Quick! You're tasked to write copy for a landing page. How would you start?
Here's what newbie marketers will do.
- Search for a landing page template.
- Browse their favorite websites (like Apple).
- Look at the copy. Hmm, looks good. Starts stealing it...
- Paste in copied headlines on their site.
- Get stuck... Go to ChatGPT.
- Copy the generic, boring copy ChatGPT provided.
- Feeling lost... pull out copy frameworks "AIDA, PAS.." they learned from a recent marketing workshop.
- Give up...
Familiar? I know, because I used to do that too.
I used to think that creating a high-converting landing page means copying other more successful ones.
How wrong I was.
Nobody knows what's in your head
Two weeks ago, I sat down to write the copy for Underdog Influence Con.
I started by looking at other conference websites I admired, and reverse-engineered what they did.
One of those websites was Affiliate World Conferences. Ooh, a countdown. Ohh, an 'about' section.
An hour into stealing and writing my landing page, I said f*ck it. And deleted everything.
I logged in Slido, and reviewed what attendees asked in the past Underdog Con.
Wait... why does everyone want to know how much to pay influencers?
With that, I wrote the first headline of the landing page:
And used the rest of the scripts the audience used to write the entire page. Take a look at Underdog Con.
Mmm. Much better.
Write for your audience, not yourself.
What I did was writing for my audience. Or rather, the Underdog Con audience. It's not about me. But everything about the audience I'm looking to serve.
Many people try to impress their audience. So they write what they think is cool – using big words like, 'visionary, razor-sharp, bleeding edge'...
Confuse the reader, and you'll lose them.
DailyCMO's guide to writing effective landing pages
Here are 3 ways to write effective landing pages, sales pages, or websites.
1. Figure out who you're writing to before writing a single word.
You don't want your headlines to get everyone's attention,.
The right kind of headline singles out your prospect by understanding their deepest fears, hopes, and desires.
As you can see, the headline on Underdog Influence Con singles out a specific someone. It's someone who wants to figure out influence marketing.
2. Focus on benefits. (Not features)
Features are not compelling because people need to know how the product or service will affect them emotionally.
Features tell, benefit sells
For example, I could write, "Over 6 hours of content in Underdog Con!" But what does 6 hours of content do for prospects? Anything else, it might begin to feel dreadful to sit in an event for 6 hours.
A benefit I could use is perhaps – "Now, finally, you'll be able to figure out influencer marketing and actually grow your revenue with it"
3. Every word has to earn its place
One of the best advice I received on writing is: "Write like you're drunk, edit sober."
When writing your first draft, don't worry about making mistakes. Just write.
The first draft is usually sh*t. As you start editing and peeling the fat away, good copy will begin to shine through.
This means every word has to earn its place on the landing page. Because we only get one chance to capture a reader's attention – every word has to count.
Here's an example:
Before: How to lose up to 5KG and gain confidence in 6-weeks without cutting down on food and dieting.
After: How to lose 5KG confidently in 6 weeks. No painful diets.
Everyone can write good copy, when they write the way their audience talk.
Underdog Ad Con brings practitioners together on 20th September to discuss influence marketing, giving you the exact marketing strategies to grow your business. The event also brings you under a roof with some of the best marketers and businesses – to learn, network, and do business with.
