Even if you feel like writing is easy…
Writing to sell is hard.
And I know how many of you feel about this word: selling. Blah!
It’s so encouraging to see how Substack creates paid subscribers out of thin air. You write your usual things, go about your usual day, and boom, a paid subscriber out of nowhere.
Nice!
Easy!
So why are you reading this?
Substack is about to become highly competitive.
It’s already happening. Michael Simmons (blockbuster.thoughtleader.school) called it “Subscription shock.”
Growth Rate: At first, readers subscribe to many publications. But as they build up a base of people they subscribe to, they get more discerning.
Churn: Once readers realize how much they’re spending and that they’re not actually reading what they are paying for, they unsubscribe from lots of publications.
Survival Of The Favorite: People stay subscribed to a handful of their favorite newsletters.
And how do we become people’s favourite Substack?
Enter copywriting.
Copywriting is a highly undervalued marketing skill.
Here’s something I want you to remember:
Copywriters are the most expensive people in the room.
They can sell fridges at the North Pole.
Copywriting is about WAY more than just writing.
It’s about:
Buyers psychology
Positioning
Market research
Testing (so knowing how to read the numbers)
Understanding the different marketing channels
And then there’s some writing involved
More Substackers need to learn & use copywriting principles.
You should, too, if you want to:
Get more paid subscribers
Keep more paid subscribers
Boost your credibility and be perceived as a thought leader in your field
Make people pay attention & subscribe in the first place (hard to get paid subscribers without free subscribers)
Ready? Let’s begin. .
The one copywriting principle to rule them all.
Credibility.
If I have to choose one thing that will 10x your results online, it’s credibility.
And here’s where your strategy & the strategy of the big guys differs.
Tim Denning is fucking brilliant. I’m a little bit in love with that guy’s brain.
But Tim can write whatever and it works. He brings his credibility in his back pocket. We all know him. You see bazillion followers, 150K+ subscribers, 7-figures: we’re sold.
He still builds on it, by the way. Have you noticed the stories he shares in his content: examples from other successful people; quotes from top media.
So even though we already trust him, he still goes out of his way to bring in more credibility.
And then people see you: someone who’s probably brilliant, but an unfamiliar face with 200 subscribers.
They’ll give you a chance. They’ll look around for credibility. Their eyes will slide down your post’s headlines, and when they see “4 ways to become happier,” do you think they’ll click on that? Do you think they’ll pay for that?
No. They probably won’t.
So HOW do you infuse your writing with SO MUCH credibility that suddenly you become unignorable and turn your newsletter into readers’ favourite Substack?
And how do you do it as an absolute beginner?
Glad you asked. Here are 5 pro copywriting strategies that are easy to implement and will instantly make your content something worth paying for.