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Date:
March 17, 2017

Author:
Ashlyn Carter

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Hey! Ashlyn here, OG copywriter for creatives—reporting for duty. 

Let's get you a message so tight you can bounce a quarter off of it. Around here, we serve up science-based storytelling strategies the creative set.  Even while raking in more than 1.26M in agency work since I've been at it, I firmly believe working from a place of rest (not hustle) IS possible—and I want the same for you. Words matter. Best be sure they work (and oui, with math) ... and know how to party while they're at it. 

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Reading time: 5 min.

Breathe in, breathe out.

Did you smell that?

Nope, not the essential oils vapor that’s all up around my computer (which I’m sure is super great for the hardware).

That’s the smell of 19,387 creative entrepreneurs in the same industry niche as you, lunging after the same clients as you, asking for … wait for it … less than your prices.

Kk, fine, I made that number up. But still — take 1 look at how many of us are in the Rising Tide Society Facebook group … eeek! Competition’s stiff, no?

So how in heaven’s name do you portray your value, even if — maybe especially if — you’re just starting out?

Oh bud, I’ve been there. Twice.

Time 1: I was at a full-service communications firm on the Delta Air Lines account, helping market an airline that was SO much pricier than some of her competitors (including one heart-shaped brand that had just popped on to the Atlanta market).

Time 2: My own business. I felt “new” in the creative industry, trying to shake off the chip on my shoulder for being the new kid … even if I’d been doing marketing, copywriting, journalism, and PR for a decade. I was, a no-name, trying to charge my worth and teach creatives about copywriting.

Rewind 365 days from this moment: my business was not even 1 month old, and I had the lack-of-client-list to prove it.

What changed and allowed me to book clients like Laura Hooper, Mary Marantz, and Hilary Rushford?

How to portray value with copywriting- Ashlyn Writes

With making my OWN marketing copy better.

But, I’m slightly biased. WINK However, you totally can improve your existing conversion rate by 113%, or even more, with the power of good copy.

So let’s talk.

You want to portray your value so you can get some money, honey.

Plus, you just may be new to the online business world — you’re starting out and it’s hard enough booking clients!

I got you: Curl up with some Earl Grey and a pen, and let me give you 3 ways to tango when it comes to convincing dreamboat clients you’re worth your weight in gold.

Read on for 3 ways to use copywriting to portray your value, even if you’re just starting out!

01. No one screams in a Mercerdes commercial. So, whisper.

How to portray your value through copywriting for your creative small biz. #copywriting #creativepreneur #blogging

Let’s have a come to Jesus: if you are a calligrapher (hand raised), high-end wedding photographer, artist, wedding planner, floral designer, VA, coach, strategist, or stylist …

… you are a luxury.

The people, um, well, they don’t ACTUALLY need us.

That needs to be considered first as you make your value proposition, because you’re going to need to come at explaining value from an emotional angle.

Back to the Delta Air Lines example: Prices on DAL are higher than other airlines. So how do they explain the value that they’re worth?

  • They typically top all other airlines in on-time performance … so you get there when they told you that you would.
  • They cancel fewer flights than any other airline … something my husband who works in flight ops for DAL lets me know often. #proudwife
  • If you’d like, you can get amenties like flat-bed seats (zzzzzzzzzzz) and chef-curated meals … so you’re rested and ready for business when you land.

These are just 3 ways Delta commands their value, and you can bet your bottom dollar that value like these are woven whispers into the business’s marketing copy.

How do they know that portrays value that converts?

Because they know their clientele.

And they whisper to them.

Your takeaway?

Whisper to your clients.

Find out what they ACTUALLY want, and then tell them in your copy.

Hear me on this: You cannot write your messaging without surveying your tribe first.

Here are a few ideas to survey your audience to portray your value, and 12 questions you can ask in forums, Facebook groups, and your own survey:

Click to learn survey tips for finding out how to portray your value in copywriting for your creative biz.

Interested in learning more about surveying your tribe so you can whisper to them? I *highly* recommend these two resources:

  1. James Wedmore “Breakthroughs with Surveys” podcast episode
  2. “Ask” by Ryan Lavesque

02. Use Socratic methodology in your copy.

I bought a Facebook ads course last night.

Why? Welp, ‘cause I need Facebook ads for an upcoming product, that’s why.  I’ve got three choices:

  1. I can DIY like I have before, and spend $1K for every $17K in sales again.
  2. I can pay an expert ($1K) to spend by $1K, but make MORE in sales.
  3. Or, I can pay $400 to learn myself how to spend $1K and make MORE in sales.

I chose option 3.

Value propositions are all about reminding the customer or client that what they’ll shell out is LESS than the value they’ll get in return.

A good copywriter finds the pain points, like losing time or money, and throws them back jussssttt long enough for the bear to be poked.

THEN she gives a bandaid (aka your offer).

So, Socratic reasoning (Remember when you took Classics? That was fun.) is about how Socrates asked questions about truth and justice until people arrived at the answer themselves.

Key … they arrived at the answer themselves.

Here are 7 steps to Socratic methodology you can use in your business:

  1. Listen (Oh wait … you did that back in #1 GO YOU!)
  2. Identify their trigger, what I eloquently call finding their “eff this shiz” moment in my Copywriting for Creatives program.
  3. Twist the knife by showcasing how painful that problem is in your copy.
  4. Ask them to identify — and anchor — the cost of the problem NOT going away in your copy.
  5. Ask them to identify how tomorrow would look if the problem DID go away in your copy.
  6. Present your offer as a way to help them be successful.

You’ve got a lot of places you can put this in your messaging! From the copy in your welcome magazine to the words you write for your webinar pitch … to the copywriting on your sales and services page and more.


03. Communicate your Onlyness Factor

You’re working your booty off to overcome online obscurity.

But if you can’t explain why you’re the only one who does what you do the way you do it, your value is D.O.A.

Since you invest so much time into marketing your business, building a website, writing captions, trolling Instagram, and more, become a student of copywriting.

Homework?

Learn how to communicate — with words, not just pictures — why you’re the only one that does what you do the way you do it.

Figuring out your onlyness conveys mystique, curiosity, and scarcity … three bait pieces that make you unique and highly desirable.


I just threw a lot in your face. Let’s simmer down this with one mini-bit of homework for you to do today.

Pick ONE of these 3 things and give it a try. Either take 5 minutes and write an onlyness factor for yourself, take 30 minutes to create a survey in Typeform and send it to your audience, or use socratic questioning on your next pitch.

Then, let me know how it goes!

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How to portray value with copywriting- Ashlyn Writes

Reading Time: 5 Minutes

You want to portray your value so you can get some money, honey.

Plus, you just may be new to the online business world — you’re starting out and it’s hard enough booking clients!

I got you: Curl up with some Earl Grey and a pen, and let me give you 3 ways to tango when it comes to convincing dreamboat clients you’re worth your weight in gold.

3/17/17

comments +

  1. […] consider as a brand name, it’s likely something that should find its way in your copy to show off your “onlyness” factor to your potential clients & […]

  2. […] consider as a brand name, it’s likely something that should find its way in your copy to show off your “onlyness” factor to your potential clients & […]

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