One of my favorite lines about swipe files comes from the great Dan Kennedy.<\/p>\n
In his 7-Figure Academy course, he said:<\/p>\n
(paraphrased)<\/p>\n
If you use swipe files, that is fine, but don\u2019t delude yourself into thinking you have any kind of mastery of copywriting if you have to use one.<\/p>\n
See some copywriter ex-spurt blatantly swiping?<\/p>\n
Especially large swaths of copy?<\/p>\n
And, word-for-word?<\/p>\n
They\u2019re straight-up amateurs.<\/p>\n
And this is even more true with email.<\/p>\n
In fact, one of the most foolish things anyone can do is “swipe” email copy. Not only because it\u2019s illegal and plagiarism. But, also, because the best emails are heavily personality-based. You cannot \u201cswipe\u201d a personality. You can try, of course. And many dummies do just that with my emails all the time, despite me warning them of this very thing, and how it\u2019s going to destroy their relationship with their lists. This was especially rampant with people on Twitter, from what I remember when I was on there.<\/p>\n
On that note, some words of wisdom on swiping.<\/p>\n
Not my words, but an A-list copywriter you may never heard of.<\/p>\n
His name is Doug D’Anna.<\/p>\n
And, here\u2019s what this great man of copywriting told me over 10 years ago:<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I first started out I had a swipe file too. You know what the first thing I discovered was when I realized who Gary Bencivenga was and the game I was in? I threw everybody else\u2019s piece away. Why would I do that? Because I might have been thinking that I was swiping something that was good or using a model that was a winner when it wasn\u2019t. That was the first thing. You need to have control pieces in your swipe file. But, you\u2019ve got to remember that control piece worked for that piece at that time in that market in that environment. So it\u2019s really more of a case study to look at.\u201d<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
That advice has been worth everything to me over the years.<\/p>\n
And, may it be just as valuable to you, too\u2026<\/p>\n
Speaking of A-list copywriters:<\/p>\n
The January \u201cEmail Players\u201d issue has many examples from A-list copywriters, and how I have \u201cadapted\u201d their genius to my own emails \u2014 without copy & pasting, plagiarizing, or compromising my personality in my copy.<\/p>\n
The deadline to get it is in 5 short days.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s the link:<\/p>\n