Copywriter’s Daily

I would like to take a look at 5 adcopy principles and
show you that they are as old as the Scriptures. This
article is not meant to ‘convert’ you so read with an
open mind … ready? Let’s go!

1. Stress benefits not features.

It’s the Garden of Eden. The serpent approaches the
woman Eve to get her to take of the forbidden fruit.
Does he rave about the color, taste and texture of the
fruit? No, he sells Eve on benefits. “Your eyes will be
opened, you will be like God …” (Genesis 3:4). Now
that’s a benefit, not a feature at all. And did Eve
fall for it? She surely did.

That may seem like a ‘negative’ example - a plain
deception. But look at what the book of Revelation
promises the “overcomer”. Eternal life, health,
recognition, wealth and mansions without mortgages.

2. Use lots of testimonials.

If you have just a cursory knowledge of the Bible you
know that the gospels of Matthew, Mark Luke and John
make up the first four books of the New Testament. They
all cover the same ground and share many common
stories. So why would we need four different people
saying practically the same thing?

You see they all wanted to tell THEIR story about the
Rabbi Jesus Christ. So the writers (all satisfied
customers) relate the life-changing encounter they each
had - the more testimonies the better.

The entire Bible relates stories of peoples encounter
with the supernatural and how it affected their lives.
In fact, Jesus related to the disciples after His
miraculous resurrection that all the Old Testament was
really about Him.

3. “Create a damaging admission and address flaws
openly”

That’s the title to chapter 3 of the master copywriter
Dan Kennedy’s book “The Ultimate Sales Letter”. He goes
on to explain that if you openly admit the drawbacks of
your offer then your credibility goes up instantly with
the customer. For example, your price may be higher
than your competitors so you may say: “If you are
looking to save a few bucks then you can find many
other companies who will be willing to give you some
‘quick fixes’. But we provide a very thorough and
expert service, hence the higher price”

You are admitting that you are expensive but showing
why - the customer gets a superior service.

In the gospels we see many potential disciples who
wanted to follow Jesus and he told them openly that it
was a sacrificial walk. He told them in no uncertain
terms that it involved a “cross”, leaving father and
mother behind, even possible death - but you will gain
eternal life in the process. Talk about a “damaging
admission.

4. Place a limit on your offer to motivate
procrastinators.

This is a very important element of the “call to
action” section of any sales letter. Humans are
naturally procrastinators. We always put off what
should be done now for a ‘later’ that never arrives.
That is why the copywriter must show that supplies are
limited or the special offer is for a ‘limited time
only’.

In many ‘call to action’ sections of the Bible we see
the same warning to procrastinators. “Today if you hear
my voice do not harden your heart ..” (Hebrews 3:7). In
the story of the great flood procrastinators were found
outside the ark. Jesus told the story of the covetous
farmer who built bigger barns to store his grains not
knowing that death would come knocking on his door that
very night.

Jesus never sent one of his listeners to go away and
think about it. Today … now, was the only time that
anyone had. His message was “ACT NOW!”

5. Research your potential customers to know their
problems and needs.

Dan Kennedy refers to this as “getting into the
customer.” Getting into the head and experiences of the
customer -walk in his moccasins.

The whole Christmas story is about Jesus getting into
the skin - literally - of the customer. The writer of
Hebrews says that Jesus is touched by our feelings and
infirmities. He became like one of us so that He may
understand “the customer” better. That is why he could
speak to the needs of the human heart with such
authority because he knows what is in man.

I’ve just briefly looked at 5 copywriting principles
but this applies across the board. Whether you accept
the Bible as just another book or as inspired writings,
there is no denying that the principles are there.

I would love to hear from the reader if he or she would
like to challenge me on finding a useful copywriting
principle that’s not in the Bible.