Howdy,
Have you ever watched a cat stalk birds?
We humans (and especially marketers - you’ll see why in a moment) can learn a lot from animals.
Humans have lost most of our natural hunting instincts. We’re impatient, unskilled even with the opposing-thumb advantage, and easily grossed out.
Fluffy sees bird, and immediately goes into kill mode.
This is entirely different than any other mode she ever adopted. Playing with yarn, batting the cat-nip ball around, attacking an unsuspecting foot tapping out a beat to the radio… all these behaviors are clearly NOT total hunting mode.
You see that when you finally catch her getting serious.
She doesn’t tense up, and launch on the target, either. No.
She zeroes in on it, and patiently goes to school on every move it makes. Knowing her own abilities, she judges distance, marks obstacles, gauging the awareness level of her prey.
No Attention Deficit going on here.
If she needs to get closer, it’s an almost imperceptible creep. Muscles will hold a pose frozen for long minutes to avoid detection.
We’re talking Zen level patience here.
Finally, after digesting every scrap of available information… and unable to close the distance any further without detection… she pounces.
Every fibre of her being is focused on taking Tweetie down.
And if she misses… fine.
She returns to her hidey-spot and waits for the next opportunity. Just a little more prepared this time.
All grown up now, I still remember watching Fluffy work.
Because what I learned from her is still amazingly relevant in business.
Don’t scoff. Now that I’ve pointed it out to you, the concept of being a cat becomes obvious when you observe savvy, experienced businessmen operate.
It’s the opposite of the impatient, grabby rookie.
The veteran doesn’t rush into any opportunity. No way. He stalks it first.
Rookies get caught up all the time - hopping up and down with excitement about getting into, oh, the diet market. They heard how much money can be made there, and they can’t wait to dive in.
Until, of course, they discover that while it’s easy to get into that swampy pool… it ain’t so easy to stay afloat. Lots of nasty federal agencies hiding in there, with big teeth and no mercy. Lots of vicious competitors unencumbered with ethics or a sense of fair play.
You don’t know what you’re doing, you’re gonna get your lunch eaten.
The first advice I give rookies who are looking at a new market… is to simply study it first.
That’s what the pros do.
Study whatever you lust after like a cat.
As a freelance copywriter, I stalked so many different markets, I’ve lost track of them all. When I took on a new client, I never tried to just sit down and knock off a brilliant ad.
I’d neck-deep into the details of the market first.
- What made the customers tick…
- What would trigger their buying decisions…
- What the competition was up to.
After, oh, twenty-five years of getting hip to various markets, it’s no longer a big deal to me. All markets have certain things in common, and the differences are often very similar, too.
With experience, you realize you can shortcut the process a bit. Cuz there are only so many variables involved. Those variables look daunting to a rookie… but become familiar to the pro.
Eventually, you begin to “read” opposing batters with great skill, more easily.
You still ask around, you still watch the film… but you don’t need to agonize so much anymore. You’ve been there before.
You can’t get jaded about it, of course.
But you can — and need to — use the available shortcuts.
This never-ending process of learning and conquering so many different markets is what makes veteran copywriters such “total” marketers.
I’ve been exposed to every kind of marketing tactic and strategy there is. Seen some of ’em work like crazy, seen others crumble like a mud hut in a storm.
I’ve tried every angle of salesmanship, too. From the basic and fundamental forms of “just sell the damn thing”… to the advanced and psychologically-complex techniques that establish long-term relationships between seller and buyer.
And everything in between.
So… when you deal with a veteran freelance copywriter, you’re actually getting access to almost every aspect of business. Selling, yeah… but also positioning within a market, creating good product from scratch, finding new target audiences, avoiding pitfalls that swallow up rookies, and on and on.
I like to think of my skills set as a Bag of Tricks. There are several bags within the main bag, too.
There’s a bag of marketing tricks.
Strategies and plans I’ve tested out and seen others work, plus all the ways I know to reach prospects with a sales message (including the Web, direct mail, print ads, seminars, all of it). It’s a pretty impressive bag of goodies.
Then, there’s a smaller bag full of insight into running a business.
Essentially, Operation MoneySuck at full tilt. I’ve worked closely with large corporations and small entrepreneurs… and each has their foibles and habits and ways of making it happen (and, too often, ways of making it not happen). Knowing this stuff can shortcut years of failure, and speed up success like crazy.
Then, there’s the bag of salesman’s tricks.
This also is a very deep bag… because I’ve studied salesmanship like a groupie. And I’ve been lucky about finding “old school” mentors who know how to sell face-to-face as well as how to reach crowds with copy. Everyone has an Inner Salesman… but most of the time (even with experienced marketers) he’s fast asleep. Your first order of business, if you crave success, is to kick that bad boy awake and put him to work for you.
Finally, of course, is the big damn bag with all my copywriting skills.
All the secrets and shortcuts and tested methods of delivering a world-class written sales pitch that have kept me at the top of the game for so long.
When I talk to you about business, I’m not pulling this stuff out of thin air.
I’m just reaching into my bag, and showing you what I KNOW to be true.
Copywriting is critical to the success of any business. Nothing happens until the copy gets written, in fact.
However… there’s copy… and then there’s pro-level copy, written by a veteran with a cat’s sense of stalking the prey. Taking it ALL in, every detail and nuance of your business and market… and delivering the most killer sales message possible straight into the tender emotional sweet-spot of your prospect.
You know — the sweet spot that’s connected to his wallet.
If you want to get your hands on every secret in my bag of copywriting tricks, they’re all in the Simple Writing System. Every last one of them. Get all the details here.
Stalk this process. Have some fun with it. It’s one of the ways the smartest marketers online make a LOT of money.
And hey — you also get to enjoy listening to me rant on some very interesting — and profitable — subjects.
Stay frosty,
John
P.S. The other thing about pro level marketers and copywriters is that they never stop learning. Ever. Once you’ve mastered one skill, it’s on to the next level.
What happens once you’ve fine tuned your copy chops into masterful works of persuasion? It’s simple. Get faster.
The faster you get, the faster (and more often) you get paid. Intrigued? Find out more here.