“This is the best post of the month!”
So what?
It’s the only post I’ve written all month. Yes, it’s a statement of fact, but it’s also BS and worse… everyone knows it. You don’t have to be a student of marketing or advertising to smell the BS lines.
But what’s the big deal about BS lines? Why are they so bad for your message?
You see these kinds of artificial hype lines in sales letter, articles, and websites on a daily basis. They litter the taglines and copy of more than half of the sites on the Internet today.
The reason they kill the message is because they’re the reason the message never gets read. Take a look at the second line of this post. “So what?”
There are only seven questions that visitors to your site will ask. The first six are questions you want them to ask. Who? What? Why? Where? How? When?
The last question should be avoided at all costs… So What?
The first six questions are good. They involve the reader. When your reader is asking any of those first six questions, she wants to know the answer. When she asks, “So what?” she’s wondering why she’s on your page at all.
Internet surfers are very busy people. They have a choice between reading your website and buying your product, or reading an in-depth analysis of what Lindsay Lohan drank at the bar last night.
Your message may be infinitely more important or relevant to them than Ms. Lohan’s life, but if you give them even the slightest reason to ask “so what?” they’re going gossip hunting.
Take A Walk In The Reader’s Shoes
…then take them off and check the bottoms for BS.
It’s not easy to separate yourself from your clever line. You might think that your line raises the question “How?” but are you sure that’s what your readers will ask?
If it’s your business, you know your customers as well as anyone. If you’re doing copywriting for someone else, put in the grunt work and do some market research. Become the customer and read the copy line by line and look for what question pops into your head.
If it’s “so what,” scrap the line and start over.
So what do you think? Share your thoughts in the comments below. Then follow me on twitter and join the conversation.
