Copywriting may be the most important and foundational skill in all of marketing.
Every ad campaign requires it and it’s used across every single marketing channel.
As a marketer, I’m so thankful that I spend some of my early years improving my own copywriting skills. That time continues to pay massive dividends in my career and across my businesses.
When folks ask me what areas to focus on in order to become a great marketer, my answer is always copywriting.
On Quick Sprout, we’ve put together the best practices and resources to learn copywriting. There’s no need to dig through arhiac tombs of copywriting legend, we’ve found the best tips and tricks for you.
Start here to learn the basics of copywriting:
In copywriting, one item matters more than everything else put together.
Headlines.
That’s right, get the headline perfect and your job is basically done. A common rule is to spend 50% of your time on just the headline and the other 50% on all the other copy that you need for your campaign. I used to think that rule was hyperbolic in order to prove a point, now I believe it’s not aggressive enough. I’d rather spend 70 or 80% of my time getting the right headline.
Many of the biggest wins of my career have been from finding a better headline that instantly increased lead flow by 30%. I’ve run hundreds of A/B tests, no other element carries as much weight as a headline.
After you’ve got the basics of copywriting down, spend the bulk of your time learning how to write better headlines:
Once you have a got handle on how to write headlines, it’s time to learn the tricks and hacks of copywriting. There are quite a few out there. All these little tricks will add up and give you a huge edge in persuasion.
When learning how to be a better copywriter, it’s tough to know how much copy to write. Does short copy or long copy convert better? Some expert copywriter’s will answer this question with: “The copy should be as long as it needs to be and no longer.” They may be right but that answer is unsatisfying. We break down a better answer in Long vs. Short Copy – Which is Better?
People also love to argue over what matters more: design or copywriting. Designers love design. Copywriters love copy. I believe that it matters how design and copy blend together, we go into detail in How to Combine Copy and Design for Optimum Results.
While I love tricks and best practices, all of my major wins have come from deep research and nonstop testing of ideas. During my A/B testing programs, I’d only see 20% of my tests become winners even when I was completely convinced that each test was a brilliant idea. These days, I start by doing deep copywriting research to understand my market as much as possible, then I jump into back-to-back copywriting testing until I find the option that works the best. Then whenever I’m stuck, I go back to the research, brainstorm some more tests, and keep cycling through. Sooner or later, I find the next big winner.
Finally, it’s time to close the sale and convert your prospect into a customer. Lots of folks hesitate here, it can feel sleazy to ask for the sale. There are lots of ways on how to go for the sale in an authentic, genuine way that also works. Check out How to Close the Deal with Your Copy to see how.