What “freedom away from something” looks like
On a trip to Los Angeles, I came across the car wash where I had a conversation with a famous stranger that changed my life forever. (Here’s the story as I told John Lee Dumas on this [...]
[Story Sells] How a “Ticking Time Bomb” Helps Capture Attention
Nothing motivates action like a time limit. It’s why sales and coupons don’t last forever. Deadlines seem to be hard-wired into our brains. It goes back to caveman days: “We get home before sun [...]
[Story Sells] Use this Spider-Man ‘Twist’ to Make Your Sales Story Unforgettable
There’s one story principle that’s tough to execute, but very valuable if you do it right. This principle gives a story added depth. What does that mean? Simply, the tale penetrates deeper into [...]
[Story Sells] “Ice-Breakers” in Ads: How To Gradually Introduce a Radical Idea
J.R.R. Tolkien had a big problem. He loved the ancient, epic tales. He began writing his own (see The Silmarillion). But he quickly discovered that these ancient worlds of honor and vengeance, [...]
[Story Sells] Beef Up Before and After Testimonials with this Story Technique
In Blake Snyder’s useful screenwriting how-to book, Save The Cat, he talks about two scenes you must have in your movie. An opening image. And a closing image. And one more thing: They should be [...]
[Story Sells] How Factoid Copy Can Be Fun, A-TEAM Style
You know the game is on when B.A. grabs the welding torch. I’m talking about the scene late in an A-TEAM episode when the gang needs to build something superfast to save the day. Usually involves [...]
The 1-Sentence “RAD” Trick That Transforms a Commodity into a Brand
We live in the age of Branded Characters. Leave no lunchbox unclaimed by a caped crusader or a spiffy cartoon. Thank goodness. Who wants a boring blue box when you can have a universe of [...]
How to use the “Doctors Dumbfounded” effect to Build Credibility & Desire: From Shyamalan to Schwartz
There’s a simple story technique you can use to quickly build credibility and desire for your product. The best novelists and filmmakers use it, as so do the best ad-slingers. In fact, Eugene [...]
[Story Sells] Prevent prospects from abandoning your ad by fixing the “Broken Film” mistake
I used to work at a movie theater in high school. One of my best jobs ever. I could watch any movie for free, and eat all the popcorn and drink all the soda I wanted. But some days were bad. When [...]
Unleashing Your Inner Lazy B*stard – How Freelance Copywriters Can Get More Done By Working Less
As freelance copywriters, we’re at this weird intersection between ‘creatives’ and ‘craftspeople’… Because our working practices need to draw from both areas. Creatively, copywriters must [...]
David Bowie: The Ultimate Artist-As-Entrepreneur?
June 2017 marks 50 years since David Bowie released his first album. The title of this landmark record? Somewhat unimaginatively, it was called: David Bowie. Ironic, because nothing else in [...]
[Story Sells] Establish Authority by Copying This Novelist Trick
Can you establish credibility while lying your ass off? Yep. Novelists and other storytellers do it all the time. And when you tell true stories as a marketer, you can copy their technique [...]
Boost Your Conversions by Thinking Like a Lawyer
Add strong proof elements to your marketing materials and watch your sales soar. The young lawyer wrapped up his closing argument. He felt confident in his performance over the course of the [...]
The Conscious Consumer: Who they are and why you need to know about them
I’ve been watching this for a while and wondering if others have noticed it too. The modern-day consumer is more aware and conscious than ever before. For us as marketers, copywriters and [...]
The Voice Mistakes That Are Costing You Money (And How To Fix Them)
How do you measure whether your voice is a success? Here’s a quick test. Try reading this out loud: It’s impossible not to read it in Liam Neeson’s voice. If you’ve nailed voice, that’s exactly [...]
[Story Sells] How to Capture Drifting Attention with the Captain “Hook” Rule
You will lose sales unless you hook your customer’s attention with the very first sentence. But what do you say? Well, to figure that out, let’s look at what not to do. And then just do the [...]
Stephen King’s IT And The Secret To Creating Emotion-Driven Copy That Converts
It’s one of the most notorious openings to any novel… Shocking, gruesome… …and so very, very vivid. From Stephen King’s epic 1986 tale, IT: “A small boy in a yellow slicker and red galoshes [...]