Copy that Converts: Interview with Copywriting Maven Roberta Rosenberg

Great copy is one of the most important pieces of an effective landing page program, so I caught up with the Copywriting Maven herself, Roberta Rosenberg, to pick her brain on what she knows best. If you aren’t familiar with her (where have you been?), Roberta is the owner MGP Direct, a direct-response marketing & copywriting firm, and is the lead contributor to the very popular “Landing Page Makeover” series on CopyBlogger.

1. How did you get started with landing pages?

Coming from a direct mail/direct response marketing background, my training and expertise was all about the call to action. That sensibility translated seamlessly to web-centric direct response marketing. Both forms – direct mail and web landing pages – are also test and technique driven. So it was a logical request when Brian Clark of Copyblogger.com asked me to be a regular guest contributor to his popular blog and cover the ‘landing page’ beat in 2007. I began writing general posts about landing page design and copy until one day I read David Meerman Scott’s book, The New Rules of Marketing and PR. He wrote about the importance of landing pages in web marketing. Curious about what the landing page for his book looked like, I visited his site and realized the landing page could use some help. So that ‘makeover’ was my first. The reaction was so positive, Brian and I decided to make it a regular series.

2. What are the most common mistakes you see on landing pages?

I think there is a common core of landing page mistakes I see all the time:

• Lack of focus – many times I don’t see a clear unique selling proposition or value pushed forward for the product/service being promoted. A surprising number of companies, large and small, often have difficulty articulating what makes their offering special or unique in the marketplace. If you don’t get this part right, there’s nothing to hang your copy on.
• Poorly written and conceived headlines – Sometimes the problem is lack of focus as detailed above, but more times than not it’s because the headline is feature-focused rather than outcome-focused. People don’t buy tools or software or what have you. People buy what the tools, etc. allow them to do, to feel and to be.
• Flat-out bad design – As a writer, I’m all about the words first. However, good design supports the message and helps move the visitors’ eyes along an attractive and intuitive track. It’s important in the print world, but it’s critical in the web world. 
• Everything else – too many links sending folks off the page (including full navigation bars) …  too many little images … crappy images … too long, too dense copy … not enough calls to action or calls to action that jump the gun too early … and not enough credibility boosters like testimonials, trust seals, etc.

3. What makes a great landing page headline?

For me, a great headline skillfully combines the product/service’s “Unique Value Proposition” with an outcomes orientation. In other words – combining what is unique/special to your offering in terms of the ultimate benefit to be derived by the prospective customer.

Here’s an example of a headline I recently wrote for a small manufacturer of a lice removal product:

“Eliminate Head Lice Fast, Easy — and Yes, Stress-Free!”

Safe, all-natural, simple no-mess shampoo kills the nits and helps prevent re-infestation of your child and home — guaranteed!

After spending some time consulting with the client, I was able to determine what only he could say – or as close as possible — vis a vis what the competition can’t or doesn’t say about their own related products.

Specificity is also important. If I wanted to strengthen the headline I might have added “in 14 days” or other timeframe that would make the solution feel even more valuable for a desperate parent who needs to get rid of their child’s head lice.

4. What is one thing marketers should do to improve their landing pages?

Clean up the visual clutter so there’s a direct line between the headline, subhead, bullets, body copy, calls to action, etc.  Eliminate:

• Links that take the reader off the page and away from the sales message
• Standard web page navigation. (I realize this can be difficult when working with CMS platforms.)
• Lots of little images in favor of a few large images — and these should be high quality.
• Too many fonts in too many sizes … choose one for body copy and one for headlines.
• The distractions that are obstacles to your prospect’s ability to respond and act upon your message.

5. Copy vs. design? Do you think one think is more important than the other?

You need the words to make the sale, period. Whether we’re looking at text-only email, a simple direct mail letter or even skywriting for that matter, the words are the key to the message. However, as I mentioned in a previous response, good design supports the message and makes it easy, even pleasant to read. It also helps direct the reader from point to point, acting as a visual roadmap to the essential bits and pieces that deserve particular attention.

However, what’s even more important than the creative — copy or design — is a strong, attractive offer and visitors who are hungry for what you have to promote.

6. What copy tests have you found make the biggest impact?

I love testing, but you really want to test those elements with greatest potential impact. Those, without question, are the headlines — which initiate the message delivery — and the calls to action — which transition our reader from prospective purchaser to actual customer.

7. What do you recommend — long copy or short?

This is one of my “favorite” arguments with clients. Rather than make a top-to-down decision on copy length, I first take a look at the product/service and to whom it’s being promoted. Customers or prospects already deeply familiar with your product probably don’t need a lot of copy. Just tell them what you need to tell them — a new version, a discount ± may be all you need to say. However, if you’re not promoting to customers and/or your offering is somewhat complicated, you may need a longer copy format to adequately deliver the message in an effective way. Copy should be built to the project/audience/offering, period.

8. What are some of the latest trends you’re seeing on landing pages?

I’m beginning to see use of Flash, AJAX and JQuery — especially in image gallery/carousel handling — rather than just static images. It keeps the visitor on the page and engaged in the message. I don’t have any statistics on this format just yet, but I think it’s one to watch.

I’m also seeing a lot more video in pages and not just one video per page. Rather, I’m seeing multiple videos being used - one as an establishing feature and the rest as mini-videos for testimonials, etc. How much video is too much video remains to be seen.

9. Do best copy practices differ by industry, product, or offer? Should they differ?

To my mind? No, not really. All the main factors we examine for creating great copy — whether it’s B2C, B2B, fund-raising, or what have you — remain the same.

The only factor that probably needs to change is the tone/voice of the copy. For some markets, you’ll want a super-conversational voice. For others, a little more-buttoned up or technical voice would be more effective. This doesn’t mean boring or dry. This means matching the tone of your message with the tone your audience is most comfortable with and prefers. Write in the wrong tone and voice and you have a reader disconnect that’s hard to overcome.

10. What makes a great call to action?

Sometimes it’s the copy. Sometimes it’s the design. CTAs need to be seen to work. They need to be obvious and not blend into the scenery. (There’s a reason why Amazon still uses yellow-orange as its CTA button color.) Great CTA copy, to my mind, is process-oriented – Let’s Get Started – or outcome-oriented – Say Goodbye to Gray Hair Starting Now. There’s nothing wrong with Buy Now, of course, but it forces the commitment a little too early and reminds the prospect that this is a transaction. I’d rather keep prospects focused on the process as we move them toward the benefit that they’re actually purchasing.

Comments

[Anna Talerico]

Let me be the first to say, "Thanks" to Roberta. We appreciate you sharing your insights with us.

[Roberta Rosenberg]

Thanks for asking, Anna - it was a pleasure!

[Bart Butler]

Thanks for breaking this down and explaining it so clearly. Hope I can retain the core thoughts and apply them to real-world situations.

[Roberta Rosenberg]

Print it out and keep it handy by your keyboard. :)

[Xurxo Vidal]

Roberta,

A lot of great advice here that many can no doubt benefit from. You've hit the nail on the head on so many points - nice work! Thanks for sharing!

[Mark Clayson]

I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I want to express my admiration of your writing skill and ability to make reader to read the while thing to the end. I would like to read more of your blogs and to share my thoughts with you.
cheers

[Trust Seals]

Thank you very much for this post. Great information about how to concentrate on landing pages. Landing pages perform best when the content is promotion-based.

[Roy Morejon]

Great post with excellent-straightforward copy writing tips.