Which letter generates the most sales, a long one or a short one?

No prizes for guessing correctly – A long, interesting sales letter consistently converts more prospects into paying customers.

(And notice I highlighted the word ‘interesting’ because if your sales copy is boring nothing will keep the reader glued to it – no matter how short it is.)

Why is the long sales letter more effective?

A long and exciting sales letter keeps your prospects glued to your page from beginning to end, it focuses them on your words, words that will produce a strong feeling of companionship with you and make them want to take your desired action which is to buy your product.

The concept of companionship is very important and is something you should keep in your mind whenever you write a sales letter.

You have to identify with your prospects and really get to know their wants and desires. Your words must tell them that you understand where they are coming from and what their problems are. They let your prospects know that you genuinely feel for them.

This will build up a strong sense of security and trust with them, they will believe you can help them in their need and eagerly await the solution you have to their problems.

For this very same reason you have to address your letter to one person and talk to him/her as you would a cherished friend. – I have a post it note with these words written out in capitals, glued to the top of my monitor to remind me!

Once you have gained a prospects trust they will eagerly become a customer and await further recommendations from you.

Trusting customer

This is where you start to make real money – by ‘back selling’. Trusting customers will eagerly buy products that you recommend and you may be lucky to develop such good relationships with your customers that they buy on your word alone.

This puts a big responsibility on your shoulders – trust is the key issue and never to be undervalued.

So, whatever you sell ensure it is of a genuinely high standard and that you’ve tried it out yourself before offering it to your client.

Let me reiterate – The more relevant interesting copy you write, the better.

Yes, some people will say they do not like to read a long sales letter. When that happens, you know that they are NOT going to be your customer.

Also, they probably would not have the patience with your product or service, either which often leads to increased requests for refunds.

Is this the type of customer you want?

No. So the longer copy also acts as a qualification step for your prospects – you want to build up a customer base of highly targeted clients who will buy at your recommendation because of the trust you’ve built up with them.

Use your sales copy to weed out the ‘rubbish’

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Resource Box

Stuart Elliott is a world-class copywriter who has written numerous articles about sales letters and copywriting.

Discover how to get the most from your traffic, pick up your free copywriting power guide at
http://howtowritekickbuttcopy.com

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Article Copyright 2006 Stuart Elliott, All rights reserved. You may only reprint this article in its entirety and you must leave this resource box intact.

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