This is part 8 in a free online tutorial on writing sales pages.

Oh to be charming. That elusive fine line between being the most interesting man in the world, (“his charm is so contagious, vaccines have been created against it.”) and well… this guy (who sent the video to a lady he’d just met in Starbucks to try and charm her. Smooth.)

If people are going to buy from you, they need to be charmed by you. And never more so than in your sales page. Already in this series I said a sales page is like a love letter and that holds true.

If you’re going to write a piece of content, where you want customers to feel driven to buy from you, you absolutely have to woo them, and that takes charm.

But of course, you don’t want to try too hard. (Although if you want to hit up your customers with any one of these fabulously delivered chat-up lines I salute you). 

Think about it. You’re at your business networking event. You’re looking around to be open and inviting, pretending that you’re not just waiting for the buffet to open (just me?). You’re approached by someone who beams, shakes your hand and immediately tells you how her latest promotion was so successful it paid for an all-inclusive trip to Cuba. She hints that if you play your cards right, she could probably help you… whatever your business does… gain more exposure so you too could be holidaying in Cuba.

Are you gagging yet?

Now let’s say someone else spots you hemmed in by our Cuban-holiday-lover and they intervene, guiding you skilfully away her while asking you what you do. This person is interested, asks questions, listens, gets on your side and makes you feel not only at ease, but also supported and understood.

What a charmer!

Those things might seem obvious in a social situation, but how do the rules play out when we’re writing a sales page?

I’m so glad you asked, because that gives me a lovely lead into my top 5 tips for being charming in sales pages:

1. Compliment them (sincerely)

The secret to a great compliment in a sales page is picking something your customer…

1. Already believes / suspects
2. Would like to have / be – (that they believe they have the potential to achieve)

Which is why it’s very important to know your customer.

For example, if your customer feels that they are ambitious, hard-working, smart, savvy etc. Tell them that you already know this.

Smart business owners like you know that…

As a hard-working student, you deserve…

Alternatively, you can focus on something that you know they would like to have (that they think they have the potential to achieve)

That last part is important.

It’s no good telling your customer that you know they can compete in the Olympics if they really just want to run a 10k without stopping. It would be like telling me you just know I’m going to be on the runway in London fashion week one day. The only chance of that happening is in a freak accident.

If you pick the wrong compliment, your customer is going to simply think: “Are you taking the p**s?” – And that’s not charming.

So keep your compliments in line with their current beliefs. For example:

You know that if you just had the right materials you could create a marketing plan and hit that six-figure mark in 3-4 years

With your current determination, you know you could crack this healthy eating lark if you just had simple, easy-to-make meal plans

And can you see what we’re doing there with that compliment? We’re setting the scene to logically introduce our offer. Smart eh?

2. Create an enemy

An effective copywriting technique is to build an enemy or villain that is standing between your customer and what they most desire.

In your sales letter, if you want to win your customer over, make sure you point out who or what this enemy is.

• If you’re a nutritionist then your customer’s enemy is the media, and its conflicting messages about what is and isn’t healthy.
• If you sell clothing for fuller-figure women, your customer’s enemies are the clothing manufacturers who don’t understand that a lot of women have curves.

What you don’t ever do is point the finger at your customer and suggest that they haven’t worked hard enough, or exercised enough etc etc.

If you’ve found yourself racking up unproductive days, it’s easy to beat yourself up about it, but you really shouldn’t. Without a compelling vision or clear focus of your dreams and goals, you won’t have the inspiration to build the momentum you need.

3. Treat your offer as a party invite!

You’ve got to be excited about your customer taking you up on your offer.

BUT it’s not about being excited because you get to make a sale, it’s about being excited for them and what they’re about to experience.

It’s like inviting people to a party, Your invitations are more compelling when you tell your friends why you want them to attend. For example:

“I’d love you to come, I haven’t seen you in ages and I really want to hear how things are going for you in your new job. There’ll be plenty of people you know there and I know you’ll have a great time!”

This is very different from the group text you receive that simply says ” I’m having a party on Sunday, everyone come along.”

In your copy, you want to translate this excitement, and the personal benefits they’ll experience.

I really hope I’ll see you at my live event. With delicious recipe demonstrations, and exquisite goodie bags, I just know you’ll feel refreshed and rejuvenated by the end of the day.

I just know you’re going to love this online course and I really want you to try it out just for a week. In that short time you can discover how to create a beautiful looking website that helps you stand out from the crowd.

4. Get on their side

When you’re writing a sales page, you’ve got to want what your customer wants. This is called being on both sides of the counter. Behind the counter, as a business owner, and in front of the counter, as a customer.

This means not only knowing the benefits that your customer wants, but also the journey they’re going to have to take to get there.

A few ways you can do this include:

• Showing you understand their problem: “It’s 1am and you’re still finishing up your work to stay ahead… you know it’s got to stop”
• Showing you understand what they want: “You’d love to wrap up your work at 6, maybe 7 and have the whole evening free with your family… imagine that!”
• Showing you understand their personality: “You don’t mind working hard, as long as you’re confident you’ll see results…”
• Showing you can support them: “When you sign up, you’re automatically entitled to round-the-clock phone access to our team of advisors”

How can you get on the side of your customer in your sales page?

5. Be fascinating

I know, easier said than done sometimes right?

By this, I mean having a great story to tell in your sales page. I had a great client recently who said she would like to subtly mention that she had professional qualifications to back up her latest product, and she’d also delivered a live version of her online course several times to groups who had raved about her service.

To heck (excuse my language) with subtly – get that interesting story out there!

I’m not talking about making things up just to tell a good story, I’m talking about mining for details that make you, your business and your product fascinating and worthy of attention.

1. If you developed a product in answer to a personal problem you suffered with, let people know
2. If your business is rated highly on a review website, tell people about it
3. If you have an unconventional lifestyle that relates to your product or business, share a bit about it

The only caveat is this: it must also be useful to your audience.

So in the above examples we have:

1. Credibility – this person has suffered the same problem as me
2. Social proof – other people have used this product and enjoyed it
3. Likability – I’d like to have a similar lifestyle / am intrigued by their lifestyle, I wonder how they do it

So there you have it, 5 different methods of charming your reader and building rapport.

Next time in this series we will be looking at *checks editorial calendar* building proof into your sales page so you can show your customers why you can be absolutely trusted to deliver on your big bold promise to them.

Till next time!

Have you ever been charmed by a sales page? Won over by a leaflet or seduced by an advert? Let us know in the comments below and we’ll offer you some support.