www.1001TopWords.com |
Some Important Tips On Proposals And Price
Here's a critically important copywriting technique I use when writing sales letters and proposals for our own direct marketing services and for our clients. It's all about "price". I see it all the time. And perhaps you do too. Letters and proposals that bury the price at the very end of the document. By explaining all the benefits in the first few pages and then leaving the price for last, people believe that buyers will be pleasantly surprised when they see how much it will cost. In actual fact, it doesn't work that way. Think about it. What do you do as a buyer? I know I flick through the document until I find the price. Then, if it's more than I want to pay, I put the document away, never to be seen again. I don't bother going back and reading from the beginning. Instead, what well written proposals do is tell the person up-front, how much something will cost. That way the reader doesn't need to go digging. They see how much it is, have an instant reaction to the amount and THEN ... if it's more expensive than they thought, they'll keep reading through the document to look for ways to justify the price in their own mind. Why is it more expensive? What special results does it achieve? What claims do they have to back up the price? I've tested it many dozens of times in our own campaigns and proposals, and with clients. Every single time we test it, putting the price up front wins "hands down". Here are two more tips on price ... 1. Never say "price" or "cost" in your document. Instead, use the word "investment". It may sound like a little thing but it has a major psychological effect on your reader. The word "cost" makes the reader feel like it is an expense they need to shell out for. Conversely, the word "investment" makes them feel like it is an investment that will give them a considerable pay back. 2. Never say "Your investment in the xyz widget is $1235". Instead say, "Your investment in the xyz widget is $1235 which includes 14 refills (valued at $xxx), a lifetime replacement guarantee, free lifetime technical support etc. etc." See what we've done here. By ending a sentence with the price, you give them time to pause and reflect on the monetary amount. Instead, by mentioning the price, then in the same breath giving a brief snapshot of what it includes, your reader instantly makes an association between the price and the return they will have on their investment. In other words, the buyer makes a purchasing decision based on value for money and NOT on the actual cost. Makes sense, doesn't it! About The Author Kris Mills of Words that Sell is a seasoned copywriting professional and author of "How to Create a Sales Explosion With Every Ad and Letter You Write". More information on this popular guide can be found at http://www.synergie.com.au/explosion.htm or check out more of Kris' many copywriting articles at www.advicegalore.com.
|
RELATED ARTICLES
How Ghost Writing Articles And Booklets Can Earn You Big Money! Do you want to make $5000, $10,000 or more every month as a freelancer? Does your current published materials earn you that much or are you still struggling looking for new jobs every month? Well, ghost writing articles and books for businesses could earn you a lot of money and end your painful quest for writing jobs. How To Write Headlines That Grab Your Prospects Attention It doesn't matter if you're writing an article, a newspaper or magazine ad, a web page, or even a Yellow Page ad. If it has a headline, that headline is the most important component of the entire package. Waste it, and you've wasted your time. Direct Mail Sales Letters Flow Better With Subheads A subscriber to my newsletter asks: "Got any good pointers on writing great sub-heads?" Yes, I do. Here they are. Does Your Copy Look Fake To the Search Engines? From the early days of search engine optimization, keywords and content have always been vital to achieving your goals. Starting back in the days when we used to shove every slightly relevant keyword into our Meta tags, it has been obvious that search engines love text. The more advanced the engines have gotten over the years, the more complex and sophisticated many writers have gotten with their search engine copywriting. Copywriting Tricks: Nailing the Voice Professional copywriters are well-familiar with what's commonly referred to as "the voice." What is this exactly, and why do you need to master it in your writing? Boost Your Conversion Rate In Three Steps When I critique, edit or rewrite sales copy, I discover that many clients commit common errors. Granted, not all of them are writers. But most of them fail to drive customer actions not because they lack writing skills but because they fail to look at their copy from their readers' perspective. Copywriter Rates, Getting The Facts Beforehand Have you ever had the experience of hiring a freelance copy writer only to find that the project takes longer than expected, or that the fees they offered are 'flexible' in the wrong way for you to benefit. There is no doubt that copywriter rates differ greatly from one to another. There is very little in the way of a standard rate especially when you are dealing with clients through the Internet. To ensure you don't get taken for a ride, you need to get your copywriter rates set and keep them that way. Freelance Writing As A Career Most people would love to make a living from freelance writing. If you tell people that you are a freelance writer, chances are that they will respond by telling you about their own desire to be a freelance writer. People often imagine that working as a freelance writer is some glamorous affair involving interviewing celebrities and writing up reviews on luxury items. The reality is that making money from freelance writing is far removed from the idealistic picture that many people paint. Ghostwriting: Your Questions Answered Many people feel they have a story to tell or an experience to share. But time is precious and not everyone can make the words sing on the page. But there are people who can make the whole experience hassle-free. A ghostwriter will do all the work while you get all the credit. Some common questions about the ghostwriting process are answered below.What does a ghostwriter do?A ghostwriter edits, writes, collaborates, and researches on behalf of someone else who becomes their client. Many biographies of celebrities and television personalities have been ghostwritten. On Copying and Stealing Designs The notion on the great artist, Pablo Picasso's quote, "Bad artists copy. Good artists steal" is lost on many. And revolving around the graphic designer circles is the quote "Good artists copy, great artists steal" known as Picasso's quote, still. Anyway, it might just be safe to assume that Picasso have not quoted this words exactly but he did have an "expert's assessment and statement" regarding copying and stealing art styles and techniques. Dont Be Satisfied With Your First Draft Sometimes it's a struggle to figure out what's the best thing to say. 10 Things You Should Expect From Your Website Copywriter As websites and electronic commerce are becoming more and more common, business owners and marketing managers are realising that quality web copy is every bit as important as impressive design. And with the ever increasing importance of search engine presence, the role of web copy has never been more critical. Can You Become a Freelance Copywriter in Los Angeles? Is it out there? The chance to be a freelance copywriter in Los Angeles? For those looking to become a copy writer, finding employment in various cities can be difficult. In fact, most freelance writers around the world struggle to find employment or jobs that are within their own cities and home towns. But, if you want to become a freelance copywriter, Los Angeles can add several benefits. How You Can Proofread Your Own Work Putting out a high quality product is a given these days. With all the competition out there, you have to look great in every aspect. So proofreading all copy is extremely important and here are some tips to help you to proofread your own work after you've finished editing it: Power Keys To Writing Power-Packed Marketing Copy In order to maximize your sales efforts and fully seize your greatest profit potential, these essential elements are a "must-have" and "must-apply" in all of your action-driven marketing communications. Step One for Copywriters: Understand WHAT to Say Find a passage of poorly written copy, and chances are you will have found a copywriter who never figured out what it was that he or she was trying to say. Copywriting Makeover: Search Engine-Friendly Can Also Mean Visitor-Friendly When it comes to search engine optimization, copywriting plays a big role. You want to have excellent copy that appeals to both your visitors and the engines in order to create pages that will rank highly. However, sometimes there can be potential problems with fitting copy into certain types of sites. Due to space constraints, page layout requirements or other issues, some site owners hesitate to include SEO copy thinking it will detract from the visitor's experience. It won't if you do it right! Be Contagious... Spread The Word! "Melissa" invaded our computers in late 1999, then "I Love You" in 2000. A year later, the "homepage.htm" attachment virus is wreaking havoc online. And now, in 2002, we have not been spared. A fury of Klez.Gen worms as they spread like wildfire has brought the web to a crawl at times. Why Is FREE The Most Powerful Marketing Word You Can Use? As the famous cowboy Will Rogers once said, "Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there". Copywriting and Your Five Senses In its most basic form, copywriting is, among other things, the art of conveying a message in writing for the purpose of persuading someone to do something. This is especially true when writing descriptive copy. Why? Because your customer's five senses don't work on paper? they only work in person. That's why we, as copywriters, have to create a sensory experience for our customers through our words. |
© Athifea Distribution LLC - 2013 |