Where To Start Your Copywriting

How do you start copywriting?
What are the first things you must do…before putting pen to paper?
Have you ever heard people say that you should smile when speaking on the phone, as it comes across to the person at the other end of the call?
Well it’s a similar thing when you write. If you are not in the right frame of mind your reader will pick up on it. It makes sense when you think about it. If you’re feeling down because of a row you’ve just had, or stressed after a difficult day, how can you sit down and be enthusiastic about your subject?
Everyone has their own approach to this. Some people, like the highly acclaimed Ted Nicholas, like to do some light exercise before sitting down to write. I always have to make sure I’ve had a good nights sleep, and I think it’s essential to unplug your phone and make sure you won’t be disturbed.
Homework First
So there you are, you’re wide awake, you’re in a great mood, your phone is unplugged and you’re raring to go.
So what now? Have you researched your product? Sorry, did I forget to mention that?
Before you even think about sitting down to write you have to research your product. You need to know all the benefits so you can answer all of your readers questions. The main question they will be asking is
“What’s in it for me?”
There is no substitute for studying your product…tedious though this may be. Quite often you stumble across the best way to sell it hidden in the benefits. One such instance was when David Ogilvy wrote his most famous advert for Rolls-Royce. He spent three weeks reading about the car when he came across a statement that ‘at sixty miles an hour, the loudest noise comes from the electric clock’. This became the headline followed by 607 words of factual copy.
Talk the Same Language
As well as researching your product you need to know about the competition, what are they doing and what sets your product apart from the rest.
Of course all of the above are useless if you don’t know who will buy your product. You have to know your target market, who are they, how do they think, what sort of language do they use. I don’t mean do they speak English, I mean what sort of words do they use when talking about whatever it is you’re selling. You really need to get inside their head and understand what is important to them and what promise would make them buy your product.
When you have done all of this, and only then, you will almost be ready to start writing.