Jim Hamilton

Copywriting principles are timeless. But the strategies and tactics that work best are constantly changing. Good news is, you don't have to read a book to buy a course to learn them. All you have to do is study what other marketers, advertisers, and brands are doing to promote their products and services. Analyze their content, ads, emails, sales pages, and conversion mechanisms. Break them down into constituent parts, then emulate the same approach for yourself.

The more you know about who you're writing to, the easier it is to convert them. My favorite pieces of customer intel are: 1) Pains These are how their problems manifest in the present, such as struggling to lose weight. 2) Fears These are how their problems manifest in the future, such as being afraid they'll never find a romantic partner. 3) Trigger moments These are day-to-day events that "trigger" them emotionally and bring their problems to the forefront, such as stepping on the scale or going on dating apps. 4) Ultimate Desire This is their vision of Heaven where all their problems have been solved. Knowing what the finish line looks like is critical for writing copy that converts.

Before you test a theory, always ask how you'll measure it. CRMs like Beehiiv, ConvertKit, and ActiveCampaign will give you leading metrics on email performance. But you should also have Google Analytics set-up so you can use a Funnel visualization to track downstream metrics such as conversion rate, dropoff, bounce rate and other KPIs.

Constraints create freedom. Staring at a blank page is not the best way to come up with great content. Instead, map out: - Days you want to post - Post formats - Post types Establishing a fixed structure & cadence will help you ideate and create better content. The other hidden benefit is: Consistency signals leadership. When it's clear to your audience that you have a strategy and can stick to it every week without missing, you gain authority. People follow leaders, not experts.

Common content marketing mistake: Focusing on leading indicators. These are things like: - Impressions - Likes - Comments - Reposts - Etc There's nothing wrong with any of these metrics. But they don't always translate to downstream results. That's why it's crucial to prioritize lagging indications like: - Newsletter subscribers - Webinar registrations - Completed applications - Booked calls - Sales Ultimately, the purpose of content marketing is to drive downstream results. Don't lose sight of the goal.

The #1 way to drive webinar registrations: Open loops. If you want someone to carve out 60-90+ minutes of their day, you need to give them a compelling reason why. Write 5-7 curiosity bullets teasing the takeaways they'll get from attending the webinar. Examples from past clients: - How to close 5-figure deals without doing sales calls - What NEVER to do if you need coaching clients ASAP… - 3 tips to beat the S&P 500 without picking stocks These create maximum curiosity. Include curiosity bullets in every piece of content you use to promote the webinar.