How to Write Copy That Sells

It doesn’t matter if you’re writing a sales letter, a brochure, or a radio commercial, these same principles apply.

First, let’s review the fundamental rules of selling. We like to buy things, but we don’t like to be sold. We all buy things for emotional, not rational reasons. Once we make the decision to buy we need to satisfy our emotional decisions with logic. Simply stated: sell to the heart, not to the head.

Now that we’ve established that we all buy for emotional reasons, write out a profile of your ideal customer. How old are they? What’s their gender? What’s their income? Do you know their hobbies? What are their interests? Be as specific as you can.

When you think about this ideal customer profile, does a certain individual come to mind? Start thinking about your regular customers. Can you picture one of your regulars who personify your ideal customer?

When you sit down to write your advertisement visualize this person. Pretend that you’re sitting down with this individual to have a beer or a cup of coffee. What would you say to this person? How would you get them excited about something they may not otherwise care about? How would you persuade them to do something they might not otherwise do? What words would you select? What tone would you use? How much evidence would you need to convince them?

Write your ad as if you’re having a conversation with your best customer. This ad won’t contain any clever slogans or flashy promises, but it’ll be the best sales piece you’ve ever written.

Here’s the acid test. Read what you’ve written out loud. If it sounds like a commercial, throw it out and start anew. If it sounds like it could be one side of a conversation you’re having with a friend, then you’ve written a winning ad.

To quote Jeffrey Hedquist of Hedquist Productions: The less you approach this communication as a radio commercial, the less it’ll sound like one. The less it sounds like one, the more attention it’ll get. And of course, the more attention it gets, the more people will respond. The more sales you will make.