Structuring your Copy

By Ray Edwards

This article will discuss the importance of the structures and patterns that already exist in copywriting. There is no need to reinvent the wheel; these formulas exist because they work. We will specifically examine how to write a sales letter because of its greatest impact, especially if making doing SEO copywriting.

One school of thought says that your website should be one large sales letter. This could be a great opportunity for you. You can write for off-line and online businesses using a sales letter format.

A sales letter contains three components that dictate the success of the letter: The headline, offer, and the postscript. As the first component, the headline needs to grab people's attention. If you fail to do this you are wasting your time. Then, the offer must be explicit in order to tell the customer what you're offering. It must entice the customer to buy your product after reading the letter. The final component, the postscript, is the second most read portion of a sales letter just after the headline. This section should contain a special incentive to motivate your customers to take advantage of your offer. You should take each component in order as you write. But do not write it all at once; instead take it section by section. I.e. Write the headline first, the offer second and the postscript last. This will help produce a great sales letter.

If you lack experience as a copywriter and want more structures and patterns, then you should follow the experts. Dan Kennedy is a great copywriter that has written some excellent books on copywriting. This will be extremely helpful.

Hopefully you found this article insightful. The key is to build upon the formulas already established and add your own creative spin. The procedures exist for a reason: they work! So don't go and reinvent the wheel by doing something new, this will often result in weaker copy and more work. You will set yourself up for success by following the already established structures and patterns.

About the Author:

For an inside look at the techniques of a top direct response copywriter, visit the site of Copywriter Ray Edwards. There you'll find a daily podcast, video tutorials and copywriting advice.