August 30th, 2013
The truth about your sales page most copywriters don’t want you to know
How many of you have stressed out about your sales page before a launch?
Does it look good?
Do all the buttons work?
Did you include enough detail about your offering?
Did you put in too much detail? Will it convert people to buyers or turn them off completely?
Did you address all the objections, offer a no risk guarantee, remember to put the social proof?
It’s not surprising that we’re stressing out so much. We’re putting a ton of pressure on that sales page to do the work of selling to our potential customers.
Here’s the situation and your problem…
- you spend hours laboring over your sales page
- maybe you do it alone
- maybe you’re following someone else’s layout
- maybe you hire someone to do the whole thing
- maybe you pass it around to your friends
- maybe you don’t do it at all
- maybe you decide to do a video
You see other people working with copywriters to make sure that sales page does what it’s “supposed” to do which is convert people into buyers.
Some people even have designers for their pages.
Some people seem to whip up these innovative or cute pages without any stress at all!
So – the pressure to create an amazing end all be all page starts!
This problems started for a reason…
We’ve been conditioned and taught to make our sales page the center of your launch –
- it’s going to make people buy
- it’s going to address all the possible and common objections people have about your product
- it helps people understand what you are selling
- split test to find a winning/converting page
And all of these things are true…to some extent.
But there’s a secret that most copywriters don’t want you to know.
People aren’t buying because of your amazing sales page.
Sure – it helps the understanding process.
But people click buy often without reading one single word of your sales page.
So wait – does that mean you don’t need a sales page at all?
That’s what I asked the copywriting gods too…
The short answer is no – yes, YOU DO need a sales page. The kind folks over at Copyblogger have taught me over and over again about the need for effective copywriting. I’m listening, still learning, but yes… again – you do need a sales page.
But the trick isn’t just getting people to read it – it’s getting people to read enough of it so that their possibility and imagination centers of their brain start to work.
[box_colored width=”80%” border=”1px” style=”solid” background=”azure” bordercolor=”#B2D9EE”]From Crazy Egg – https://www.crazyegg.com/blog/secret-to-sales-copy/
If people are reading your sales page, they already want what you’re selling — or are at least considering it. You only have to help them see themselves using and benefiting from your product, and you’re likely to win the sale.
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The trick isn’t creating a beautiful, mobile friendly site that makes people go oooh and ahhh.
The trick is holding a reader’s attention long enough for them to see that what you have to offer solves a very real problem or challenge for them – and gives them hope that you can indeed walk them closer to the solution.
The trick is building up to the sales page – having it be your last touch point before someone decides to buy.
[box_colored width=”80%” border=”1px” style=”solid” background=”azure” bordercolor=”#B2D9EE”]Here’s a snippet from Psychotactics talking about the Myth of the Sales Page:
Putting up the sales page is one step. One tiny step in the whole process of attraction, conversion, and consumption.
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Don’t worry – your sales page still matters
But now that you know that it should NOT be the crux of your launch – what else can you do to make sure your sales page doesn’t have to carry the weight?
Try my super simple to implement but KEY method to making the sale way before anyone sees a sales page.
A few things about this simple strategy:
>> It’s not new
>> It requires consistent effor
>> You might roll your eyes
But it works.
The Talk ‘n Teach Method
(not to be confused with the Scratch ‘n Sniff method)
This is the most obvious method that leads up to anyone seeing your sales page…You can use it with your own existing audience, subscribers and followers…And it works great on people you don’t know…
Talk about it.
Talk about what you do, what you’re up to, what’s likely coming to you audience – to new people – to your friends, relatives, and mommy group.
The more the better. At first – because the numbers do matter.
You’ll be surprised where people find you. So – talk to as many people as you can about what you do – looking for opportunities to share (not just broadcast).
Key: Talk about “it” with people you know, who know you…and then always be branching out – sharing with new people who don’t know you. Always be expanding your reach – even if it seems silly (while you’re at the supermarket or at your husband’s work bbq).
This comes in the form of <gasp> actually conversations, guest posts, online summits, posts and replies on Facebook, interviews and any other way you communicate with other humans.
Teach something about it.
Share the main reasons why “it” is so important, how to solve one problem related to it, and teach someone what happens when they’ve got “it” handled.
Key: always ask people what they want to learn from you (first) because if you have an answer that helps them – and you give it to them.
Your answer might come in the form of a blog post, a response by email, a video, whatever. Find a way to teach exactly what people are struggling with.
Once you’ve taught them something – there’s a better chance that they are pre-sold on you and whatever you offer.
Rinse, Repeat.
Your Turn
Leave a comment below and tell me where your customers and subscribers come from. I can bet that the first time they visit you is not the sales page. See where they come from and focus on building that relationship there!
If you liked this article and are curious about some other myths of launching that might just be holding up your progress to get that product out into the world – come check out Fearless Launching.
This is a nice sigh of relief to read. It is a huge stress in our business, creating a sales page, but while I used to get extremely stressed about it, I find the longer we’re in business, the less I’m getting over anxious about it. I like to focus on the quality of our services and the delivery of our content, and then cross my fingers I make a good sales page 😉
Anne, I have made several of the sales page mistakes you mention and I am constantly tweaking my sales page. I agree, the sales page should be part of the funnel, not the be all and end all. Someone has to see your product or service as the solution to their problem and it can take a while to build their trust before they push the buy button. Thanks for this helpful post!
Ahhhhh… sweet relief hearing this! Sales pages can feel like this HUGE task, but once you get the hang of ’em, they really aren’t that stressful. You’ve just gotta get it UP and send peeps to it.. you can always make it better later when you know what does & doesn’t work!
And now I’m off to finish the sales page I’ve been procrastinating 🙂
Pressure off in a big way! I realised how much of a stumbling block my thinking about sales pages has been. It was like I’d made them into this big thing that had to be right in every way before i could move forward. Talk about stucktastic!. I like the idea of a sales page being the end of the journey, a few clarifying steps that ensure as a buy I’m making the right choice for me and as a service provider the match between what people need/want and what they are paying for is a great match. I’m not in the business of working with people if what I offer isn’t going to make a difference to them or there business.
After reading this,I’ve realised that it’s the most obvious thing in the world (or at least, it wasn’t obvious until I read this, but it takes a genius to write it in such a way as to make it obvious). I know for a fact that I only read the sales pages of products that I’m pretty sure I’m going to buy, just to double check some of the details to make sure it’s right for me. A sales page alone has NEVER made me buy anything, and yet, here I was, thinking that the perfect sales page will be exactly what will make people sign up to my detox. Doh! Thank you so much for clarifying that so well!
Thank you, Anne, for some sanity here! It’s like going back to basics, and speaking our message, where it has the most power. That also, in my book, keeps me from creating one of those “screaming” mega-long sales pages that some people must think are a conversation. For me, they’re a HUGE turnoff. I’d rather be brief, and I’d rather talk up what I’m doing. Thanks for the reminder, especially as I launch my new website this month.
Yes! Thanks for sharing Marcy!
Glad you found it useful! Love to know more about what you do! Send me a message via my contact form… 🙂
LOL, Racheal you are funny – I know… as much as it’s not the end all be all – it is a key part of the sales process and does help with the people who aren’t easy sales! Get to it mama!
xo
Stucktastic! Believe me – knowing that the sales page is part of the launch journey also took the pressure off me too!
Thank you Anne, I just sent you a message via your contact form. I look forward to hearing from you. 🙂
Carol
I don’t know if it’s just me but I am completely turned off as a buyer by 40 page sales pitches. I agree, by the time I am ready to buy, I pretty much trust the person and really just want the bottom line. It’s been a stuck point to online marketing for me and I’m getting ready to begin putting my toe in the water of this kind of marketing. My work has been mostly up close and personal…word of mouth and through my published book for most of my career. I’ve struggle with the feelings I’ve had about online marketing, so I’m trying to find a way to balance it with my values and the need to build a larger audience. Thanks Anne for this informative article!