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Getting Good Fast!

by king_david23
11 replies
First question - How do you get good at copywriting ASAP, which would be the best most efficient avenue (s)

Second, looking back on your journey what would you reccomend someone do to get better or what would you change.go back and fix about your early days?
#fast #good
  • Profile picture of the author Loren Woirhaye
    Get a sales job and apply what you learn selling to writing
    to sell.

    Other than that, read a lot - there's a lot to being an
    effective writer. For copy the salesmanship part is
    fundamental, but the craft of writing well (communicating)
    comes from practice alone.
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    • Profile picture of the author Sam Mlambo
      As a writer, practice writing all the time. When you want to communicate something write it down. When you have ideas write them down. This helps to be able to write down exactly what you're thinking without having to think about it.

      You'll capture your raw emotion, communication and ideas to help motivate your reader to act.

      Copywriting is just salesmanship in print. So get out there and become a better marketer and salesman.

      Like Loren Woirhaye mentioned, get a sales job to discover what it takes.

      I recommend you pick up some powerful resources from some of the best in the business and immediately implement their strategies to your writing. Reading helps a lot.

      Hope you reach your success

      - Sam
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      • Profile picture of the author Ross Bowring
        David,

        Can I share somewhat of a shortcut, at least to understanding sales copy. Rick puts not a foot wrong when he tells you to settle in for a long haul. However, here's something that upped my game considerably in a couple month span of time...

        Step one... find a sales letter you really like. Make sure it's by a proven copywriter. My all-star shortlist. Makepeace. Bencivenga. Garfinkel. Halbert. Carlton. And if you'd prefer cutting-edge IM copy... track down a letter by Vin Montello.

        Step two... locate a yellow highlighter and a pen.

        Step three... print out your letter. Then take said highlighter and pen and starting at the very top of your letter... at the prehead to the headline... and working your way down, make notes in the margins as you ask yourself one question...

        Why?

        Why is Bencivenga using this word not that one?
        Why is Makepeace referring to the guarantee this early?
        Why is Fortin using this metaphor?
        Why is Garfinkel stating this fact upfront?
        Why is Carlton expressing empathy here?

        and on... and on... throughout the entire letter.

        Now, the reason this is so powerful is because great sales copy is not written "on the nose". And what I mean by that is, the message it communicates is mostly sub-textual.

        Let me use a movie analogy.

        If a director wants Tom Hanks to communicate to an audience that he's happy and relaxed... he shouldn't, unless he wants to direct a turkey, have Tom stroll in and exclaim "I'm happy and relaxed!"

        No, he'll let Tom exhibit happiness. He'll have him hug Hooch... or flick the TV to football.

        The not so complicated sub-text is that Tom is happy... relaxed... at peace.

        To bring it back to copy...

        The best copywriters rarely explicitly say...

        "It's urgent you buy this now."

        "If you don't buy this you're toast."

        "This product is valuable."

        Etc.

        But these are all messages which need to be communicated in order to induce action.

        That's why you need to go down a sales letter and ask "Why"... word by word... sentence by sentence...

        Because you're teasing out the sub-text. You're discovering how the world's finest copywriters underpin writing with proven persuasion tactics.

        And the fact that you are discovering the sub-text for yourself, rather than being told the subtext by someone else, makes the learning exercise that much more powerful. Lightbulb moments abound.

        Nothing has helped me as much as this exercise. The letters I used, back in the day now, were Gary Bencivenga's Thanksgiving ham letter... and his Lies, Lies, Lies package.

        Hope this helps you, David.
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  • Profile picture of the author RickDuris
    Hi king_david23,

    My first answer is to cut open a vein and bleed. At least a little every day.

    Pushing bamboo shoots under your fingernails and then writing about it is my second best answer.

    I am not trying to scare you off, but you should know with copywriting, THERE ARE NO SHORTCUTS. There's NOTHING efficient about it.

    You're scaling Everest. Plan on it, if you want to be competent.

    Sure you can copy, swipe and plagiarize all you want. Go ahead and knock you socks off. See how far that will get you.

    To the point: You have to go through the gauntlet.

    There's a list of books and resources at the top of this forum. It's one of those stickies. Start there.

    Then apply. And apply. And apply some more.

    Best of copywriting success (and I mean that sincerely,)

    - Rick Duris
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    • Profile picture of the author Jag82
      Originally Posted by RickDuris View Post

      To the point: You have to go through the gauntlet.

      There's a list of books and resources at the top of this forum. It's one of those stickies. Start there.

      Then apply. And apply. And apply some more.

      I agree. Wanna improve?

      Don't just read.

      Learn and apply all the time.

      Write and actually drive traffic to your sales
      copy to know how well you are converting.

      Then keep optimizing. The numbers will tell
      you a lot on how your sales copy is doing.

      Jag
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    • Profile picture of the author MikeHumphreys
      Originally Posted by RickDuris View Post

      You're scaling Everest. Plan on it, if you want to be competent.

      Sure you can copy, swipe and plagiarize all you want. Go ahead and knock you socks off. See how far that will get you.

      To the point: You have to go through the gauntlet.

      There's a list of books and resources at the top of this forum. It's one of those stickies. Start there.

      Then apply. And apply. And apply some more.

      Best of copywriting success (and I mean that sincerely,)

      - Rick Duris
      I agree with Rick and Jag. If you want to become real good , then you are going to have to work at it.

      Even Halbert's method of learning how to write a sales letter is a version of running the gauntlet.

      http://www.thegaryhalbertletter.com/...experience.htm

      I spent time every day reading, writing, or studying sales copy and have done so for years. So if you want to become a professional copywriter then you need to develop a strong commitment to constantly honing your chops.

      If you want to become a professional copywriter, then another route is to hire a copywriting mentor. While they can flatten your learning curve and help you get good faster, you still going to have to work hard to get there.

      Best of luck,

      Mike
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      Kickstart Your Copywriting Business: How To Get Loads of New Clients FAST!

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      • Profile picture of the author Matt James
        If you want to become a professional copywriter, then another route is to hire a copywriting mentor. While they can flatten your learning curve and help you get good faster, you still going to have to work hard to get there.
        Mike is dead on with this.

        You can read and write all you like but having a professional look over your shoulder to criticise (maybe sometimes even praise) your work... will slash the learning curve.

        If I was starting out again, the first thing I'd do is reinvest any money I made into hiring a top copy mentor.
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        • Profile picture of the author RickDuris
          I would encourage you to re-read Mike's post and commit to memory verbatim Halbert's strategy for learning copywriting.

          I have not seen this particular newsletter before, but I believe it to be true.

          Some people when they get up in the morning, they go and take their dog for a walk, they may read USA Today, or they head off to the gym, or maybe if they're lucky, they have morning sex with their wife.

          Me?

          No matter how I am feeling, every morning, I hand write (meaning, hand copy) word for word one of the masters' sales letters.

          Yes, you can pick which ones.

          (By the way, re-typing the ad or sales letter on your computer is PURE BS. DO NOT DO THIS. You will be wasting your time and training your brain the wrong way. You MUST buy some legal paper and some pens and hand write the ad, word for word.)

          If you're pressed for time, a page from J. Peterman's catalog will do. On a plane, I will copy several of the Skymall catalog ads just for fun (especially if I am sitting next to someone really boring or there's no wi-fi connection.)

          Normally, I like to copy the DAK catalog (yeah, I am pretty old school.) I think Drew was a genius. If I have the time, I'll take a long form sales letter from Kennedy, Schwartz, Abraham, Bencivenga, Makepeace, Oglivy Halbert, sometimes Collier, etc.

          But--here's the part that makes the difference--at least to me--I do not stop UNTIL I have finished the entire letter/ad. So budget your time accordingly. My strong opinion is DO NOT STOP midway or you'll completely lose the benefit. ALWAYS finish the assignment you've given yourself IN ONE SITTING.

          Just like when one pumps iron at the gym, the LAST 2 or 3 reps are the ones that make the difference. They tear the muscle and force it to rebuild. The last mile for a runner is the one that builds their endurance.

          You want the full experience of the ad. You want to immerse yourself in it. Revel in it. You want to become "one" with the ad.

          Also--Variety matters. Don't get stuck in one genre or industry. For instance, I have re-copied the "Better Than BOTOX" ad about 15 times so far. Its good. And it's made somebody a fortune. But I don't personally do BOTOX.

          After reading this, you may think me a fanatic/lunatic. I am not. Like a musician, I practice in private so that I can perform in public.

          The things I am speaking of today is stuff I do privately, so that when it's time to perform publicly, I can perform on demand, without fail.

          (Quick digression: I was watching a documentary about Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch. In his studio where he practiced, you could actually see, even on camera, his studio floor. While the majority of the floor was waxed and pristine, there was one part that had a 5X5 foot dull concave "dimple." It was almost indented. That is THE SPOT where Michael honed his craft. It was obvious.)

          I can assure you the masters people occasionally refer to on this forum get absolutely giddy when they see an ad worthy of their time. They WILL write out that ad, word for word. I have seen this with my own eyes. This is how I personally learned. In other words, what I am saying is this "ain't just talk."

          Obviously, my post is not about "getting good fast." There's no such thing and any insinuation is most likely an unintended insult to our profession. This is about committing to getting good, maybe even great.

          Have a prosperous 2010,

          - Rick Duris
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  • Profile picture of the author johagulo
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  • Profile picture of the author jackbauer
    It will take experience to get good
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  • Profile picture of the author Moolah_Copywriting
    The best way to get good is:
    1. (I agree with Rick) Get a hard-drive of swipe files. Lawrence Bernstein has a pretty good collection of these - just do a google search for him. Then rewrite each of them by hand. This is the best way to burn the temp and rhythm of great salesletters into your brain.
    2. Start getting paying clients. It doesn't matter what they pay you just start writing for cash. Something clicks when you have a real client that is expecting your copy. Go ahead and pimp yourself out on elance until you've written 50 jobs and then start stepping up your game.

    Stan
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