I need your help
This topic contains 27 replies, has 12 voices, and was last updated by 
Bruce Hoag 6 years, 9 months ago.
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Topic
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Folks.
I need your help.
I’m expecting to get a lot of traffic soon to my ghostwriting website.
The thing is that I don’t know what I should say in my emails.
There’s only so much that you can tell people about what sales letters should do, what successful email campaigns look like, the value of ebooks, or bigger projects.
If you’re training someone to do these things, then the scope is large.
However, that’s not what I’m doing.
Instead, I want to write these things for people.
If you were looking for a ghostwriter, then what topics would you want to learn about?
If you already write for others, what do you talk about in your campaigns?
Thanks.
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy1 user thanked author for this post.
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Replies
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As with anything in marketing, Bruce… focus on the benefits, not the features.
Don’t tell people what you can and will do, show them how they will benefit from having hired you to write for them.
People only care about how they will benefit from what you do, not how good it is, or why it’s the best thing etc.
So, for instance, NOT “look how great this sales letter is” BUT “think of the huge jump in sales you will get from my unique brand of sales letter”
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That’s really helpful, Donna.
Thank you.
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy -
Hi Bruce,
As Donna alludes to it’s all about “them” (the potential customer/client), and their aspirations. Using your undoubted writing skills, paint a picture in their minds as to how the future will improve for them when their own brand is magnified and status within their business sectors enhanced. More trust and connection made with their clients, leading to more brand awareness and an increased ROI.
I am in no doubt that you, Bruce, can imitate the voice/style/image of your client, but at the same time differentiate their offer from the crowd, by Presenting a unique selling proposition, on their behalf, to put them ahead of the game. Positioning within the market, as you are no doubt aware, is crucial.
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It all seems so obvious when you explain it.
Sometimes I can’t see the wood/forest for the trees. 😉
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy
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I agree you should tell them the benefits, but you should also keep them interested. So if you are going to email each day. Here’s my thoughts, not sure if its right but it has worked for me 🙂
So lets look at if them come through you optin “How to Choose a Ghostwriter”
Email 1: you send them a welcome email with the download (even if you have sent them to a download page) and maybe mention something in the ebook that encourages them to actually read it not just open and skim.Email 2: Tell them about a problem and a solution but done sell them anything
Email 3: Ask them about the ebook … connect with them? Do they have any questions how they can connect with you ie email, facebook, phone etc. Still no sell but link it to what you are going to show them in the next email
Email 4: Solve a problem, give benefit of a product you have. If they are still opening they are now starting to be interested and ready to take action
Email 5: give value, tell them something personal so you are now becoming someone they are interested in listening to.. deal with a pain point
Email 6: once again talk about your product
Email 7: give value again
and this continues. You want to give value a couple of time, the product and when you have something really go to offer do it as a campaign so they may already get your email from your sequence, but they may also get another one from you as you are excited to offer them this product.
Point to remember:
Make sure that you signature has a cta, so if they are ready to take action they take the one you want them to do. ie url to your course or coaching
Email lengths should vary from quick a couple of line ones to long ones this makes them want to engage as if you always send short ones they tell to only open them when they have a minute or two and if you only send long ones they may only open when they have 10-15 min spare. So keep them interested. Sean is an expert at this!All things Digital
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Really helpful, Tina.
One thing that I have to guard against is turning the email into an essay. LOL
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy
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I’m not sure how helpful these will be but I have lots of questions/concerns, which is why I don’t hire someone else to do my writing 🙂
How do you know what to write for me?
Will what you write sound like me?
Can you match the voice and feeling of my site or will it feel like another author on my site?
What topics can you write on/about? Is there any topic that is off limits?
Have you ever written something for someone that has become a bestseller or made a lot of money?
What do you need from me to write a good sales letter for my product?
What is the process to write an email campaign for me?
Is ghostwriting a work together type project? In other words, how much input would I have in the end result?
I’ve tried to hire people to write articles before and they were never useable. what would you need from me in order to write a good article, sales page, email campaign, etc.?…and I could go on…
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These are interesting questions, Julia.
In a nutshell, I ask the potential client a few questions that tell me a lot about what they want.
The first one is, “Who’s your audience?”
The next one is, “What do you want your readers to do as a result of reading this?”
There are topics I prefer and ones that I’ll stay away from. In most cases, I learn more about what’s required before I make a decision.
What your questions have done, however, is remind me that I need to prepare a bit better for when the opportunities do arise.
Thank you.
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy -
I’m taking copious notes from your comments, Julia, and the others.
One thing I forgot to mention is my other site: Psych Hacks.
I usually refer potential clients there so that they can see if they like my writing style. It means that they get to see a lot of content in one place, and I’m not producing “samples.”
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy
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You’re welcome Bruce!
I wanted to clarify my thinking process, you asked;
Instead, I want to write these things for people.
If you were looking for a ghostwriter, then what topics would you want to learn about?
I wouldn’t want to learn a particular topic to be trained on because, in this case I don’t want to learn how to do it, I’m looking for a service.
If I’m coming to you for ghostwriting I want to be confident you could write like me or be able to adopt the tone and voice of my site, take good care of my audience with the info you provide and prove that you added enough value to my process that I’d be more than happy to pay you for your services.
How do you do that?
Without giving away your secret sauce, an article about how you get to understand the tone of a site, for instance would be interesting to me as a purchaser of your service.
Or how much money could you actually save a person by writing for them? Do you have any case studies you could share?
All this being said the ‘how to do it’ steps can also be good topics because they can lead people to see #1 you know your craft and #2 its more work than I want to do so let’s pass this work on to the expert.
Hope this helps,
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Really helpful, Julia. Thank you.
Never would have thought of these things because, as a writer, I just do it.
I know what I’m looking for, how to structure the content, what flows, etc.
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy
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Bruce,
I’ve struggled with the same daunting task. I’m faced with building a regular list and a “buyer’s list”.The buyer’s list is easy – I have lots of tips and tricks that would naturally flow with the rest to provide good value.
I’ve been thinking about what to send the other list, aside from the obvious calls to action to check out my product.
So far, I’ve come up with:
-Links to check out my blog posts/videos (which all, subtly or not so subtly, lead back to an opportunity to buy the product). Ask a question, encourage them to check out the post/answer on the blog.
-Basic stories about how hard life is without your offer, and how it can improve with it. Testimonials and stories are great because they draw the reader in.
-Stories that end with a prompt to check out more information on the site (FAQ, etc.)
-Polls – Have you hired someone before? What was your experience? What did they lack that you need? – Encourage feedback from them to shape your services into what they need.Now granted, I realize, all of this sounds easier to do than it actually is 😉 But those are some of the things I’m going to aim for initially.
It’s amazing how long someone will stay on a list without buying anything. But then if you happen to offer something at the right time, when they’re looking for it, you might turn that subscriber into a customer. I’ve been on some people’s lists for years, solely because they’re entertaining or informational. One marketer I recently subscribed to tells a joke at the beginning of each email (which is usually a product pitch). How can I say no to that?!
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It’s a funny thing, Jen.
I know what I do well, but I don’t know how to package it.
Sean told me one time that I was the best writer he knew. He also told me (many times) that people needed my help as a psychologist.
So the plan is to build the business in writing, but incorporate the psychology into it, and then when I can figure out how to package the psychology, offer it as well.
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy -
What about specializing in persuasive writing techniques?
Then you could market it as, “learn the psychology of selling to people through writing”. You know, teach about the basic drives and desires which make people motivated to buy.
You could have upsells of “advanced psychology techniques to add to your writing,” and done-for-you packages where you actually offer your writing services to them. (There’s a site I am thinking of that offers writing services…can’t remember the name, but they charge a hefty amount…so much per page written for you. And I’m sure they make a nice living doing so, too.)
And of course, 1:1 coaching for people who already have a vision and want some advice on tailoring it for greater sales to their own product or service…
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This is probably for later, when I have a proven track record.
At the moment, I just have a lot of writing experience: Probably 400K words online, first author (I wrote every word) of a 99K-word hardback, some ebooks, narrative of a half dozen business plans, manual (highest marks from IG team) while I was in the USAF, PhD thesis.
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy -
OK…but you are also a PhD psychologist, right?
What more do you need?Between you and me, I thought I had to be a “professional” (I was in the process of getting my clinical when I came up with my site idea initially). I thought having that clinical added to my credibility. But that’s because of my field, where having a clinical license and a Masters degree is kind of the expectation to be perceived as any sort of “expert”.
Likewise…I believe people will find you adequately knowledgeable simply because you have a PhD behind your name.
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You’re probably right, Jen.
It’s probably I who lacks the confidence when it comes to sales copy. I haven’t done that much.
But your suggestion has given me an idea for an article for another place in this forum.
Thanks!
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy1 user thanked author for this post.
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Tina, You said:
“Email 3: Ask them about the ebook … connect with them? Do they have any questions how they can connect with you ie email, facebook, phone etc. Still no sell but link it to what you are going to show them in the next email”
What did you mean by ” . . . link it to what you are going to show them in the next email”?
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy -
Hi Bruce,
I’m late to this discussion, but one of the exercises I’ve always found helpful is to create your client avatar and write everything to that avatar.
One of the mistakes I have made is that I tried to be all things to all people. Instead, I’ve found success by focusing on my client avatar. I gave them a name. I’ve been as detailed as possible.
After I wrote out details about that avatar, I focused on my avatar’s pain. What do they need help with? What causes them to lose sleep?
Bring up that problem, agitate it, and you give them the solution.
I hope this helps a bit!
GalelPerformance Coach and Host of the Improve Daily Podcast
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Bruce, I’m really late to this party and there are so many excellent points already shared that what I have may have been covered. But keep in mind that ghostwriters are a dime a dozen. So simply saying you offer ghostwriting services or even that you save people time will not necessarily make them stop skimming – they’ve seen that, read that on dozens of websites, blogs, etc. What people skimming through your info really are looking for is, “Has he ever done what I want done?” So listing, showing, pointing out as many different types of work you’ve ghostwritten (white papers, ebooks, blog posts, professional articles, speeches, whatever) and as many subjects you’ve written about (medical, technical, business, autobiography, self-help, and even more specifically, whatever) as you can – somewhere on your site and pointed to in your posts, emails, articles, sigs, etc. – the more likely the prospect will see that you have done what he or she needs done and stop skimming to read more closely.
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Bruce
I’m thinking that you want to differentiate yourself by telling what you can do is different.
how will you connect with their clients BETTER than some dime a dozen ghostwriter?
Sean
Do you want to learn how to start a coaching program that stabilizes your income and changes lives? If so, visit http://www.AnyoneCanCoach.com
Sean
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Samples and Examples
Hi Bruce,
Maybe if you sample your wares so to speak and give samples of what you write and that you could customize the emails to whatever campaigns folks are looking for?
I hope that help a wee bit.
Robert -
Thanks to everyone for all your input on this question.
After a lot of thought and feedback from this forum, I’ve decided that I can serve people better by helping them to understand why they do what they do and how to change their behavior so that they get the results that they want.
I’ve had a virus for most of January, which has brought this transition to a standstill, but you should see some changes in the near future.
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy -
Bruce, a couple of thoughts:
You can create a short survey in Survey Monkey and post a link in your ebook toward the front of the book, in exchange for a cheat sheet, worksheet or video. I’d make it open-ended, but short – 1-2 questions only. Get the flavor of the words they use, and incorporate them in your marketing materials. Remember this about surveys — the more they write, typically the more frustrated they are, and you can learn a lot from those responses. So don’t limit them to something like “25 words or less” in their responses. Then connect 1:1 with them if they are willing. Even if they don’t hire you, they may recommend you to someone else based on the relationship you can build with them.
I haven’t researched this, but my sense is that there is often a correlation between reading and writing, based on years of teaching international business courses to both domestic and international students. So think about promoting your service through audio and video channels. That is also likely to help you with people for whom English is not a first language, or those who did not excel in reading and writing in school.
And last, do you want to cook and serve the fish, or do you want to teach people how to fish? You may be able to create a coaching program or a course based on what you find out from surveys and conversations.
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Jan,
you are offering such helpful advice to folks!
Might I suggest adding a signature (go to members then your profile, then add signature) with a link to your site so folks can check out what you are doing?
Sean
Do you want to learn how to start a coaching program that stabilizes your income and changes lives? If so, visit http://www.AnyoneCanCoach.com
Sean
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Bruce- You’ve got a lot of good advice in this thread but something nobody has mentioned is your email subject lines. If people don’t open your emails to read them because your subject line doesn’t get them to want to see what you’re going to say, the whole email is worthless. If you spend as much time figuring out exactly who your audience is, what makes them tick, what they want from you and how you can get it to them and then craft a subject line that makes them curious, makes them realize you have what they need, or makes them in some way really NEED to read your email, THEN and only then will what you write in your email matter at all. Spend as much time on the subject line as you do in the email and it’ll work. Just a thought!
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Hi Steve,
Audience is always tricky, no matter what your niche.
I firmly believe that your audience – your clients – determine your niche; not the other way around.
Terry Dean told me a long time ago – I interviewed him – that hardly anyone ends up in the same business that they first started, and I think that this is why.
Initially, you sell one or two products; but as you work with people, they tell you what they need, and they tell you because they’re confident that you can help them whatever their problem is. But quite often the original problem that you set out to solve is not the one that they think you can help them with, or the have a problem that you haven’t addressed specifically. They can see the connection between what you do and what they need, but you’ve missed it.
So figuring out who your audience is isn’t obvious. In fact, you may not even be able to narrow it down all that much. Not at the beginning.
I suspect, though I don’t know this for a fact, that when you have enough people on your list that you start getting a regular conversation with them that as a result, you gain an understanding of what they need or want. And from that you start to craft emails that lead them towards a purchase. And as you get better at that, you also learn what email subjects tend to get people to open them.
I hope that Sean will let us have the benefit of his experience here. He’s a master at emails. 😉
Bruce
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy1 user thanked author for this post.
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