Me or you focus

Read through your content critically.  Is it saturated with the pronoun We?  Does Our make a frequent appearance?  If the answer is yes, there’s a good chance your copywriting has missed its audience focus.

Readers find second person, conversational content more engaging.  Talk with your reader, not at them.  Change ‘We’ and ‘Our’ for ‘You’ and ‘Your’ right through the content to alter its emphasis.

Make it easy

Content formatting has a huge impact on what gets read.  We’re not talking about design here.  The fact is, most readers browse through headings, bullets and break-out text before taking on the whole article.

To make it simple for readers to find the information they’re after, your copywriting should include:

• Bullets – used judiciously to highlight really important points
• Headings – to give a clear indication what readers can expect

How well is your content laid out?

Is it believable

There’s plenty of marketing content out there brimming with empty claims like:

We’re the best”

So what sets your business apart?  Proof.  If your copy is just telling readers how great you are, time to present some facts:

In a recent survey, 9 out of 10 customers said they’d recommend us to family and friends”

No such data?  No problem.  There’s a raft of studies and research available online you can quote or refer to.  Connect with a genuine selling benefit to add real strength.

Sell the benefits

Buying decisions are emotional, because prospects are looking to fulfil a need.  They will make a buying decision to feel happier, safer, smarter, beautiful etc.  To be effective, your copywriting needs to present benefits in response to key motivators.  Does yours?

If your content is feature heavy, it’s much less likely to be persuasive.  Features and facts are what people use to justify their decision after the purchase.  If your copywriting gets into product nitty gritty without offering a positive, outcome focus, you’re selling features instead of benefits.

Call to action

Even the most engaged and motivated reader can be left dangling (and precariously close to checking out the competition) if you don’t ask them to act.  A call to action is an essential ingredient in every piece of marketing communication.  Yours especially.

3 take away tips

1. As per marketing 101, create content with an audience focus.
2. Your content layout has almost as much impact as what it says.
3. Buying decisions are emotional so sell benefits over features.