The Motivating Sequence for Copywriters

In direct marketing, structure is key: if your copy does not follow the formula for persuasion, it won’t work…no matter how creative you get.


In his copywriting seminars Bob Ly taught a variation on AIDA known as the “motivating sequence.”

The five steps of the motivating sequence are as follows:


Step 1: Get attention.
Before your promotion can do anything else, it has to get your prospect’s attention. It must get the prospect to stop, open the envelope, and start reading the materials inside instead of tossing your mailing in the trash.

You already know many methods of getting attention, and see dozens of examples of them in action every day. In TV and magazine advertising, sex is often used to gain attention for products ranging from soft drinks and cars to diets and exercise programs.

Or, you can make a bold statement…cite a startling statistic…ask a curiosity-arousing question…put a bulky object in the envelope…or use a pop-up graphic. You get the idea.

The AIDA Formula for Copywriting

A.I.D.A. stands for Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action. Attention is the beginning of the copy, a headline that grabs the readers, makes them put everything aside and focus on the copy. Something in the headline tells them that this is what they’ve been looking for and now they need to read further to find out more. Additionally, there is a unique hook which sets this product or service apart from any other product or service. It promises to be special!

The next step, Interest, gives more information to the readers and rewards them for having read further by giving out more details about the product or service. This is sinking or setting the hook in so you can pull in harder with less chance of losing the readers.

A Proven Outline for Writing Winners

Having a outline is one of the most effective way on achieving a winner writing masterpiece. Here are some of the Proven Outline for Writing Winners by Clayton Makepeace.

• Grab ‘em by the eyeballs: Use the headline to grab the readers’ attention so they will have to read more.
• Support your headline: Enhance the headline with a supporting argument to reinforce the point. 
• Bribe him to read this: Let the readers know what they will be learning about and the added benefits you plan on giving them if they do so.
• Get his juices flowing: Use creative and emotion-based story telling which appeals to the senses.

Unique Selling Proposition (USP) Writing- Three Attributes

Three Attributes of a Unique Selling Proposition as shown by Rosser Reeves

1. Always present the benefit in the headline and the proposition within the first few sentences. This grabs the readers into wanting to know more about what’s in it for them and they will want to read more.

2. Give the readers something that is specific to the product, differentiating it from the competition. It makes your product or service stand out from every other product and gives the promise of uniquely solving the problem for the customer.

The Copywriting Formula for Business Websites

Copywriting online for Websites, a blog, anything that represents your product or service, will still have many of the same necessary elements that print copy has required. What might be different is how long to make the copy.

Traditionally, print copy can handle a 10-12 page sales letter because the customer is just sitting there relaxing and reading. On a screen, like television, customers tend to get the drift of the letter within the first few paragraphs, if written well, and will skip ahead to make the purchase.

10 Headline Formulas That Work Like Magic

The most important part of your copy will be the headline. Spend time getting this part right and the rest will follow. Your first few sentences can mean life or death for the message in the rest of the copy. Therefore, it’s crucial to get it right, to hit the customers and reel them in for the rest of the message.
Miguel Alvarez, Copywriting.com, has come up with his own system for headline formulas. Try these out to help you develop your headlines to be all that they can be. His suggestion is that you write at least five different headlines for each type of headline listed below. That helps you get creative and thinking about different ways to present your product or service.

The 12 Step Internet Copywriting Formula

If you are setting up a Website, then the primary goal is to bring in the customers and the money. You will get neither if your copy doesn’t do what it needs to in accomplishing that goal. Graphics are great, and good eye-catchers, but the copy has to give the information the right way to get the sale.

To be successful, here are three important points your Website must include:

1. Everything written must be valuable information concerning the product or service. Don’t waste time talking about anything else. All written content must focus entirely on the product or service and should include everything the customer needs to know while making the decision process.