Digital marketing moves so fast that it’s sometimes hard to keep up. But there’s one thing that remains the same regardless of changes in technology, tools or platforms. The importance of writing great copy.

It’s simple. If your copy sucks, you’re not going to make a return on the money you’re paying for ads. Engaging copy captivates its target audience and ultimately leads to clicks and purchases – driving the trigger on a CTA. Sounds great, right? Here are our top tips for creating the copy which will push and persuade your audience:

Know your users and solve their problems

Before you can write copy that sells, you need to know who you’re selling to. You cannot write engaging text unless you know exactly who you’re writing it for. Are you writing to technical professionals, teachers, or teenagers? It clearly makes a significant difference in how to convey your ideas.

Next, you need to consider how they think and what they need. After all, nobody clicks on an ad just for fun. They click it because it helps them in some way or solves a problem. What does your target user want to accomplish, and how can your business help them achieve that? Make it clear in your headline how you can solve their problem.

Focus on benefits instead of features

Don’t waste time going on and on, telling users about how amazing your brand or product is. Get straight to the point and tell them how your brand or product can make their lives better. Make it personal by using ‘you’ and aim to communicate how your product or service will benefit them.

To put it into perspective, take Theodore Levitt’s quote, who was a famous professor at the Harvard Business School: “People don’t want to buy a quarter-inch drill. They want a quarter-inch hole!”. The feature is the drill – but the benefit is the hole. Benefits sell, but features don’t.

Create an impending deadline – or FOMO!

If you’re serious about selling, you need to create a sense of urgency. When you implement a deadline, your audience knows that they need to take action or they could miss out. Put simply, the fear of being left out can be a catalyst to get visitors on to your website and making purchases.

You could run a 12-hour flash sale for a new product or give users 20% off everything for 24 hours. Give free next day delivery using a code – which is only valid for the next 3 hours. By showing that something is going to end soon, you can drive people to take action.

Tailor your call-to-action

In your day to day life, if you want something, you ask – right? It’s no different with your call-to-action. Don’t underestimate the sheer power of suggestion End your ad copy with persuasive but straightforward suggestions.

This could be anything from “See how it works” or “Click here for more information” to “Start your free trial by clicking here” or “Click here for free shipping – for a limited time only”. A well-executed CTA is one of the most compelling elements of copy.

Crafting the perfect ad copy takes practice and patience – but we hope our top tips have inspired you to start creating copy that sells. Still need a hand writing your ad copy? Contact 3twelve today. (See what we did there? Spot the CTA!).