You’re a writer who needs content for your website, a Facebook author profile, a Goodreads bio.

This shouldn’t be too difficult; you’re a writer after all. This is what you do day in, day out – create content. Then why do you find yourself staring at a blank screen and a blinking cursor?

It’s because copywriting is a completely different discipline to fiction writing.

But that’s not to say it’s impossible. Here are five tips I’ve picked up on my journey as a communications consultant, turned copywriter, turned fiction writer. Try them out and I promise you’ll see an improvement in your content.

1. Put yourself in their shoes

Before you put pen to paper (or open a new file) ask yourself who your audience, or reader is.

  • How much time do they have?
  • What do they spend their time doing?
  • What do they normally read?
  • What might they need, enjoy, love, hate, want?

It sounds simple, but most people start with what they want to sell.

[bctt tweet=”Turn your sell on its head by starting with your customer not your product” username=”SarahSambles”]

If you take the time to answer these questions, you’ll be surprised how much easier it is to produce content which actually appeals to your readers. It’s one of the most powerful keys to effective marketing and I’ve written about it here.

2. Identify the hook

copywriting, copywriter, writing copy, copy

From fiction writer to copywriter

If you’ve written a query letter to a literary agent, you will have heard that you need a hook: the thing that will entice the reader in. Often this is the problem or conflict of the protagonist, or the inciting incident in which they find themselves early on in the book. It could be a question, a mystery, a controversial statement. It’s the ‘oh no’ or ‘what if’ moment.

When it comes to writing copy, the same rule applies: start with a hook. Remember the questions we asked about our readers at the beginning? These will help you identify your hook.

  • Start with a rhetorical question which gets to the main challenge or desire of your target audience: ‘Have you ever felt/wondered/wanted … ?’
  • Paint a picture of a desired outcome: ‘What if you could … ?’
  • Provide a vivid description of a scene which begs the question ‘what happens next’.

World-renowned copywriter, Ray Edwards’ six-part framework for writing better copy starts with P for Problem.

3, Tell a story

Apparently, everyone loves a good story! You’d think this would be easy for fiction writers to do when it comes to copywriting, but you do need to shift gears. You’re writing for a different audience and purpose now.

Put very simply, here are some of the key elements of story:

  • Character
  • Problem/conflict
  • Attempts at solving the problem/conflict
  • Result

Let’s say you’re writing your bio. Instead of listing your qualifications and work experience chronologically, you could structure it as a story.

A middle-aged mother with a fulfilling career and home life (character) innocently accepted a friend’s invitation to attend a conference. The disturbing story she heard at that conference kept her up at night (problem). She had a job, two children to care for and an international move to organize, she didn’t have time to write (conflict). But she knew people had to hear this story so she started learning all she could about fiction writing and carving out time in the margins of life to write (attempts at solving the problem) until she had a polished manuscript (result).

For more on story, check out Donald Miller and Blake Synder.

4. Answer the ‘w’ questions – and the ‘h’ one!

Have you ever sent out an invitation and realized afterwards you forgot one crucial piece of information, like the date, or the time, or the location? It’s easily done and we get so wrapped up in words we can forget the basics. Re-read your first draft and make sure all the information is covered.

  • What – am I offering?
  • When – am I offering it?
  • Where – is it available?
  • Who – am I?
  • Why – have I written this?
  • How – will this piece of work make my readers feel?

5. Beginning | Middle | End  AKA  Hook | Body | Call-to-action

Once you’ve found your hook, don’t leave your reader there. Just as we were taught at school to write a beginning, middle and an end, you need a similar structure with your copy. After your hook, explain how your book or writing solves the problem you laid out. For example, describe how you fell in love with writing. List your books, your awards.

End your copy with a call-to-action. Ask yourself what you want people to do once they’ve read what you’ve written. Do you want them to buy a book? Do you want to know what they think? Do you want to expand your writing community? It’s important to consider this because it will impact how you conclude your copy. Even a bio page can have a call to action: ‘I’d love to hear the story of how you fell in love with books. Write and let me know.’

These are just five steps you can take to improve the content on your website, your social media or your book cover. Writing persuasive copy is a skill which takes time and practice, and sometimes we all need the help of a professional. Sign up to my monthly newsletter for a FREE copy of my tool ‘Draft your best bio’, or contact me if you’d like one-on-one coaching.