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How to Build It Here's some good ways to build up the urgency of your copy:
See, if you don't add some urgency on why they should act now, they might say, "Oh,
I'll just buy it next pay day. Then they forget or they can't find your site ever
again. They should buy NOW. Not tomorrow, not next week. Now.
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Where to Build Urgency in Your Copy If you can do it in your headline, do it. How? "How to Hurry up and Satisfy Your Wife in Bed Before she finds out that Billy Bob Can!" OUCH! That's a damn painful thought to most men! If your product or service can and does solve some physical or "thoughtful" pain - you could address it in your headline while offering a solution. You can bring it up in the hook or lead. What's something painful or "unconfrontable" about the problem to most people? Well, confront it. "I know that back pains are common, but mine were so bad until recently that I couldn't perform. You know what I mean." Or "My back used to hurt so bad that I had problems relieving myself. Until Dr. Flat U. Lance showed me how to cure it myself with a simple foot massage." You can use testimonials, too, to build up some urgency. You can build that urgency in every part and section of your copy. The beginning and the end of your sales letter are the top places to address those "urgency" issues. The Thought Behind Building Urgency See, building a sense that it's urgent was found from tests back in the late 1800s. Direct mail sellers found that when something was urgent enough, now, that their readers would buy now. They also found that if the readers didn't buy now, they wouldn't buy at all. And somehow that got all cavorted and twisted into building FEAR. Now, fear is basically a total scattering of attention because of a real or perceived threat. When a person is "fear-stricken" then they're open to direct suggestion because any suggestion then is almost like a hypnotic command: it gives the person one focus. Well, the use of fear has proven to sell a lot of items, mostly insurance, newspapers and other fraud products that rely on that fear. It works on a low level. A much more powerful way to make sales is by building enthusiasm. It's also much more difficult for some odd reason. Well, there's a lot of other emotions and motivations that appeal to the decision to buy a product or service. But the real point is that you want to create and build a strong sense of urgency. You don't have to use fear. In fact, I wouldn't recommend it at all. Just use one or more of the tactics above in two or more parts of your copy, preferably at the beginning, near the beginning, near the end and the close. How Not to Use Fear Relate to the problem, the situation from a personal viewpoint. Build up an enthusiasm about getting the desired results. Use enthusiastic testimonials and praise about the results and benefits. Use a bit of scarcity. Limit the time they have to respond, the number of bonuses, the time on the bonuses. Whatever. But do it with enthusiasm. Most people get refreshed when they read an enthusiastic sales letter. They're so rare that they're almost a novelty. I'm not talking about a sales letter full of hyped up promises and other hype, but real enthusiasm. "Wow! I can't thank you enough for these free tutorials. With just the information that you give away for free, I've been able to re-write my sales letter and have already tripled sales (309% increase!). Thank you for providing your free copywriting tutorials. They've helped my business grow more than I though realistic. I can't wait to get to your other free tutorials. Thanks again. Marty Hollingshead, Cleveland, Ohio - December 1, 2000 - www.smartsecs.com" Build up the enthusiasm, the positive motivation - and show the reader that your promises are really attainable. Be honest, be upbeat. You'll sell more. Add that urgency, and you'll sell more yet. Really. You will. Test it and see for yourself. Other Ways to Generate Urgency Use words that convey urgency. Hurry. Act now. Tomorrow is too late. You can start benefiting immediately after you order. and on and on. If you're super-confident about the results that can be attained with your product or service, you can apologize to the reader if they've decided not to buy. You can let them know - again - that their thing they want solved can be solved and that they really won't have to deal with it any longer. You should show your confidence in your writing. Not cockiness, confidence. Remember from the basics that you must be passionate about your product? Well that passion will always pull better than the substitute of the non-passionate: fear. That's right. Invoking fear is a substitute for real passion about your product. Even greed is more powerful than fear, really. Be passionate about your market. Know the trends that are affecting your clients, and be willing to scare them into action with problems they didn't even know they had. Naturally you want to write the best copy you can so you profit more. So practice a sample letter while being enthusiastic about your product. Be passionate. Be enthusiastic. Now, just for a little proof, write a sample letter while intending to evoke fear in the reader. The compare the letters for yourself. Give both to some friends and ask them which on would be more likely to make them buy. Try it for yourself. Don't just take my word for it. When you've proven to yourself the power of passion and enthusiasm, add it to your sales letter, or start all over from scratch.
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© 2002 by Russell Burnham. All Rights Reserved. Modified May 19, 2008.
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