS they'll be getting at no cost (again, playing up the value of each).

Blast out the TOTAL VALUE by adding up the value of each individual deliverable.

Compare the TOTAL VALUE to the TOTAL PACKAGE PRICE.

(If you're doing this right, there should be a considerable amount saved.) An example...

Suppose you're an ordinary, run-of-the-mill marketing consultant, a good egg and a hard worker. You've put in your time, your design skills are top notch. You spend your days tending to your clients' every need - developing websites, swapping emails, teaching all that you know about marketing their websites successfully.

In effect, you ARE coaching your marketing clients. You offer them a TON of free information... in fact, simply having access to your marketing brain gives them an incredible edge. Your clients are all signed up for your mailings, and you even toss a new search engine marketing guide at them each month - a bonus just for being your client.

And yet - does your sales pitch actually ever communicate this? Do your future customers know what they're about to receive?

Let's try it now and see what kind of impression we make. Suppose that at the close of a new account, this is the message you send your marketing prospect:

Here's What You Get With Your Marketing Project

a minimum of 20 hours of marketing coaching by telephone, scheduled at your convenience (valued at $2,000+)

Unlimited access to me by email for technical questions, troubleshooting, marketing guidance and creative brainstorming (valued at $2,800+)

A FREE Copy of our Smart SEO Guide - packed with inside tips on how to search engine optimize your website and land at the top of Google (valued at $447)

Complete marketing content for your website that you can claim 100% ownership rights to and publish instantly to start pulling in more money and increase your bottom line (value: approximately $3,000 for ten pages)

Commit to working with us today, and lock in your first marketing project for less than $2k for an ENTIRE MONTH's services including all of the above.

Chances are, if you're another one of the many marketing consultants, business coaches, or online service providers out there AND you're exceptionally good at what you do...

Then you are ALREADY delivering incredible benefits like these to your clients.

So, why aren't you making as much money as you could? Because your marketing copy fails at its job - which is improving the perceived value that your customers have of your end deliverable.

Want help raising the perceived value of your products and services? Let's get to work on that sales copy of yours. Contact Dina@Wordfeeder.com for copywriting assistance today.

Wordfeeder.com is the home of Dina Giolitto's Copywriting, Copy Editing, Web and Print Marketing Services. Interesting in learning how to market your business successfully using the latest online and offline methods? Eager to master the art of writing copy that gets you more clients and sales? Then keep following along! We publish articles regularly and post them on our home page. Write to dina@wordfeeder.com with comments or for a project quote today.

Want more? Sign up for Word Food, our Copywriting and Marketing Newsletter.

get a copywriting or website marketing quote

get a copywriting quote Thanks for visiting Wordfeeder.com Copywriting and Marketing. If you're interested in a copywriting, web design or web marketing quote, please include project details such as:

- Type of Project (web copy, sales letter, articles, etc.)
- General Project Details (target audience, product, etc.)
- Number of Pages
- Links to Previous Ads
- Links to Competitor Ads Whom You'd Like to Emulate (or not emulate!)
- Anticipated Due Date

Please email to Dina@Wordfeeder.com with the subjectline "Copywriting Quote".

Need a referral for a web designer, virtual assistant or search engine optimization expert? Just say the word! We work with only the best service providers.

Thanks!

Ever Dreamed of Earning Your Living Writing Copy for the Web?

Now's your chance to learn all there is to know about how to launch, organize and successfully run an online writing and editing business from the comfort of your home office. Get on the list for our upcoming guide, "The Nitty Gritty of How to Start a Writing or Editing Business on the Web." Learn more by clicking this link!

No time to read right now? Simply fill out the form below! We'll contact you as soon as the guide is ready for public consumption. Thanks.

email newsletter management

blog content

article writing

sales letter content

direct mail copywriting