Copywriting is an essential skill that entrepreneurs and people running business units need have at least a working knowledge of. It is probably the single factor that can impact whether a technically superior product is just barely successful, or a top seller in its target market.

While many business people will not have the time required to learn how to become competent at copywriting, an understanding of what makes for good copy will help them assess the copywriting material they get back from their copywriters, and will help them improve the marketing effectiveness of their various direct marketing strategies.

Copywriting is an acquired skill – and one definitely in reach of many entrepreneurs who could significantly improve their direct marketing effectiveness if they spent some time learning the ins and outs of copywriting.

One of the factors that distinguishes good copywriting is where you come across as having a one-on-one ”conversation’ with your prospects. This means that you write in conversational tone, and not formal geek- or business-speak. The implication of this is that becoming competent at copywriting is actually in the reach of almost anybody that can hold a decent conversation!

Copywriting generally follows the following basic structure:

• Get the attention of your prospects – through a headline geared to register with your target market,
• Having got their attention, draw them into the sales copy through trying to establish some empathy regarding their real or perceived pain,
• Identify ‘the’ solution for them, and
• Make a strong Call To Action that induces them to take action immediately.

A key aspect of copywriting is developing a good understanding of human psychology, and more specifically, what influences buying behaviour.

Many top copywriters make reference to an excellent book on human behaviour – The Psychology of Persuasion – by Robert Cialdini. This book – although not a quick read – can be regarded as essential reading for any serious student of direct marketing. It will definitely help you gain an understanding of what influences human behaviour. Armed with this knowledge, your copywriting skills, and consequently overall direct marketing skills will significantly improve.

Copywriting impacts all areas of direct marketing – from Google Adwords to postcard marketing to email marketing to traditional direct mail – all these direct marketing methods will benefit from you acquiring the skill in copywriting.

The copywriting articles in this section have been added to this site to help individuals responsible for direct marketing in their business get started with their quest to become a copywriter, or at least gain a better understanding of the art and skill of copywriting.