Morning. I'm paring down this newsletter again: now just an example and a thought. Here's what I've got today: EXAMPLE: Oodoo shows us how to use video on a home page THOUGHT: Why I'm dropping the "tip" section and shifting this newsletter from weekly to fortnightly. Enjoy Example: The right way to use video on a home page When companies use video on their  home page, they often make one of these two mistakes: They bury critical information in the video, which means most people on the home page never get that information. They use a slick brand video designed to make you interes ..read more

(This originally appeared in my newsletter. Sign up now to get content like this every Monday.) Let’s get to work, folks. TIP: Delete the words “utilise” and “leverage”. They are terrible. EXAMPLE: Serena WIlliams is an interesting choice for Toggl’s testimonial quote THOUGHT: Man, I love pen and paper. Tip: Delete "utilise," delete "leverage" These two words are the bane of my existence. Utilise: Lots of people write “utilise” instead of “use,” just to sound, I don’t know, fancy or serious or something. Don’t do it! Unless you’re specifically talking about utilisation (EG: how many days per ..read more

(This originally appeared in my newsletter. Sign up now to get content like this every Monday.) Let’s get right into it: TIP: Make your hero image mean something EXAMPLE: CONQA have a killer hero image THOUGHT: Read Built to Sell today TIP: Make your image mean something It’s very rare that you’re going to find an example of copywriting that is literally just words. Images are going to be part of it.  Yet, so many images are just an afterthought, or something that looks kind of cool without adding any real value to what you're talking about. For example, here’s the hero section from a co ..read more

(This originally appeared in my newsletter. Sign up now to get content like this every Monday.) Tip: use "you" A good rule of thumb is to frame your sentences as “you” sentences. For example, “the pen is red” would change to “you can mark up documents with this red pen.” The "you" can be implied, too - IE, you could just write "mark up documents with this red pen."  (Nerds will know that the "pen is red" sentence is a declarative sentence, while the "mark up documents" sentence is an imperative sentence. I'll be honest with you: I had to look these terms up.) Anyway: there are two g ..read more

(This originally appeared in my newsletter. Sign up now to get content like this every Monday.) Welcome to another newsletter, folks. Today, we’re covering: TIP: Focus your copy on one idea. EXAMPLE: An old ad with too many ideas THOUGHT: The traditional top-down content approach can be turned on its head. TIP: One idea Here’s one that sounds intuitive, but is actually easy to forget: focus on one idea. Choose one single thing you want people to take away from your writing, and build around that.  This doesn’t mean you are limited to talking about just one thing. Rather, it’s more about ..read more

(This originally appeared in my newsletter. Sign up now to get content like this every Monday.) Welcome to another newsletter, folks. Today, we’re covering: TIP: Focus your copy on one idea. EXAMPLE: An old ad with too many ideas THOUGHT: The traditional top-down content approach can be turned on its head. TIP: One idea Here’s one that sounds intuitive, but is actually easy to forget: focus on one idea. Choose one single thing you want people to take away from your writing, and build around that.  This doesn’t mean you are limited to talking about just one thing. Rather, it’s more about ..read more

(This originally appeared in my newsletter. Sign up now to get content like this every Monday.) TIP: Easy way to write headlines: think about how you let people have their cake and eat it too EXAMPLE: Proshop ERP have a great headline - and it's not really to do with their copywriting. THOUGHT: On the short-term costs of switching to a new service offer. Tip: introduce features by talking about having cake and eating it too A great way to talk about how you solve specific problems is to try and think of how you let your audience have their cake and eat it too. It works like this: [Outcome y ..read more

(This originally appeared in my newsletter. Sign up now to get content like this every Monday.) Morning folks. Let’s get right into it. TIP: Benefit statements are great - but don't forget to tell people how you deliver on them. EXAMPLE: Optoro does a great job of explaining the gritty details on their demo page. THOUGHT: Why panicking over my empty pipeline led me to lose even more money. Tip: don't forget to explain how it works Telling people about the benefits of your product is a good thing. But you don't want to get carried away - I see lots of marketing material spend all its ..read more

(This originally appeared in my newsletter. Sign up now to get content like this every Monday.) Good morning. Let's get this week started. TIP: Make your calls to action clear. EXAMPLE: Keap show us how to nail a call to action. THOUGHT: Figuring out why my income was lower than I expected Tip: make your calls to action clear Very simple one today: if you’re asking someone to do something on your landing page, please be very clear about what you’re asking them to do. “Learn more,” “Get started,” and things of that nature are more vague than we give them credit for. Does “Learn more” go to a ..read more

(This originally appeared in my newsletter. Sign up now to get content like this every Monday.) Folks, it's Monday. TGIM. Let's start our week right with a tip, example and thought: TIP: Find landing page quick wins by answering 10 questions, then comparing your answers to your page. EXAMPLE: Check out Dooly's A+ feature descriptions. THOUGHT: Weighing in on the punishing forever-debate about what should come first: the design or the copy. Tip: do a gap analysis Here’s a free way to improve your landing page in a single afternoon.  Head over to the form I get people to fi ..read more