Long Copy vs. Short Copy… If You’re Still Debating This, You’re Missing The Point!

Written by Eric Graham


I’ve seen this ongoing debate debate jump up again recently in several Blogs and message boards and I can’t help but laugh. It’s not a new debate… Ever sincerepparttar long copy masters ofrepparttar 149177 early 1900’s, people have been arguing for or againstrepparttar 149178 practice.

As a copywriter and conversion specialist, convincing my clients to test longer copy on their websites is often a very difficult task. After all, online customers have microscopic attention spans and are always in a hurry to move on.

Different visitors have different goals, different personalities and different buying styles. Some visitors will want to read everything you can give them before buying and then they still need “more information” before they can decide. Others just want to know “what are you selling”, “what does it do for me” and “how much is it” and they want to know it NOW!

It may sound like an impossible task to write copy that sells both of them… After all if you cut your copy to bone to sellrepparttar 149179 second visitor, you won’t have enough information to persuaderepparttar 149180 first visitor. And, if you wasterepparttar 149181 second visitors time by forcing them to read a 20 page sales letter to “get torepparttar 149182 meat”, they will leave.

(Fortunately, there is a way to satisfy BOTH of them onrepparttar 149183 same page… But more on that in a minute…)

There are two basic camps in this debate… The first group says “Long copy ALWAYS outsells short copy”, whilerepparttar 149184 second group says stuff like “…as a consumer, I don’t have time to read all that copy. I’ll NEVER buy from long copy.”

The part that makes me laugh is that 90% ofrepparttar 149185 people in BOTH camps have never scientifically tested copy of ANY length! They make these statements of absolute facts, with no test results to back up their claims.

The truth is, sometimes long copy out pulls short copy and sometimes short copy out pulls long copy. But you have to TEST it to know which is going to work for your site and your target demographic. (Actually there is one absolute when it comes to copy… Good copy always outsells Bad copy, regardless of length!)

Another thing to keep in mind is, just because you conduct a test and find that a shorter version out pulls a longer version, don’t automatically assume that “short copy is better than long copy”. If you are testing a clear, attention grabbing short message against a long, boring message, your test is not going to tell you much.

The Right Writer: How To Choose Your Next Copywriter

Written by Barry W. Morris


So you’ve decided to outsource your next communications project! Great! By doing so, it allows you to devote more time and energy to doing what you do best: managing other projects and employees and getting more value for your marketing dollars.

However, you’ll soon discover that now you’re confronted with an even larger task than writing it yourself: findingrepparttar ‘right’ writer forrepparttar 148253 job.

Hiring a writer is sometimes a Catch-22 situation. At times, quality writers seem to grow on trees, but when you need one in a hurry to meet a rapidly approaching deadline, it can be difficult finding one who understands your business, your deadline, and your audience.

While findingrepparttar 148254 “Right Writer” can still be a tricky business, we’ve developedrepparttar 148255 four following guidelines that will enable you to locate and hirerepparttar 148256 most deserving candidate for your project!

Guideline One Look for a Writer with an Establish Web Presence

With technology becoming ever more affordable and user-friendly, designing and maintaining a web presence is becoming easier and almost commonplace. A writer with her own registered domain name is making a more serious statement than her counterpart whose material is hosted on a free AOL or Yahoo homepage.

Look forrepparttar 148257 most qualified writers to craft a personally branded presence that includedrepparttar 148258 following: •Sample of selected projects •A biography or resume •Listing of services and areas of expertise

Guideline Two Look for an Effective Writing Ability

What’s an effective writing ability? Think of it as a writer who can easily adapt and rapidly get up to speed in your business area. Many business writing projects are better handled by writers that have a broad range of business writing experience. The decision to assignrepparttar 148259 task to an in-house employee who is familiar withrepparttar 148260 project is almost always a mistake.

Why? The first reason is thatrepparttar 148261 person chosen for their familiarity is too close torepparttar 148262 project. Writing requires an objectivity that writers possess as an innate ability. A product engineer who knowsrepparttar 148263 product inside and out will rarely possessrepparttar 148264 skills of a professional writer.

How do know if your writer hasrepparttar 148265 right mix of effective writing ability and project or topic distance? Return to their web site and look again at their samples askingrepparttar 148266 following questions:

•Doesrepparttar 148267 writer’s past experience place them too close torepparttar 148268 details ofrepparttar 148269 work? •Dorepparttar 148270 samples posted online effectively communicate a clear message? •Isrepparttar 148271 web site copy sellingrepparttar 148272 writer’s ability and skills effectively? •Is there a diversity of industry experience inrepparttar 148273 projects posted?

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