Episode 086 - Copywriting and Human Nature
Published by: David Garfinkel on 12-10-2018
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What I didn’t start learning about people until I was 40.
Warning
Copy is powerful. You’re responsible for how you use what you hear on this podcast. Most of the time, common sense is all you need. But if you make extreme claims... and/or if you’re writing copy for offers in highly regulated industries like health, finance, and business opportunity... you may want to get a legal review after you write and before you start using your copy. My larger clients do this all the time.
What “human nature” means
How understanding it at the behavioral level makes a difference when you’re writing copy… and you need to get specific behaviors from people reading your copy
What happens when you live in an idealized world (read: “should”) about people and how they behave… and how that affects your copy (you’re screwed, your copy’s screwed)
Four surprising things about human nature I learned only in copywriting
• What people are really more concerned about, as opposed to what they’re “supposed to be” concerned about…
• While many people say the greatest motivator is greed… or fear… or love… or hate… what I have discovered is the greatest overall motivator to get people to start reading your copy and keep reading it until they buy is something different.
• It’s like completely obvious when you find out about this one, but it’s practically a forbidden subject in school, many homes and houses of worship, and even some businesses.
• Before I knew anything about copywriting, I thought branding and advertising were the same thing. As a young copywriter, I thought branding was nonsense and a complete fraud. What I learned about human nature, only last month (October 2018), helped me see the value and the severe (and sales-preventing limitations) of branding.
Review of four things about human nature I was only able to learn through
Next time: The Power of Negative Thinking!
Keywords: psychology marketing branding copywriting
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