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Does your resume fail to get you phone calls and interviews? Why do people ignore your emails and blog posts? Copywriting is the art of persuading people through written words. Even if you’re not trying to make money online, developing this ability will improve many facets of your professional life. How do you learn copywriting skills to get better work and income?

How Copywriting Skills Can Help You

You’ve got to persuade people in order to survive these days. Convince someone to hire you. Motivate somebody to buy the product you’re representing. Get them to sign contracts for your services. Or, have Internet users follow links to your site and blog.

Effective salespeople usually earn the highest incomes. Everybody must sell ideas to other people. Getting people to make a commitment can improve your influence as a leader, a parent, an Internet marketer, or as a potential employee. Talking to someone in person and trying to “sell” them is an art. Trying to do that entirely through written communication is a whole different game.

The Secrets of Copywriting

When I taught communication classes in graduate school, we studied a simple and effective process called Monroe’s Motivated Sequence. You can use this in your written communication to persuade people and get them to take action.

Get Their Attention
In writing, this is accomplished by creating an effective headline. An effective headline arouses curiosity and desire to know more.

Get Them to Feel a Need
The motivation to do anything falls into one of four categories: to get a good, keep a good, avoid a bad, or to get rid of a bad.

Show the Solution
Describe how taking a certain action can help them avoid the pain or experience the pleasure you presented in the “need” step.

Communicate Rewards & Consequences
What will happen to them if they do/don’t do what you’re asking? Stories can illustrate the pluses and minuses of taking action. Don’t forget to throw in, “For a limited time only!” or “100% Money Back Guarantee!”

Show How to Take Action
They’re convinced, now where do you have them sign? In sales this is known as “closing the sale.”

There are other theories about the process used to persuade people, but this one works sufficiently well for newcomers to the art of copywriting. You’ll see examples everywhere!

Skip the Classes

The best way to learn copywriting is by reading the highest-circulating newspapers and tabloids or most visited websites and blogs. Who doesn’t read the front pages of the Enquirer or Sun at the checkout areas of supermarkets? Take a step back and ask yourself, what is it about these headlines that’s drawing me in? How can I use similar techniques in my own communication?

What do the writers and editors at the top 100 blogs do to keep readers coming back by the millions? Can I copy their approaches to get more site visitors, readers, subscribers, and customers?

One of the most useful resources I’ve found to improve copywriting skills is copyblogger.com. You’ll want to start out with their Copywriting 101 Course.

Use trial and error to improve you efforts to persuade people through writing. Social media sites are a great laboratory. Practice with your own status updates in Facebook or Twitter and see which ones generate the most comments and responses. Try to figure out why they do. Take what you’ve learned and apply it to your resume, emails, or blog posts.

Let me know how it goes!

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