Copywriting tip: how to use a little… to say an awful lot

I have the patience of a gnat.  It’s not that I have ADD or anything like that, but being from New York City, I like when people get to the point quickly.

If I ask you what time it is, just say it’s “ten-fifteen,” don’t build me a clock, for goodness sakes.

You know what I mean?

Just get to the point!

I can’t stand people who have to beat around the bush for an hour before they get to the bottom line.  Sure, you want to hear the colorful things that make stories enticing and make you laugh, but please… I don’t have forever to hear them — I have lots of stuff to do!

And your buyers are no different.

They want you to get to the point, quickly… and they don’t want you to waste their time in the process.  The faster you can tell them “what’s in this for them,” the more they’ll like you and the better they’ll respond.  And the more you’ll sell and the more you’ll make.

The word “brevity” means “shortness of expression,” and I guess that’s what this would be called, but I prefer the direct explanation of “get to the point, and be direct.”

With that in mind, here are some real life examples of the old “Little Blue Book” titles and how many copies they sold:

*  ‘100 Best Books To Read’ sold 32,000 copies

‘How To Choose Books’ only sold 10,000 copies.

The second title here, offers little to no direct benefits, where the first title offers both excitement and efficiency.

*  ‘How To Improve Your Conversation’ sold 77,000 copies, where ‘The Romance of Words’ a measly 10,500 copies.

The first title telegraphs a direct benefit, where the second one is vague.. and who knows what it is really offering?

*  ‘Facts You Should Know About Music’ sold 37,000 copies against ‘Harmony Self Taught,’ which only sold 14,500 copies.

This first title is far more direct and sounds like fun, as opposed to the second, which sounds like work.

See, the words you choose, mean an awful lot, even when you’re only choosing a few of them at a time.

I even dealt with this issue myself.

The first working title of my book, “How To Make Maximum Money With Minimum Customers!” was called “Small List, Big Profits.”  Although the eventual title was longer, it was far more specific, direct, and exciting in the benefits it offered.  And when I ran a split-test of these titles, the eventual title out-pulled the smaller one by over twice as many responses.

Remember, in life, and especially in business… you’ve got to… get… to… the point.

Now go sell something, Craig Garber

P.S.  These 21 step-by-step proven strategies inside… allowed the author to make $578,648 in one year, with a small online list of less than 5,000 names — without any JV partner launches… with one full-time employee… without spending even one thin dime on advertising… and… all at 90% profit!

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About the Author

Craig GarberAuthor of "How To Make Maximum Money With Minimum Customers, " and publisher of Seductive Selling - an offline marketing newsletter currently read in 15 countries, world-wide. In a nutshell, I do two things: 1. I show you how to attract a reliable, steady stream of pre-qualified leads who are ready to do business with you NOW... 2. And I increase your net profits and cash-flow, by increasing your customer, client, or patient value -- often, dramatically. How do I do this? By developing, and helping you implement, unique, personalized lead generation and marketing strategies... using compelling sales messages that push your customers emotional buy-buttons. I've worked with over 300 clients in more than 104 different industries, since March of 2000, and I really enjoy what I do. I'm a stable, reliable, happily married family guy with three kids who loves life and always follows through on my commitments and promises. I love to listen to music, workout, read, travel with my family, take pictures, and go bass fishing. I always say "Yes," when it comes to good cigars, good books, and good coffee :-)

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