This is total genius.

this is utter stupidity, what does an actual benefit have to do with selling anything…..everyone knows that good products with a real benefit sell on their own..or with minimal marketing…..the real deal would be to take a piece of paper and create an ad that effectively creates demand for a product people don’t need. a good historical case and point….baggy jeans….now that was genius….convince people who are overweight from sitting on their couches eating chips all day that it is ok to eat themselves into a new pair of jeans.

Hi Thomas.

First of all… Thank you very much for your comment.

You do make a couple of interesting points, but having been involved in advertising for a long time, I can tell you first hand that “benefits” have a LOT to do with selling.

When you said:
“To take a piece of paper and create an ad that effectively creates demand for a product people don’t need”.

… You actually made me smile. I invite you to sit down and think just how many of the things you own you really, honest-to-god need to live.

I do agree on the baggy jeans comment though.

All the best!
Miguel Alvarez
Copywriting.com

Great thoughts. I’m completely with ya.

There’s so much gray area in marketing, but I like this idea, I might have to try it. It might not be the one idea to rule them all, but I bet it’ll help a lot of the smaller inept companies.

I agree that the #1 rule is to actually make something the people need. Great marketing only goes so far, and word of mouth is still the best tool.

It will take a small miracle to create something people really, réally need nowadays! If you can, you’ll become a millionaire! For all the rest of us: invest in innovation and keep searching for benefits!

Jeremy, word of mouth is a great tool but you will definitely need to display some benefits.

This is so true… It’s all psychology. A toothbrush is going to activate a neutral stimulus. On the other hand, minty fresh breath is going to stimulate a positive stimulus. Simple as that.

Who writes this stuff? Of course the end benefit is the one which makes the consumer buy. But hey it’s all about price. Why do you think there are so many knock offs around? There is absolutely no benefit to having a family dinner at a fast food restaurant. But the perception sold to what Henry Miller called “the great unwashed” is that eating at such places are less expensive. Anyone who has ever shopped knows that to be untrue.
Remember “The Graduate?”
The Future is not plastics – it’s price.

Hi Gregory.

While I believe that price has a lot to do with a good offer, I don’t think it’s the only factor. Else, how would you explain people driving Hummers and wearing D&G colognes when there are MUCH cheaper alternatives?

You do make a good point and soon I’ll be writing about the components of a good offer (out of which the most important one is “perceived value”).

Thank you for your comments!
Miguel Alvarez
Copywriting.com

Thank you!!!!!

Hi all,
Yes, it can help us to an extent if not boost. It is just at the initial stage and that too for a person who is stuck in the middle of the market full of competition for his product. Take Copy writing itself as a product. For a professional copy writer or an aspirant professional, if he has taken this flair of writing seriously but after starting and going a little farther, he got struck in the crowd of highly professionals, he need to improve his talent by such kinda exercise though in a different style. He may begin with His way of writing on one side of page and compare the same topic with that of a very highly professional
copywriter and add one more column to rectify his own writings.

Thanks for all the info. ! I very much appreciate your advice, concise and practical to boot. I firmly agree that to enter the mind of the customer is the only way to play the game right… and benefits are definitely the thing to get them thinking…and moving.

Ah Thomas. Keep thinking that way my friend and you will never get anywhere. Listen to wisdom and learn how to write. A great message has a visceral this is for me immediately. BENEFITS SELL don’t kid yourself otherwise. What’s in it for me?
This is great advice. Nice one a man after my own heart. http://www.thebaldchemist.com
The Baldchemist

This is great!

This is incredible, simply unbelievable! Not even two mornings ago I had never heard of copy writing, and now every aspect of it interests me. It is through the continuous efforts of successful people like yourself that inspire those before you to pursue something further than face-value. Thank you for your insight.

I too very recently became involved in learning to write copy. I’d been hired by Hernando County to evaluate several proposals by major web development firms to construct a county tourism web site and learned a lot on the technical aspects. Then I signed up for WordTracker to do keyword research better – and finally, I realized I needed Copy once people actually found anything I optimized… so now I’m here. Good stuff! I don’t know how long it’s going to take to get to the point where I can really start making conversions in terms of percentages of hits to my sites to purchases – but benefits are absolutely essential. I’m going to have to either go in and re-do every site I’ve ever built or just start doing the new ones right from the start. This site is another inspiration to me, and a great source of good solid information. Thanks.

Miguel, you are AWESOME! I think it’s great the way you respond to the negative comments. I think people should take a clue from this. Oh yeah, and your post really hit home. You just got yourself a new subscriber!!!!!

You can also think of features leading to benefits. Features give you benefits. The “how” leads to -> “what you get”.

Visually…

Feature -> Benefit

Taking from Miguel’s excellent examples above:

“Crestor’s long lasting, great minty taste gives your mouth that clean, fresh feeling all day long.”

“With our 500 hp S-blade clearing the way, we’ll have you and your family enjoying your pool in no time at all.”

“When you give her a soft, luscious 100% cashmere sweater, you’ll give her a Valentine’s day she’ll remember all year long.”

Sometimes you start with the Benefit and work your way back to the features.

Ask:

“What do they really want?” (Benefit)

“How does my product or service give it to them?” (Feature)

There may even be deeper benefits too – the real wants. So features lead to benefits that lead to want fulfillment.

Visually…

Feature -> Benefit -> Want Fulfillment

If you are laser focusing on a market – this can help. Let’s say the toothpaste is geared for professionals who call on prospects and clients all day. Your research tells you they worry about their breath (who hasn’t done the breath test into their hand). You weave this into in your copy.

Ask “What do I get from the Benefit?” or “What might customers Really Want from the Benefit?”

“Crestor’s long lasting, great minty taste gives your mouth that clean, fresh feeling all day long. You’ll never do the breath test again.”

At times it’s implied and you don’t have to add it in. Or you can add a photo to drive home the point. Maybe a confident, smiling sales person calling on a prospect. Say it and Show it.

-JohnP

You did it well in explaining thoroughly the advantage of stating clearly the benefits in creating an advertising copy.

Your 5-minute exercise is awesome to follow. Thanks!

hi Miguel,
This is really a great site. n i think this site is gonna be very useful for me. n all of those who strive to shine in copywriting. i am sure i will be able 2 rely on you for great tips and techniques.
thank you.

This site is a good place to start thinking of going into copywriting. Simple and clear rules to follow. Thanks