The Art of Persuasive Business Writing

by: Courtland Bovee

All good writing involves persuasion-getting the reader over to your side. You may be writing to persuade a colleague to take on a new project, writing a blog post trying to persuade people to accept a new idea, or writing persuasive advertising copy for a new product. In each situation, your goal is to persuade your readers that you have something to say and that it is in their best interest to take the action you have requested.

Here are five elements to keep in mind when writing persuasive messages.

1. “You” attitude. Too much business writing has an “I” or “we” viewpoint, which causes the writer to sound selfish and not interested in the reader. If you want to get your point of view across, convey information, or persuade the reader, you have to talk in terms of the reader’s interests, hopes, wishes, and preferences. Good writing psychology requires that you present your message in light of the reader’s viewpoint rather than your own.

“I” or “We”

To help us process this order, we must ask for another copy of the requisition.

We trust you will extend your service contract.

“You”

So that your order can be filled promptly, please send another copy of the requisition.

By extending your service contract, you can continue to enjoy topnotch performance from your equipment.

2. Warmth. You can make all sorts of mistakes in your messages yet still leave your readers with a good feeling if you can convey the magic intangible of personal warmth. Warmth is more difficult in writing than it is in oral communications. Essentially, warmth is an aspect-possibly even the measure-of the “you” viewpoint. You should not only demonstrate concern for the audience’s problems but interest in their attitudes and an appreciation of the ways in which handling the situation is going to be helpful to them.

3. Parallel experience. One way of touching the right spots with your reader is to draw on a parallel situation in your own experience. Build your writing around this experience, or use what you learned as a basis for your writing. By creating a sympathetic bond between you and your reader, you enhance the person-to-person connection and help your reader to become more open to what you are saying.

4. Good manners. If you want to persuade your reader, you must show impeccable manners. In other words, be nice. If you are rude or overly aggressive, your reader will shut down to your argument and turn elsewhere. When in doubt, put yourself on the other end of the writing and ask, “How would I feel if this was directed at me? Would I be offended, or would I be open to listening to more?”

5. Tone. The tone of your writing goes beyond the content of your words and offers the reader an overall feeling or indication of your meaning. The overall tone of your message will depend on the subject, but a general guideline is to stay positive. Suggest to your reader that you are interested in his or her problems and in solving them. A good tone is ruined by using harsh words or phrases. Some examples:

Poor

the alleged loss

you claim that

you neglected to send

in which you assert

if we were at fault

we request that you send us

Improved

the loss you refer to

we understand that

you did not send

you tell us

please accept our apologies

please send us

Persuasion is an art, not a science-but that does not mean there is no winning formula. By incorporating these five elements into your business communication, you will have a greater chance of getting your reader to stop, listen, and take the action you want.

Source

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The post The Art of Persuasive Business Writing appeared first on Robert JR Graham.

The Art of Persuasive Business Writing

by: Courtland Bovee

All good writing involves persuasion-getting the reader over to your side. You may be writing to persuade a colleague to take on a new project, writing a blog post trying to persuade people to accept a new idea, or writing persuasive advertising copy for a new product. In each situation, your goal is to persuade your readers that you have something to say and that it is in their best interest to take the action you have requested.

Here are five elements to keep in mind when writing persuasive messages.

1. “You” attitude. Too much business writing has an “I” or “we” viewpoint, which causes the writer to sound selfish and not interested in the reader. If you want to get your point of view across, convey information, or persuade the reader, you have to talk in terms of the reader’s interests, hopes, wishes, and preferences. Good writing psychology requires that you present your message in light of the reader’s viewpoint rather than your own.

“I” or “We”

To help us process this order, we must ask for another copy of the requisition.

We trust you will extend your service contract.

“You”

So that your order can be filled promptly, please send another copy of the requisition.

By extending your service contract, you can continue to enjoy topnotch performance from your equipment.

2. Warmth. You can make all sorts of mistakes in your messages yet still leave your readers with a good feeling if you can convey the magic intangible of personal warmth. Warmth is more difficult in writing than it is in oral communications. Essentially, warmth is an aspect-possibly even the measure-of the “you” viewpoint. You should not only demonstrate concern for the audience’s problems but interest in their attitudes and an appreciation of the ways in which handling the situation is going to be helpful to them.

3. Parallel experience. One way of touching the right spots with your reader is to draw on a parallel situation in your own experience. Build your writing around this experience, or use what you learned as a basis for your writing. By creating a sympathetic bond between you and your reader, you enhance the person-to-person connection and help your reader to become more open to what you are saying.

4. Good manners. If you want to persuade your reader, you must show impeccable manners. In other words, be nice. If you are rude or overly aggressive, your reader will shut down to your argument and turn elsewhere. When in doubt, put yourself on the other end of the writing and ask, “How would I feel if this was directed at me? Would I be offended, or would I be open to listening to more?”

5. Tone. The tone of your writing goes beyond the content of your words and offers the reader an overall feeling or indication of your meaning. The overall tone of your message will depend on the subject, but a general guideline is to stay positive. Suggest to your reader that you are interested in his or her problems and in solving them. A good tone is ruined by using harsh words or phrases. Some examples:

Poor

the alleged loss

you claim that

you neglected to send

in which you assert

if we were at fault

we request that you send us

Improved

the loss you refer to

we understand that

you did not send

you tell us

please accept our apologies

please send us

Persuasion is an art, not a science-but that does not mean there is no winning formula. By incorporating these five elements into your business communication, you will have a greater chance of getting your reader to stop, listen, and take the action you want.

Source

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• 9 Persuasion Lessons You Can Learn from a 4-Year-Old


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The post The Art of Persuasive Business Writing appeared first on Robert JR Graham.

Tips For Writing Sales Copy

Tips For Writing Copy to Boost Sales

by: TJ Philpott

When writing copy online to increase sales it is vitally important to connect with your reader in order to convey your marketing message. Most people are cynical when viewing any advertising copy due to the amount of hype often used. The most effective way to engage readers is to touch upon an emotional cord with them thereby drawing them deeper into what you have written. Blasting people with outlandish claims tends to increase their resistance to your advertising copy.

Here are 10 subtle tips to use when composing sales content to help you ‘connect’ with people thereby allowing you to more effectively deliver your marketing message.

Attention Getting Headline

Peak the curiosity of readers by ‘hinting’ at what type of ‘sensational’ information awaits them within the body of your content. You must get them to read further into your advertising copy in order to get your points across and/or to persuade them to make a purchase.

Address the Problem

Identify the problem from which readers are suffering and that your offer will address to further engage people even deeper into your copy. At this point you have ‘touch a chord’ with others because they now feel you can relate with what they are going through. It is this connection they will help you better communicate any marketing message you may have.

Offer a Solution

Provide for a people a reasonable solution to their problem and do so in a credible manner. It is here that are are providing some legitimacy to the claims of your solution. You must be believable and convey your message in a clear and logical fashion! Using a more reasonable, deliberate and calmer ‘tone’ in your advertising copy will be soothing to readers thereby lessening their resistance.

Show the Benefits

By showing people the problem as mentioned above you are also reminding them of their discomfort, suffering or pain! Here is where you allow them to imagine the ‘benefits’ that your offer will afford them and how their previous and undesirable feelings and/or situation will be solved! In order to increase sales with any promotional copy you will always need to show people how they will benefit!

Give Proof

The use of testimonials or logical and reasonable explanations that serves to make your benefit claims more believable or understandable helps to again lessen reader resistance. This reassurance is necessary and needed to get people to take the action you require.

Present Your Offer

Here is where you tell people you got the solution and they need to take the necessary action as required to posses the solution and enjoy the benefits! Once you have ‘rolled out’ your solution again review how it will help them and therefore why they need to have it!

Give Reassurance

Here is where you offer a guarantee to further assure readers and lay to rest any lingering doubts that they may have. You want them to feel any risk at this point is minimal or better yet non-existent! Money back guarantees are quite normal and expected when dealing with any reputable business. Here too you are aiming to knock down any remaining ‘walls’ of resistance or doubt people may still possess!

Your Call to Action

This is your wake-up call to readers telling them to take action, NOW and stop the suffering, discomfort or otherwise undesirable feelings/experience they currently have! Telling them the solution is at hand and theirs for the taking right at this point further lessens resistance and compels them to take action. You are ‘nudging’ them along without blatantly pushing them which would only serve to increase their reluctance and fuel their doubt! It is all about subtlety and your proper use of it to keep people reading your advertising copy! It stands to reason that the more they read the greater the chance you will have to deliver your marketing message. In order to increase sales you absolutely must get your message across!

Review Their Current Situation

Here you are simply reminding people of why they are even reading your copy, because they have a need or desire to make ‘things’ better! Reminding them you have the solution and it is easily within their grasp further triggers emotions that pushes them closer to taking action!

Remind People of the Benefits

Ending your copy on a positive note quite simply remind people of the good things they stand to experience and the negative ones they can easily eliminate, RIGHT NOW!

When writing copy for the sake of promoting something it is usually best to use subtly and not an ‘in your face’ approach. When people are viewing any advertising copy they always have the option of turning away thereby not receiving the intended marketing message. Subtly on the other hand serves to win the confidence and strike a connection with readers as the discussion above explains. By doing so people are then able to become more engaged in what you have written. The point is that the more they are willing to read, the greater the chances you advertising copy will have it intended effect which is simply to increase sales!

Source

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The post Tips For Writing Sales Copy appeared first on Robert JR Graham.