Attention Struggling Business Owners!

By Scott A. Rozanski

“Is your business not growing as fast as you would like it to?

Well, we can help you get on track to increase your company’s revenues from $150,000 to $3 Million in 6 months or less…”

How is that for an attention grabbing marketing intro?  I could go on, but as we’ve all heard, “There’s no such thing as a free lunch.”  With copy that begins like this and then takes the reader along a path so that he is salivating to know more about how you can help him, you’ll be a hit.

So, what is the secret to writing great copy for your marketing messages such as email or direct mail?  If you follow this simple formula, you can’t go wrong:  A-I-D-A.  Attention; Interest; Desire; and Action (as in “Call to Action”), but more on this later.

Before you employ the A-I-D-A formula above, there are some other things to consider.  First, you should know what your audience’s pain is.  What makes them lose sleep at night?  If you are a small business owner and can’t seem to make any money, chances are you are worrying about dipping into your savings or your kid’s college fund, not having time with your family, not having money to pay the bills, etc.  That’s true pain and you need to find out what your ideal client’s is.

Once you have the pain, offer them a solution…one with value to them!  Again, you might have to do a bit of research, but once you 1) know the pain 2) know the solution and the value 3) have a product or service to offer them and 4) Employ the A-I-D-A formula to your marketing message, you should be bringing in clients faster than you ever have before.

Now, let’s go over A-I-D-A.  When you actually go to write your copy, first grab their attention (A) with a powerful headline.  Then get their interest with a sub-headline (I).  Next, create the desire by appealing to their emotion (D).  Last, incorporate a call-to-action (A – for action).  If you don’t tell the reader what his next step is, chances are he won’t respond.