Maximum Results Copywritng

Sales Focused Copywriting For Direct Response Marketers Who Want More Clients...More Sales...More Cash In The Bank!

You are here: Home / Archives for Copywriting

11 (Mostly Recent) Direct Response Copywriting And Marketing Books Worth A Look

The folks at DigitalMarketer recently published a post on their blog…

“DM Reading List—11 Copywriting Book Recommendations from Engage Members”.

DM Head Honcho Ryan Deiss had this to say about the post…

“Even in this digital age that we currently reside, there is just something about a book that still gets people excited and engaged.

(And I mean legitimately engaged: just ask DigitalMarketer’s Social Media Manager—Our book posts on Facebook and Instagram get some of the highest engagement of all our posts…and it’s just a picture of a book!)

My theory is that in a world where podcasts, social media posts, and YouTube videos vie for our attention every second of EVERY day, the written word—meticulously edited and added to Amazon’s cyber shelves—STILL reigns supreme.

In DigitalMarketer’s member community, recommendations for books cover a wide range of subjects.

But we’ve found that it’s books on copywriting that tend to be the most discussed… probably because how you tell your story, connect with your audience, and get them to convert comes down to how you systematically assemble language.

And in our most recent featured blog post by DigitalMarketer’s Community Manager, Justina Fenberg, you’ll find some of the most beloved books about copywriting, according to actual members of the DM Engage Facebook community.”

Now, as you might imagine, as a professional copywriter I have many…dozens…of books about direct response marketing and copywriting. However…for me…there’s always room for more! 

As an aside, here’s an important point for marketers to keep in mind.  If someone is really interested in a topic…and I mean really interested…their appetite for material is almost unlimited.  One classic example…the golf market.  Back to the copywriting books…

So I read the post with interest.  What would I discover?  Most of the books are quite recent…with one “Golden Oldie” and a few others that have been around for a while. Here’s my quick run through of the list. [Read more…]

Interview On Copywriting With The Late Scott Haines

I was very sad to hear that copywriter Scott Haines passed away recently after suffering a stroke on Christmas Day.  Scott was well known and highly regarded in the direct response community. He cut his teeth working with the legendary Gary Halbert and he was close with people like John Carlton.  Here’s a post with John’s recollections of his friend…

“Mongo’s Last Adventure”

I didn’t know Scott but was very familiar with his work. I first came across him through a special report titled “The Amazing Copywriting Secrets Of An Adman Who Has To Live By His Results!” The original version was 60 pages and cost something like $27 from memory.  It was jammed packed with useful insights as well as a number of letter examples that I ended up using often as “swipes”.

Scott’s “signature” program was “Shortcut Copywriting Secrets” that was essentially the condensed version of what he learned from Gary Halbert.  For some reason the great “Sir Gary” never got around to producing a definitive course on his copywriting approach (although he did leave a huge body of work). Reputedly, when asked about such a program he referred people to Scott’s course.  I have the course and it’s well worth a place in any copywriter’s library.

Now, about that interview mentioned in the post title… [Read more…]

Does This Mean Doomsday For Copywriters?

Does this mean Doomsday for copywriters?

The great Drayton Bird recently drew my attention to a company called Persado that seems intent on destroying the livelihood of a great many copywriters.  The Wall Street Journal reports…

“Persado Raises $21 Million to Replace Human Copywriters With Computers”.

The company…

“…specializes in creating automated messages that try to persuade people to take action, the kinds of messages that traditionally have been written by copywriters and include appeals to buy something, renew a contract, and so on.

Citi uses Persado for its credit card business and says the rate at which its emails are opened has increased by 70%. In addition, the rate at which recipients who open those emails go on to click on them has increased by 114%.”

The founder of Persado, Alex Vratskides, brags that “We have never lost to a human”.

Could this mean doomsday for copywriters?

Drayton had a number of interesting comments and thought the claims of Persado, in this particular case, quite plausible because, in his words…

a) Most copywriters are plain bad.

b) Many routine tasks are given to the less competent, though I think practical things like renewals are far more important to customers (and marketers) than guff about our amazing new gizmo.

c) Many – maybe most – have bogus creativity injected by writers bored with doing the same old job.

All good points, however, I’m not throwing away my copywriting pen just yet.  Here’s why… [Read more…]

Headline Case Study #1 – Men’s Fitness July 2014

“If the headline is poor, the copy will not be read.  And copy that is  not read does not sell goods. ”

– John Caples

You can never spend too much time on headlines, in my humble opinion.

As is often remarked, the headline is the “Ad for the Ad” and the starting point of the sales conversation with your prospective customer or client.

And the headline or headline block can also be…

1. Used as a short ad in its own right (modified as necessary, for example with a call-to-action)

2. Recycled in the main ad itself or supporting materials

As an aside, when I refer to the “headline block”, I’m referring to the combination of the pre-head, the main headline and the the post-headline section.  That post-headline section can often include bullets and be quite long (take a look at many classic John Carlton sales letters, for example).

Back to our case study and this is from the July 2014 issue of “Men’s Fitness” magazine.  In fact, it’s an ad for the bonus included with the magazine which is a “Last minute summer body” program.

The main headline block is in the top part of the graphic at the top of the post and at the bottom is the copy reused elsewhere on the packaging.

The first thing to keep in mind is…

[Read more…]

Persuasion Lesson From “Game Of Thrones”

OK, I confess I’m a BIG fan of “Game Of Thrones”.  Borderline obsessed.  I’ve read all of the books.  Watched every episode of the show and eagerly await each new installment.  I pore over reviews and the excellent commentary on the fan site Westeros.org.

Now, of course, it’s important as a writer to understand great storytelling.  In particular the ability to capture the imagination of the reader and KEEP them reading.  And despite some flaws, in the “Game Of Thrones” saga (strictly speaking, “A Song of Ice And Fire” but let’s not quibble) author George Martin has created a rich and fascinating fantasy world and a compelling story.  OK, books 4 and 5 have dragged somewhat and been hard-going at times…but I NEED to keep going and find out what happens!

Back to the TV show and in the latest episode (number 6 in series 4 – “The Laws Of Gods And Men”)…there is a GREAT opening scene with powerful lessons in persuasion that copywriters and marketers would do well to note.

Sadly, I can’t embed the scene here but you can watch it at a link that’s coming up…

[Read more…]