Effective Copywriting for Your Content Marketing

by Rahimah Sultan



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What Is Copywriting?


Copywriting is the skill of convincing your readers to take a particular action. That could be making a purchase, subscribing to your email list, or calling you for more information.


The most important copywriting skill in your content marketing is crafting headlines. If you have a great headline, the better the chance of getting what you’ve written read by a larger percentage of individuals.


Writing a great headline alone doesn’t guarantee success of your copy. What you offer in the headline still needs to be appropriately satisfied with your content or your offer.



If you have great body content with a bad or even marginal headline it’s probably not going to be read.


The late copywriter Clayton Makepeace said you should ask yourself the following six questions before you start to write your headline:

1. Does your headline offer the reader a reward for reading?

2. What specifics could you add to make your headline more intriguing and believable?

3. Does your headline trigger a strong, actionable emotion the reader already has about the subject at hand?

4. Does your headline present a proposition that will instantly get your prospect nodding his or her head?

5. Could your headline benefit from the inclusion of a proposed transaction?

6. Could you add an element of intrigue to drive the prospect into your opening copy?


These six questions, combined with the framework of the following four “U”s, provide an excellent foundation for writing outstanding headlines:

Your headlines, sub-headlines, and bullets should be USEFUL to the reader,
provide a sense of URGENCY,
convey the idea the main benefit is somehow UNIQUE, and
perform all the above in an ULTRA- SPECIFIC way.


Use your own voice in copywriting. You can be absolutely professional while being warm and likable.


Always check your writing for common grammar mistakes that damage your credibility.



What Else Do You Need To Consider In Your Content Marketing Copy?



Among the things you should consider in your copywriting are the types of copy:


1.  Plain copy

It’s a straight forward clear-cut presentation of the facts and benefits of your offer. It’s the most basic approach and introduces your product without gimmick or flair.

You’ll give a prospect the needed information to make an informed decision about the product.

2.  Storytelling copy

People love a good story.

We like hearing about interesting people who have overcome challenges that we can relate to.

You can use this storytelling technique in an email series, on a landing page, or in a short video. Whatever the format you’ll include four basic traits:

Opening – Show how the character of the story had a normal life until something happened to destroy that.

Conflict – Show how his/her life was threatened if they didn’t respond to the problem. What did the journey look like as they undertook the challenge?

Dialogue – Introduce a conversation about the journey.

3.  Conversational copy – In this style of copy you write as if you’re having a conversation with a prospect.

The language is like that of a salesman sitting down with a customer for lunch. Something that begins with I know how you feel or I can relate to a, b and c.

4.  Imaginative copy — You can ask your target audience to imagine life a certain way, what it would feel like to be a successful travel writer, or to pretend what it would be like to live the life of their dream.

Then you present them with a picture of themselves achieving that ideal life by way of a certain product.

5.  Long copy – The premise behind long copy is “The more you tell, the more you sell.” These ads convert well.

Since you’re not in front of the person, you have one chance to convert the reader. You should use bullet points to help ensure your most important details stand out.

When you’re following the basic rules of content marketing, remember that you don’t have to present all of the facts and benefits upfront.

You can use your email autoresponder to turn long copy into short easily-digestible snippets and reveal the presentation over a period of weeks.

6.  Killer-Poet copy – Your objective is not to convince your audience how smart you are. The goal is to educate and sell with your copy, and to do it with style.

Killer-poet copy sees writing as a means to an end (making a sale), and the ad as an end in itself (beautiful design and moving story). The killer poet combines style with selling. Creativity with marketing. Story with a solution.

7. Third-party endorsement copy

Third-party endorsements can help you sell your products.

It’s really effective to position your sales argument as direct communication between the company founder and his or her customer.

With this down-to-earth approach, the playing field is leveled. It signals to the customer that the CEO is not just some remote figurehead who’s only interested in profit, but is someone who cares.

8.  Frank copy – Sometimes copy will point out the negatives of a product and lets you know some work will be required before the benefits show.

This builds trust. When your readers trust you, they will be much more likely to believe you when you point out the good qualities of your product.

9.  Superlative copy – Sometimes you can make unusual claims like a revolutionary material making investors rich.

You must be able to provide evidence of what you say. Your proof can be in the form of statistics, testimonials, or research. It’s best to use all three.

Usually, it’s best to avoid all hype.

10. Rejection copy — tries to stop people from being interested in your product.

This copy challenges the reader with the idea that only a select set of people are invited to use the product which could be a particular credit card or a particular group of people.

This is startling to readers as they don’t expect to be turned down.

This approach taps into our sense of wanting to belong. It touches our sense of pride and produces curiosity. We think, “They don’t dare… Watch me.”



Often several of these techniques are combined into one ad.



Whether you’re a company CEO, a copywriter, or a tailor, there’s a copy form for you.



For effective copywriting for your content marketing, consider using some of these tips in your next ad.



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