5 Steps to a Story that Will Sell Your Product or Service
NOTE: The following is a classic reprint of my most read writing article . . .
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One often ignored secret to massive success for your sales letters and marketing materials is to add a compelling, emotional story. Whether to story tells of a true customer experience, or simply illustrates a possible use for your product, a well written story draws readers in, and leads them through your letter almost without even being aware that they are reading a sales page.
But how do you create a story like this? What steps should you follow?
This article is the first in a series demonstrating a writing system that I call “Five Steps to a Story.” I’ve taught the system successfully to thousands of people through my speaking engagements and writing seminars, and over the course of this six article series, I’ll teach the system to you also.
The focus of this first article is to expose you to the Five Steps to a Story system, and to actually list the steps that we will be covering in the remaining articles of the series.
So, what exactly are the five steps? Here they are:
- Start with a picture in your mind
- Give the pictures a “twist”
- Ask questions until the story comes out
- Create a roadmap of the story
- Write the story
Note: Yes, I know at first glance it may seem strange the Step 5 of the instructions for writing a story would be “write the story,” but once you understand the entire system it will all make sense.
Essentially, here is how the system works. You start with a simple image in your mind of the type of story you want to write. This opening image can come from anywhere, and in the next article we will describe several ways to get this opening image.
Then, in the following steps, we manipulate the picture until the “bare bones” of the story come together. Steps 2 and 3 of this series will cover this.
Next, we create a road-map, or outline, of the story. Some writers, of course, do not take this step, but in my system I find it extremely valuable to blueprint how you see the story coming together. Step 4 in this series will show you exactly how to do this.
And finally, in Step 5 we will get to the actual writing of the story. Putting words on paper until you have completed your vision for the work. I have many tips and tricks that make this step far less painful than it may appear now. By the time you’ve completed the instructions of this step, you will have completed your first story.
The reason that my Five Steps to a Story system works so well for so many people is that the hard work is done early in the process, before even sitting down at the computer to write. All of the stress of the dreaded “blank page” is removed, and by the time you actually need to put words on paper, you already “know” what you are going to say.
So with these preliminaries out of the way, I encourage you to find and read the next article of this series – “Five Steps to a Story, Step 1 – Start with a Picture.”
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Writing Tips From the Pros – 6 MS-Word Commands You Should Be Using
There is little doubt that Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing program available today. Writers of all levels use it daily, and it has become the unofficial “standard” for business. If you are a marketer, chances are great that you use Word to create your sales letters, marketing pieces, and even website copy.
There is a difference, however, in how most amateur writers use the program and how professional writers use the program. In my many years of writing with Word, I have consistently used a handful of commands over and over, and not quite in the way you might think.
Let me explain. Read more…
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Speed Your Writing with This Formatting Trick
The Secret Trick of Professional Writers to Get More Writing Done in Less Time
By Kevin Franz
When putting words on paper becomes a large part of your day, you inevitably begin to develop skills to help you get the job done faster and with less effort. One of the first skills I learned is to never write something new if you have something existing that will serve. Rarely will an experienced writer start a new file from scratch. There are always previous works available to use as a starting point – pages of pre-done text that need only a little tweaking and formatting.
But with that convenience comes a problem. And that problem is Read more…
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This Mistake Can Make You Look Dumb
It’s an old saying that “the devil is in the details.”
If we modify that to copywriting, it would be the “devil is waiting to pounce on incorrect details.”
Dan Kennedy and Bill Glazer often speak of the need to have an affinity to a market. That is, to sell to a group of people, you have to know what they are like. You have to talk like they talk, act like they act, and craft your marketing materials around their particular idiosyncrasies.
Nowhere is that more important than when you are crafting the details of your sales letter. If you mess up even one little thing, an entire group of potential customers will immediately invalidate the whole message. Huge percentages of your readers will throw out the piece right there, without ever getting near your actual offer.
To find out what to do about this problem, and how to correct it, check out this link:
http://ezinearticles.com/?Sales-Letter-Copywriters—This-Mistake-Can-Make-You-Look-Dumb&id=4071572
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8 Paragraphs of Fun (and how to make it better)
Marketing often relies on tried and true formulas to entice readers and encourage customers. One of the most famous is the “8 paragraph formula.” If you don’t know what that is, you can check out this article . . . AND get a very cool variation that just might lick some new life into the old formula.
Enjoy:
http://ezinearticles.com/?Instant-Sales-Letters—A-More-Creative-Approach&id=4022197
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New Sales Letter Info!
Hey Folks -
Whenever I post tips and tricks for writers, the most requested topic revolves around creating better sales letters. So many people, it seems, fall into the category of:
1. Needing to have a Sales Letter written
2. Not being able to afford (or not wanting to pay for) a “hotshot” copy writing guru
With that in mind, here is the link to a new article I wrote that includes a cool, new twist on a “tried and true” formula. I think you are going to like it.
http://ezinearticles.com/?Sales-Letter-Outline—A-Twist-on-a-Classic-Formula&id=4006242
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Publishing Options Wrap-Up
I’ve listed five articles for you to read on the topic of choosing the best publishing option for your informational book. We covered all of the major ways that you can get a book in front of the public, including traditional publishing, self-publishing, print-on-demand, and eBooks.
But what is the right way for you? What is the one best choice that you could make?
The article below takes all of the best of the previous articles and boils it all down into a simple chart for choosing the best option. Enjoy!
http://ezinearticles.com/?How-to-Publish-Your-Informational-Book—Conclusion&id=3968239
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Is an eBook right for you?
The age of the electronic book – or “eBook” – was supposed to have made all other books obsolete. Well, clearly, that didn’t happen.
But, there are still times when releasing an eBook may be your best option. There are few upfront costs (like, not any!), and they can be delivered instantly. Yet, all is not perfect in the world of electronic publishing. Take a look at the latest installment in my publishing series for details on the pros and cons of releasing an eBook.
http://ezinearticles.com/?How-to-Publish-Your-Informational-Book—Part-5—E-Books&id=3968216
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"You're So Vain" – all about Vanity Presses
If you are not interested in publishing your own book, yet the thought of turning it over to some corporate publishing house makes you nervous, there is a happy medium.
It’s called a “vanity press,” sometimes known as Print-On-Demand.
By using this method, you get the speed and control of self-publishing, along with the help and guidance of traditional publishing.
But what – you ask – are the downsides? Well, for that you are going to have to read my new article:
http://ezinearticles.com/?How-to-Publish-Your-Informational-Book—Part-4—Print-on-Demand&id=3965243
Enjoy (and share with a friend)!
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Have You Ever Considered Selling Your OWN Book?
If you’re the kind of person that enjoys doing things on your own, and if you are the kind of person that likes lots of little details that you can put on a list (and check off!), then SELF-PUBLISHING may be the thing for you.
Self-publishing is the way that I got started back in 2001, and I wouldn’t change the experience for anything. Not only did I learn a TON about the business, but I also 1.) got my book out quickly, and 2.) made a good amount of money. But it was a lot of work.
If you have a manuscript, or even just a book idea, that you are thinking about publishing someday, you are going to want to read my NEW article on Self-Publishing. Check out this link and let me know what you think.
http://ezinearticles.com/?How-to-Publish-Your-Informational-Book,-Part-3—Self-Publishing&id=3965225
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