The Biggest Mistake Many Advertisers Make

by SARubin

So I woke up this morning with another one of my “thoughts for the day”…

A few weeks ago, I shared an actionable tip that worked for one of my clients. If you were able to avail yourself of it, then that’s great… you’re welcome.
If not… well, not every idea works for everyone, no matter how great the idea (maybe the next one will suit you better?)

But this time around I’m dropping more of a philosophical postulation (whoa, there’s a couple of big words. I’m pretty sure I used them correctly?)

Anyway, this time I’m going to rant for a moment about something that’s near and dear to my heart, but gets disregarded too easily by many other marketers.

I’ll try to keep it short and sweet, because I understand that reading the ramblings of a madman is not for everyone.

And after you read my thoughts, feel free to agree with me (because I’m brilliant)… or add your own thoughts to the conversation (because you’re brilliant)… or lay down an alternate truth of your own (because you think I’m full of crap).

Whatever you decide to do, I’m sure it’ll be the right decision for you.

So that’s enough of an introduction. Here’s what I was thinking when I woke up this morning.

After 20 years in advertising…

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10 Persuasion Secrets Of a Con-Artist That You Can Use In Your Copywriting

by SARubin

When I was growing up, back in the 1980’s, I had a friend named Mark (For privacy reasons I won’t use his last name here). Mark was an interesting guy, and a lot of fun to hang out with. And he was also one of the smoothest con artists I had ever known.

All these years later I can still remember the day we went to a local shopping mall, just to hang out (shopping malls were still a big thing back then).

We walked into that mall with less than $20 between the two of us. And a couple hours later we walked out with full bellies from one of the restaurants, and Mark had shopping bags with over $200 worth of brand new clothes. (not stolen… these clothes were “given” to him by the shop clerks)

Like I said, he was an interesting guy.

Over the years, we lost touch and I don’t know what happened to my friend. I figure he’s either a multi-millionaire by now… or in prison. (It could’ve gone either way) But watching him in action always fascinated me so much, that it eventually helped lead me down a road of studying social psychology, social engineering and persuasion. (I never wanted to be a con artist, but I did become obsessed with understanding how that shit worked)

Which brings us to today.

Today I’m going to share a few tricks of the con-artist trade that also resemble “honest” tricks of the copywriting trade.

So if you’re ready, let’s dive right in…

WARNING! The following list of techniques should ONLY be used for good (not evil). If you’re clever enough to merge them into your copy, you will see higher conversion rates. But if you choose to use them to deceive people it will probably come back to bite you in the ass. And any legal troubles you get into are your own fault. So don’t blame me… and consider yourself warned.

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What’s the difference between copywriters and content writers?

by SARubin

Well, there’s a question I’ve only been asked 1000 times. So if you’re wondering “what’s the difference between content writers and copywriters”, let me just lay down a quick answer for you, OK…?

I’m going to keep this post super short, because once you read the short and sweet answer there won’t be much else for me to say about it. So if you’re ready, here we go…

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The Difference Between Online Copywriting and Offline Copywriting

by SARubin

Online copywriting -vs- offline copywriting

One question I get asked a lot is “how is online sales copy any different than offline sales copy?”

Well, this question has been batted around by many self proclaimed experts over the past couple decades. And I don’t have a ton of new insights (mostly because the topic just isn’t worthy of a lengthy debate)

But what I will do for you is lay it down as simply as possible, so we can all have an easy to understand grasp of the concept.

So if that sounds good to you, then here’s a short and sweet comparison between online copywriting and offline copywriting…

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Powerful Written Persuasion Techniques – Part 5 (micro-commitments)

by SARubin

In this episode of Powerful Written Persuasion Techniques we’re going to touch on the concept of using micro-commitments. Why they work, and how we can use them to make our sales copy more impactful.

Let’s start with why they work…

When people make a commitment to an idea, or a belief, it becomes very difficult to change their minds without creating internal conflict or anxiety.

The name for this feeling of discomfort is called “Cognitive Dissonance”, and it can be an extremely powerful force in our lives.

Part of the reason it’s so powerful is because most of us like to think of ourselves as intelligent, rational beings. And few people want to admit when they’re wrong (even to themselves) about a committed belief.

In fact, when given the choice between defending a faulty belief, or admitting ignorance and changing our paradigm… Most people immediately get busy putting up their defense.

So how can we use this natural human condition to our advantage, when writing persuasive copy?
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