2:34pm
Saint Paul
When I was 12 the neighbor’s dog bit my brother.
We never had a dog of our own.
Goldfish, yes. A cat. A parakeet. A skink. A snake. Even a “grow a frog” that escaped its water tank… and a week later, hopped across the kitchen floor.
So I was never much of a dog person.
In fact I told myself I was afraid of them. The dog bite and all, you understand.
And any time I saw a dog, this fear consumed my brain.
But years ago I decided that was silly.
So I simply reprogrammed my brain.
I replaced old thought patterns and self-talk with an upgraded frame that has served me well:
“Dogs? They’re fine.”
I mean, it’s not like they’re my best friend.
But I successfully changed what I told myself. And that resulted in a change of behavior.
Today I’ll happily pet a sniffy dog, and my family has one of our own (thanks pandemic).
*|FNAME|*, the stories we tell ourselves define the life we live and the actions we take.
Copywriting isn’t too different.
Copy uses words to either reinforce the reader’s beliefs or to try to change those beliefs with emotion and logic.
AIDA is a start…
And I’ve used it for years…
But it’s just a framework.
How can you say your product is bigger, faster, stronger? How is it easier, safer, newer? How will it help your buyer? What does your buyer value and how can you provide it?
What story can you tell about your offer?
And like my dog story, it’s easier to move someone slightly than it is to turn them 180°…
Which is just one reason why cold traffic is notoriously difficult: even if you get someone looking at your ad, are you hitting the right buttons to get them to take action?
Love you
Jeffrey
PS. After 8 years as a copywriter, some days it’s really easy to find the buttons that make people take action. Other days, not as easy–but you have to tell yourself to get up and try again.
As Eugene Schwartz said, he forces himself to write even on days he doesn’t feel like it.
And what he writes turns out pretty good anyway.
Stories rule the world. Tell good ones.