It was two years ago, our first Strategy and Conversion podcast, where we talked about copywriting and the psychology of selling. Since then, many things have changed.
Among other things, Boris Johnson was still PM in the UK, Donald Trump was still in the Whitehouse, Prince Philip had just died and the Suez Canal had just been reopened after the 'Ever Given' had tried to sail down it sideways.
Jamie had lockdown hair and beard and I had shaved off mine; (My beard, that is, I was still the bald 'slaphead' I had been for forty years or more. You can see the embarrassing evidence here.
However, one thing hasn't changed and that is the reader's emotion you must engage when you write copy, whether that be for sales pages, blogs or posts. Although videos and webinars are still the 'go to' tools for many marketers, millions of people still read and take action from the written word, rarely to buy outright but most times, to move to the next stage in your sales process.
Being a copywriter, I am always looking to see how I can improve the copy so that it converts more people from just scrolling through the copy to actively taking some action after reading it. A few years back, having pored over many different models and historic sales pages, I came up with a new model, called GREAT.
You'll see us discussing this on the podcast episode and we talk about how it is an evolution of the classic copywriting models that are still around today but now a little jaded and tired. They are focused on selling to people as opposed to attracting people.
Nowadays, prospects are so much more sophisticated and they want to be romanced and not told. There are so many marketing messages flying at them, that they have now built an outer layer of stone to deflect most of them. Most, but not all. They are still buyers and therefore, are still shopping. They are looking for something that attracts their eye.
That is what the GREAT copywriting model does. It attracts people to us by catching their emotions and raising their desire to learn more. This could do the same for you. Even with the advent of ChatGPT and Bard, the output you get from these AI platforms still doesn't get to the deep emotions of attraction that a prospect wants. The writing they produce is good but it isn't GREAT.
The GREAT acronym stands for:
G Grab Attention
R Raise Desire
E Elicit Trust, and Respect
A Affirm Authority
T Transform from passive to active
When you include all these elements into your sales page in this order, you create compelling content that urges your prospect to read on and then take action. The reason it is so compelling is because in the middle sections, you are concentrating on appealing to their emotions as you create your trust with them.
This method enables you to 'speak' to your prospect as if you were speaking to them directly on an individual basis. That means that, when they come onto a call with you, they are much warmer and eager because they have already started to see how you can help them. In effect, you romanced the stone and they are ready to talk.
Our training 'How to write GREAT Copy' is part of our 3X Strategy program, a practical 6 month program, where you receive training and coaching that is all designed to help you triple your business.
