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How to Write for Prospects and Buyers

Your business blog has traffic but no sales. Perhaps something is missing in how you are writing for prospects and buyers. Here are some tips to get you back on track:

1. Understand the reason for a visit from this specific audience. Use on page surveys to get feedback and questions. Ask "What would you like to accomplish today?" rather than "What do you want to read on my blog?" type questions. Also watch behavior beyond just what they say they want, keywords and popular articles highlight interests.
2. Provide decision making insights and tools. What does a prospect need to choose the right solution for their business? Not necessarily your solution, but how to choose what is right for them. Unbiased reviews and opinions are more credible than just flogging your own solutions.
3. Handle common objections or reasons prospects don't buy. By addressing all the reasons people don't adopt your solutions, you'll reduce the number of objections in an eventual sales presentation. This increases your conversion rates while training the reader to purchase.
4. Address reasons to own your product with case examples. Show visitors the results they desire and how they might attain them through what you offer. Sell them on the generic solution while encouraging to talk with someone specific about what would work for them. This kind of content involves the reader so that they are thinking about the benefits of ownership without making a decision to purchase first.
5. Highlight ways to get more from what you offer. This include usage tips, care, and feeding instructions. Demonstrate how to service, install, or even upgrade your solution. Start with the improvement activities that require additional purchases.
6. Identify and shape industry trends around your service. Your opinions about where an industry is going, what it may need, and who is making a difference all provide interesting content. This content speaks first to members of the industry and gives you an opportunity to reference your involvement with trade associations. Knowledge of your industry demonstrates credibility and familiarity with their needs.
7. Address your customers best advantage. What ever helps your customer, in their specific industry, get more from being your customer will make great content. This could be advocating an approach, highlighting best practices, or a correct mindset. Write a message customers feel they get something out of immediately.
8. Feature your customers successes. When you make your customers the star of your blog you are doing two things, (a) establishing relationships with existing customers, and (b) showing prospective customers value without selling directly to them. This indirect approach improves familiarity and credibility, all while associating you with a specific type of desired result.

It's all about copy writing and content segmentation. When you focus specifically on the needs and desires of prospects and buyers, you'll turn more visitors into customers.

Notice I didn't say "Write about how great your products are" because (frankly) your visitors don't care about you as much as they care about themselves. Your content needs to be about their interests first, after they contact you for more information, then it's about how your products help them.

Even in product demonstrations the star is your customer and their desired outcome. If you write in this way, you'll keep visitors returning while extracting out prospects for lead generation. You'll establish credibility that leads to purchases.

© 2009 B2B Website Profits, All rights reserved.

Justin Hitt and Hitt Publishing Direct provide clients with sales attracting copy that focuses your business blog on loyal readers who become customers. Make your business blog more productive with http://HittPublishingDirect.com/

If you want ideas to improve your writing for your business blog, or want to learn more about copy writing, I recommend AdBriefing Copywriting Tips. This monthly newsletter helps you write copy that generates leads and sells without being pushy. You'll increase readership and capture more quality leads with insights from the AdBriefing Copywriting Tips newsletter.

Posted by Justin Hitt on September 27, 2009 9:28 AM | Permalink

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