I’ve been writing sales copy for several years now and the one thing that has worked the best for boosting sales with my copy is connecting with my readers emotionally.

Your writing should do 3 things:

• Appeal to your reader’s wants
• Help your reader feel their own emotions in your copy
• Help your reader justify their buying decision

These 3 elements are a powerful formula for boosting sales with your copy.

Appeal to Your Reader’s Wants

We buy lots of things every day; but aside from the necessities like food, clothing and shelter,  most of our purchases are triggered by our wants more than our needs.   For example, 

“I don’t need that 55″ flat screen HGTV, but I sure do want one”

What moves us to buy is the emotion we feel when buying the things we enjoy.

Many of our emotional purchases stem from these 5 things:

• Beauty.  We want to look younger, slimmer, sexier
• Money.    We want to make more money, have more money, save money
• Health. We want to Live longer, be healthier, fight disease
• Recreation. We love  Sports, TV, games, cars, vacations
• Love.  We want to love and be loved through dating, relationships, marriage

We all want to feel better, look better, have fun, live longer and be loved; the more of these things we can get, the happier we are.

Help Your Reader Connect with Their Own Emotions in Your Writing

When you begin writing your sales copy you want to emotionally engage your reader by helping them feel their own emotions first.

For example,  if you have a weight loss program you’re probably targeting overweight people that want to lose weight.

What do those people feel?  Paint a picture for them.   An overweight person might struggle with feeling ugly, can’t get a date, clothes shopping can be agony and they feel insecure.  By helping your reader connect with those negative feelings you’re helping them crave a resolution.

This is an important element of writing emotionally charged copy because if you can engage the reader and demonstrate that you understand their struggles, they’ll also feel confident that you’ll know how to help them.

Boost Sales by Helping Your Reader Justify their Buying Decision

When we buy things, especially things we don’t really need, it helps if we can justify in our own minds why the decision to buy is a good one, so it’s vital that you help your reader justify their decision to buy.  Emphasize things like easier, faster, cheaper, safer, more convenient, luxurious, limited time offer, free delivery, money back guarantee, limited stock, etc.

Whatever you are selling stress any or all the elements that apply, but at the same time also remember to keep in mind the individuals you are marketing to.

For instance, I might stress comfort and speed when selling a BMW to a 30 year old; but if I were selling to a parent buying the car for his daughter, I’d be  stressing safety and warranty.

Once you understand what emotional state your visitors are in and which emotions will trigger them to take action, you’ll be writing copy that is much more effective at driving sales.

If your copy’s not getting results, you CAN learn to write like a pro!   Boost your sales and your search engine rankings with The Step-by-step Copywriting Course.  Not just a book… a complete self-paced course.  http://www.homenotion.com/seocopywriting

Last week  I  mentioned that I just created a new blog and also showed you how to create a WordPress blog yourself from scratch.

Hopefully you were inspired and have your blog already set up, or you’re at least working on it

Once your blog is set up, the next step  is creating your blog content in the form of posts.

Blogging does require content on a regular basis, and I happen to believe that your blogs are better served if you write your own posts, but not everyone enjoys writing.

In fact if you’re someone that has trouble coming with with post ideas, organizing your thoughts and writing content that is interesting and useful,  I’ve got an easy way to create blog posts  that won’t take you very long at all.

Use content that is already written, all you have to do is customize the content to make it your own.  The keyword here is ‘customize‘.

For example, I often use PLR (Private label rights) content which allows me write blog posts in less than half the time it takes me to write something from scratch.  That’s a huge time saver for me.

I don’t always use PLR for every blog post but if I’m suffering writer’s block, I’m pressed for time or I’m just not in the mood to write, PLR can be a lifesaver.

There are typically two things that are hard for bloggers,  1) they need to consistently publish blog posts on a schedule, and 2) coming up with something of interest to post about.

PLR solves both of those problems giving you more time to do other things, but what I especially like about using PLR is that it makes the chore of writing so much easier and I can get the job done much faster.

All you have to do is to look for PLR content that relates to your niche and customize it by moving the paragraphs around, rewording things the way you would prefer to say them and then adding your own ideas, comments and phrases.

Customization IS important though.  For one thing if you want the search engines to index your blog and drive traffic, you need to have unique information.   But that’s not the best reason for customization.    Your readers need to hear your voice in what you write.  They also don’t want to read dull, lifeless content that loses them after the first 5 seconds of reading it.

Be warned, not all PLR is worth using.

New PLR sites pop up every day so you have to be smart about where you get your PLR content.    I’m very choosey about the PLR sites I use and you should be too.

Here are the only sites I purchase my PLR from:

- All Private Label Content

Alice Seba and Mila Sidman host the All Private Label content site which has some of the best quality PLR articles and how to guides that span 35 niche topics at affordable prices.  You’ll also get one complimentary access to their private members only forum for one month.  Great deal for the price.

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- Easy PLR

Nicole Dean and her team of writers puts together professionally edited quality articles, reports and ecourses specializing in home, family, moms and kids, internet business as well as marketing.   All at very affordable prices.

Here’s where to buy PLR content at Easy Plr

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PLRSO

Jimmy D. Brown’s Private Label Rights Special Offers focused to the internet marketing and affiliate marketing niches.  Jimmy, he puts out premium quality content at super affordable prices, this is useful information internet marketers CAN easily make money with.

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- Plr.me

Ronnie Nijmeh of PLR.me offers a membership site specializing in self-help, financial and personal development PLR.

Each month you get 30 extremely well written articles, 30 inspirational affirmations, 20 inspirational desktop wallpapers that you can be re-branded, sold or given away as a bonus, and 5 PDF documents such as handbooks, reports, guides and worksheets that include graphics and images needed to promote your PLR content.  All in all, this is a superb package with affordable pricing.

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- PLR Niche Content

PLR niche content is brought to you by Stephan Everest. Topics include animals  Weddings, travel, food and more.  The articles at PLR niche content also come with cool ready to use graphics as well.

One last thought …your blog posts won’t write themselves, so grabbing some quality PLR that you can use to keep readers interested and monetize your blog is a way to get it done.

In just a few minutes a day you can have your post written and done.  Or with a little planning you could even have all your blog posts written and scheduled for a week or even a month.

I’m actually off to do that myself!

One of the ways I make money is to create information products online.

I have a pregnancy product in particular that I’ve done well with but I also sell a few other information products as well as give some away.

But here’s something I’m gearing up to do over the next few months that I know will boost the income I already get from my information products and allow me to rake in even more cash.

The problem is,  I haven’t been exactly sure how to do that.

Once way I know of is to create what’s called an ‘Information product pipeline’.

What’s an Information product pipeline?

Here’s the idea:

1. A Customer starts out buying a lower priced information product.  They like it.
2. Next, they buy a medium priced information product at $47-$97.  They Like it.
3. Next, they might join your monthly membership site.
4. From there they buy a high-ticket coaching program or physical product.

So your basically creating a ‘Pipeline’ of information products that you can sell over and over to existing customers.  Things like:

• Small reports
• Webinars
• Coaching classes
• Physical products
• Membership sites

But right now I don’t really have a good grasp on how to create an effective information product pipeline, so I’m taking Jimmy D. Brown’s ‘InfoProduct Pipeline’ course which is step-by-step training for how to create multiple streams of income by creating different kinds of information products.

I’m getting jazzed about this because I know that if I can further develop materials my readers already value with a pipeline of additional products,  I’ll be able to significantly boost my income.

And who better to learn from than Jimmy.   He’s an excellent mentor and teacher.  In fact it was Jimmy’s training I received a few years ago that helped me write my first ebooks,  they’re still a primary source of income for me to this day.

If there is one thing Jimmy knows well, it’s how to create information products!

I’ve already started my Info Product Pipeline subscription and received the first training which I’ll be reading as soon as I finish this post.  The content is delivered in manageable 25-30 page guides that you receive each month, which is how I like my training, in bite size chunks.

Also with that first guide came a bonus issue for how to create and sell a Kindle ebook and a special report that I’ll keep under wraps for the moment.  But it’s all training that I’m super excited to dig into.

I already know the training is comprehensive, easy to understand and implement, so $20 a month for 12 months was a no brainer for me.

Part of why I’m sharing this with you is because if you don’t have a passion for what you’re doing online right now, just watch sales start rolling in from your own information products and you’ll not only have a passion for what you’re doing, you’ll have a great time doing it.

That’s been my experience

If you’re a writer, or even if you’re not (Jimmy has suggestions for that too) and want to create your own pipeline of information products like I’m working on, here’s where you can find out about ‘InfoProduct Pipeline‘:

I think you’ll be impressed, I have been

I’ll be honest, I hate writing sales letters.

In fact it took me a long time to learn how to write a sales letter that could actually make sales.

But being able to write a good sales letter is an important skill to have because just one well written, compelling sales letter has the potential of bringing you sale-after-sale for years to come.

There’s no real secret sauce or hidden magic to writing a great sales letter, it’s really just a matter of learning the strategies and applying them in ways that the experts know work.

But also practice makes perfect   From writing sales letters over and over again you’ll soon begin to learn how to write so that it becomes second nature to you.

To get started writing sales letters that make the sale almost every time, here are the strategies and the sales letter format that you need to be using.

1.  Know your Target Market

Know who you are writing your sales letter to.  In other words, who’s your audience?  Are they young professionals? Are they elderly? Are they stay at home moms?  What’s their income?  For example, if you sell baby strollers, you automatically know your audience will typically be young women, who are active and most likely have one income.

In fact often times the products you sell will tell you what type of audience you attract. Once you know who these people are,  gear your copy to the needs and wants of those people.

2. Appeal to the emotions of your Target Market

We almost always buy things based on our wants, not our needs?  Think about this:

“I don’t need that 50? flat screen TV, but I sure do want it!”

Getting in touch with people emotionally is what puts your reader in “buy” mode.  If you can strike a chord in your reader that says, “I want that!” then you can make the sale.

3. Persuade & Motivate when writing your sales letter

Speak to your reader from experience and add personal tips or suggestions that will help motivate your reader to take action.

Don’t be tempted to write your sales letter as a flat presentation of the facts, that’s dull. People much prefer that you justify their reasons for wanting to buy.

Put yourself in their shoes. Understand what it is they want and what motivates them to buy.

4.  Keep your copy easy to read

Use short sentences and easy to understand words.  People on the internet read a lot, so they want to be able to get through your copy fast without a lot of long wordy copy.

Keep your sales copy to the point and keep it flowing.  Don’t jump from one thought directly into another.  Use seaways that make sense.

5.   What are the benefits to your reader?

Promote the benefits of your product or service.  In other words, how will your product or service make your reader’s life better?  Start by looking at the features and then coming up how the feature offers a benefit. For example, leather seats are a new car feature, the benefit of leather seats is they’re easier to clean and they last longer.

6.  Arouse interest

Peak your reader’s interest by peppering your copy with curious facts, interesting phrases and human interest.  Write things that involve your reader. Help them to feel that they know you and can count on you to understand what they are feeling and needing.

7. Create a sense of urgency

Most people are procrastinators so even though they might want your product, they might put off buying it. To help get around this, create an overwhelming reason to buy NOW.   For example you could mention that your offer is available for only a limited time, or offer a bonus that is limited, or mention that you’re only selling a limited number of copies.

You could also take a few dollars off the price and limit the offering or offer limited free shipping.

8.  Always include a Call To Action

If you’ve done a good job of convincing your reader that you have the product they need then tell your reader what to do to get it. If you want your reader to order today, or sign up for your newsletter then say so.  If a signup box is on the left, tell them sign up to the left. If your order box is below, tell them order now below.  People like to be directed on what to do.  They much prefer it over figuring out what it is they should be doing.

Here’s how to  Write A Sales Letter using this Easy Format

Headline/Sub-headline

Your headline should point out what your reader can expect to get and your subline should emphasize the points you just made in your headline.  I also suggest testing your headlines and sub-headlines.

Create several of them and swap them in and out for several weeks at a time to see which ones work best.

Your headline also needs to attract attention so headlines that start with things like:

“Discover how …”, “Get Ready To  …”, “Experience the….” work really well.

Your sub-headlines work well when asking questions like:

“Did you know that…?”

“Wouldn’t you Like to…?”

“Are you ready For…?”

Your headline should be in centered at the top of the page with bolded text and  only capitalize the first letter of each word.

After skipping a few lines your sub-headline should be directly beneath your headline. It should be a font smaller with bold text and in a different color than the heading text.

‘Introduce the problem’  Section

Write a few sentences or paragraphs on what the problem is.  If you’re selling a product that relieves back pain you would touch on things like how back pain limits things that you love to do.  How sleeping can be a problem, how chronic pain can lessen your enthusiasm for like, and things of that nature.

‘Introducing the solution’  Section

Now it’s time to introduce a solution.  Talk about your remedy or what you have to offer without really introducing the specific product.

Simply talk about the things that you can help the reader accomplish.  For example, “Here’s what I can help you with”

Credibility section

I like to include a ‘Why listen to me’ section.  Give reasons, personal or professional on why you created the product and why the reader should listen to you. For example, if you wrote a book about ‘ how to grow award winning roses’ tell your reader how many awards you have won with your roses, how long you’ve been growing roses, etc.  Give the reader some background into understanding how you qualify in giving them what they need.  Sort of like writing a resume.

‘Features and benefits’  Section

List the feature and benefits of your offer.  Use a bullet point to list each feature, then next to the feature list the benefit of the feature. Be clear and to the point.

Introduce your product Section

Here’s where you introduce your product.  This section should be in paragraph form.  Mention the most important and impressive features of the product.

‘Testimonials’ Section

Pepper small customer testimonials throughout your sales letter. You may not have one to start and that’s OK, as you get them you can introduce them into your sales letter.

‘Summary’  Section

Do a summary that covers the overall benefits of your product.

‘The Pricing’  Section

Be Clear about the Price. State the value of your product and include the price.  Hint:  I’ve been told that prices that end in a 7 or a 9 seem to work the best.

For example $7, $9, $27, $29, $37, 39… etc.  For some of my products I’ve experimented using both 7 and 9 and I didn’t find a difference either way.  You may want to experiment with this as well.

Your bonus’ Section

Include bonuses.  And what’s more, your bonuses should be written or created by you.  Bonuses gives the reader an impression of added value.   For this reason be sure to include a dollar value for each bonus product.

Even though you are offering your bonuses free of charge it’s good practice to outline it’s dollar value.

Your guarantee Box

Specify a separate box for your guarantee. Clearly state what your guarantee is, or is not, if you think there may be confusion.

Download box

Use a dotted line box that summarizes exactly what the customer will get with their purchase.  Include any details about how their order will appear on their credit card statement and include a guarantee statement if you have one, which I highly recommend.

Include your ‘buy here’ button clearly at the bottom of the sales box.

Your signature

After your download box, include your personal signature.  This adds a personal touch.

The P.S.

Many people will not read all your copy at first; they will probably  scroll to the bottom of the page.

This is where having a powerful P.S. will give you another opportunity to get them involved in your copy.

Use the P.S. to repeat the strongest elements of your copy in a short paragraph.  It should contain things like your money back guarantee (if you have one).  If your offer is time sensitive state that in the P.S.  If you offer a FAQ state that.   Basically, sum up all the important benefits and highlights of your sales letter in this section.

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Do you struggle with creating  good, quality blog content on a consistent basis?

Writing awesome blog content and doing it often is certainly something I’ve struggled with and I’m sure you have too at one time or another.

So what keeps successful bloggers cranking out great quality blog content 3, 4 or even 5 times aweek?  What are their habits and strategies, how do they find ideas and still have time to live their lives?

To find out I simply asked a few of my favorite bloggers.

These ladies are my favorites not only because I’ve learned so much from them but because they consistently deliver well written, useful blog content that their readers love, just visit their blogs and you’ll see what I mean

So I posed this question to each of them them:

“Can you share with us some of your secrets or tips on how you post such awesome blog content so frequently without suffering burn out and still have time to do other things besides write all the time?”

and here’s what they told me, I hope their thoughts and tips inspire you, I know they inspired me

Lynn Terry Of Clicknewz.com

Writing, or creating content, is one thing a lot of people struggle with when they start a blog or an online business. It’s what makes the web go round though, and Content Marketing is one of the easiest and best ways to reach your market. Not to mention it’s a free source of great traffic.

I publish tons of content online, and most people assume I’m just a natural born writer. But the truth is that I’ve simply improved with practice. And I’ve also figured out a few things that help me streamline the process.

First, I write during my “focus time”. This will be different for everyone, but for me I’ve discovered it’s first thing in the morning. This is when everything is quiet, and when I’m most focused. I make it a point to set everything else aside and do all my writing in the first few hours of the day, before distractions set in.

I also have “framework” set up that makes writing easier. For example, I have seven elements that I include in blog posts, and also in product reviews, and I tend to follow those templates pretty closely.

I try to capture ideas while they’re still fresh in my mind. I have the WordPress app on my smart phone, so if I have a topic idea I will open the app and jot down the basic concept and then save it as a draft. This gives me a lot of topic starters to work with when I do sit down to write. From there it’s just a matter of filling in each of my template elements.

As for burn out, I have experienced that. Or dry spells at least, where inspiration just didn’t come easy. During those times, or when I’m traveling a lot, I rely on guest bloggers or easy interview-style posts to fill in the space. There is always someone out there willing to do the writing for you, and your readers will typically enjoy a fresh perspective or viewpoint on the topic.

But for the most part, choosing a topic you really enjoy will keep the writing more easy – and even fun. If you have a blog or business on a topic you’re not particularly passionate about… it becomes very difficult to write about it consistently - real quick.

Kathleen Gage of Kathleengage.com

One of the reasons I am able to continually write content my readers enjoy is because I love to write. As with anything, the more we love something the more we seem to enjoy doing it.

My best writing happens when I am not thinking about what I am writing, but rather I allow myself to simply get in my zone.

If I analyze my writing while in the middle of creating this is when my ego gets in the way and convinces me to change this, change that, this is not good enough, that’s not good enough. Editing can come after I do a “brain dump.”

An extremely powerful strategy I use is to write early in the morning sitting in my favorite arm chair. Rather than diving into my emails first thing in the morning I use my creative energy in a more productive way.

I take a few minutes of quiet time to center myself and then put an hour or two into my writing.

I often get ideas from discussions I have on Facebook or in forums I belong to. I have gotten many ideas based on emails I receive that someone is in need of a response to. My response may trigger an idea for a blog post.

Most of all, it’s a discipline. If I want to continue to succeed, get my message out and impact others with my writing, my job is to write. Not to find excuses why I can’t write (or I’m not inspired on a particular day), but rather the reasons I must write.

Tiffany Dow of Tiffanydow.com/blog

I haven’t ever thought about this so I had to think about what my strategy is, since I just do what comes naturally to me. I suffer writing burn out like everyone else but when I do, I try to remove any guilt I might have about being quiet for a few days. Sometimes you just need that time to recharge your focus and mindset.

When I’m on a writing streak, I like to look for relevant, current topics. I am a newshound. I visit a zillion news sites or forums every morning while having my coffee and it gives me ideas. It’s smart to have your pulse on the chatter online.

I don’t plan so much as I do babble. If it’s something like my blog, where I’m passionate about my topic, then I just write like I talk – as if I’m writing an email to a good friend. My readers always comment to me that, “it seems like you’re talking just to me” and your readers should feel special like that!

I switch things up a lot. One day I’m reviewing a product, the next I’m doing a tutorial, and another I’m discussing something controversial. Regardless of your niche, you could find a way to do this. Let’s use dog food as an example – pretend that’s your niche.

The day 1 blog post could be a tutorial on how to make your own dog food from scratch.

The day 2 blog post could be a review about a certain brand of dog food.

The day 3 blog post could be something you saw in the news – like dog food that’s making pets sick.

You can also get your audience to be more interactive with you. Your day 4 blog post could be a question you pose to your readers such as, “What dog food have you found to be the healthiest option for your four legged friend?”

I don’t like to just talk AT people. I like them to interact with me. It’s why I mix business with personal stuff and ask their opinion. They begin posting and suddenly there’s dozens of comments and I’m feeling good that people are reading and responding to my hard work. It definitely helps you get motivated for that next post.

Ana Hoffman of Trafficgenerationcafe.com

This is one of the questions I get all the time: how do I manage to write several times per week for the Traffic Generation Cafe, plus guest posts for a number of other blogs?

Here are the three truths about content writing that helped me get where I am at now:

1. Find your style.

I realized that the kind of posts I enjoyed reading the best was bullet-type posts with very good organization and very to the point content without any fluff.

Since that’s what I liked to read, that’s how I decided to write.

2. You are not writing a novel.

Unless you are blogging about writing novels, of course.

With that in mind, don’t stress out about making your post “sound good” by using lots of big words, descriptions, adjectives, etc. No one cares anyway!

3. Personality is the key.

If you don’t have one, I can’t help you there. However, I CAN help you with this: if you think you have no blogging personality, your idea of it might be all wrong.

Popular to common belief, you don’t have to tell jokes, great stories, curse, write with “I don’t give a …” attitude, etc to be memorable.

You don’t have to be sweet and cuddly and agree with everybody either.

Find strengths within yourself and focus on those.”

Angela Wills of Marketersmojo

Thanks for asking Liz and I’d be happy to share some tips.

My first and best tip would be get into the right mindset. I used to really hate writing. I felt so much pressure and expectations when I sat down to write, like I had to write some sort of award-winning piece every time.

As soon as I changed my attitude about writing everything changed. I stopped looking at it like a chore and just started sharing what I know. I stopped worrying about being perfect and just write like I was me.

It’s so easy to write when you are real and authentic.

Find shortcuts. Here are some of my best quick-tips for finding shortcuts to write fast:

• Repurpose, repurpose, repurpose! Look at your old reports, forum posts, emails and more.
• Set a timer for 15 minutes and write as fast as you can. You’ll be amazed at how much you can write in that time.
• Write first, edit later. Don’t fix your writing as you’re going. You’ll write much faster if you let it flow naturally.
• Write what you know. If you already have the knowledge, you’re writing will a lot faster than if you need to research.
• Talk TO people, not AT them. I think it’s really important to pretend you are talking to a friend, not giving a lecture to strangers.
• Those are some of my best tips. Remember that it’s more important to connect with your audience than it is to try to impress them with big words and fancy grammar.

Mavis Nong of Attraction Marketing Online

What really helped me to create content regularly and consistently is by sticking to my blogging schedule. I publish new content on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. I post at the same time – first thing in the morning. I have also found that the more I write the more post ideas I get.

Truth be told, if you want people to keep coming back to your blog, you need to keep updating your blog, at least 3-5 times a week.

In order to write great content consistently and frequently, without burning out, you need to plan ahead. How you do this will depend mostly on how important blogging is for you and what you want to achieve with your blog.

Here’s what I do to avoid putting myself under unnecessary pressure:

• I keep a journal of blog post ideas running. I always pick up ideas that I want to share with my readers.
• I always have draft posts ready to be published. Having your posts ready before the actual publishing day also works well. I never stress and wonder: “Oh, what can I write about today?…
• I tend to share what I have learned and implemented in my business or on my blog.

As you can see, the not-so-secret secret of regular content writing is to keep writing content. Before you know it, you’ll become a prolific writer and never stress about writing.

Thank you Ladies!

All great tips and advice.   What pearls of wisdom struck you?

Let us hear your thoughts, or perhaps your struggles with creating your blog content.

Nicole Dean of Easy PLR, just recently did an interview where she was asked about the myths surrounding using PLR content.

Her answers were spot on and I love them because I happen to use PLR content myself.

But not everyone understands how to use PLR or how making money with private label rights products works. Just slapping up PLR content out of the box is NOT how it’s done.  

When used correctly, PLR content saves you a lot of extra time writing, it gives you some great ideas and it’s cheap, however customization of any PLR content is a must and that’s where most PLR users fail and succumb to the myth.

So without any further delay, here are Nicole’s 4 top myths and her response to each:

Take it away Nicole….

There are four main myths that I run into regularly.

1. The biggest misconception that people have is that all PLR is crap.

2. The second biggest misconception is that ghostwriters are not good writers. We can even take that a step further and add that people assume they are stupid, taken advantage of, and/or they don’t speak English as their native language.

3. The third misconception is that using PLR takes away from your expert status.

4. The fourth misconception is that PLR and ghostwriting are somehow dishonest.

Let’s run through those one by one.

Myth #1: All PLR is Crap.

If you go back to about 2003, then I’d say that you are absolutely correct. Nearly all PLR at that time was junk. There may have been a few exceptions, but I wouldn’t touch most of that PLR content with a 10-foot pole.

We’ve made great strides in the last few years to raise the standards for what is acceptable and what is not in the PLR world. I’d like to think that I was one of the leaders in that movement.

Myth #2: Ghostwriters are Stupid.

I’ve got to tell you that I’ve worked with some ghostwriters who are brilliant in many ways. Oftentimes, they’re fabulous communicators, smart marketers, and hard working entrepreneurs. And, yes, they’re qualified to write quality information on many topics on the internet.

For instance, for a long time, I had a nurse writing my health PLR articles. I’ve also got a writer who graduated from Stanford University, who writes for several popular print magazines, and is a published author. Yes, she has her own book. And, another who had a career as a Political Speech Writer (before having children). That’s just three of my writers. They’re all amazing people, each with a variety of skills and life experience.

To assume they aren’t capable of writing quality content would be just silly.

I don’t just go to eLance.com and take the lowest bidder. To think that’s how all PLR sites work would certainly be a misconception.

Myth #3: You’re Not a “Real” Expert if you Use PLR.

The other misconception is that using PLR articles takes away your own value as the expert. That you are somehow cheating, plagiarizing, or that you’re a phony if you use PLR.

If ONLY you could see my customer list. It reads like the “Who’s who of Successful Online Business Owners”.

Business is all about cutting costs while increasing the bottom line. What better example is there than PLR content?

If you use PLR articles as drafts, they are delivered to you, ready for you, as the expert, to add your unique thoughts to them.

If you look at PLR like that – you can still keep your personality in your brand – and your sanity at the same time.

Myth #4: Using Ghostwriters or PLR is Cheating.

Most biographies in the bookstores are written by ghostwriters.

Most of the famous orations from our history were written by someone other than the public figure who gave the speech.

It’s not cheating to get help. It’s smart business.

Nicole Dean is the owner of Easy PLR – where you’ll find high-quality PLR articles sold in very limited quantities.  The PLR articles at EasyPLR are professionally written and professionally edited — top quality at an affordable price.

Writing effective SEO copy is a powerful skill to have.

It’s how you will achieve top search engine ranking for your best keyword phrases, it’s how you will generate targeted traffic, write copy that persuades and is balanced between the search engines and your human reader.

Sounds like a balancing act doesn’t it?  In a way it is, but if you follow these important steps, you’ll be cranking out SEO copy that ranks well in the search engines and brings you sales.

1. Do Your Keyword Research

Not everyone loves keyword research, but if  you do it, the payback is priceless.  In fact here’s an excellent keyword research free report that will help get you started.

Focusing on finding the right keywords is the difference between ranking well in the search engines or not ranking at all.

The keywords you choose need to be relevant to what your page is about, get adequate searches and are not extremely competitive.   That’s where good keyword competition analysis comes into play.  It’s your best chance to gain top ranking.

Once you’ve decided on your main keyword phrase, use it in your copy naturally.  Don’t force use your phrases.  If your keywords don’t sound natural, don’t use them.

Split up the words of your keyword phrase and use them individually within the copy as well.

Additionally use your keyword phrase in the page’s title tag, description tag, alt tag as well as the first and last paragraphs of your copy.

2. Know Your Target Market

Knowing your target market or your audience means you’ll connect with them in a way they can relate.  Yes, your reader needs to be able to relate to what you are saying.  You’re going for the, “Wow, this person knows how I feel”, reaction.

If you can describe to them how they feel about something they’ll be impressed.   But …you can’t effectively sell to someone or even relate to them if you don’t know something about who they are, what their habits are, what they like or don’t like.

For example, if you were trying to sell a headache remedy, you have to be able to relate to your reader and demonstrate that you know what they are going through.  Next you also have to demonstrate that your remedy can relieve their pain.

If they don’t feel like you know what they are going through, they can’t connect.  That connection helps you write copy that appeals to your target audience.

In other words the more you know about how to connect with your customer, the easier your job becomes and the more sales you’ll make.

If you’re not exactly sure how knowing your target market can impact your web copy, Search engine Copywriting with Karon Thackston will clear it up for you in a hurry, it did for me

3. Connect Emotionally with your reader

The next step in knowing your target market is knowing what triggers their emotions.

For example, an acne remedy might verbalize to its audience how acne causes embarrassment, anxiety and how it can make them feel gross and hopeless.

Really getting to the underlying emotions of how someone feels can make help them connect with you and what you are suggesting to them.

4. Write Catchy Headlines

It’s your headline that will draw a reader in, so knowing how to write a headline that attracts attention is how a reader will notice you, but it’s where the search engines get what they need as well.

Your reader will react best to a headline that states a benefit.  The search engines on the other hand respond to a headline that includes your keyword phrase.

The search engines might notice a page about ‘how to write an article’ but to capture the attention of a reader, a headline that reads ” how to write an article in ten minutes or less” is much more likely to get the click.  See the difference?

5. Close the Deal with a Call To Action

People want a call to action.  In fact they come to expect it.

One of the things I’ve learned about writing effective SEO copy is that people like to be led.  You warm them up with great compelling copy, they’re excited about what you are telling them and then you tell them what to do.  It works.

But without a call to action, you leave your reader hanging.

Always tell your reader what you want them to do and give them the means to do it.

Writing Effective SEO Copy is Empowering

If you can learn how to write Effective SEO copy, you can empower yourself.

You’ll be able to find balance between writing well and using the strategies that work for both the search engines and your human visitors.  That’s essential getting more targeted traffic, more sales and doing it all without spending money.

To create an impressive about me page it has to start with your personal story.

Don’t try to be someone you’re not.  Keep it real, don’t manufacture ideas or try making it impressive, just be yourself.

To help readers know who you are, convey your personal thoughts related to your business.  Tell them why you became a business owner and how you got to be where you are.    Mention the things you’ve done related to your business and the things you hope to do.

You may not think that your story is unusual, impressive or even interesting but let your visitors be the judge.

Even the most ordinary of stories can have an impact on others because many of them can relate.

Your story doesn’t have to be unusual or dramatic.  How your readers connect with you comes from your personal experiences and challenges.  Your ideas, thoughts and insights will distinguish your from the rest of the world.

Write from your heart not from what you see others writing.

Getting your ‘About Me’ story down on paper

Don’t edit your writing the first time through, just write.  Don’t get caught up in how it sounds, simply express your feelings and make it personal.  Share the things that mean the most to you.

Write your page from your perspective; in other words write it in the first person.  For example, “I have always believed that everyone has a special quality.” or “I never realized how wonderful it is to have a business I can run from home.”

Start your story by mentioning the things that your reader would be most interested in.

If you own a weight loss coaching business for instance, you might start your ‘about me’ page with a few lines about how you struggled with your own weight.    If you’ve been an inspiration to others for helping them lose weight talk about your story.

Once you’ve completed writing, set your “about me” page aside for a few hours.  While you’re away from it you’ll probably start thinking of other things you want to say so keep a paper and pencil handy and jot them down.

When you return to your content, review it with fresh eyes and add in any new items you jotted down.

This is when you can revise, edit and polish looking for better, more concise ways to say or phrase things.  Keep ideas flowing in a logical manner.  Of course correct all grammar and spelling.

Putting the Finishing Touches on your ‘About Me’ Page

Once you have your content written there are a few small additions you’ll want to make for helping you take full advantage of the traffic you’ll get from this page. Plus a few do’s, don’ts to consider.

- Don’t use your resume

This is not the place to display your resume.  If you want your readers to see your resume consider linking to it on a separate page.  Your about me page should be about connecting with your reader on a more personal, emotional level.

- Include a personal photo or video

Put a photo of yourself on your about me page. Most people would rather buy from a real person than from a computer.  Adding a photo brings you to life as a real person.

If you can you might also consider adding a video of yourself.  Just a short 3 minute video introducing yourself is all you need, however don’t use a video to replace  your about me content.  I recommend using video with at least a few hundred words of actual ‘about me’ content.

- Include  a call to action

Invite your reader to take action after they’ve read your “about me” page. This could be to invite them sign up for your email list or share a website page with them that will take them deeper into your site.

- Include a contact form or information.

This lets your reader know that you’re invested in them and interested in what they have to say.

- Include  social networking page links

Allow people to connect with your readers in other ways by placing your social networking links on your about me page.    It helps you build your community and audience.  If they like you and like what you have to say, they will use the social links.

In Summary…

Many of your site visitors will shoot straight for your ‘about me’ page before they look at anything else on your site.    So it’s super important that you use your ‘about me’ as a resource for helping your visitor  connect with you while also reinforcing your good intentions.