ArticlesReader.com Menu
Newest Articles
Most Viewed Articles
ArticlesReader.com RSS
Submit Article
Login
Signup
Search the articles

Articles Main Categories
Advice
Animals
Automobiles
Business
Career
Communications
Computer Programming
Computers
Entertainment
Environment
Family
Fashion
Finance
Food
Health & Medical
Home & Garden
Humor
Internet Business
Internet Marketing
Legal
Leisure & Recreation
Marketing
Other
Politics
Reference & Education
Religion
Self Improvement
Sports
Technology & Science
Travel
Writing
Subscribe
Receive alert message from us when new articles submitted to our site for free.

Enter your name

Enter your email

Syndicate

















Related Products
Home::All

The One Word Every Prospect Craves

Author : Neil Sagebiel
It’s arguably the most important word in the copywriter's arsenal. It ranks right at the top with words like "free," "new" and "savings."



I’m talking about "you."



"You" is the word that gets your prospect’s attention and keeps them involved. As Herschell Gordon Lewis says in The Art of Writing Copy, "Unless the reader regards himself as the target of your message, benefit can’t exist. Benefit demands a ‘We/You’ relationship."



While the "We" in the "We/You" relationship is important, it’s better implied than communicated literally. If your goal is to put prospects first, then it’s best to have the "you’s" far exceed the "we’s."



It’s the "you’s" that matter to prospects. They’re your workhorse for communicating your message and include all derivatives such as "your," "yours," "yourself," "you’re," and "you’ll."



Powerful ‘You’



What makes "you" so powerful? For one thing, it addresses your readers directly. In effect, it says "Hey you," which is much harder to ignore than "Hey somebody."



Say "Hey you" in a crowded room and a lot of heads will turn. Say "Hey somebody" and a few heads might turn.



While your copy won’t actually say "Hey you," it can clearly identify to whom you’re talking. Once you have your audience's attention, use "you" to help keep it.



Personal ‘You’



Why does "you" get and hold attention? For one thing, it’s personal. It’s used in personal conversation every day. What do you think? How was your weekend? You’ll be glad to know …



When people say these things to you, they’re bound to get your attention and involvement. After all, they’re interested in your opinion. They’re interested in the things you do. They have something to tell you that will make you happy.



That’s the goal of you-oriented copy. Address your audience directly, personally and in terms of their interests. Be conversational and "you" will pop up in the copy naturally.



Counting ‘You’



It was mentioned earlier that "you" is a workhorse. A classic example is contained in "The Do-It-Yourself Direct Mail Handbook" by Murray Raphel and Ken Erdman. They highlight a "Newsweek" magazine subscription letter used for nearly two decades.



The subscription letter was written by direct mail expert Ed McLean, who used "you" nearly 30 times on the first page alone. More than 100 million copies of the letter were mailed, a testament to its effectiveness.



Try counting the "you’s" (and "you" derivatives) in your copy. Compare them with the number of "we’s" and first-person derivatives. If the "you’s" don’t outnumber the "we’s," consider reworking your copy.



Excessive ‘You’?



Can you overdo "you"? Yes.



If you load your copy with "you’s" but forget the benefits, your message will have a phony ring.



"You" can’t save you if there’s nothing meaningful to offer your audience. Likewise, it will help put you over the top if there is.



(c) 2005 Neil Sagebiel


Article Source: http://www.articledashboard.com





Neil Sagebiel is a veteran copywriter who has served clients such as Microsoft, The Seattle Times, Lucent Technologies, March of Dimes, Airborne Express and Unisys. To sign up for his FREE expert tips to help you write better and sell more, visit www.neilsagebiel.com.





Spam emails More free articles

Related articles


  1. Is Your Web Copy "Plain Talk"?
  2. A Quick Free 'n' Easy Content Writing Course
  3. Pharmaceutical Copywriter? Maybe?
  4. Copy Makeovers Made Easy
  5. Copywriting Makeover: Subtle Changes Make A Big Difference, Part 2 of 2
  6. Copywriting Makeover: Subtle Changes Make A Noticeable Difference Part 1 of 2
  7. Top 10 Ways For Copywriters To Overcome Writer's Block
  8. How To Personalize Your Headlines For Increased Profits!
  9. Writing Suitable Copy for the Press
  10. How to Write Ad Copy that Sells
  11. Working on the Internet: Role of Proofreading and Copy editing OnLine
  12. Tech-writers: A Necessary Evil
  13. Web Copy How Much is Enough?
  14. Online Promotion Beats Traditional Ten-One
  15. Writing Copy for Voiceovers
  16. Somebody's Distributing Your Copyright Content Illegally? Know Your Facts Before You Accuse
  17. Web Legalities: Copyright
  18. Things You Might Like to Know about Copyrights
  19. Why Good Copywriting Matters
  20. Why Dream Merchants Make More Money
  21. Why Copyright?
  22. The Top 7 Rules of Power Copywriting!
  23. Revealed: The $12,500 Copywriting Formula
  24. What is Advertising - and What Does it Mean on the Internet?
  25. 7 Emotional Appeals You Can Use To Super Charge Your Headlines
More related feeds
The One Word Every Prospect Craves
"You" is the word that gets your prospect's attention and keeps them involved. As Herschell Gordon Lewis says in "The Art of Writing Copy," "Unless the reader regards himself as the target of your message, benefit can't exist. ...

Challenges To Environmentally Responsible Energy Use In Today's ...
One can think of conservation as a resource like oil and gas, measurable by the amount of energy saved. If the world's oil reserves are mostly mapped, its conservation reserves are vast and unexplored. This may be the last frontier in ...

Challenges To Environmentally Responsible Energy Use In Today's ...
Ecological Internet (EI) provides for free the most successful Internet based environment portals and international Earth advocacy network ever, regularly achieving environmental conservation victories around the world. ...

Watt Now?
No matter how far back one looks, at least in American history, there is no large-scale model for a sustainable society. In growth speak, "sustainable" is just another word for "limited," a concept as American as arugula pie. ...

Internet, I'm craving Doritos | dooce ®
Congratulations! My due date is June 28! I also experienced a miscarriage last year so it was a relief to see a steady heartbeat. Now every time I get nauseous or crave something weird, I just get so happy. 11.19.08 - 11:51 AM ...

Do You Believe In The World?: Welcome to the Polytechnic
However, allow me, in less than 2 minutes of your precious time, try and convince (or so to speak) you, as an individual, why the option of a Polytechnic is both enticing and promising as a education prospect (with deep reference to the ...

Shooting Down Pictures » Blog Archive » 933 (74). La Région ...
One result: nature and “I” no longer suffer each other, either on the ground or in representation. Through my self and these new sights, the binary division between representation and the “real” world, “hostile” nature and my self, ...

How to Tell if a Guy is a Jerk,: For the Young Women of the World ...
For this site a "jerk," is: a man who is not a good prospect for a long term, committed, emotionally mature, healthy, and loving relationship. While it is absolutely true that no one is perfect and we all make mistakes, there are some ...

Sales Guy :: The Ice Breaker
But by asking a question, instead of making a statement, you take advantage of one of the universal laws of human nature and engage your prospect right from the start. All people have one insatiable craving and that craving is to feel ...

Rumour: Gearbox Lays Off 26, Drops Aliens: Colonial Marines ...
Ever since that big Game Informer spread when the title was revealved, we've seen next to nothing. One prerendered trailer that shows zero gameplay and about 5 seconds of the game being played in the background of the Jace Hall show ...

 


 

2007 articlesreader.com - All Rights Reserved