Tag Archives: Long Copy

Why you should spend more time in bed with your reader

Writing copy to grab your reader’s attention is hard. You might spend weeks testing different ideas for nothing. Even if the product or service you’re selling is great, it doesn’t necessarily make writing captivating copy any easier. But there is an exercise you can do to write copy with a much greater chance of success. […]

The myth that no one reads long copy – part one

Do people read long copy? On an almost daily basis someone suggests to me people don’t. The argument goes: In this modern world of failing attention spans no one gives anything any longer than a few seconds. What do you think? I think this whole question is piffle. I’ll tell you why in a minute… But […]

Putting the proof in your persuasive pudding

A quick reminder before I get into this piece… My fiancée Ruth and I…otherwise known as ‘Gluth’…are running the Great Grimsby 10k this year and raising money for the British Heart Foundation. For the many readers outside the UK who are wondering what on earth ‘Great Grimsby’ is…it’s where I’m from. Grimsby is a small fishing port on […]

The ‘golden thread’ is not enough

Though it might look like nonsense right now… I guarantee it will help you shave hours off the time you spend reviewing and editing your copy. And it’ll make your copy a damn sight more effective. It’s almost too simple to follow… And it only takes about five minutes from start to finish. Sound interesting? Good. Let me show you what […]

The one thing you must do to make sure you have new ideas

Ideas are irritating. Sometimes they’re right there in your face, shouting at you like an arrogant teenage kid who thinks they know best… Other times they’re nowhere to be seen, like your broke mate Steve who’s always in the toilet when it’s his round at the bar. I’ll tell you what… From now on, let’s […]

Five things I definitely don’t know about copywriting

Too many copywriting gurus go on and on about what they DO know… So to freshen things up a little, here are five things about copywriting that I definitely DO NOT know. 1. I don’t ever know what the best headline is for any particular product or service that I am selling. Even when I […]

How stock images can ruin your sales letters

Pictures paint a thousand words, right? But when it comes to using pictures in a direct-response sales letter, a badly chosen image will more likely lose you a thousand sales. More often than not, in my own sales letters I tend to avoid using stock images altogether. After all, when writing long copy you’re really constructing a persuasive […]

Sometimes copy has nothing to do with the words you write

When you walk into a classy restaurant you usually notice one thing before anything else… Sometimes, in fact, you don’t even realise you’ve registered it: it’s something that happens on a subconscious level. But the fact is, this seemingly minor detail can have a huge effect on your overall experience. I’m talking about a sense […]

How sleeping with your readers will improve your copy

Coming up with a headline that will grab your reader’s attention is hard. You might spend weeks writing and testing different ideas for nothing. Even if the product or service you’re selling is amazing, it doesn’t necessarily make writing a captivating headline any easier… But there is an exercise you can do that will help […]

Does your copy embarrass you AND your customer?

When someone decides to pay money in return for a product or service, it’s a serious thing. Good copy should respect that. I was sat in a meeting recently when a sales letter I had written was brought up on the screen. Though I naturally recognized it as mine, the people I was meeting with […]