Why Good Writing Can Save Your Job

Here at OSTraining, our business is writing.

It might seem as if our main business is creating videos and teaching classes, but really it all comes to down to writing.

We have to write great scripts for our videos. We have to write compelling examples and explanations for our classes. Without good writing, we’re out of business,

The same is probably true for your business and for your job.

Whether you’re blogging, creating and uploading videos to YouTube, using Twitter, updating status messages on Facebook, or more importantly spending money on advertising to increase your sales, good copywriting should be an integral component of your online work.

Why do you need to learn copywriting?

You know the term “copywriting”, but you may think of it as something that has a negative connotation. You may have seen and experienced the long form sales letters copywriting that entails long written sales copy designed an persuade you to take action and buy something. However, the elements of copy can be found in just about anything we read, watch or listen to without you even consciously knowing that it’s there, ingrained in the medium for us to absorb.

While some of the elements of copywriting that can be distilled from the long form sales letter it can essentially be applied to any form of writing, podcasting or videos you create for your online audience. And it is important to learn some of the concepts behind copywriting even if you’re just telling a story. In fact, many well-known copywriters use storytelling as part of their copywriting process. And many journalists content creators use elements of copywriting to get you to consume their content. Have you ever noticed that all enticing headline that got you to read the story?

If you want people to take action or do something after reading your article or blog post, then you can apply some simple copywriting techniques to help your reader to make a decision and take action. Many non-profit organizations use experienced copywriters to create essential and all-important campaigns. Without it, non-profit organizations could not survive financially.

Simple elements of copywriting anyone can use

We are going to cover some simple yet important copy elements that you can incorporate into your writing.

As with any content creation you’ve probably realized that the title of your article is very important. No truer is that then with copywriting. A well-crafted title will create curiosity and get your reader to read the first sentence of your copy. The first sentence, is designed to support your title and entice your reader to read the next sentence until they’ve read the first paragraph then the next and so on until they’ve completely consumed your content. This creates what is called a slippery slope, getting your readers to read further and further down the copy.

#1: Cliffhangers

One of the best methods for engaging your reader and to direct them to read your entire article is to use what is called a nested loop and cliffhangers. If you aren’t familiar with nested loops quite simply you’ve experienced it no doubt while watching a movie. Essentially a nested loop involves the introduction of a plot that breaks away to subplots before resolving the main plot which creates tension and suspense. Finally the main plot is resolved at the very end of the movie, releasing the tension.

The creation and release of tension is also called a cliffhanger and its designed to motivate you to watch the movie to the end.. The same can be applied to your writing where a plot is introduced that isn’t resolved till the very end creating suspense and tension. Your reader will want to read the article to get resolution. It’s human nature to resolve conflict!

#2: Calls to action

Another important element of copy is the call to action. A call to action quite simply a method to move your reader to take action – to get them to accomplish your objective whatever that might be. You’ve probably seen many examples of that over the Internet for example, “click here and save” written on a buy button. That is a very simple example of a call to action. You basically have to tell people what to do.

#3: A clear offer

Another important element of copy is the offer. If your objective is to sell your product or service then you need to include a great offer. In other words what you’re selling has to be packaged in such a way that it makes it very enticing for your website visitor to click the buy button. It needs to make your offer more tantalizing than your competitors offer.

#4: Audience knowledge

Even if you don’t know or understand copywriting, but you have a great and intimate understanding of your ideal web site visitor – their motivations, their goals, their pain points etc. you can create excellent content that resonates with your visitor. That’s the secret ingredient to keeping them engaged.

These simple tools will help you to create great and engaging content whether it’s text, audio or even video and it will keep your visitors to come back for more. And that is essentially what is important for your web site, building loyalty.