Not long ago, I got a question from an “Email Players” subscriber about how to begin your emails, that illustrates something I’ve long observed up in this business.
The question?
It was about some email copywriting advice an 8-figure course creator – who is not an “email” copywriter, and I know this because I gave the guy a consult once and know what he is particularly strong at, but it ain’t email copywriting – is giving about how to begin an email.
The advice was completely wrong in almost all cases.
And, this is especially true for anyone using anything I teach.
What was the question?
Actually, it’s not all that important.
As it’s not something any of my boys & ghouls is likely to do anyway.
What is important though is, it reminded me of something I’ve long advocated.
And that is, beware ye taking copywriting advice from a business owner/marketer, or taking business owner/marketing advice from a copywriter. Especially since they often can come from completely different points of view in many cases.
For example:
A copywriter is likely not as concerned about the potential longterm problems and fallout aggressively only going for the transaction (what they are paid to create, and may even get royalties from) is versus putting the relationship first – even at the risk of losing short term transactions – by keeping legally compliant, maintaining a consistent brand, bringing customers in with the right expectations, not wanting to be overrun by refunds, giving a buying experience that ups the likelihood of more backend sales, etc.
At the same time:
I’ve lost count of the inane copywriting advice I’ve seen 7 and even 8 figure marketers who have never written a word of copy in their lives give about writing ads & sales letters. There is a reason so many 7 and 8 figure marketers invest in hiring the best copywriters, after all, even if those copywriters only make a fraction of the income those 7 or 8 figure marketers do.
Another example:
I can count on the fingers & toes attached to multiple pairs of hands & feet how many freelance copywriters — who do not sell their own offers, do not do any customer service, do not have to pacify any merchant account’ fears, and do not deal with website maintenance, printers, corrupt & incompetent postal systems, digital product delivery/bandwidth glitches or limitations, etc — have given your humble storyteller awful unsolicited advice based entirely on their silly theories or their clients’ test results in completely different niches with completely different agendas than Yours Crotchety.
Like, for instance:
Not selling “Email Players” back issues.
“Ben, something you might want to consider…”
I have not only “considered” doing it, but actually did it during most of the nearly 9 years of selling the rag. In fact, for the first 7 years of its run I tested a back issue catalog and tested inserts selling specific higher-selling back issues.
Then, I wised up and stopped selling back issues & tested doing something else.
Something far more in line with the laws of direct response marketing.
The result?
From 5x more revenue (on the low end) to as much as 15x more revenue (on the high end).
Every month since.
And, by doing less “work” than selling back issues.
There are many other benefits to doing this, too, as well as ways to still offer back issues, which I will talk more about in my next book about my publishing model.
And this back issue shtick is just one example of the phenomenon.
Not a month goes by when some over-achieving dispenser of unsolicited advice I don’t know or ever heard of tries to get me to change one of my long-proven profitable policies – from my not allowing people who quit “Email Players” to return… to my not giving a flying fart about open rates… to not filling my emails with “value!” or “benefits!”… to my contempt for and aggressively turning away new product junkies… to selling regular ol’ print & ink books vs digital & multi-media products… to using plain text emails with zero tracking or html embedded… and the goo-roo band marches on and on and on and on…
Copywriters who have never run an actual business outside of billing clients love giving advice on the business side.
Marketers who have never written a word of copy love giving advice on the copywriting side.
And your friend and long-suffering storyteller elBenbo loves to mock, ignore, or use their comments as figurative orc heads on a spike to warn away other orcs like them from wasting either of our time.
Which circles us around to the point:
Be very wary about taking marketing/business advice from freelance copywriters who are not marketers/business owners, and copywriting advice from marketers/business owners who are not copywriters. Do your own tests, your own experiments, and listen to your own instincts based on your own experiences with selling to and communicating with your own list/audience.
I am not saying never to listen to these other blokes.
But, if they veer off into some kind of theoretical nonsense and especially if they start name-dropping to prove their case, take it all with big, fat shake of chili pepper.
Or, even, better, do the exact opposite of whatever unsolicited advice they give.
I’ve had some of my biggest sales paydays doing just that…
All right enough of this clacking.
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Ben Settle
