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Introduction:  Confessions of a Reluctant 
Web Copywriting Guru
(Important: Read This Before Anything Else)

It never fails.

When people ask me what I do for a living, and I say, "I write web copy" -- I'm met with blank stares.

Web copy is such a new term - brought about by the World Wide Web - that it has not even become a term recognizable by even those who already have Internet presence.

"Huh? What the heck is web copy?" they ask.

Not wanting to trouble them with a complex definition, I reply, "Let's say you have a website, and you are selling a product or service on that website..."

I start seeing them nodding in agreement, and saying "Uh, huh..." as they instantly identify with what I'm saying.

"Well... web copy simply means," I continue, "the words that make your website visitors pull out their credit cards and buy your product or service."

Invariably, I get the following enthusiastic response:

"Wow! That's exactly what I need! How do you do that?"

All of a sudden, everyone starts telling me about their plans to sell this product or service on the Internet - but they simply don't know how to do it. Or some tell me they already have a website, but it's not doing a good job selling.

Whenever I have time, I regale my audience with my adventures in web copywriting - and some of the explosive tactics I've used to sell everything from books, to hair restoration products, self-improvement programs, membership clubs, tax-saving programs, seminars, and all manner of products on the Web.

Invariably, I watch the look of wide-eyed fascination on people's faces as I describe the process by which I take a casual website visitor and turn that surfer into a prospect, and subsequently, into a customer - all through the sheer power of words. 

I seldom leave a social gathering without a handful of people asking for my contact information, how they can hire my web copywriting services, or learn what I do. When I attend business functions (such as a recent Century City Chamber of Commerce fund-raising event), I am virtually deluged by inquiries from people interested in my services.

It's simply amazing. Never before has there ever been such a great demand for a craft in which I specialize. It just seems as though everyone and their neighbor needs web copy written - and they usually need it right now.

Everyone has heard of all the money changing hands on the Web, and they want a piece of the action. And they all seem to have just the product or service with which to do that!

The fact is that words are the true currency of the web. Words make the sale. Therefore, it stands to reason that the single most important ingredient in a commercial website is web copy that sells.

If you need proof, consider this:

Picture a website with cutting edge design, cool graphics, interactive bells and whistles, and sophisticated e-commerce infrastructure. Now, compare that with a stark website with no graphics or cool technology - just web copy on a plain white background. 

Which of the 2 websites is more likely to sell a product or service? 

Obviously, it would be the one with the words. Because selling on the Web is text-driven, nothing happens until someone writes the words that get people to click, sign up, read, register, order, subscribe, or buy whatever you're selling.

If you have a website (or plan to create a website) that sells a product or service, you need to hire a web copywriter - that is, someone who understands how to write web copy that sells.

Or you can choose to learn the craft of web copywriting yourself...

...which brings me to the reason why I've elected to write this book. 

Every single time I surf the Internet, I come across countless websites that are poorly written I can't imagine them generating a single sale. I also come across websites with excellent products and services -- but with weak web copy that don't do the products and services justice.

It's such a shame - especially since the Web provides the most incredible channel for marketing virtually anything to any part of the world. 

There is also a scarcity of web copywriting specialists that are equipped to take on the unique nature of Web communication and online selling. I don't see that situation changing in the foreseeable future -- even with the increasing numbers of professional writers transitioning into the web copywriting specialty.

Even if a website owner or Internet entrepreneur could find and afford good web copywriters (who charge a median hourly rate of $125/hour, and a high end of $235/hour, according to the Web Price Index Rate Card published by B to B Magazine), chances are, the web copywriters would be too busy to take on their project.

The solution, therefore, is to teach online businesspeople the principles of web copywriting so as to enable them to write web copy for themselves. I've always been a firm believer that the businessperson, who knows his products better than anyone else, is in the best position to write the best web copy for his products or services - but only if he learns how to do it right.

I also want to teach writers how to take their writing skills, apply them to web copywriting, and carve out a well-paying niche for themselves that can be the source of an endless stream of financially rewarding work.

Another reason I've written this book is that I want to set the record straight. Just because someone is a skilled ad copywriter for the offline markets doesn't mean his/her writing skills can translate into effective web copywriting. Even some of the best copywriters for the offline markets are not necessarily adept at writing effective copy for the Web. That is what I want to shed some light on in this book.

Writing web copy that converts prospects into customers is a discipline all its own. It's a highly specialized genre of writing that combines marketing wherewithal with a deep understanding of the Internet's unique culture, mindset, psychology and "language." 

What most online business people don't realize is that web copywriting is distinctly different from regular advertising copy and offline marketing communications. It is also quite different from web content writing.

One of the biggest mistakes online businesses make is that they take marketing principles that work well in the offline world -- and try to force them to work on the Web. 

Many principles that are effective in direct mail, print ads, radio ads, and infomercials simply do not translate well on the Web - and in fact, they can even kill sales.

Who needs this book?

If you are.....

* An Internet Marketer, entrepreneur or website owner who sells (or plans to sell) a product or service online via your own direct response website

* A professional who approves, plans and executes Internet marketing campaigns 
(Marketing or Advertising VPs/Managers/Directors, and MIS managers) 

* A writer (or copywriter) who's tired of being underpaid, and barely earning a living - and who wants to transition to the lucrative specialty of web copywriting

* A Webmaster who wants to learn the skill of web copywriting in order to expand the services you provide your clients

* An individual with moderate-to-good writing skills who wants to become a highly paid professional writer in one of the hottest, most in-demand fields in today's marketplace

.....then this book is for you.

Whether or not you aspire to become a professional web copywriter, you can take the principles I teach in this book and apply them to any website, incorporate them in your marketing communications (such as e-mail, online advertising, newsletters, etc.) -- and generate measurably increased sales and profits.

There are various ways of marketing on the Web, not the least of which are branding and the "institutional" type of advertising. It would require volumes to discuss the web copy for all marketing avenues. Therefore, I've written this book specifically for direct marketing websites - that is, the websites that depend on direct-response web copy that induces sales-advancing action from a single exposure.

I specialize in direct-response web copy because I like the fact that this kind of copy demands accountability. It needs to produce immediate and measurable results. Therefore, it ultimately is a more rewarding and gratifying endeavor for me. Those who wish to write other types of web copy would do well to learn the web copywriting principles revealed in this book because these principles can be useful in sharpening the edges of their marketing messages, thereby rendering them more effective. 

Whatever You Do, Please Don't Call Me a Web Copywriting "Guru"

Frankly, I dislike the pretentious implications of the term "guru" and I discourage people from referring to me as a web copywriting guru. While it's true that I'm a web copywriting specialist, the art of web copywriting is such a dynamic and changing discipline, that no one could truly declare that they know everything there is to know about it. 

What I can accurately say is that I've been writing advertising copy since 1977, and I started specializing in web copywriting in 1996. This has given me a broader perspective of the craft than most people. 

I humbly admit that I merely "stand on the shoulders of giants" who have come before me -- masters of influence like Robert Cialdini, and marketing legends like Rosser Reeves, Victor Schwab, Robert Collier and Eugene Schwartz -- whose powerful concepts I've battle-tested and fine-tuned for the Web.

How to Read This Book

• If you've had little or no previous training in copywriting, or you want to get grounded in general copywriting principles before tackling the specialized copywriting principles presented in this book, I've created a brief primer that you can find in the Appendix. If this applies to you, please read that section first before proceeding with the rest of the chapters.
  
• For those who already have a working knowledge of copywriting, you may also want to read my popularly downloaded e-book, "Frame-of-Mind Marketing: How to Convert Your Online Prospects Into Customers," which is reprinted in the Appendix section in its entirety. Frame-of-mind marketing is the foundation of all web copywriting, upon which all principles set forth in this book are built. It would be worthwhile to read it first before proceeding to Chapter 1 and beyond. 
  
• If you currently have existing web copy, and want to evaluate its selling ability, Chapter 4 will give you the Formula for Measuring the Selling Quotient of your web copy, and show you how to boost the response you get immediately. 
  
• If you want to learn the most powerful psychological principles for writing web copy that sells, Chapter 3 will reveal devices, strategies, tactics and tips that can make any website sizzle with sales activity.
  
• Chapter 5 will show you the amazing power of e-mail marketing, and how to write attention-grabbing e-mail copy. 
  
• Chapter 6 will show you how to write compelling online ads, newsletters (or e-zines), autoresponder messages and other marketing communications that can propel your online business to uncharted heights. 
• After you've learned the craft of web copywriting, Chapter 7 will reveal the 4-step foolproof secret to success in all your copywriting endeavors.

Instead of merely teaching you phraseology, formulas, or power words, I'll teach you how to acquire the mindset with which to view websites, e-mail and all other marketing communications so that you, too, can write web copy that sells. 

On the web, you simply can't model successful websites, and expect to succeed. You need to model the process through which the success was attained, NOT the outcome of that process. That is to say, examine the steps, the psychology and the philosophies that were considered in writing the web copy, instead of modeling the web copy itself and trying to adapt it where it isn't appropriate.

That's what this book is all about.

Very few people truly understand the complexities of communicating in the new medium called the Internet. However, I assure you that by the time you finish reading this book, you'll know more about web copywriting than 99% of the population. And you can parlay that specialized knowledge into a 6-figure income in the field of web copywriting, or dramatically increase the sales of your website.

Wishing you all the prosperity that cyberspace can give,



Maria Veloso

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