iElectrify

Look up any copywriting course or newsletter and you’ll often discover a lot of tried-and-true advice, such as:

• Write about benefits, not features
• Include a direct call to action throughout your copy
• Pepper in solid user testimonials to help boost credibility

These are all great copywriting tips – but there’s often one that gets overlooked in the rush to focus only on the positive points of your product — its weaknesses.

What?!  I Can’t Tell People About That!

The truth is – you can’t afford NOT to – because soon enough, they’ll find out anyway, and you’ve got one unhappy customer who tells a friend who tells a friend and spreads the word.  There’s a certain way to go about it though, which can actually increase your sales, and that’s by pre-qualifying your visitors.

I talk about this extensively in my book Get Niche Quick, but the idea is that you qualify visitors through your copy alone – right up-front so that neither you nor they waste any time looking at a product that might not be right for them.  Here are a few examples of how you do that:

The “If…But” Strategy

The “if…but” strategy works to clear out things people might be looking for when they click your ad or visit your site, but recommits to your own product’s benefits once the comparison is done.

If you’re looking for widgets that do everything from keep time to chop your salad for you, you don’t want XYZ widgets.  BUT if you want a widget that works flawlessly 50 years from now as it did today, you’ll want to take a closer look at our custom-crafted widget selection…

Admitting the Difference

Let’s say your product is quite a bit more expensive than your competitors, and you don’t want to compete on price alone (and risk damaging the quality of your product as a result). You can admit it right from the start by writing something like:

Most widget stores sell widgets for $99 or less.  So why are our widgets almost twice as much?  Because we don’t compromise on quality.  From the moment you walk out of the store with your new widget, you’ll get unwavering support with any questions you may have about setting up and using your widget…

Just the Facts

If your competition has several major differences, no matter what they are (higher price, better support, etc.) you can always find areas where your product or service does a better job.  For example:

Why buy widgets from XYZ company?  For one thing, we’re more affordable.  At half the price, you’ll save both time and money.  Plus, with our easy instructional video, you’ll be up and running in minutes, right out of the box.  Why waste time phoning support and being on hold for hours?

At this point, if the customer is considering the two options, they might decide to go for the lower price and less support because your product’s user friendly design means they can experience the benefits sooner.

Try testing your copy by admitting a weakness up front.  Not only does it help lower the visitor-to-buyer purchase barrier, but it also strengthens the confidence and trust in your offer so that customers feel more at ease doing business with you.

Tags: copywriting, sell more, weakness