The most important thing I learned from David Ogilvy

I never met David Ogilvy. But he had a great impact on my career.

Kenneth Roman reveals the most important thing we can all learn from David Ogilvy:

Being edited by Ogilvy was like being operated on by a great surgeon who could put his hand on the only tender organ in your body. You could feel him put his finger on the wrong word, the soft phrase, the incomplete thought. But he had no pride of authorship, and he could be quite self-critical. Someone found a personally annotated copy of one of his books in which he had written cross comments about his own writing: “Rubbish. Rot! Nonsense.” He would send his major documents around for comment, with a note: “Please improve.”

Gary Halbert Teaches the Real Art of Writing Copy.

 In the hand of the late Gary Halbert, the pen was truly mightier than the sword. His newsletter was a valued resource of ideas and techniques. In a fit of generosity, Halbert put most of his archive online. In this episode (his letters were adventures, not just information), he gives a crash course in copywriting. He starts out:

Last month I promised this month I would teach you the real art of writing copy. I am now about to keep that promise.....

Read the rest on The Gary Halbert Letter

The 10 Commandments of Copywriting

Bob Bly's newsletter offers this gem from G. Lynn Sumners, How I Learned the Secrets of Success in Advertising.

The 10 Commandments of Copywriting

Over half a century ago, G. Lynn Sumners, who created the classic Harry & David Fortune magazine ad ("Imagine Harry & Me Advertising Our Pears in Fortune!"), put forth these 10 rules for writing winning advertisements – all of which are still applicable today:

1. Learn all about your proposition before you write anything about it.
2. Organize your material from the viewpoint of the buyer's interests, not yours.
3. Decide to whom you are writing.
4. Keep it simple.
5. Use meaningful words and phrases—words that stir the emotions, make the mouth water, make the heart beat faster.
6. Don't try to be funny. Remember, the most serious of all operations is separating a man from his money.
7. Make your copy specific—names, places, what happens to whom.
8. Prove your points.
9. Make copy long enough to tell your story—and quit.
10. Give your reader something to do and make it easy for him to do it.

Bob Bly is giving it away

Bob Bly has been a friend and mentor of mine for over 20 years.

He's always been ready to help new and old writers and copywriters (and more "normal" people) succeed. For the past few years Bob has been focusing on Internet marketing of information products. Now he's putting his money where his mouse is with an open invitation to join his Internet Information Marketing Club for a FREE 10-day membership "test drive."

"Get Almost Everything I've Ever Written or Said About Making Money with Internet Marketing Absolutely FREE for The Next 10 Days"

Get it while it's hot.

How to Win Customers and Influence People

It's back: the How to Win Customers and Influence People Newsletter.

Subscribe now to get yourself a free Copywriting Checklist before your next copywriting assignment. Read it and prosper! Subscribe at right below (under the "ShareThis" link). Or go to the Newsletter Archive

Book Review: Marketing Maven Magnanimously Mixes Morals and Money

I first discovered Shel Horowitz with his classic Marketing Without Megabucks: How to Sell Anything on a Shoestring.

That book is no longer in print. But not to worry. He completely updated and expanded it into his newer book: Grassroots Marketing: Getting Noticed in a Noisy World. It is a comprehensive from-the-trenches field manual on marketing. If you sell anything you should get this book.

Shel understands marketing and he understands writing. So it should be no surprise that he has also produced a manual for every writer who kvetches "You mean I have to market the book too, not just write it?!" For those of us blessed (or cursed) with the need to put words on paper Shel has now published a guide specifically for writers: Grassroots Marketing for Authors and Publishers. It covers basic marketing truths and new innovations for those who understand (or need to understand) the reality that printed books don't sell themselves.

I good-naturedly sparred with Shel on IAOCblog about blogging ethics. And if there is anything that characterizes his work--in books and for clients--it is a dedicated commitment to ethics. Not all of us are blessed with this commitment. And even many of us who are could benefit from a reminder. Shel provided a gentle reminder in what he seems to consider his magnum opus. Not in size, but in significance. In Principled Profit: Marketing that Puts People First Shel forcefully and convincingly makes the point that you don't have to be a hustler to be a successful marketer. And he backs up his message with a guide to moral marketing.

You don't have to be religious to love Principled Profit. Give it a try. You may never go back to three-card Monte.

Writing by Hand?

This post is a supreme act of hypocrisy. I am blogging about Writing by Hand!

Here I am... tapping away at my keyboard. But the Luddite in me is telling me I've gone soft and should go back to real writing.

OK, I'm not alone. Emmy-Award winning scriptwriter Robert Avrech told me he writes with a fountain pen. But he writes his (also award-winning) blog on his Powerbook!

Copywriter Robert Stover writes:

Want to start writing better copy - instantly?
Then perhaps you need to throw out your computer and pick up a pen.

This insight comes from writing teacher Shari Wilson.

She noticed that her student’s writing transitions, flow and idea sequencing was better on handwritten in-class essays over those they worked on outside of class with a computer.

I've done some of my best writing in spiral notebooks... on the Subway! But I find it hard to give up the luxury of the word processor at home. The problem is the computer and the Net are recalcitrant tools. A #2 pencil doesn't distract you as much from your subject matter. Mark Twain anticipated this with his essay on the typewriter.

How do you write? Do you write a first draft with pen or pencil and only then fire up the computer? Or do you write your drafts on the computer?

Bob Bly wonders, "Does blog marketing make sense?"

Copywriting maestro Bob Bly has long been skeptical about the marketing value of blogs. Even on his own blog! Now he brings Bad News for Blogging Evangelists that...

According to an article in Internet Marketing Report (5/25/07), 52% of U.S. adults never read a blog, and 16% don’t even know what a blog is.
The article concludes that investing a lot of your marketing budget in blogging “doesn't make a whole lot of sense.”

But to me, going by the numbers alone is like choosing a book by how many pages it has. I care about what is inside, not how much. J.K. Rowling's books sell in spite of how much they weigh... not because of it.

Can the value of blogging be measured purely in numbers of readers? I would say it makes a lot of sense to reach 100 readers who are likely to buy and then tell their friends about your product. Especially when the cost of reaching them is minute compared to other media.

Not only that. The real reach of blogs is far wider than the reported "readership." Google immortalizes the information on blogs. Searchers (read "buyers") for your product will find you. Get tagged and you're it!

Get a ringside seat at the slugfest on Bob's blog.

Book Review: "Turning Clicks into Leads," by Dianna Huff

When I first heard of SEO copywriting it sounded like a hodgepodge of New Age cyber-sorcery and subliminal advertising.

Vance Packard meets The Alchemist.

Like copy maestro Bob Bly, frankly, I was skeptical. Then I saw that Bob softened his stand and I decided to take another look. Which brought me to Dianna Huff's e-book, "Turning Clicks into Leads"

Huff manages to make sense of the world of SEO copywriting without confusing jargon (or forced humor). The book walks you through the basic concepts and gives you enough tools to try some basic SEO yourself. At least you'll never make such dumb mistakes again as using a slick graphic home page that looks good, but effectively blocks search engines from bringing you new customers!

Writing for the Web

Jakob Nielsen is the dean of Web usability. And if your site isn't usable, you just lost your customers. And it doesn't matter how great your copy is. Copywriting is only great if somebody reads it... and responds.

Here's some homework: Writing for the Web

Give me that old time copywriting

Thanks to By Will McInnes for pointing me to 5 Sure-Fire Social Media Headline Formulas That Work

Sounds very much like something Don Dunnington pointed out in a comment on IAOCblog.com

The top SEO trick is no trick at all. It's called good copy writing. I've seen content taken from an old, tired-looking website that had zero search visibility, freshened up with a little copy editing, a good headline and a few subheads, and suddenly the page ranks first in Google and second in Yahoo. I asked a friend who makes a living optimizing websites for search engines what made the difference. He took one look at the page and said, "the headline."

Now where have I heard that advice before? Could it be John Caples, David Ogilvy and Claude Hopkins? Hmmmm. The more things change.....

As Bob Bly points out:

Remember, you are writing for human beings first, and computer algorithms second. The key phrases must smoothly flow within the writing.

Call it SEO. Call it Social Media. Call it Web 2.0... or whatever this week's flavor is. It all boils down to this:
YES--the Net is different.
NO--—people are not different. You still have to appeal to their needs and offer them benefits. Or else they won'’t buy....

There's no point in attracting thousands of people to your store... if they don't find anything they want to buy! You still have to write copy (or content, if you prefer) that attracts, interests, creates desire... and gets action. You have to write to motivate people... not search engines.

Search engines don't buy products.... People buy products.

Call for Top SEO Resources

Steve O'Keefe asks to Post Your Picks for Top Search Engine Optimization Resources, And the discussion is heating up.

To SEO or not to SEO, is that the question? Is SEO incompatible with good copywriting? What do you think? Join in the discussion at IAOCblog.com

If this ain't copywriting, what is?!

Bob Bly asks if a copywriter can be "too enthusiastic." In my comment, I recalled John Caples's all time classic ad:

"They Laughed When I Sat Down at the Piano"

I'm not sure if it's the greatest ad ever written. I haven't read every ad ever written....

(Disclosure: I changed the title of this post. It originally said "If this ain't advertising...." Then I realized I should have written "copywriting" instead. Hope this satisfies the Transparency authorities. I have already gotten blacklisted for saying there was nothing wrong with a simulated blog.)

Do copywriters just write copy?

The Copywriter Underground offers An Underground Manifesto The Copywriter Underground: Copywriting Beyond the Words

Good reminder. But the copywriter has always worn many hats. Ever since John E. Kennedy told Albert Lasker: "Advertising is salesmanship in print," the copywriter's role has been to sell, market, promote... not just to "write."

As writers, we are always tempted to be "creative." But if you're spending your client's or employer's money you have an obligation to bring a return on that investment.... not to show your friends and colleagues how brilliant you are.

Still fell compelled to be a "writer"? Do what Richard Armstrong did: Write a novel... in your spare time.

Checklists

Most of the work of writing is in the rewriting. But most of the work of copywriting is done before the pencil hits the paper.

See direct marketing maven Denny Hatch's Method Marketer's 20-point Checklist and Ultimate Direct Mail Checklist, before you even start writing copy.

Also see my Copywriting Checklist.

How to begin a copywriting job: Start at the end!

That's right: Start at the end!

I got an inquiry about writing copy for a website:

So far I like your style and clear understanding that copy [and visual support] is all about clicking the Buy button . I would like to get started in a modest way so I can get to know how you work and build from there. - Suggestions for how we might kick this off

I wrote back:

Thanks for the vote of confidence. Why don't we start at the end:
What do you want my copy to do? Get leads? Orders? Join a list?.....
From a website? By email?

Let's decide where we're going. Then we can compare routes to get there.

Start at the end!

The 8 Free Things Every Site Should Do

Don't just read this instant Web PR course from Seth Godin. Study it.

1. It's great advice
2. It's a model for concise, clear, potent copywriting.

Bookmark it now: The 8 Free Things Every Site Should Do

Not the King's English

A carton of books in someone's home caught my eye. (If you should ever want to trap me, bait the trap with books!) Digging through the pile of "paperback writers," I came across a yellowed copy of Welcome to the Monkey House by Kurt Vonnegut.

"Hey, this looks interesting."

"Um... That's yours!"

"Oh..."

Anyway, the book had a wonderful piece called "New Dictionary" that was actually a 1966 review of the then new Random House Dictionary. In Ben Yagoda's The Sound on the Page: Style and Voice in Writing, Vonnegut was quoted: "The writing style which is most natural for you is bound to echo speech you heard when a child...Lucky indeed is the writer who has grown up in Ireland, for the English there is so amusing and musical. I myself grew up in Indianapolis, Indiana, where common speech sounds like a band saw cutting galvanized tin, and employs a vocabulary as ornamental as a monkey wrench."

But Vonnegut's Times review ended with what sounds like a sideswipe at permissive rather than "prescriptive" English:

...one dictionary is as good as another for most people. Homo Americanus is going to go on speaking and writing the way he always has, no matter what dictionary he owns. Consider the citizen who was asked recently what he thought of President (Lyndon) Johnson's use of the slang expression "cool it" in a major speech:

"It's fine with me," he replied. "Now's not the time for the President of the United States to worry about the King's English. After all, we're living in an informal age. Politicians don't go around in top hats any more. There's no reason why the English language shouldn't wear sports clothes, too. I don't say the President should speak like an illiterate. But 'cool it' is folksy, and the Chief Executive should be allowed to sound human. You can't be too corny for the American people--all the decent sentiments in life are corny. But linguistically speaking, Disraeli is dullsville."

These words, by the way, came from the larynx of Bennett Cerf, publisher of "The Random House Dictionary of the English Language." Moral: Everybody associated with a new dictionary ain't necessarily a new Samuel Johnson.

I say, in copywriting and blogging, stick to folksy and utilitarian monkey wrench writing. If you're writing for the Times or Posterity (whoever that is), make sure your language brushes its teeth and polishes its shoes.

Call to Action

This is not about copywriting. It's not about marketing or PR.

It's about life and death.

Please call your senators and congressional representatives today and urge them to vote in favor of a resolution that will come before the Senate and House early next week affirming Israel's right to defend herself

If you don't know who your member of Congress is, please go to this link
and enter your zip code. For more information see: Seraphic Secret: Seraphic Call to Action

The "Experience" Myth

How many times have you heard it?... "Well, yes, I can see you do excellent work... but you have no experience writing white papers (or blogs, or selling clothing racks... or smoked fish... or jewelry.... or whatever category you haven't written for yet).

Back in the early 80's I had a few interviews at one of the major direct marketing agencies. Finally they hired another writer who already had experience writing about gold coins. It seemed the criterion was not skill or marketing savvy... just experience writing about the same product.

At the last interview the agency VP shrugged his shoulders and said, "I'm sorry, but you know how it is in this business.... They once hired somebody to write cigarette commercials ... then they fired him when they found out he didn't have menthol experience!"

It was textbook case of CYA.... The first (and sometimes the last) commandment of corporate culture is: Don't get blamed! Better to make a safe decision than take a risk on a good decision.

The truth is, some of the best copywriters had NO experience! They are entrepreneurs who had no experience writing copy, but a wealth of life experience and understanding of their market. Mail order legend Joe Sugarman almost flunked high school English!... But he went on to change the landscape of copywriting and of direct marketing.

You don't need "experience" to write great advertising. All you need is to do your homework to understand your market. A good place to start is a checklist of information to get from the client. . . everything from old ads and internal memos to websites and emails.

After that, crank up Google... or get out of your chair and take a walk to the library. Then do some good old-fashioned research. (Not the focus group kind. The thesis kind.) Read everything you can on the product and--more important--the market. You never know what idea or phrase may become the crux of your copy platform.

I know a man whose only expertise in medicine is that he's a hypochondriac. But, to promote his organization, he once delivered a lecture on oncology to a convention of doctors! All it took was homework.

I once wrote an ad for a diet camp for teenagers. The first draft was lousy. I simply didn't get the hang of writing to teenagers. So I went around the corner to Barnes & Noble and picked up copies of Seventeen magazine, and Dr. Lendon Smith's Diet Plan for Teenagers. Within a day I had an ad that kept pulling with every insertion.

Before working on designing a new catalog, my friends, Joe Goldbrenner and Gene Markowitz, of The Goldmark Group, often go down to the factory of a new client. They study the entire operation from manufacturing to order taking. This kind of homework pays off. I once worked on a catalog with them for a supplier of store displays. The new catalog increased sales by over 17%! The client told DM News: "you quickly got a good understanding of my products and the marketplace. And that shows in my sales."

It's all in the homework.

So next time they tell you "I'd love to work with you, but you don't know about my product."--Just tell the story of the guy at the doctor's office who said:
"Yes, I know you're a big specialist... but you don't know my cold!"