Elin Qvale Linde
05 July 2022
If we know nothing about our users, who they are, where they are in the customer journey, what problems they have, or what words they use, it is difficult to know which copy fits the site best. Therefore, it is important that you do your homework properly - preferably starting today.
Everyone who visits our site is at different stages of their "customer journey." Some are almost ready to buy, while others are comparing with competitors or trying to figure out what the website actually sells.
We cannot communicate with all visitors in the same way. Imagine walking into a store and a salesperson yells "Buy now!" in your face before you even have an idea of what they offer. That's how many sites look today.
To find out how we should instead approach our visitors, we use the Prospect Awareness Scale, a model created by copywriter and marketing expert Eugene Schwartz ("Breakthrough Advertising"). To put the model in context, we exemplify with the product home alarm and what copy can be used to move the visitor one step forward.
We often see that site copy is aimed at product/most aware while visitors are more problem/solution aware.
Visitors who are unaware cannot yet pinpoint what they need or if they even need anything. In the case of home alarms, they are basically unaware that a burglary can happen at home.
Example of copy to make an unaware visitor become problem aware:
“Did you know that there is a risk you could be a victim of a burglary?”
CTA: “Check your status now”
Visitors who are problem aware have a problem but do not yet know what possible solutions exist. They know there is a risk of burglary but not how it can be prevented.
Example of copy to make the visitor become solution aware:
“Many choose to install an alarm to prevent burglaries”
CTA: “See our solutions”
Visitors who are solution aware know that there is a solution to their problem but not that your offer is the solution. They know there are different ways to prevent burglaries, such as alarms, but also that other solutions can be setting timers on lights, asking the neighbor to mow the lawn, etc.
Example of copy to make the visitor become product aware:
“Our home alarm is directly connected to our alarm center, which sends guards within 2 minutes”
CTA: “Try for free”
Visitors who are product aware know the offer but are not entirely sure if they should choose you or a competitor. They know that an alarm is something they want but are not clear on which provider to choose.
Example of copy to make the visitor become most aware:
“Right now, we have a discount on our most popular alarm, which is used by hundreds of thousands of households today”
CTA: “Order XXX now”
Visitors who are most aware are basically already customers and just need to click the buy button. They have already decided and barely read your arguments; they just want to make their purchase as quickly and easily as possible.
The Prospect Awareness Scale is, of course, not only applicable to your site, but also in Google ads, email, banners, etc. The earlier a visitor is in the scale, the more copy is required to make them most aware and ready to buy.
To find out where visitors are, we need to get to know them better with the help of user data, both qualitative and quantitative. We can, for example:
There is an old saying that goes, “Speak to farmers in the way of farmers and to the learned in Latin,” in short: make sure to adapt the language to the recipient. Even though the expression is old, it is always relevant, especially on the web.
But how do we know how the users talk, you might wonder now? Well, with research, of course! Through surveys mentioned earlier to reach visitors on the site, but also via email to your existing customers.
Visitors on the site can be asked in an exit poll (with free text):
“Why did you choose not to buy/sign up today?” - on the product page
“What made you hesitate, almost not buy/sign up today?” - on the thank you page
Existing visitors can be asked in an email:
What made you become a customer with us?
What is, according to you, the unique value of our product/service?
How do you use the product/service?
What made you hesitate/almost prevented you from becoming a customer with us?
The internet is (probably) teeming with opinions about your products or offers on sites like Trustpilot and Reco or on social media like Facebook, Instagram, or Flashback. What we are looking for are visitors'
Here we can see how your users describe your offer in their own words, and if you're lucky, you can find nuggets like we did when we worked with Memira a few years ago.
Sites like Trustpilot are good to search on to see how users talk about your product or offer.
Memira works with eye laser surgery, something that makes life easier for people with poor vision, but the procedure can be perceived as scary, which is why many hesitate. We saw that many users realized afterward that they didn't need to wait because the surgery wasn't as bad as they thought. The result was the headline “Why wait any longer” on an important landing page. This little nugget of a sentence pinpoints why many hesitate unnecessarily, expressed in a way that is easy to understand.
So, now you know a little more about what it takes to write really good and converting copy. Find out who your users are, where they are in the customer journey, and how they express themselves, and you will go far.
In the next post, there will be tips on proven methods for how to write to make your visitors want to read your texts. You don't want to miss it!
psst.👉🏻 This fall, you also have the opportunity to meet Elin and learn more about CRO copy. You can read more about the training Conversion Manager here.