Earlier today I was going back over some old course notes I had written.
When I was reminded of a great formula for persuasive writing by Don Mahoney called:
“The 4 P’s,”.
Don said…
“The hidden structure is the way you lead your prospect through the piece and build his interest in the product. Getting him so excited, he’s willing to take action.”
This is not to be confused with the 4 P’s in marketing you may have heard of, which are Product, Price, Place, and Promotion.
That one is a framework for creating products.
Following are the 4 P’s for persuasive writing (a copywriting formula) you’ll be able to apply this to a product, service, emails, etc.
The 4 P’s for Persuasive Writing:
1. Promise – Make a big, irresistible and unique promise to get attention. The key to this is to make sure your promise speaks directly to the desires of your target market. Show them what the product will do for them the benefit.
2. Paint – Paint a pleasing picture in the prospect’s mind of them enjoying what’s been promised. Get them to visualize an outcome, using as many of the 5 senses as possible, taste, feel, touch, etc.
3. Proof – The secret of proof is to state the benefits first. It’s good to use bullets for this. We also need to back up with credibility from previous buyers. Show credible proof that what you’re saying is true thus making it impossible to refuse.
4. Push – Make a special offer. The Close with the Call To Action (CTA). Compel the prospect to ACT.
To find more information and some examples just Google ‘The 4p’s Formula for writing.’
What you have now is a powerful formula for writing persuasively…
as the saying goes in one of the Spidey films (can’t remember which now). With great power comes great responsibility.
Have a great Tuesday.
Zaf.
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