4 Ways to Leverage the Power of Conversational Copywriting

Way back in 1999, a business was born: Marketing Words. While a few other freelance copywriters and companies were online in those early days, most had not yet grasped the essence of the Net.

One of the smart ones, Nick Usborne, carved a digital path for himself by always having a unique approach regarding how to write website copy. In fact, in 2001, Nick published his first book, “Net Words.”

It started a movement. I was an eager member of Nick’s clan and a proud owner of the book. Nick has become an icon for copywriters on the Internet, guiding them through innovative ways to write.

When he began talking about his latest approach to writing for websites, I paid attention.

I also invited him to share some details with us so that — whether you’re a professional or do-it-yourself copywriter — you can implement an honest, open, and transparent way to sell with words.

Welcome Nick Usborne to the Marketing Words Blog…

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Back before the web, in the days of broadcast media — like TV, print, and radio — copywriting was about writing AT your audience.

These were one-way media. The audience was passive. They couldn’t talk back. As copywriters, we simply wrote at our audience, hoping to push them toward making a purchase.

However, the web is utterly different. It’s not one-way.

This means we no longer need to write AT our audience. We can engage WITH them.

And when your communication goal shifts from writing AT to engaging WITH… everything changes.

At least, it should change.

But, strangely, all too many companies and marketers are still stuck in the habit of one-way, old-school, full-on broadcast copywriting.

Which is a pity, because applying conversational copywriting principles to interactive media (including websites) delivers a lot of valuable benefits.

Let’s take a peek at 4 of them.

#1 — Conversational Copywriting Lets You Simplify and Clarify Your Message

Here’s some text I found on a website recently:

“We empower organizations to monitor cloud spend, drive organizational accountabilities, and optimize cloud efficiency so they can accelerate future cloud investments with confidence.”

No kidding. That’s what they wrote, word for word.

Why would they use such ridiculously complicated language? Hard to say. But I’m guessing someone figured it made them look smart.

The trouble is, it’s a terrible piece of communication.

Now let’s imagine the marketer was at home, sitting at his kitchen table, telling his neighbor what it was he did at work.

“We help companies make smarter use of cloud storage.”

A little simpler and clearer, right?

That’s the basic model for conversational copywriting.

You always ask yourself, “How would I explain this, or pitch this, if I were sitting at my kitchen table, talking to a neighbor or a friend?”

As soon as you imagine that picture in your mind, the business jargon falls away, the crazy 30-word compound sentences get broken up, and you actually start communicating with clarity.

#2 — Conversational Copywriting Allows You to Sell Without Shouting

Back before the web, pretty much all advertising was an interruption. Your favorite TV shows were interrupted with ads. Same with radio, and so on.

When your ad is an unwelcome interruption, you have to shout and push.

The more unwelcome the intrusion, the louder the pitch.

That’s why the old stereotype of used-car salesmen was so brash. They knew you didn’t like or trust them, so they pushed you toward a purchase as hard as they could, as quickly as they could.

Broadcast, one-way marketing is adversarial. Us against them.

But it shouldn’t be like that online because the web is a multi-way social and interactive medium.

Again, imagine yourself at your kitchen table.

This time, instead of explaining to your neighbor what it is you do at work, imagine you’re trying to sell your spouse on an amazing idea you have for your next family vacation.

Instead of going to a Caribbean resort again, you want to sell the idea of a European tour.

You know it’s going to be a hard sell, so you dive in with enthusiasm. You pitch your idea with energy.

But you’re not sounding like a salesman.

You’re just excited.

You love the idea of taking the family to Europe.

Yes, you’re selling… you’re selling your heart out. But it’s not adversarial. It’s conversational.

See the difference?

#3 — Conversational Copywriting Makes Your Business Likeable and Accessible

Old-school broadcast marketers hid behind a curtain.

As a customer or prospect, you never got to see the people behind the ads.

The marketing message always came from “the company,” and never from individuals.

This separation between the marketers and their audience impacted the tone of the copy and content the company created. It felt distant.

But online, that kind of distance puts you at a disadvantage.

We now live in a world of social media, texting, messaging, and other forms of live interaction.

Your prospects and customers are talking back, and they expect to be talking to a human.

To answer them, you should find a conversational voice for your business.

You need a voice you can use consistently across all digital media… a voice that is likeable, and feels accessible.

Remember, the days of broadcast marketing are behind us. We now live in a world of engagement marketing.

And your prospects and customers want to engage with a company that communicates in language that feels conversational.

#4 — Conversational Copywriting Builds Trust and Removes Uncertainty

Now it’s time to address the final concerns that lead people to abandon your sales pages and shopping carts.

They’re not sure if they can trust you. They feel lingering uncertainty about handing over their email address and/or credit card information.

As a marketer online, this is the worst — bringing prospects all the way to your opt-in point or shopping cart, and then losing them.

That lack of trust has its roots in all the old-school attitudes and habits I’ve been talking about.

We never really trust a salesman who pushes too hard. And we’ll always hesitate to click that final buy button if we feel unsure.

Consider adding live chat buttons to your sales pages.

This is one of the best ways to make (or save) the sale. Chat gets people into conversations, one person to another.

Tap into the trust-building power of conversation earlier in the sales process. This is how to write website copy today. That way you build trust all along and don’t have to leave it to the last moment.

Wrapping it up…

Old-school broadcast copywriting skills worked just fine in the days before the web.

Those tactics were developed at a time when the power difference between merchants and buyers was very significant.

The merchants had access to broadcast media, but the buyers didn’t.

The merchants were in control. They could invade your home any way they wanted, interrupting your life through your mailbox, your TV, your radio, and the newspapers and magazines you subscribed to.

And then along came the web and changed everything.

Today the buyers have a voice, too. And many large companies have learned by paying a great price that those voices can be loud and powerful.

The point is, as marketers, we can no longer play the old-school game.

We should meet our prospects and customers on equal terms.

They’ll no longer sit still and listen quietly while we push our sales messages at them.

Now they want to be included. They want engagement. They want a conversation.

Therein lies the power of conversational copywriting.

And that’s why it is the future of selling online.

Nick Usborne is a veteran copywriter who, after an award-winning career writing for print and direct mail, has now been writing exclusively for online media for over 20 years. He is the author of the course Conversational Copywriting. Get it today and start seeing more conversions with less hype.