There are two kinds of methods to selling most anything—Hard-selling and Soft-selling. Typically sales people are thrust into a mode of thinking that the Hard-sell technique works and that the Soft-sell method is too flimsy to close a deal. The fact is that Hard-selling does not work because it has no finesse. When a sales person goes straight to the point to sell their product, they are simply telling their prospective buyer that they should buy their product. This type of approach will usually turn a buyer off and negate a sale.

By taking a close look at how the Hard-sell doesn’t work and how well Soft-selling works, a copy writer can take this information and apply it to how they write sales copy, work on ad campaigns and involve their clients in the learning curve of effective copy verses ineffective copy.

Here are a few great points to remember when working on creative materials that involve sales copy:

1. People do not appreciate being sold to.

The Hard-sell approach usually brings the worst out in people. Human nature dictates that when aggressive behavior is displayed, it provokes the receiver to be aggressive in defense of themselves. This is what brings a negative result to both the sales person and the potential buyer.

To apply this to ad copy that works, don’t be tempted to use aggressive sales copy that pushes the hot buttons of your potential buyers. Instead offer sales copy that promotes a positive response.

2. Hard-sales techniques intimidates people.

Buyers that feel intimidated have less interest in making a purchase. Prospective buyers begin to realize that they have negative feelings about the sale, and will transfer that negativity onto the company who is trying to sell to them. If buyers do not like the sales person a company hires, they will not be able to feel good about the company.

Apply this to writing great sales copy by offering tips, advice. Explain how the product/service you’re selling will ease the stresses on their business or how it can improve their life/goals.

3. Hard-selling sounds desperate to others.

This will put off a potential buyer. Buyers begin to wonder why a company/person is desperate and this creates suspicion. This feeling of suspicion turns into mis-trust. Buyers who don’t trust a sales pitch are not likely to buy a product/service.

To write sales copy that will reach out and help buyers trust your product or service, offer key testimonials that assure your buyers that your product/company is a trusted resource, reliable and honest.

4. Hard-selling uses hype and other dishonest tactics.

Prospective buyers can see through hype. They are savvy and know that hype is not fact. Buyers don’t buy from sales tactics that push products/services without factual information.

Copywriters can add statistics and facts to their sales copy. By showing the bibliographical resource behind stats in ad copy, buyers will know that the information they are reading comes from honest trusted facts and not hype. This also builds trust between the buyer and seller.

5. Buyers need to find a reason to make a purchase.

Hard-selling does not allow any time to explain the benefits of the product or service. A sales person that is Hard-selling is using features to sell their product or service and not the benefits of the product/service. Benefits are what tells a customer that they should buy. There is only one question in the mind of any buyer — “What’s in it for me?” Hard-selling doesn’t answer this question for the buyer and as a result sales are usually lost.

Creative marketing copy should always include both features and benefits. Features will explain the product or service and by listing the benefits, buyers will know why they need the product/service.

6. Build a positive rapport with prospective buyers.

By building a relationship with a buyer a company or salesperson builds confidence in a buyer. When buyers have confidence they are likely to make a purchase on the first product or service and will also be encouraged to continue to buy more products and services. Hard-selling doesn’t build this rapport. If there is not a positive relationship initial sales and future sales are lost.

Creative staff can build rapport into their sales copy by helping potential buyers feel confident about the product or service they are promoting. Copy that builds confidence can be, proving how long a company has been in business and/or offering customer testimonials that promote the same products or services being sold. Story-telling or giving the background of how the company was founded or how a product or service was created is a great way to build a relationship with a potential buyer.

7. Soft-selling allows buyers to make their own decision.

When buyers feel empowered by the ability to make their own decision, they are more likely to make a purchase. Hard-selling strategies often dictate or tell a buyer they should make a purchase.

Advertising copy that promotes empowerment, offers ideas, creates a feeling of success for the buyer and promotes the qualities that a buyer is looking for in a product or service. Copywriters who focus on the most positive aspects of their product or service help buyers make the choice to purchase.

8. Soft-selling always outsells Hard-selling.

Persuasion works. Forcing a business or person into something they are unsure of does not. Hard-selling pushes a product or service at a buyer and doesn’t offer them the chance to decline the sale. Soft-selling offers a buyer a product or service by allowing them to choose to make the purchase.

Copywriters that apply a Soft-selling technique to their advertising copy use the power of positive persuasion in their writing. They can craft their ad copy to encourage a buyer to make a purchase instead of telling the horrors of what can happen if they decline the purchase. Encouraging copy can simply be letting a buyer know what they can look forward to after their purchase.

9. Soft-selling methods are more enjoyable to both the seller and buyer.

Soft-selling forces a salesperson to use more strategies. Building up a product can be done in a multitude of ways including talking to potential buyers. Getting to know a buyer builds relationships that equate to building sales.

Writers who want to incorporate Soft-selling methods into their marketing materials can create copy that speaks directly to their potential buyers. Asking questions and solving problems are some of the ways that words on paper speak to buyers.

10. Soft-selling Pre-sells a product or service.

Warming a buyer up for a sale builds a rapport and relationship with a person or business. In general people like to be introduced to something before they make a purchase.

Advertising copy that pre-sells a product or service before selling is in the hands of a copywriter or designer from the start. Pre-selling to a buyer is a basic introduction of the product or service and usually found in an opening statement or opening page of advertising material.

It’s clear to see the difference between the Hard-sell and Soft-sell techniques used in business. There is a general stereotype of what a pushy sales person using Hard-sell tactics looks like. Once this negative image is in the place of a buyers mind, it will prevent them from accepting a sale. Increase your sales and close more deals by using Soft-selling strategies and incorporating those same methodologies into your marketing materials. Remember your company’s first impression is a lasting one!

Good luck to all the copywriters who are working on marketing materials for clients. Choosing to use Soft-sell copy instead of Hard-selling copy that alienates buyers is one way to promote your clients products and services and a great way to earn more business on their next marketing project!

We welcome new ideas and you might inspire us for our next blog post! Share your thoughts and tips by posting comments for us. Thanks for reading!

By Sara Hassler

Internet scam artists have an advantage over these easy-to-spot hucksters. We can’t see them or hear them, so our usual methods of detecting sincerity don’t hold up. We can’t check for eye contact or tone of voice. We can’t observe that the guy who claims he can help you make $100,000 a year is wearing a $40 suit and has a prison tattoo…on his face.

With more and more copywriters working from home, either to pursue a freelance career or due to layoffs in a suffering economy, they are especially ripe targets for Internet scam artists. There are good opportunities available on the web, so you don’t want to stop surfing for gigs altogether. You just need to know what the warning signs are. Any one of the following should send up a red flag, the virtual equivalent of a cheap toupee and a “Wanna buy a watch?” voice.

• No Community. The best websites with real opportunities for freelancers give a voice to their workers. If a site doesn’t provide any way for members to communicate with each other, or at the very least to leave public comments to the site administrators themselves, you should approach with caution. Any site that truly cares about its talent wants to hear what they have to say. They should also have easy-to-find contact information in case you have a problem.

• Must Pay Up Front…With or Without Results. The number of sites that help match clients with freelancers is climbing, but a large number of them make their money by charging the writers for using the service. The charge stands whether you sell any work or not. Stick with a company that only takes a fee if you actually make money. (For those who work at home, the charge is usually considerably less than you would end up paying for gas, meals and appropriate clothing if you worked in an office.)

• Exaggerated Claims. “Live the life of luxury. Make 75k a year.” Ads that promise a specific amount of income, or a guarantee of wildly-exaggerated success of any kind, are pulling your leg. Period. The world’s most prestigious universities don’t promise jobs or income amounts to their students. No product, site, seminar or company can or should make grand promises of success. With the right site, hard work can pay off, but no one hands out money on a silver platter.

• Poor Writing. “Learn how you’re copy can make you a milionere.” If you spot rampant errors in an ad or a website’s copy, in a word: run. If you can do a better job then they can, you don’t need them. In fact, they should hire you to write their ads. (Send them a quote; see how it turns out!) Be lenient, however, when it comes to your individual clients. Their lack of language skills is why they need you.

Do you have your own stories of freelance scams or web writing horror stories? Share them here. The more we spread the word and share information, the better a marketplace we create for ourselves and fellow copywriters. Information is the best way to rid the net of rats. Let’s fumigate!

by Elizabeth Kelly