13 Copywriting Rules That Should Never Be Broken (Part 1)

Copywriting rules CAN and occasionally SHOULDit for them?" Tell them!
be broken. I think far too many copywriters take8. Always Sell Benefits: Many beginning
advertising rules (for example, those of Davidcopywriters, and even some veterans, mistake
Ogilvy, John Caples and Claude Hopkins) asfeatures for benefits. There's a huge difference.
commandments written in stone. They're not.Features are characteristics that physically
They are merely guidelines designed to helpdescribe your product or service. Benefits
writers produce more effective copy. I believe, ifdescribe how your product or service will help the
breaking the rules improves the copy, then thecustomer solve his or her problem. In other
rules should definitely be broken.words, what the customer will gain by using the
Why? Breaking the rules allows us to discoverproduct or service.
new copywriting breakthroughs and techniques.For example, A feature is the room service that
Having said that, I believe there are someyour hotel provides, when you're on vacation. A
copywriting rules that over the years havebenefit is, room service allows you to relax and
proven to be so vital to the overall effectivenesseat in the comfort and privacy of your own
of an ad or sales letter, they should NEVER beroom at your convenience.
broken. They are as follows:Here's a good analogy: People don't buy drills. They
1. Always Use A Compelling Headline: Readershipbuy the holes the drill makes. Remember, people
studies show the first thing readers see whendon't buy products. They buy the benefits they
they're scanning ads or sales letters is yourget from the products.
headline. The purpose of a headline is to get the9. Always Be Specific: Give examples...name
reader to stop and read your copy. In essence,names...attribute quotes, give facts and figures.
your headline acts like a traffic cop or stop sign atRemember, the credibility of your sales message
a busy intersection. If there's no traffic cop oris in direct proportion to the number of specifics
stop sign, people simply won't stop and chaosyou provide. Don't just say "lose weight." Instead
ensues! Always use a stop sign!say, "lose 7 pounds in 7 days!" Be specific.
2. Always Use A Subhead: Especially for long ads10. Always Use Testimonials: Testimonials are an
and sales letters. A subhead is an additionalunbeatable guarantee of assurance. Whenever
headline that is not quite as large as the actualpossible always use your customers full name as
headline.opposed to initials only. Also, specific comments
The subhead provides additional information andregarding your product or service are always
can be wordier than the headline itself. Forbetter than general praise. Remember, specific
example, here's a classic headline and subhead:results are always more powerful than vague
The Lazy Man's Way To Riches.opinions.
"Most People Are Too Busy Earning A Living To11. Always Offer "FREE" Bonuses: When used
Make Any Money!"correctly, a FREE bonus increases your readers
3. Always Connect Your Opening To Yourdesire to purchase your product or service. But
Headline: After your headline gets the readersdon't offer the same reconstituted garbage that
attention, next you want to get them interestedeveryone else is offering. Offer your reader
in your product or service. You do that bysomething unique - something of "real" value. It
immediately delivering what your headlinemay take some brainstorming on your part to
promises. Don't try to be cute, and don't stringcome up with something worthwhile, but I can
your readers along. For example, did you noticeassure you, the extra sales you'll achieve are
how I got right into telling you about the "13worth the effort.
Copywriting Rules That Should Never Be Broken?"12. Always ASK For The Order: This may seem
4. Use Compelling Subheads Throughout Yourlike common sense to you, but you'd be amazed
Copy: This serves two purposes: 1. It breaks upat how many sales letters or ads I've seen that
your copy, so that it's easier to read. 2. Subheadsdon't ask for the order. This is called "closing the
are also attention grabbers. Remember manydeal," or in copywriting terms, "call to action."
readers are scanners. They'll scan your copy first,Always ASK for the order!
before deciding whether or not to actually read it.13. Always Use A P.S.: Readership studies show,
That's why it's important to make sure yourafter the headline, the P.S. is the second most
subheads are compelling and interesting. You canread part of an ad or sales letter. It's very
also use bullets, or a combination of bullets andeffective to include a post- script (P.S.) at the end
subheads.of your ad or sales letter. Your post-script should
5. Always Write The Way You Talk: It's calledinclude an enticement of some sort, to get the
"Conversational copy." What's conversationalreader to order NOW. You should also use the
copy? Conversational copy simply means talkingpost-script as a final call to "ACTION"!
to the reader in a conversational manner - likeHere's an example of an effective post-script:
you're talking to your best friend.P.S. Order NOW, and receive a FREE MP3 player.
6. Always Make Your Copy Transparent: Don't tryOrder NOW"!
to be cute and don't try to be clever with yourYou can also use a post-script to tie everything
writing. The purpose of copy is not to get thetogether, by summarizing your most important
reader thinking how clever you are - it's to getpoints and benefits - plus offer an enticement of
the reader thinking "I want to buy that!" Makesome sort.
your intentions as transparent as a brand newAnother thing, only use one P.S. Using multiple
window.post-scripts dilutes the effectiveness and urgency
7. Always Write About "ME": Don't write aboutof your P.S. altogether. When it comes to using
"YOU." Write about "ME" "What's in it for ME?"post scripts, less is more.
That's all your readers really care about. "What's in