Quentin Pain

Ideas are how exciting futures are created. A timely idea creates the spark that inspires and motivates. Without ideas, everything becomes drab and boring.
No one wants drab and boring, so ideas become the one thing we can rely on to create change. And a display of change is how we get to be different and stand out.
How can you get ideas? Just keep thinking of new things and over time you will become a master at it. I spent over a year thinking up 10 new ideas a day every da...y.
It didn't matter if they were rubbish (most were), it was the act of getting my brain to start making new connections that did it.
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Want to dominate your market? Read my latest post in Science of Copywriting: https://www.facebook.com/groups/scienceof copywriting/

We only really notice the things that differ radically from our model of the world. Which means everything else is pretty much normal. But that model of the world is not the same for everyone.
So if you want to stand out, you must first know your audience and their model of the world. Then find the differentiator that keeps you attractive and ahead of your competition
Discovering your audience's model of the world is the difference between good and bad marketing. And that applies whether your messages are verbal, written or graphical.

Ray Bradbury says the number 1 goal of any writing starts with Zest and Gusto. He says that any writing that starts with zero life in it will remain with zero life in it.
He says remember things that brought life to your life. Things that went bang in the night. Things that blew your mind. Things that made you cry.
When you have a spark of an idea (from the things that made you feel alive), the first thing to do is outline some kind of flow so you don't lose it. Bradbury did ...it by writing lists of things.
Some of those lists became chapter titles and his books were ready to go.
FACTOID: For some reason, he used capital letters in his lists. THE BOOK. THE BEDROOM. THE MAN IN THE CAR. THE MONEY. THE CRASH. THE CRYING CHILD. THE END.
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Use the jellyfish strategy to capture an audience.
The tentacles are full of hooks to snare things. They reach out far wider than most people realise.
A jellyfish defines its prey by size and behaviour. Anything that fits those two criteria are a perfect fit.
... The strategy is to float around until it finds its audience. And when it does, that audience is hooked.
The point is. Jellyfish are winners. So what's your jellyfish?
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The one thing you need in content is to stick to one thing - and ideally, the one thing everyone wants at that point in time.
If it's a celebrity piece, it's the one thing that's going on right now with that celebrity. You can riff around it as much as you like as long as you stick to the one thing.
If it's a "how to" piece, it's whatever that how to piece is promising to fix.
... And if it's a business, it's the one thing that business does better than anyone else.
There's plenty of reasons why this matters, but I can't think of a single reason where it fails.
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Say something emotive, listen for objections, then ask why they object. This use of the 'why' question will force the objector into using reason (but be careful, the 'why' word can be very challenging, so say it with the voice going downwards in tone).
You can take them back into emotion using the 'what' question. "What would need to happen to change that?" This takes the focus away from you and onto them. It also anchors them in the future. And now you're ready to make the offer they've been waiting for.

It can be argued that David Ogilvy was king of advertising copy in the 20th century. He is known by everyone in the industry, even to this day. But despite all that, he was just another human being with all sorts of personal issues. Drayton Bird knew him better than most: http://draytonbird.com/2013/05/what-was-d avid-ogilvy-like-2/

Objections are the holy grail of business. Whenever you get one, there are 3 ways to handle it: A) ignore and carry on talking, B) defend as hard as you can, C) listen and discover what's wrong.
Most businesses including the largest only do A and B. I know this from talking to reps at top trade shows and numerous business network meetings.
C is the only option of course, and when it comes to written content, if you know exactly who you're writing to, you can handle every obje...ction with ease direct in the copy.
For example, if you know that your audience objects to price, then you can lead on price. This is what makes something irresistible. Knowledge is the new commodity that most businesses still don't get.
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Fairness is another type of anchor that just happens to be the most emotional trigger of all time. "It's not fair" is the most common dialogue between siblings. And they shout it not just at each other, but to whoever happens to be in earshot (usually mum or dad).
It makes sense then to study fairness and see how it can be weaved into sales copy. For example, is it fair that someone else should be making all that money/owning that brand new car/ having that wonderful relation...ship/enjoying a peaceful retirement when you (and by that I mean your readers) are not?
That's right, and that's exactly why they need your undivided care and attention to help them get it - and for a price that is almost unfair to you - but hey, "this is your gift to demonstrate how much you care".
Using fairness to demonstrate an injustice adds value to any copy, and that always wins.
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'Anchoring' is possibly the biggest subject in terms of psychology and sales. The best persuaders use it to get what they want, and when done right, succeed.
Imagine being able to promise the world to your prospect? What would that be worth to you? Obviously that's an over the top promise, but you know what I mean.
A strong understanding of anchoring will let you promise and get practically anything (that's anchoring right there - anchored to anchoring).
... The most common anchor in sales is price point - mention a larger price first, then tell them the real lower price, and suddenly it seems like a bargain. Price comparison is another name for it. We see it every day, we know what they're doing, yet we're still fooled (or they'd stop doing it).
Our emotions cannot resist a 'bargain' because we've been brainwashed into thinking a bargain makes something scarce. And the emotion of losing something far outweighs the emotion of gain.
Academic studies have demonstrated this over and over again. If you're not using anchors in your copy, you're missing out. I'll be back with more examples later - don't miss out now!
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It's well understood in psychology that name calling (eg. what Donald Trump does to every adversary) is a reflection on the person doing the name calling rather than a judgment of the other person's character.
That's obvious of course, but it can also be used when writing a controversial piece of content to enhance a hero's humanity and place the villain in an even worse light.
It distracts the reader from internal thoughts by grabbing their attention. Then aligns them by dec...laring and sharing the same values as the hero.
That's when the story reveals the magic formula that destroys the villain and makes everything right again (including the sales that follow from the feel good alignment factor).
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Now I've figured out that ego is just another name for our defence mechanism (and a reminder of what scares me about life), I can see it has great potential for persuasive copy.
Knowing that an audience cares deeply about something, and then stepping into their ego from a defensive point of view could add a lot of weight to any piece of persuasive writing.
For example, if an audience is supremely proud of something, knowing what would it feel like if that something was attac...ked may bring about a quicker "that's right!" response.
If your article involved any kind of hero/villain relationship, knowing how that villain would affect the audience's ego will give you new angles to get them on your side.
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Are you obsessed by anything in life? I know I am, and I also know it's how to discover your audience. Take a peek over here: Science of Copywriting group over here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/scienceof copywriting/

Here's the only way to do real market research:
1) Only talk to people who have paid 2) Ask them why they paid 3) Ask them again
... Repeat part 3 until you get an emotional response. Now you have something that will strike a chord with your audience.
People never buy for the first reason they tell you. It's always hidden a little deeper.
"Why did you buy my course?" "Because learning is important to me" "Why did you buy my course?" "Because I needed to learn more about that topic" "Why did you buy my course?" "Because I'm really depressed about business and I desperately need some way to make it start working"
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Have you joined my FREE Copywriting group yet? If you're into copywriting to help you stand out from the crowd and sell more, you'll love it. Here's the link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/scienceof copywriting

Thank you so much for your article about the new cover photo dimensions here in Facebook! I have 3 active groups and your article it's very useful.

Thank you so much for the great advice. I love writing children stories and after speaking with you I feel confident in starting my own blog and publishing my stories. I am looking forward to using SEO Roadmaps!

Quentin will help you with how to achieve your goal and what you need to do to get there.

Thank you so much for your article about the new cover photo dimensions here in Facebook! I have 3 active groups and your article it's very useful.

Thank you so much for the great advice. I love writing children stories and after speaking with you I feel confident in starting my own blog and publishing my stories. I am looking forward to using SEO Roadmaps!

Quentin will help you with how to achieve your goal and what you need to do to get there.