Losing Sales with Dry Copy?

✂ Cut this out and tape it somewhere for easy reference.
1. Fear
2. Guilt
3. Flattery
4. Exclusivity
5. Greed
6. Anger
7. Salvation

Reread the headline and deck of this article. They combine to use five of the Seven Copy Drivers (see the list above), which are a simple set of motivators. Ignore them at your own peril.

If you write, edit or review copy for your catalog, tape this list to the wall next to your desk for easy reference. Refer to this list every time you work on your catalog’s copy.

Now let’s take another look at the headline. What drove you to begin reading? The question, “Losing sales with dry copy?,” plays into fear. “Wallop your competition” is flattery. (You’re better than them, right?) The phrase “Make more money” appeals to greed. And finally, “Be a master copywriter” promises salvation with a touch of exclusivity. After all, you’ll be a “master.” Five drivers are packed into 15 words.

Each of your copy blocks — and certainly every headline — needs to employ as many of these seven drivers as possible. “If not, tear it up and start over,” as direct marketing guru Denny Hatch would say.

Goodway Technologies of Stamford, Conn., is the leading manufacturer and marketer of heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) cleaning and maintenance equipment in the United States. The company once relied on headlines that simply listed its product names, such as “CoilPro Coil Cleaner.” This product’s copy then read, “Goodway’s CC-140 CoilPro Battery Powered Coil Cleaner is the solution for your coil cleaning applications.”

Driving Home A Product’s Superiority
Now admittedly, HVAC cleaning equipment is not the sexiest number on the block. Goodway wasn’t content with the status quo, however. It tore up its old copy and used the copy drivers to get at the core of why its product is better than the competition.