Copywriting on Tight Deadlines
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The 3-step copywriting framework provides marketers with a concise way to write effective copy on tight deadlines. The framework mirrors the structure of storytelling by including an exposition, rising action, and climax. The exposition captures attention with a headline and sets the stage. The rising action intensifies the problem through proofs, benefits, features, incentives and urgency. The climax is the call-to-action that builds to the pivotal decision. Using this framework ensures each copy element matches the visitor's thought sequence for maximum impact. When applied to an optimization summit landing page, it doubled ticket sales projections and sold out the event.
Copywriting on Tight Deadlines
- 1. Copywriting on Tight Deadlines: How ordinary marketers are achieving 103% gains with a step-by-step framework (plus live optimization)
- 2. Join the conversation on Twitter #webclinic #webclinic
- 3. Today’s team Dr. Flint McGlaughlin Jon Powell Managing Director Senior Manager Research and Strategy Paul Cheney Editorial Analyst #webclinic
- 4. Background and Test Design Experiment ID: Encyclopedia Britannica Location: MarketingExperiments Research Library Research Notes: Background: Well-known B2C company offering an online encyclopedia subscription product Goal: To get visitors to sign up for a free trial Primary research question: Which landing page will have the highest subscription rate? Test Design: A/B split test (variable cluster) 4 #webclinic
- 5. Experiment: Control Control Original Landing Page: • The headline does not communicate the value proposition • The “member benefits,” which are primary selling points, are in a separate column, not directly in the customer’s eye path • The images on the left and bottom do not help communicate anything about the service or why they should try it 5 #webclinic
- 6. Treatment Experiment: Treatment Treatment Landing Page: • The new headline and sub- headline describe exactly what you get • Bullets are used to emphasize the valuable features of the service in an easy-to-read format • The new image is clearer and includes a caption that re-emphasizes the value proposition 6 #webclinic
- 7. Treatment Experiment: Treatment Treatment Landing Page: • Activate Your Free Trial” is used instead of “Please Enter Your Billing Information” or “Subscribe Now” messaging • Savings over the print edition instantly shows the customer the “value” • Button copy emphasizes the “receiving” aspect of the transaction instead of “giving” language such as “submit” 7 #webclinic
- 8. Experiment: Side-by-side Original Treatment 8 #webclinic
- 9. Experiment: Results 103% Increase in Conversion The Treatment generated 103% more free trial sign ups than the control Versions CR Rel. diff Stat. Conf Control 1.00% - - Treatment 2.03% 103% 95% What you need tovalue proposition, the treatment out-performed theand clearly stating the understand: By cutting meaningless “power copy” control by 103%. #webclinic
- 10. What we discovered F Key Principles 1. When it comes to crafting effective copy, clarity trumps persuasion. 2. In order to achieve clarity, you must synchronize your copy to the thought sequences of the reader. 3. Human thoughts tend to arrange themselves in story. Therefore synchronizing your copy to the visitor’s thought sequence requires a story-based framework. #webclinic
- 11. How can I write effective copy without ? working late? 11 #webclinic
- 12. Today we are going to learn a step-by-step copywriting framework that busy marketers can use to consistently write effective copy. 12 #webclinic
- 13. How People Tend to Think SUB STORY Climax Climax Falling Act. Rising Act. Resolution /Exposition Exposition Resolution ACT 1 ACT 2 ACT 3 Beginning (The Setup) Middle (The Confrontation) End (The Resolve) People’s thoughts tend to arrange themselves in story, therefore understanding your visitor’s thought sequence comes down to understanding the basic structure of a story. Each part of the conversion process can be tied to story… #webclinic
- 14. How story connects to the conversion process Climax Exposition Resolution ACT 1 ACT 2 ACT 3 Beginning (The Setup) Middle (The Confrontation) End (The Resolve) The Exposition: As it relates to conversion, the main story is usually set up in the channels (PPC, Email, Banners, etc.). The overarching goal of this step is to engage the visitor, start building the problem, and lead them deeper into the conversation. Keep in mind there is a sub-story surrounding step-level conversion goal (getting them to click the ad, etc.). #webclinic
- 15. How story connects to the conversion process Climax Exposition Resolution ACT 1 ACT 2 ACT 3 Beginning (The Setup) Middle (The Confrontation) End (The Resolve) The Rising Action: As it relates to conversion, the rising action is intensified mainly through the landing page. The overarching goal is to continue intensifying the problem and present your value as the unique solution. Keep in mind there is a sub-story surrounding step-level conversion goal (getting them to click the ad, etc.). #webclinic
- 16. How story connects to the conversion process Climax Exposition Resolution ACT 1 ACT 2 ACT 3 Beginning (The Setup) Middle (The Confrontation) End (The Resolve) The Climax: As it relates to conversion, the climax happens at the point of decision for the main conversion objective (to buy, submit information, etc.). Most of the time this happens at the call-to-action on the landing page, where the rising action is at the highest intensity. #webclinic
- 17. How story connects to the conversion process Climax Exposition Resolution ACT 1 ACT 2 ACT 3 Beginning (The Setup) Middle (The Confrontation) End (The Resolve) The Falling Action: As it relates to conversion, the falling action occurs after the conversion commitment has been made, and consists of all the steps that might be required to actualize the decision (filling out payment info, shipping info, etc.). The falling action might be virtually absent if the payoff on the conversion commitment is actualized immediately (free digital offers, etc.). #webclinic
- 18. How story connects to the conversion process Climax Thank you Exposition Resolution ACT 1 ACT 2 ACT 3 Beginning (The Setup) Middle (The Confrontation) End (The Resolve) The Resolution: As it relates to conversion, the resolution occurs when the visitor is aware of and satisfied with the completion (or actualization) of the value exchange. The goal is to reassure the visitor that the problem has been solved by their decision. #webclinic
- 19. Connecting to Copy ? So, how does story help me write clear copy? ANSWER: By knowing where each copy element falls in the “the story,” you can carefully craft each word, sentence and paragraph to specifically match the visitor’s thought sequence. #webclinic
- 20. Optimization Summit 2011 Example What’s wrong with this page? #webclinic
- 21. Optimization Summit 2011 Example What’s wrong with this page? #webclinic
- 22. Optimization Summit 2011 Example Original Draft Optimized Final Every piece of copy doesn’t have to be a masterpiece, but every piece of copy must be clear. #webclinic
- 23. Optimization Summit 2011 Example: Results 180 # of Tickets Sold 160 140 120 100 Projected 80 Actual 60 40 20 0 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Weeks Out from the Event What thanneed to understand: The optimized final landing page eventually more you twice the amount of tickets than originally projected, generated leading to a completely sold out event. #webclinic
- 24. Optimization Summit 2011 Example: Results Working from the framework, our copywriters were able to book every seat at the summit without writing flawless copy. #webclinic
- 25. Introduction: The 3-step framework Exposition In the same way there are three acts in a story, there are three steps to crafting compelling copy for (in this case) a landing page. Example landing page from recent optimization summit STEP 1: Create your exposition Rising Action STEP 2: Create your rising action STEP 3: Create your climax/resolution Climax #webclinic
- 26. Step 1: Create your exposition Story click: Luke discovers The Force & his destiny Opening chase scene In a story, the exposition does two things: 1. Captures the audience’s attention 2. Sets the stage for rest of story by achieving “story click.” #webclinic
- 27. Step 1: Create your exposition On a landing page, the exposition is achieved through: 1. An attention capturing headline 2. A first paragraph with an obvious “story click.” #webclinic
- 28. Step 1: Create your exposition The Headline • The role of a landing page headline is to arrest the visitors attention and get them into the first paragraph. • Our testing suggests two effective strategies: 1. Making a Promise 2. Identifying a Problem #webclinic
- 29. Step 1: Create your exposition The First Paragraph • The goal of the first paragraph is to get the visitor into the conversation. You do this by ensuring you answer three questions: 1. Where am I? 2. What can I do here? 3. Why should I do it? IMPORTANT NOTE: “Story click” occurs when all of • You must answer “what” those questions have been addressed. before answering “why.” #webclinic
- 30. Step 1: Where’s the story click? #webclinic
- 31. Step 1: Where’s the story click? #webclinic
- 32. Step 2: Create your rising action Intensifying fight scene Obi-Wan fights Darth Vader. Vader wins. In a story, the rising action serves to intensify the problem. Rising action is marked by things like fight scenes, plot twists, character insights, etc. #webclinic
- 33. Step 2: Create your rising action Web Page – Body Copy • On a landing page, most of the page copy will serve to intensify the problem and the solution. • We do this with five copy elements that we call “intensifiers”: proofs, features, benefits, incentive, and urgency. #webclinic
- 34. The Rising Action Intensifiers Proofs: Specific statements – usually quantified – that bring credibility to the value proposition. (e.g., “10,000 landing pages tested…”) Benefits: Specific statements that demonstrate how the main value will benefit the visitor’s current situation. (e.g., “Optimize your conversion processes…”) Features: Specific statements that provide the tangible details of the offer (e.g., “Attendees will receive benchmarks and analysis from X…”) #webclinic
- 35. Step 2: Create Your Rising Action Intensifiers Incentive: An appealing element you introduce to stimulate a desired action (e.g., “All attendees will receive a copy of Bob Heyman’s new book…”) Urgency: An element of constraint you introduce to stimulate a desired action within a specific time-frame. (e.g., “reserve you ticket today and save $200”) #webclinic
- 36. The Rising Action: Internal vs. external IMPORTANT NOTE: All five of these copy elements can appeal to both the internal and external challenges and triumphs of the character. External Story: The boss wants me to fix our metrics problems Save the World Internal Story: Become a Jedi Master I’d like to advance my career #webclinic
- 37. Step 3: Create your climax/resolution Climax: Death Star explodes, rebels win. In a story, the climax is the single event that everything builds toward. #webclinic
- 38. Step 3: Create your climax/resolution Web Page – Call to Action On a landing page, the climax is the main call to action. The goal is to lead the visitor to (and through) the pivotal decision. #webclinic
- 39. Step 3: Create Your Climax • Four questions to ask yourself about your call- to-action (CTA): 1. Is your CTA clearly visible? 2. Does your CTA imply value, immediacy, or urgency? 3. Does it come in the right time in the thought sequence/story? 4. Does your CTA ask or assume? #webclinic
- 40. Summary: Putting it all together Exposition Climax Rising Action Proofs Benefits Exposition Resolution ACT 1 ACT 2 ACT 3 Beginning (The Setup) Middle (The Confrontation) End (The Resolve) Features Incentive Overall, just like in a good story, each Urgency part of the copy must be properly sequenced to match the visitor’s natural flow of thought. Climax #webclinic
- 41. Live Optimization 41 #webclinic
- 42. Marketing Team Training Week MECLABS.com/TrainingWeek 42 #webclinic
- 43. Live Optimization Submission #1 www.indeck.com/ rental_boilers.asp 43 #webclinic
- 44. Sign Up for our Next Clinic… If you would like to sign up for the next Web Clinic, please visit: MarketingExperiments.com/WebClinic #webclinic