Page 116 - 100 Great Copywriting Ideas: From Leading Companies Around the World (100 Great Ideas)

their pitch? What if I stand up to speak and the audience knows
more than I do? If you’ve ever had to write a business plan, take
part in a competitive pitch, or give a speech or presentation, you’ll
recognize those ghastly 3:00 a.m. questions.
WARC’s pocket books promised (truthfully) to give the customer
the data they needed to make those questions go away. Or at least
recede to the point that they could get a decent night’s sleep.
You need to handle this approach with a light touch of course. Spend
too much time harping on about all that pain and your prospect
identifies with the problem not the solution. Plus the mere act of
reading your copy is now making them feel that pain all over again.
The easy way out for them is not to order but to stop reading.

In practice

• You can start an email or letter, “Have you ever wished that . . .”

or “If you’ve ever wished that . . .” followed by the point of
pain evaporating.

• The next para starts, “Well, now you can. Thanks to a new

scientific discovery, piles are a thing of the past.”

100 GREAT COPYWRITING IDEAS • 107