reed and fear may be just a couple of the more unsightly
blemishes on the underbelly of the human psyche. But they're
also two of the greatest all time motivators ever invented.
If you want your copy to sell, you need to understand how to
put these powerful emotions to work for you in your written
copy.
Greed and fear (and a whole bunch of their emotional first
cousins) reside inside of everyone. They well to the surface
at different times and for different reasons in each of us.
When they do, it's as if they grabbed us by our lapels and
shook us to get our attention.
And getting your prospects' full attention is a must if you
want them to reach for their wallets.
Here's an example of how this works.
Imagine you're walking all alone through a graveyard at
night. The full moon disappears behind a cloud as a distant
clock tower ominously strikes midnight. Suddenly you hear
what sounds like a large stone slab scraping against stone.
Your eyes must be playing tricks on you in the gloom,
because just ahead, the door to that crypt seems to be
opening all by itself…
I'm pretty sure this situation would have your complete
attention. In fact, I bet you would be highly receptive to
taking action (a headlong race to the front gate?) depending
on what was offered up next. All because of a little fear.
And so it is with a well written sales letter or other
persuasive piece of copy. Before any selling takes place,
you first have to get the attention of your prospect. You do
this by connecting with your prospect on some emotional
level. This sets the stage for the selling message, and
ultimately the call for action.
While the copywriter has many arrows to draw from in the
emotional quiver, greed and fear are two of the most
powerful.
There are many kinds of fear - fear of financial loss, fear
of lost health, fear of humiliation, fear of pain, fear of
losing out on a once-in-a-lifetime golden opportunity. The
list could go on and on. It's the job of the copywriter to
identify which will resonate the strongest with the target
prospects.
Greed too comes in many flavors. While the word itself seems
to suggest base human instincts, greed has its positive
attributes. Is it greedy to want a better standard of living
for your family? Is it greedy to want to advance to the top
of your profession, or to be a more talented pianist? A
better lover?
If you stop and think about it, fear and greed cover a lot
of emotional territory. Again, it's the job of you the
copywriter to determine which particular flavor will most
likely evoke the desired response in the prospect's heart.
But that's just part of the equation. You also need to paint
that fear or greed in ways that are believable to your
prospects. And you need to offer a real solution to the
emotional needs triggered by your copy. That's what prompts
your prospects to buy.
For example, let's say "fear of never finding a soul mate"
is the emotional trigger you want to exploit in marketing an
online dating service for hopeless romantics.
You might begin such a sales letter like this.
"Dear Friend,
"Last year I received a letter that broke my heart. It was
from a woman named Kathy who had completely given up on ever
finding true love.
"Life held no special joys for Kathy. Her words on that
single hand written page painted a grim portrait of an
empty, lonely life..."
If someone reading your letter fears never finding true love
themselves, this opening will probably evoke an immediate
emotional response. They can identify with Kathy. You have
their attention, now what do you do?
You need to offer a solution, perhaps to Kathy's immediate
problem, but certainly to your prospect's problem. (They're
really one and the same, aren't they?) And you need to offer
lots of specifics to help make it believable. Maybe
continuing the letter with something like this:
"But there's a happy ending to this story. Only four months
afterwards I received a second, much longer letter from
Kathy. She told me about just returning from an incredible
honeymoon in Paris, and all about her wonderful new husband
Brian.
"She shared their plans for an exciting, bright future
together in a picturesque New England town. She told me
about some of the little things in life that suddenly held
special meaning, like picking apples together and long walks
on the beach. About what it meant to have finally found her
true soul mate after so many years.
"I was ecstatic for Kathy of course. But hardly surprised.
In fact I could tell you about 5,735 other success stories
just like Kathy's. That's how many couples have gotten
married after first connecting through Soul Mates Forever.
"And you could be the next success story."
Deciding which emotional trigger to emphasize in your copy
can be challenging. You need to carefully study the nature
of both the product and the prospects to choose the right
one. When in doubt, look to those old standbys fear and
greed and you won't be far off the mark.
This article may be reprinted freely as long as the author's
resource box is included and the article content is not
changed in any way.
About the Author
Copywriter and consultant Vincent Czaplyski is founder
of http://www.impressive-resumes.com, your online source for
professionally written "industrial strength" resumes and
cover letters guaranteed to land you an interview. Contact
him at vincent@impressive-resumes.com.