ENS on Sales

ENS on Sales is Rick's free weekly tip for Media Reps and Managers.  We provide short, useful advice every week to help guide media reps and managers to become better at what they do.  Many managers tell us they find the tips as useful topics for sales training, and media reps find some of the topics useful as client leave-behinds.  We address topics such as:

• Time Management
• Ad Writing and Creativity
• Creating Strategy
• Effective Advertising
• Prospecting
• Motivation
• Goal Setting
• Best Selling Practices
• And much more

Sign-up to get your free copy in your email every week.  You are also welcome to view our archives on the right.

Current ENS on Sales Issue:

Cobwebs in Your Ad Copy – And How to Burn Them Off

At some point, while writing an ad, you’re going to hit the wall.

Eyebrows scrunched.
Forehead wrinkled like a Shar-Pei.
Coffee getting cold.
Cursor blinking at you like it’s mocking your existence.

You’ll think about giving up. Or giving in. Or giving your “World’s Messiest Desk” mug a one-way flight into drywall.

It feels like cobwebs are clogging your creativity.

And it’s usually one of two things.

First: You Don’t Have Enough Fuel

Creativity isn’t magic. It’s connection.

It’s taking something you’ve seen, experienced, learned, overheard, read, felt… and connecting it to the ONE clear point that you’re trying to make in your ad.

When your brain feels empty, it’s because you haven’t fed it.

Back in the day, I’d flip through Reader’s Digest and steal jokes for openers, watch stand-up comedy, save old print ads and headlines that got my attention, and read creative fiction writers. Now it might be a random podcast, a weird historical fact, a conversation at a coffee shop, a list of good analogies, or a great question you asked a client.

You don’t need inspiration.
You need input. And when you come across something good… write it down, save it, take a picture, etc.

If your copy feels thin, it’s probably because your discovery was thin.

No fuel. No fire.

Second: You’re Letting Distractions Win

If you have an average or good foundation of ad writing education, then the second reason your ads aren’t as good as they could be is distraction.

You were rushed, interrupted, or mentally half somewhere else.

Distractions are ad-writing killers.

You have to create an environment where your brain can actually work.

That might mean:

• Headphones on.
• Instrumental music only.
• Phone face down.
• Email closed.
• Door shut. Or a “do not disturb” sign.

And sometimes it means bribing yourself like a 7-year-old.

“No lunch until this script is done.”
“Finish this ad and I can have my chocolate fix.”

Whatever works.

You don’t need the perfect mood. You need commitment.

Wrap Your Head Around the Human

Before you write a word, get obsessed with the target prospect.

Who are they?

What are they tired of?
What are they afraid of?
What do they secretly want?
How would they react to each sentence you write?

Imagine one person and write to them.

The Cobwebs of Copywriting Are:

1. Lack of Information
2. Lack of Focus

Fix those two, and your ads get better immediately.