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It’s finally here!! The first episode of Copy Lab! 🥳
Join me as I discuss what's coming up on the podcast and guide you through the SWORD framework for great copywriting. You'll also learn why copywriting is a superpower, the *REAL* difference between copywriting and content writing, and the single highest converting word you need incorporate into your copy TODAY.
COPYWRITING VS. CONTENT
I want to start the podcast off by talking about some copywriting basics. It's kind of an obvious place to start, but I do think it's good to set some foundation before we go into talking about all the nitty gritty technical aspects of writing. So I want to touch on what copywriting is exactly. For those of you who might not know and it's not, you would be surprised, it's not common knowledge.
A lot of people get Copywriting and content writing confused. They're very different things and I wanna spend a little bit of time talking about that so that way this podcast makes sense. I’m going to go into detail with this, but in short copywriting is structured to get people to take a specific action - like make a purchase or sign up for an email list. Content writing is to provide information, entertainment, or value - like blogs and articles.
Copywriting is distinct from content writing as it is goal-oriented and aims to persuade readers to take a specific action.
Referred to as "direct-response" copywriting, it focuses on crafting persuasive, action-focused writing rather than informative content. The ultimate objective, known as "conversion," involves getting the reader to complete the intended action, such as making a purchase or signing up for an email.
Conversion-focused copy is carefully crafted to guide the reader on a planned journey, ensuring they take the desired action. There are subcategories of copywriting, including brand copywriting that emphasizes storytelling and personality, and SEO copywriting, which optimizes website elements for search engine visibility.
In contrast, content writing aims to provide value and information rather than prompting immediate action. It encompasses various forms such as blogs, news articles, email newsletters, and social media copy.
While content writing requires a strategic approach to support the brand and subtly move readers closer to making a purchase, its primary purpose is not immediate conversion.
Business owners seeking writers should recognize the difference between copywriters specialized in direct-response techniques and content writers focused on informational value. Conversion copywriters tend to be more expensive due to their emphasis on driving sales and immediate business growth.
When researching copywriting techniques, it is essential to prioritize conversion or direct-response techniques if the goal is to sell products or services.
Sooooo what does all this entail? What is good copywriting anyway?
SWORD Framework: 5 Foundations of Great Copywriting
I want to start off this podcast by talking about 5 foundational elements of great copywriting. This is the ground zero for great copy. I call it the SWORD Framework. Yep, like a ninja sword.
I’m going to go through what each letter in the acronym stands for. If you aren't sure where to start with copywriting, this is definitely going to help. If you can check these 5 boxes, you’ll have a pretty solid copy, then we work on tweaking from there.
STORYTELLING
Here's a mind-blowing fact for you: people remember facts a whopping 22 times more when they're wrapped in a story. Crazy, right?
So instead of just throwing out a random fact about your product or service, weave it into a story instead.
You want to tell a memorable story that grabs your readers and takes them on a little journey with you. Whether you're sharing personal experiences or conjuring up an imaginary world, storytelling in copywriting is the secret that keeps your audience hooked until the very end.
A story can be as short as one line or a quick sentence that adds some context and shares an experience. Stories are everywhere and once you grasp their importance, you can effortlessly weave them into your copywriting.
When it comes to promoting your product or service, storytelling is your secret weapon. Share stories about your brand.
Or better yet, let your customers do the talking through testimonials.
2. WRITE LIKE YOU TALK
Copywriting doesn't have to be all formal and stuffy. In fact, it's way more effective when you write like you're having a conversation with someone in everyday life.
This helps your readers connect with your message on a deeper level and makes it easier for them to relate to what you're saying.
3. ONE PERSON
When it comes to copywriting, it's important to write as if you're talking to one person. Use "you" instead of "they" or "people" to directly address your reader. This creates a more personal and intimate experience, building trust along the way.
So here's the deal: take a look at your copy right now and see if the word "you" is present throughout. Using "you" is a game-changer. It's the highest converting word you can use in your copy because it holds incredible power.
When people read something online, whether it's an email or your website, they're doing it alone. They're not in a group or surrounded by others. It's just them and you. It's an intimate experience that you need to honor.
Starting your email with "hey guys" or “what’s up everyone” addressing a big group is a no-go. People don't like it. It doesn't work well in terms of conversion or gaining their liking. It can make them feel undervalued or like just a number. That's not the look you want.
4. RELATE
The fourth element is all about Relate. We're talking about connecting with your reader through empathy. Empathy means understanding how someone else feels and using your copywriting skills to capture those feelings in your writing. It's not rocket science, but it's essential to know your reader and their needs so you can craft a message that resonates with them.
Here's the deal: To relate to your reader, you need to put yourself in their shoes. Understand their pain points, desires, and challenges. When you genuinely get where they're coming from, you can speak their language and address their concerns effectively.
So, take the time to get to know your audience. Dig deep into their motivations, fears, and aspirations. This knowledge will empower you to tailor your message perfectly to their needs. Your copy should speak directly to them, showing that you're on their side and ready to help.
5. DIRECTNESS
Directness is all about being crystal clear in your copywriting and including strong calls-to-action. You can't leave your readers hanging, wondering what to do next. That's why you need to tell them exactly what you want them to do. Throw in phrases like "Click here" or "Sign Up Now" towards the end of your writing.
Confusion is the ultimate conversion killer. I've seen plenty of writers out there who are painfully confusing. They write vague, unclear copy that doesn't explain their main offer. So do yourself a favor and go back to your writing. Take a good look and see if there are any head-scratching parts.
Remember, Your emails and copy should stand alone and make sense even if someone missed the previous ones. It's a noisy world out there. We can’t assume that people are following your every move and reading every email in perfect sequence. Nope, that's not happening. Don't confuse people or assume they know what you're talking about.
Confused people don't buy.
And there you have it!
The SWORD Framework:
Storytelling
Write like you talk
One reader
Relate
Directness
Those are the 5 Foundations of great copywriting. Keep those in mind when you’re writing and you’ll have better copy. Guaranteed.
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See you in Episode 2.
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(This is transcribed by 🤖 so please excuse the funky sentence breaks, misplaced periods, and typos. The robots are doing their best!)
[00:00:00] You're listening to the Copy Lab Podcast, episode number one. Hello and welcome to Copy Lab, the marketing and business podcast that teaches you how to write better, sell more, and ignite your business even if you suck at writing. I'm your host, Sara Estes, entrepreneur, copywriter, marketing strategist, and founder of Copy Tiger, where I help changemakers, disruptors and dreamers get their message to the masses.
Let's get started.
Today I'm gonna be talking about the five foundational elements of. Great copywriting, why copywriting is a superpower, and two key things that you can take into your copywriting today. Apply them immediately and make your copywriting way better, so stay tuned.
For those of you who don't know me, my name is Sara Estes. I'm based in Nashville, Tennessee. I've been writing professionally for about
[00:01:00] 13 years. I started as a journalist back in 2009 and since. Then I've published articles, weekly advice columns, reviews, think pieces, and essays, and dozens of outlets across the country.
After over a decade of freelance writing, I turned my attention to conversion copywriting to help grow the businesses that I love. That's how my business copy Tiger was born. This is the first year that I'm going. All into the entrepreneurial world in starting my own business. So it's super exciting to share that journey with you.
Well, I was doing all that writing. I usually had another kind of job going on to supplement my income. I worked in art galleries, art museums, and most recently, For the past six years, I was a private investigator working in the criminal defense world, which I can't wait to tell y'all about in an upcoming episode.
But in short, while I was doing that job, I learned a great deal about human desire and motivation, and I used my writing, interviewing, and researching skills to keep innocent people out of jail. I spent a lot of time with prisoners on
[00:02:00] death row, collecting their life stories. I left that job about six months ago to pursue my own business and walked away with an endless amount of stories and crazy memories and a much better understanding of the human experience.
All of that feeds into my unique approach to copywriting, which I'll be sharing with you on this podcast. While I love interview podcast, copy Lab is more like a mini course where I'll be teaching entrepreneurs and writers how to master the art of great copywriting. We'll be looking at specific examples and dissecting proven mechanisms, as well as the magic that leads to stellar high impact writing.
That said, I'm also gonna be bringing in a couple of special guests to the podcast, some badass creatives who are going to help you knock your marketing out of the park and grow your business. So welcome to Copy Lab. This is the Maid in Voyage, which is so exciting because I've been planning on doing this podcast for a long time now.
So the fact that we're here is awesome.
[00:03:00] I wanna start the podcast off by talking about some copywriting basics. I realize that's a little bit of an obvious place to start, but some, sometimes you need to start from the beginning. I think it's good to set some foundation before we go. Into talking about the nitty gritty technical aspects of writing.
So I wanna touch on what copywriting is exactly. For those of you who might not know and you would be surprised, it's not common knowledge. A lot of people get copywriting and content writing confused. They're very different things and I wanna spend a little time talking about that. So this podcast makes sense.
I'm gonna go into detail with this, but in short, copywriting is structured to get people to take a specific action, like make a purchase or sign up for an email list while content writing is to provide information, entertainment, or value something. So think blogs, articles, listicles, that kind of thing.
Copywriting is different from content writing because copywriting is goal oriented. It has a purpose and an action that it's trying
[00:04:00] to get readers to take. Copywriting is persuasive writing that's structured to get people to do a particular thing. Now I wanna talk about some terminology we'll be using.
You'll hear this kind of writing called Direct response copywriting, which people use to help differentiate the fact that it's persuasive action focused writing and not content writing. So it's got a purpose and immeasurable goal, and that goal is typically what we refer to as conversion, which is just a fancy term.
That means the action was taken, the action could be a purchase or an email sign up. The conversion just means that the person did what we wanted them to do. So when people talk about conversion rates in copywriting, they're talking about how many times our copywriting succeeded in getting the person who's also called the lead to complete the intended action.
So when I say conversion focused copy, that's what we're talking about writing that is very carefully crafted to bring the
[00:05:00] lead on a planned out journey. So they end up doing. The thing. Now, there are nuanced flavors of copywriting, like brand copywriting, which has a little more to do with storytelling and personality, and tends to be associated with writing the copy for portions of a business's website, like the about page or internal guides, like brand voice guides or style guides.
That kind of writing isn't action based, but it's more. About smart and intentional branding. There's also something called SEO copywriting, which involves writing elements of a website specifically to grow traffic and make a particular website appear more frequently in the search engines like Google.
So as you can see, there are subcategories of copywriting that are more drilled down into a particular area, but overall, it's very calculated. Studied research-based writing with a specific purpose. Now let's talk about content writing. Content writing, on the other hand is writing that's more informational, more about.
Providing value. Think blogs, news articles, email newsletters, social
[00:06:00] media copy, white papers. Its sole. Purpose is not to get the reader to take an immediate action. It's providing value and keeping the business or brand at the top of their audience's mind and building their authority in the field. Now, that's not to say there isn't a killer strategy to content writing, there most definitely should be.
Your content strategy should be very intentional in that it supports your brand in a high level way and moves the reader or listener closer to wanting to buy your product or service, even if it's just subtle. You absolutely don't want to be creating content that doesn't move the needle for your business.
That is just a bad game plan. We talk more about content strategy in a later episode, but for now, I wanna make this distinction between copywriting and content writing, especially if you're a business owner looking to hire a writer. It's important to know that someone who specializes in writing blog posts for businesses may not be particularly trained in the direct response copywriting techniques that are needed to write a killer sales page or a sales email sequence that converts.
And on the flip
[00:07:00] side, a conversion copywriter may not be the person you want to hire to write your ebook or your white paper. And typically, conversion copywriters are gonna be more expensive to hire than content writers because the ROI on their services are very different. Conversion copywriters are there to help you sell more and grow your business immediately.
So typically they're charging higher rates. Knowing the difference is also helpful. If you're out there looking for tutorials on how to write your own copy for your business, make sure that you're researching conversion or direct response copywriting techniques if you're trying to write things to help you sell your product or service.
One of my goals for this podcast is to help entrepreneurs who are doing it all themselves write really amazing copy that grows their business. I know how hard it is to write everything when you're starting your business, and I'm talking about any kind of business, whether you're selling flowers, building furniture, or you have an online business, I know how hard it is to write everything you need.
If you're just starting up, you may not have the capital to invest in a
[00:08:00] copywriter yet, and you're at that stage where you're DIYing everything and you're just trying to figure it out. That's who I wanna help, because I have friends who have been there. My husband is an entrepreneur. My father was an entrepreneur for a minute during my childhood, and I've just seen firsthand how hard it is to do all of it, especially when you aren't a trained writer.
Or even worse, you. Think that you're not a good writer. It can be really challenging. So this podcast exists to help you overcome those challenges and figure out a way to navigate all the writing that you need to do for your business. So what I really want this podcast to do is to help people who are feeling stuck in that space.
Maybe you're staring at the screen and you don't know what to say. Maybe you have a website that you're putting up pictures and hoping they speak for themselves. Maybe you haven't written anything since like, 2010 and suddenly you need to write an email and you're just terrified to press send. Writing has this special way of flaring up our imposter syndrome and all the other syndromes when we're putting it out into the world.
So in each episode, I wanna give you [00:09:00] the basic copywriting skills that you can take and apply to your business immediately. Or if you're a writer who's just now getting into copywriting, you can use these lessons to help your clients and grow your skillset. And even if you're a seasoned copywriter who knows all of these concepts already, I'll be talking about new research and techniques that are working today, and a lot of these episodes will be helpful reminders of some things that might have slipped into the back of your brain over time.
We all need some refreshers from time to time. I say this a lot. Copywriting is a superpower. And I wanna tell you why I believe this to be true. Copywriting is this interesting intersection between art and science and psychology, research and numbers, and measuring. It's a multifaceted field that for me, is one of the most interesting ways to write.
I've done literally every other kind of writing you can imagine, from fiction to advice columns, news articles, to legal writing. I've kind of done it all, and [00:10:00] copywriting is one of the most fascinating ways to use words as a means to help people, to grow businesses, to make a major impact in the world, and copywriting does in fact make a huge impact.
This is what I mean by copywriting is kind of like a superpower because once you know how to use your words in a persuasive way, you can sell anything and that is powerful. Now, like anything, this can be used for good or evil. In essence, copywriting skills allow you to persuade people to take action.
That action could be harmful to the world or it could be helpful. That's why ethics is so incredibly important in this industry. And I wanna touch on that for just a minute in terms of my personal philosophy as a copywriter. So the way I like to think of it is that copywriting for me is the way that I cast my vote to say what I think deserves to be lifted up in the world.
I only write for people and businesses who are doing amazing things in the world. Why? Because I know that with great copywriting, their [00:11:00] business, their sales, their platform, their reach will most certainly expand. That's why for me personally, I like to work with thought leaders and creators and entrepreneurs who are doing good, helpful, inspiring stuff in the world, or they're encouraging people to become better versions of themselves.
It's rewarding for me to be able to help those people increase their revenue and scale their impact in a major way that fuels me all day long. So that's why I think copywriting is so important, whether you're a copywriter or if you have your own business and you're offering something that will help people with a problem or transform their lives in a positive way.
You've got to get the word out there about what you're offering and when you can master that, you can really gain some traction. First though, you have to be comfortable with marketing yourself. Copywriting is marketing, it's selling. I'm highly aware that the majority of people get the ickiest feeling when they think about marketing themselves or selling their own stuff.
You hate it. You don't wanna be sleazy or pushy or [00:12:00] annoying. You have a very visceral resistance to the idea of sales, and there's good reason for that because so much of selling is douchey and aggressive. It's pushy and it's obnoxious. But guess what? It doesn't have to be that way. You can write copy and you can do your marketing from a place of empathy and service.
It doesn't have to be obnoxious. If you can help people and serve them to the best of your ability, there's nothing spammy about that. If you're approaching your marketing and copywriting from a place of service, there's no room for that icky feeling. And we're gonna talk a lot more about that as the podcast goes on, because it's something that I really wanna make sure we accomplish.
I wanna make sure that anyone who's a business owner or solopreneur or creator or artist, that you can move past the idea that selling is equivalent to bragging about how good you are or even more dramatically that it's immoral or greedy. To seek out money or ask to be paid because it's gonna be damn near [00:13:00] impossible for most businesses to thrive without some form of marketing or selling along the way.
How you're speaking to your customers on a regular basis is everything. Messaging is the most important thing in your business, and if you don't think so, you're probably leaving a lot of money on the table right now. You can have an incredible product or you can offer an incredible service, but if you don't know how to state the value of it, or if you don't know how to communicate, how it can help someone with a problem they've got, no one is going to see you and you're going to struggle.
It's a crowded and noisy world out there. People see around 6,000 to 10,000 ads a day. These are things that are vying for our attention and our money. So if you aren't able to crystallize your message and your brand voice, you run the risk of being drowned out by all the noise. If you're phoning your copywriting in, or if you're just copying something someone else did with the attention of sprucing it up later, or you're just piecing things together, you're probably hurting your business.
I say that because I [00:14:00] want people to understand how critical this is to having a successful business. If you have a great product in mediocre marketing, I wanna help you. Now, if you've got a crappy product, there's no amount of marketing that can help you there. But if your product is amazing and you increase the quality of your marketing and your copywriting, that's a recipe for making a serious impact on the world.
It's absolutely worth your time to slow down in your business. There's a difference between working in your business and working on your business. Take a minute to work on your business. Carve out the time, learn about copywriting because you need to know what you're going for, some structures, some templates, and then take the time to write something that really speaks to you as the owner as well as your customer.
If you're not at the place where you can hire someone to write your copy, take the time to learn and write your own copy and actually put some effort into it. This can be game changing. I've watched my copywriting double and triple businesses [00:15:00] based on just a better sales page alone. We weren't changing the product, we were just changing the words on the website.
That's how powerful it is. If you're in that place where you're thinking, let's just put some words up there, people don't really read it anyway. I hear that from time to time when it comes to emails or long form sales pages or the crevices and cracks of your website, like thank you pages and delivery emails.
I'm here to tell you people actually read it and I'm one of them. I'll give you an example. I love. Taking writing and marketing courses. I just want to take them all. I want any new knowledge that anyone's got to offer. I'm an education junkie with the last copywriting course I bought, which was a pretty high ticket course.
I read the sales page and believe me, it was very, very long. I read that sales page from top to bottom probably 15 times before I actually made the purchase. Now, you might think this is crazy, but when you're a conscious shopper and a lot of us are, the details matter to [00:16:00] you. You're analyzing whether or not this product is gonna be worth your time and money.
You're gonna be dissecting that writing and what the offer is. You're gonna be leaving the page, coming back to it, leaving, coming back to it again, and I can guarantee you that your customers are also interested in some of your competitor's products or services if they know about them. They're probably doing some comparison shopping, and it's gonna come down to the messaging and the details.
That's what's going to tip the scales for them to purchase from you, so it's worth making that investment to be certain that you're putting out thoughtful messaging that resonates with your readers. So what does this all entail? What is good copywriting? Anyway, I wanna kick off this podcast in the first episode by talking about the five foundational elements of great copywriting.
This is ground zero for great copy. I call it the Sword Framework. Yes. Like a ninja sword. And I'm gonna go through what each letter in the acronym stands for. If you [00:17:00] aren't sure where to start with copywriting, this is definitely gonna help. If you can check these five boxes, you'll have pretty solid copy, and then we can work on tweaking it from there.
So I'm gonna go through each of these elements at a glance, and in upcoming episodes we're gonna get granular, which with each of these points, but today I just wanna give you a high level view of them so you can look at your copy, reevaluate things, and make sure that you're at least hitting on these points.
So the first foundation of great copywriting is storytelling. Here's a mind blowing fact for you. People remember, facts are whopping 22 times more when they're wrapped in a story. Crazy, right? So instead of just throwing out a random fact about your product or service, weave it into a story. Instead, let's say you make and sell artisanal local honey instead of reminding your potential customers that honey never spoils.
Why not tell them about those cool archeologists who discovered a pot of honey in an ancient Egyptian tomb [00:18:00] that was still perfectly edible after 3000 years? That's the stuff that sticks in people's brains. You wanna tell a memorable story that grabs your readers and takes them on a little journey with you, whether you're sharing a personal experience, someone else's experience, or conjuring up an imaginary world.
Storytelling in copywriting is the secret that keeps your audience hooked until the very end. Now, I've gotta be real with you. I struggled with storytelling for a while. I don't even know why, but I had this. Silly belief that I wasn't a good storyteller. Maybe it came from my shy days as a kid when I didn't enjoy being the center of attention and sharing stories.
But let me tell you something, that belief was total bs, and I think it's the same for most people. We're actually pretty damn good storytellers when we understand the power behind it. And here's the best part. A story doesn't have to be some epic Lord of the Ring saga or a 3000 word essay. A story can be as short [00:19:00] as one line or a quick sentence that adds some context and shares an experience.
Stories are everywhere, and once you grasp their importance, you can effortlessly weave them into your copywriting. When it comes to promoting your product or service, storytelling is your secret weapon. Share stories about your brand, or better yet, let your customers do the talking through testimonials.
When someone tells their story about how your offering changed their life or brought them amazing results, it really hits home with others. And let me tell you, stories work like magic in every aspect of your business, especially. Your emails, storytelling and emails is pure gold, but remember, every story needs a point.
You can't just b blabber on without a purpose. Each story you tell should have a clear objective, whether it's to showcase the benefits of your product, create an emotional connection, or whatever tickles your fancy, make sure it ends with a. Clear point that resonates with your reader. And [00:20:00] lastly, storytelling builds that no like and trust factor with your audience.
You want them to know you and like you and trust you before you ask them to open their wallets. It humanizes you as a brand, establishes connections and sets the stage for lasting relationships. All right. The second foundation in our sword framework is W, and it is for write Like You Talk copywriting doesn't have to be all formal and stuffy.
In fact, it's way more effective when you write like you're having a conversation with someone in everyday life. This helps your readers connect with your message on a deeper level and makes it easier for them to relate to what you're saying. So how do you achieve this conversational vibe? Well, keep your language simple and relatable.
Forget about long words and complex phrases. Instead, use everyday language that people can easily understand. By doing this, you'll create an emotional connection between you and your reader. Of course, writing like you talk is [00:21:00] not as easy as it sounds. Many charismatic folks can sell and charm in person, but when faced with a blank screen, they turn into stiff robotic writers.
It's like they forgot how to be themselves in their words. But here's the thing. I want you to think of it as copy talking instead of copywriting. The legendary author, Seth Godden, has a blog post called Talker's Block that I love. Here's what he says. No one ever gets talker's block. No one wakes up in the morning, discovers he has nothing to say, and sits quietly for days or weeks until the muse hits, until the moment is right, until all the craziness in his life has died down.
I love that concept because it's so true. We can chat with friends and family and coworkers without stressing about what we're gonna say or how to start the conversation. We just kind of talk with abandon. But when it comes to writing, especially copywriting, we get paralyzed and most of that comes down to practice and comfortability.[00:22:00]
Once you start writing a lot, you get a lot more comfortable with your voice, but it can help to try and write the same way you talk with that same sense of freedom. When it comes to writing genres, copywriting is a whole different ballgame. It doesn't require the formality of legal writing or other fancy styles.
That's the beauty of it. You don't need to sound a certain way or follow a strict Senate structure. Instead sound like a regular person having a conversation with other regular people. Here's a trick I love to use. Picture your best friend in the world. You can even put a picture on your desk or computer to keep them in mind.
Then write as if you're talking directly to them. This helps you sound like a damn human being instead of some marketing robot. Remember, readers don't want pompous flowery copy, so ditch the fancy language and embrace the conversational tone. You don't need to sound like Faulkner or Toll story to be a fantastic [00:23:00] copywriter.
Be yourself. Be relatable, and you'll watch your copy come to life. Our third foundation of great copywriting is to write to one person, use the word you instead of they or people to directly address your reader. This creates a more personal and intimate experience building trust along the way. So here's the deal.
Take a look at your copy right now and see if the word you is present throughout. Using the word you is a game changer. It is the single highest converting word you can use in your copy. That's how much power it holds. When people read something online, whether it's an email or a website, they're doing it alone.
And it's important to remember that they're not in a group setting surrounded by a bunch of other people. It's just them and you, and it's an intimate experience that you need to honor. Starting your email with, Hey guys, or, what's up? [00:24:00] Everybody is addressing a big group and that's a no-go. People don't like it.
It doesn't work well in terms of conversion or gaining their trust. It can make your readers feel undervalued or like they're just a number, and that's not what you're going for. So this is what you can do. Create your ideal customer avatar. This means getting super detailed about one single person who represents your target audience.
I want you to give them a name, a job, a family, or lack thereof, a specific location and income. Make them as real as a person in your life. Flush out their personality well enough that you could write an entire novel about them. You can even base your ideal customer avatar on yourself in the past if you faced and solved a problem related to your product or service.
This can be a helpful shortcut to figuring out your target audience. The bottom line is you need to know who you're talking to. Write specifically to that one person in your website. Copy [00:25:00] sales pages, landing pages, ads, everything that will help you stay consistent in your messaging. And one last thought on this topic, make sure your emails for your business, whether you're small or large, are coming from an actual person, as in the email address says a name at whatever your company is.
Dot com. So whether it's you or someone on your, on your team, or even a fictional persona, use an email address that reflects a human being. By humanizing your emails, you'd let your readers know that they're communicating with a real person. So it adds an element of authenticity and strengthens the connection.
So unless you're a massive brand, sending emails from a person's name is a smart move. So to sum up that topic, you wanna keep it personal, talk to one reader and let your copy create that one-on-one conversation. It's a simple, yet powerful tip that can work wonders for your business. The fourth foundation in the SWORD [00:26:00] framework is the letter R, which stands for relate.
I'm talking about connecting with the reader through empathy. Empathy means understanding how someone feels and using your copywriting skills to capture those feelings in your writing. It's not rocket science, but it's essential to your reader and their needs so you can craft a message that resonates with them.
Here's the deal. To relate to your reader, you need to put yourself in their shoes, understand their pain points, desires, and challenges. When you genuinely get where they're coming from, you can speak their language and address their concerns effectively. Empathy is what saves copywriting from turning all spammy and icky.
This is the secret to keeping things real and relatable. So when you tap into empathy, you step into the shoes of your audience and you get what they're going through. It's all about understanding their needs, their fears, and their dreams. [00:27:00] By genuinely caring about your readers, you create content that's actually helpful and relevant.
It's like having a genuine conversation and not some pushy sales pitch. So it's about showing your reader that you understand their struggles and that you have a solution to make their lives better. By tapping into their emotions, you create a bond and establish trust. So take the time to get to know your audience, dig deep into their motivations, fears, and aspirations.
This knowledge will empower you to tailor your message perfectly to their needs. Your copy should speak directly to them, showing them that you're on their side and you're ready to help. But also remember relating to your reader through empathy doesn't mean being overly sentimental or sappy. It's about understanding them and conveying the understanding in a genuine and authentic way.
When you can do that, your copy becomes a powerful tool that resonates with your audience and drives results. So dive into your reader's world, [00:28:00] understand their feelings, and let empathy guide your copywriting. This will set you apart from the competition and create a lasting connection with you and your potential customers.
The fifth and final foundation in the sword framework is directness. It's all about being crystal clear in your copywriting and including strong calls to action. That's why you need to tell them exactly what you want them to do. You can't leave your readers hanging, wondering what to do next. So you wanna be very clear about this.
You wanna say, click here to purchase the book. Or sign up now. Let's be real for a minute. Confusion is the ultimate conversion killer. Trust me. I've seen plenty of writers out there who are painfully confusing. They write vague, unclear copy that doesn't explain their main offer. So do yourself a favor and go back to your writing.
Take a good look and see if there are any head scratching parts. Now if you're too close to it and you can't tell if something's [00:29:00] confusing, get someone else to check it out. If you can't afford a full copywriter to write all your copy, you can potentially pay one to review your work and give you feedback.
They can point out what's not working, what's confusing, and provide valuable pointers. Trust me, there are copywriters out there who offer the service and it's absolutely worth it. On the topic of confusion, remember your emails and your copy should stand alone and make sense even if someone has missed out on previous copy that you've written.
So if you're sending an email sequence, even if someone has not opened a particular email, you need to make sure that each of them stand alone. It's a very noisy world out there, and you can't assume that people are following your every move and reading your every email imperfect sequence. In most cases, that's absolutely not happening.
So don't confuse people or assume they know what you're talking about, because at the end of the day, confused people don't buy. So if your sales [00:30:00] page is a hot mess of disjointedness, you're waving goodbye to potential customers and money is flying out the window. So be clear. Be direct and don't be afraid to explain things like you're talking to a five year old.
We adults can be big old babies sometimes with very short attention spans. We need things spelled out, so don't overestimate your readers. Make your writing super clear and thorough. And there you have it. The SWORD framework. S is for storytelling. W is for right. Like you talk. O is for one reader, R is for relate, D is for directness.
Those are the five foundations of great copywriting. Thanks for joining me on this first episode. I am so excited about the upcoming episodes that I've got in store for you. Now I'm gonna ask you for a small, Favor, please head over to copy tiger.com/newsletter and sign up for my weekly updates. That way you'll never miss a new [00:31:00] podcast episode.
Plus, you'll get exclusive content and tips that are only shared through email. It's an inbox party you don't wanna miss. Also, be sure to follow and subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcast, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcast. And remember, the right words can help you make a huge difference in the world.
So keep writing. I'll see you in the next episode.