Hello Ben’s subscribers!
Please don’t unsubscribe from this edition. I really don’t want to annoy Ben.
He does some of the best SEO scaling content out there and I’d hate him to block me from it 😅
And you’re probably reading this because you scale businesses with SEO content.
You probably get a tonne of traffic from excellent content. But, unless you convert that traffic, it all might be wasted effort.
So, how do you get people to click the buy button?
I’ve developed a framework for CTAs that gives people no option other than to click. It’s all based on copywriting techniques, psychology, and human nature so it’s applicable to every business in every industry.
But who the hell am I?
I’m John, a copywriter with 5+ years of experience working in startups and corporations [give me startups any day 🙏]
I’ve spent those 5 years in the copywriting trenches sending armies of words to fight on my behalf in the battle for attention.
I’ve managed to convince people to give a new startup their entire life savings. I’ve managed to convince people to choose one commodity insurance product over another. And I’ve written emails to fairly cold audiences with 68% open rates and 7%+ click-through rates.
I’ve managed to make people act.
And that’s where my framework begins, because [and I bet you never spotted this before] but ACT is an anagram of CTA.
ACTION is exactly what we want to happen. How we make people ACT is hidden in the ION.
CTAs need to be:
- I = Irresistible
- O = Outcome based
- N = No risk
So what do I mean?
[Image examples are from my newsletter sign-up page]
Irresistible
Irresistible things are high value and low effort. Any other combination doesn’t work:
- Low value + High effort = ❌
- High value + High effort = ❌
- Low value + Low effort = ❌
High value + Low effort = ✅
Outcome-based
People make decisions emotionally, then they back it up with logic. You do it. I do it. We all do it...subconsciously.
So, make sure you sell the result and not the product.
If you can trigger emotion, do that, because people are moved [to act] by emotion.
In other words, sell the feeling of being on holiday not the plane ticket.
No risk
Humans are naturally risk averse. We don’t like change, even when it’s good for us. We’re a weird bunch.
So, write with this in mind.
Make any action feel safe and reversible.
If you do all these things and still don’t get clicks you have:
+ a clarity problem [People don’t get what you do]
+ a relevance problem [People don’t think it’s for them]
+ a value problem [People don’t get the benefits]
+ a differentiation problem [People don’t get your USP]
And you may not have clearly answered the five objections humans have to any product:
01/ No money
02/ No desire
03/ No hurry
04/ No trust
05/ No need
Answer the five objections, account for the four messaging issues, nail the CTA with ACTION and people will click.
If, like me, this kind of stuff fascinates you, and you think persuasion through writing might be a useful skill, then you might like my copywriting guide.
It’s where I teach everything I’ve picked up over the last 5+ years in the copywriting trenches.
It started as a record of my copywriting education. But I wrote it as if I was teaching someone else because I took to heart the idea that, if you want to learn, teach!
The thing about learning, though, is that it never stops, so like a madman, I offer lifetime updates. As I learn more, I add more.
Here’s the link, and one of the best domain purchases I ever made!
See you on the inside?
—John
