A few days back I tackled a question from subscriber Carl about tapping your customer’s deepest desires. Like many other copywriters, I use a tool called an “avatar” for this. An avatar is a composite—a fictional character that represents your ideal customer. Carl asks a followup: When I did the exercises you have also done […]
Continue readingSharp-eyed subscriber Galit asks: Hi Josh, I have a question for you—I am watching your “Behind the Scenes of a Six-Figure Email Course” video and I noticed your callout of the coveted Welcome email. But I’m looking back at my emails from you and this is the first one that I received after I opted […]
Continue readingSubscriber Carl is a copywriter in the make money online and alternative health niches. He asks: Q: What methods do you use to really fine tune in and connect with your subscribers needs – drill right down to the core emotion – and how do you then use this information to communicate with them in: […]
Continue readingEver see one of those sappy “morality tale” movies? You know—the kind where the acting is horrible and the plot feels contrived and the movie ends with a 10-minute soliloquy where the main character lectures everyone on the moral hazards of [fill in the blank]? Did the movie convince you? Or did you find yourself […]
Continue reading“During the stalking portion of our training, you’re not graded on your first shot. You’re graded on your second. In other words, once you’ve fired, can you be seen?” Chris Kyle American Sniper What image comes to mind when you hear the word “sniper”? Usually I think of a tough-looking dude with a huge rifle […]
Continue readingBack when I was just getting started with email marketing, one thing I really struggled with was the right “format” for my emails. I saw a lot of people in my niche (software development) sending out link-style newsletters. This is where you “curate” or collect links to some good blog posts and send them out […]
Continue readingSubscriber Rick asks “Should I write my own emails or hire a pro copywriter to do it for me?” He explains: You might not know who I am, but I’m a big fan of your writing. Your emails that you send out every day are nice and seems like your always there in my inbox […]
Continue readingThis one ventures dangerously close to “TMI” territory—but it’s a little too much fun NOT to share. So here goes nothing… My wife is a lifelong fan of the Anne of Green Gables books. So a couple of years after we got married we decided to vacation in Prince Edward Island where the “Anne” stories […]
Continue readingA few months back I jotted down an idea for one of these emails: “I just wrote a sales page, and I’m scared” That’s typically how I feel whenever I turn a new piece of writing loose on the world. But it’s ESPECIALLY true of copywriting projects like email courses and sales pages… Compared to […]
Continue readingWhen I was but a wee young “copy cub,” my copywriting mentor Richard assigned me to write an email sequence. I was pitching a 3-day “fix your business” summit for struggling independent tax advisors. I started doing some research to find out what keeps your average tax advisor awake at night, and I stumbled onto […]
Continue readingRecently a subscriber asked for my feedback on an email he’d written. The email caught my attention instantly with the first few lines. He was telling a story that I could relate to, and I was eager to see where he was leading me. But a few short paragraphs later, my eyes glazed over. I […]
Continue readingBack when I was a wet behind the ears “copy cub,” one of the projects I tackled was a script for a short, explainer-style video. The product in this case was a supplement designed to boost energy and fat-loss. During the initial interview with the client, I picked up on some MAJOR red flags. The […]
Continue readingLast week an email with this bombshell subject line detonated in my inbox: That time I almost hired a Baby Snatcher…THIS is why recruiters research you I have to say, after years of following the best email marketers in the biz, I’m pretty jaded when it comes to subject lines these days. But there was […]
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