Back when I was but a wee copywriting lad I remember getting John Thomas envy (so to speak) over world class copywriter\u2019s ads. I\u2019d see a Gary Halbert ad\u2026 or a John Carlton ad\u2026 or a Gene Schwartz ad\u2026 or a Gary Bencivenga ad\u2026 or any world class ad\u2026 and I\u2019d think to myself, \u201chow the hell am I ever going to be this good? What is the point? This is ridiculous, I might as well go back to the 9-5 world\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
I struggled a lot in the early days.<\/p>\n
Just couldn\u2019t get things the way I wanted them.<\/p>\n
Then, one day, I saw a video from a Yanni concert.<\/p>\n
Normally, I don\u2019t listen to Yanni\u2019s music.<\/p>\n
But, in this case I did. And, it was of his orchestra doing their own version of Vivaldi\u2019s \u201cThe Storm.\u201d (I have always been a huge Vivaldi fan \u2014 always considered his work the highest level you could achieve.) Anyway, Yanni had his two top violinists do Vivaldi\u2019s The Storm in his own style.<\/p>\n
And, I must say, I think it is 10x\u2019s better than the original.<\/p>\n
Yes, I know some music purists will disagree.<\/p>\n
But, that\u2019s not the point.<\/p>\n
The point is, I finally realized even the best copywriters CAN be beat.<\/p>\n
They CAN bleed.<\/p>\n
And, you CAN beat them.<\/p>\n
They are not immortal.<\/p>\n
They are just as flawed and screwed up and plagued with insecurities over their work as the rest of us \u2014 even if they make it look easy.<\/p>\n
The point?<\/p>\n
Ever since then I have never had A-list copywriter penii envy.<\/p>\n
And, after reading this, neither should you.<\/p>\n
I don\u2019t care if you are a brand spanking new newbie fresh off the turnip truck\u2026 or if you are a seasoned pro trying to break into the ranks of the upper echelons of copywriting. If you have the talent you\u2019re going to break through the wall.<\/p>\n
Like Red Skelton told Johnny Carson:<\/p>\n
(paraphrased)<\/p>\n
If you have talent even a brick wall won\u2019t stop you from coming through.<\/p>\n
And if you think you don\u2019t have talent then study up on Gary Bencivenga\u2019s story. He is widely considered one of the (if not \u201cthe\u201d) greatest living copywriter today. He was in the freelance business for 40 years and saw a billion (literally) dollars worth of testing.<\/p>\n
But you know what?<\/p>\n
He struggled like hell in the beginning.<\/p>\n
I remember hearing him say he was just one angry boss\u2019s bad day away from being fired on any given day in the beginning. And, even 10 years in, he considered himself a very mediocre copywriter.<\/p>\n
All right, enough Ramen Noodles for the soul.<\/p>\n
Here’s another tip:<\/p>\n
The fastest way I know to make your sales letters pull better (and even exponentially better) is by sending your list daily emails to that sales letter in a way people *like* reading and look forward to buying from.<\/p>\n
It’s what I teach in “Email Players” each month.<\/p>\n
And you can learn it, too — right here:<\/p>\n