Customer Reviews

Web Copy That Sells: The Revolutionary Formula for Creating Killer Copy That Grabs Their Attention and Compels Them to Buy

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Maria Veloso's Web Copy That Sells has some good information but often times ends up discrediting herself when she gives examples of her own work as you will see for yourself when you read this review.

She'll explain some concepts of copywriting and then she will bring up her work for things like "the one minute cure" --and ebook claiming to cure most diseases in one minute. now as a serious marketer, When she's touting a headline she wrote that says "Simple Formula Has Been Scientifically Proven to Cure Cancer and Virtually All Diseases" how am i supposed to take this seriously and apply this to my own work when she's showing examples of websites and products that appear to be scams specifically aimed at people with terminal diseases desperate for some hope?

Considering she spends some time talking about how your copy has to have credibility, how can she not realize her book loses credibility with such examples of her work? it seems her own work is usually done for these websites offering get rich schemes, low end marketing programs aimed at the internet bottom feeders and false miracle cures. If i was her i would be a bit concerned that the Federal Trade Commission would be reading it.

She will suggests things like making fake blogs posts, websites that masquerade as science journals and all those types of bottom feeder trickery. I understand that these methods probably work for the type of shady businesses she has worked for but it doesn't work for solid legitimate businesses. A real medicine, medical equipment or health supplement can't risk their reputations using such questionable (and i would say unethical and possibly even illegal) devices.

This is not to say that she doesn't have some good advice for web copywriting newbies, but excuse me, copywriting giants like John Caples and Joe Sugarman would not touch this stuff. those guys actually had to sell real things to real people not one minute cure to cancer victims, so it's so much easier for me to find them credible and take their advice. Ms Veloso just leaves me feeling a bit dirty.
It's through the work of people like her that our web surfing experience suffers and it has become so difficult to find good information.

>>If you are interested in selling information packages and ebooks of questionable value,this book might be for you.

>>if you are writing copy for shady businesses that have no reputation to worry about this book might be for you.

>>if you think the best way to sell is to use questionable tactics and trickery this book might be for you.

if you are interested in selling physical objects or copywriting for any company that can't afford to throw their reputation in the trash, i would suggest you forget about this book and instead learn from credible and successful direct marketing giants like Drayton Bird, Joe Sugarman, John Caples, Lester Wunderman and adapt their techniques for the web.

Although the author's copywriting concepts are sound, the book is focused on writing for websites that sell products directly to consumers, often with very hard-sell techniques. Copywriters working on corporate B2B sites will not likely find useful info here.

This book is a true joy to read: every chapter contains gold nuggets of advice that will make your web copy writing more effective. The author's mantra is essentially focused on keeping messages simple, targeted to the audience's needs, and appealing on an emotional level. It contains everything from word lookup tables (eg. use "discover" rather than "find") to step-by-step guides to evaluate your content.

As a test, we converted one of our websites and email campaigns using the book's advice, and measured the responses with Google Analytics and the results were staggering. While it sometimes felt like I was writing an infomercial ("Learn the secrets of weight loss to discover the new you!"), it has an undeniably positive effect on the bounce rates, page views and conversions. We're now renovating every site along the same lines. Overall, this has been one of the most productive technical books I've ever read.

Describing this book as "The Bible for web copy writers" as one reviewer did is way over the top, but the fact is that this is still an excellent primer for effectively writing copy for websites.

Veloso begins by pointing out the do's and don'ts of laying out your website, from making content easy to scan, to keeping the site from looking too much like an ad. What follows is a basic blueprint on writing content that appears in most books on copy, with common techniques used to create an emotional appeal to prospective customers. These first two chapters are mostly ideas recycled from other books on copy and web marketing. If you've already ready other books on writing copy, it brings nothing new to the table, but otherwise it's perfect for newbies to online marketing. The same can be said for the email marketing information. While many of the tips on writing emails and crafting subject lines are useful, suggestions on avoiding spam filters are unecessary with the advent of established newsletter companies.

Where the book picks up steam is the third chapter, dedicated to crafting your copy. What I found particularly useful were her easy-to-follow techniques on coming up with benefits of your product or service, and highlighting what distinguishes your business from that of your competitors.

Where this book truly shines, however, is Veloso's chapter on using psychology to encourage a purchase. She brilliantly applies older psychological studies and observations to copywriting techniques generally ignored in other marketing books. Examples of this include the use of hypnotically persuasive language to carefully draw a site visitor into a buying state of mind. Just as useful and rare are her tips on emotionally hooking someone interested in B2B purchases, which can prove much different from how we market to everyday retail consumers.

In conclusion, many of the techniques outlined in this book will not seem new to experienced web marketers, but it is definitely worth purchasing (or cleverly hiding it in your local bookstore so competitors don't find it). The 5th chapter on advertising psychology alone is worth 100 times the cost of this book, it will definitely open your eyes to new marketing ideas.

As the title of my review states, the content within this book is great. I picked up a lot of useful information.

The layout and readability is less than great.

What stood out most to me were the number of pages that had single paragraphs that were almost the entire length of the page! In a book about copywriting, this seemed especially out of place.

Visually, it just wasn't compelling. It felt more like I was reading a complex, boring science textbook than a book on writing emotionally effective copywriting.

I know this shouldn't matter, but to me it does.

You SHOULD get this book if you want to learn Web copywriting, but if the publisher reads this, try to make the layout more simple and exciting for the next edition.

I bought this book looking for professional insight on how to write effective marketing and sales copy for various websites that I own and I am involved in. Spent several days reading this 300 page book, and then spent several weeks implementing many of the ideas presented in the book.

I created squeeze pages, I created promotional emails, I used the special techniques explained in detail in this book. And I really invested quite a lot of time trying to use many of the seemingly valuable recommendations put forth in this book.

Perhaps the problem is me. But none of my efforts employed as a result from this book have resulted in any positive payback. Zero. Absolutely nada, I am very sorry to report. So my personal experience working with this book has not been positive.

In fairness to the author, I wonder if writing copy is such a specialized skill that it cannot be conveyed through a book like this. Or maybe I am the exception that had difficulties implementing the techniques set out in this book.

I agree with the other reviewer that the layout is a bit dumbed down, but as she argues on page 85, you want a Flesch Reading Ease score of 70 or higher. In the middle of the book she has a "Formula for Mathematically Measuring the Selling Quotiant of Web Copy" which is a checklist you can follow before running any copy. I know from experience, these kinds of lists are time-consuming to create. The book was obviously written with real time and care, which is why I give it five stars.

Although the book is geared towards people looking to sell something on the web, its principles apply to every web site. It is worth reading even if your only goal is to communicate.

I read a review from someone else saying "Don't be put off by the sleazy appearance. It's got some golden content"

And he was right. it does. But the way it's presented lacks integrity. When I first read through and found some of the examples of copy that go to live pages owned by the author it just reeked of self promotion. Especially at the end for her little marketing school.

It's hard to take something good from someone who uses it with a lack of integrity. There IS golden advice. She just happens to use it in a sleazy way. I'm not sure if she's associated to a doctor trying to sell close to magical medical solutions to desperate cancer patients. It's pathetically sleazy.

I have a bigger issue with the author's integrity than with the gold content that is in the book. There is great content in the book. It's just that, I'd rather learn it from someone who's got integrity.

The older version of this book is basically the same and a lot cheaper. You might as well get that one.

Maria is clearly a web-copying writing, marketing machine, and her book taught me a lot. It's not just a book on web copywriting, but also a book about direct marketing on the Web. The book is easy to understand and cuts to the chase. I particularly liked her blueprint - 5 simple questions to ask when writing web copy.

Some of the commenters point out that the layout of the book is somewhat drab - and I guess that's true. They also point out that some of her clients sound rather sleazy - "One Minute Cures for Cancer and Virtually All Diseases" - and that's true.

But I didn't buy her book to judge her clientele, and I think her wording overcomes any concern I might have about the book's layout.

My main peeve is the name she's given to one of her pet theories: "Trifecta Neuro-Affective Principle." Is that a sexy title or what?! Somehow it just doesn't grab me. I think it needs a rewrite, Maria.

But all in all I think the book is a good read and I'm glad I bought it and read it, and I'll probably re-read it.

Overview
Web Copy That Sells is a 314-page book that names and explains basic Internet copywriting principles and how they should be applied in order to achieve results.

The book consists of 11 chapters: 1. Getting Started: The Dynamics of Web Selling; 2. A Simple Blueprint for Writing Killer Copy; 3. Crafting Your Copy; 4. E-Mail Marketing: The Internet's Killer Application; 5. Using Psychology to Motivate Prospects to Become Purchasers; 6. The Art of Changing Your Prospect's Mind; 7. Increasing Sales Through the Use of Involvement Devices; 8. Online Marketing Communications: It's What You Do After People Visit Your Website That Counts; 9. The Special Rules for Web Copywriting to the Business-to-Business (B2B) Market; 10. Web Copywriting in the Age of 2.0; 11. Last But Not Least: Tying It All Together.

Content
As the title clearly indicates, this book is about selling, specifically how to sell on the Internet and how copywriting in this context differs from its offline counterpart. The principles of selling are the same in both worlds but are applied differently, due mainly to the short attention span that navigating through the web entails.

The book is very practical and each of its chapters is a how-to guide in its own right. The author's knowledge of the subject is evident. She cites successful and even legendary marketing experts as well as statistics that substantiate the course of action she recommends. In fact, the author has distilled her years of experience into a web copywriting blueprint and web copywriting principle that anybody can apply.

The author not only provides advice and actionable steps to get the reader in motion, but also a method by which the effectiveness of the copy written can be measured.

Tone
The author's passion for the subject comes across in every word of the book. It's also evident that the author wants the reader to succeed in his/her copywriting endeavors. The instructional tone of the book makes you feel as if you're the audience in a master lecture about web copywriting.

Conclusion
This is a very practical book that is full of advice, statistics and examples that make the concepts easy to grasp. You don't have to be in expert in marketing or copywriting to understand its content or to apply its formula.

The book is a good beginning for those that have just created a website to promote their company or services and want their visitors to take a specific action: buy, subscribe, comment, etc.

Those transitioning from offline direct marketing to the online world will be able to assess the differences in the creation of the text. Anyone that considers themselves experts in both venues can get a glimpse of how somebody else does the same work.