On Copywriting

Need Web Design Help?

Web design is a critical part of any online business.

Obviously, you need a web site. But more importantly, you need a web site that converts. And design plays a big role in conversion.

That's why I want to let you know about my brother, Jared Healy.

For the last four months, he's been coding up sales letters, setting up blogs, and creating web sites for me. And he's done a fantastic job.

I don't say that just because he's my brother.

One of my clients who has hired me for three different copywriting projects has also hired a few different web designers at my suggestion.

The first one did a good job, but stopped because he just didn't have the time. (This particular designer has a full-time job.)

The second one... well... let's just say my client was unhappy. (Read between the lines, okay?)

The third one was my brother.

Of all the designers my client had hired, he said my brother was easily the best. He did better work... and faster work... than any of the others.

I, too, have been exceptionally happy with my brother's work. It's top notch.

This is a big deal for me since a lot of my clients ask me if I know any web designers who can code up their letters and web sites. Up until now, I was always slightly hesitant. You never know how a web designer is going to work out.

But now I can confidently recommend Jared Healy.

Here is what Jared can do for you...

• Code up a long-form sales letter with photos and design elements that improve conversion rates.

• Set up a Wordpress blog on any web site, with any theme, and with as many plug-ins as you want.

• Convert sites from HTML to PHP so you can update your site's navigation in seconds instead of hours.

• Set up split-tests. (You give him the words and he'll do the technical stuff.)

Of course, he can do more than this, but this is just a sample.

Jared has also put together some rates so you'll know what to expect before you contact him.

If you're interested in getting a long-form sales letter coded, he charges $100 per page with a $300 minimum. (A page is roughly what would fit on one page in Microsoft Word.)

He also has an amazing deal going for anybody who would like a Wordpress blog set up. For just $250, he'll set up your blog with whatever theme you want, plus he'll install up to five plug-ins. For instance, here are five potential plug-ins you might choose:

1. Feedburner Icon with Feed Count


2. Email opt-in form integration (Aweber, Goldbar, GetResponse, etc.)


3. Popularity Contest (Creates a sidebar list of the most popular posts.)


4. MyBlogLog Widget (Tracks traffic stats and lists community visitors.)


5. AddThis Widget (Bookmark utility that allows readers to add your posts to social media sites.)

This is a bargain for $250. Doing all of this could take a novice two or three days to accomplish, maybe longer.

Anyway, if you're interested, give Jared a shout at webmaster [at] jaredhealy [dot] com. Or call him at 720-334-7029. If you have a project that falls outside what I've described here, I'm sure he'll be happy to provide you with a quote.

P.S. I receive no compensation from recommending Jared. Whatever business you do with him is between you and him.

P.P.S. You can visit Jared's blog here.

Installed

Have you ever purchased software that required installment on your server... but you never did it... because you didn't know how?

Or have you ever wanted to purchase software like this, but didn't because you were already fully aware of your technical deficiencies?

I know this has happened to me.

Yesterday, I was researching split-testing software. I looked at a lot of different software products. None of them offer an "installed" option.

Now, I have in the past purchased two separate pieces of software that offered installment, for an additional fee, on the back-end. But this was not advertised on the front-end.

I believe anybody selling software that requires installment on a server could sell more by offering an "installed" price. In other words, $29 for the software or $49 for the software installed. It would require a little more work on the part of the developer/reseller... but I bet it'd be worth it.

Creating Your Lead Generation Web Site

If you haven't written your lead generation web site... why the heck not? As a copywriter, it's one of the simplest ways to establish a regular source of leads.

And if you think it's complicated, let me assure you. It's much easier than you may think.

Here's what you need to do:

1. Write a sales letter on why a prospect should hire you.
2. Code it in HTML so you can post it on the Internet.
3. Register a domain name at GoDaddy.com.
4. Get a $3.99 a month hosting account at GoDaddy.com.
5. FTP your sales letter to your web site.

That's it. Now a couple clarifications.

You can write your letter in Word and then learn how to hand code in HTML. That's what I did. I learned HTML at W3Schools.com. Then I hand coded in TextPad, my favorite text editor.

Or you can write your letter in a WYSIWYG editor like NVU, which you can download free at NVU.com. (By the way, that long funky acronym stands for "What You See Is What You Get.")

Or, last but not least, you can write your letter in Word, then hire someone to code it and upload it for you. I posted an ad on Craig's List last week and got flooded with over 50 responses from web designers. My guess: it would cost you between $50 and $100 to get a good web designer to do the coding for you.

I use GoDaddy for just about all my domains and hosting. It's really cheap and really easy.

After you have your web page, domain, and hosting account, the only thing left is to upload your page to your web site. This is called "FTP," which stands for "File Transfer Protocol." I prefer Coffee Cup's FTP program because it's so simple. There's a 30-day free trial. It's only $34 if you decide to keep it.

Once your site is online, you can send traffic to it and capture leads.

Oh, and you don't necessarily need a web form to capture lead information. You can have them call you. This is easier to just get things rolling. You can figure out how to create a form later.

For traffic, get a Google Adwords account and start paying for clicks. Or submit articles at EzineArticles.com. Or post on forums and include your web site in your signature file. Or publish a press release. Etc.

One last note: After you have your web site up, you can participate in the Great CD Giveaway by adding a simple link to my blog at the bottom of your site. ;-)

Any questions? Just post a comment below.

Recording Client Interviews

Whenever I pick up a new client, I conduct a client interview. I had been using an audio conferencing service to record the calls, but it's not my favorite way to do it.

You see, the client has to call in to a special phone number, type in a passcode, etc. Then you have to pay for the MP3 download. Not exactly the most efficient system.

So I was over at Michel Fortin's Copywriters Board when I came across a thread about devices to record phone conversations. JP Maroney started the thread and Harlan Kilstein provided an answer.

You can read what technology Harlan and some others recommend, along with a link to buy it if you want. I plan to go there myself and purchase the recording device as well.

I'm kind of technophobic, which is why I haven't upgraded to a better system yet. My "pain" levels are increasing, so I'm finally ready to take some action! ;-)

Record Client Interviews with Dynametric Recording Adapters

Page Creator Update

If you'll recall, this past April I wrote about Google's new Page Creator. And at that time, I predicted that the next development for Google would be allowing AdSense to be placed on pages created with the new tool.

That development came to pass last night. And I've written about it on my Page Creator site: AdSense Now On Page Creator.

Note: If you would like to read the original article, see Google Makes Pages.

Google's New Page Creator

I just caught wind of Google's new Page Creator. Read the announcement on the Google blog. So I decided to give it a whirl.

Turns out, it's incredibly simple to use. In fact, I created a page in less than 5 minutes just to show you what you can do. (Not to mention how good the pages look!)

Here are a few links for you to investigate.

1. See the page I made with Google's Page Creator.
2. Read the announcement about Page Creator.
3. Start building your own site with the Google Page Creator.

Let me know how you like it, OK?