Copywriting Classes

“Fine words! I wonder where you stole ‘em.” - Jonathan Swift

Whether you write for the web or a magazine it can be tempting to lift a sentence or complete thought and move it into the body of your work. After all, it seems to ft the premise you are working on and you’re facing a deadline.

This is a form of stealing that is addressed often in schools across the nation when students are too tired or lazy to finish an essay using their own words.

“Taking something from one man and making it worse is plagiarism.” - George A. Moore

In order to become knowledgeable about a subject you must conduct research. In doing so you gain insight from those who have also conducted research. In many ways your research is a compilation of other research. It is possible for you to write a more comprehensive article with less first-hand knowledge than some of the ‘expert’ authors you were able to research.

However, if you sidestep proper research you could wind up with an end result that is filled with plagiarism and may well miss the point of your original research.

“Where do architects and designers get their ideas?” The answer, of course, is mainly from other architects and designers, so is it mere casuistry to distinguish between tradition and plagiarism? - Stephen Bayley

We learn the writing styles of others and adapt our own to emulate others depending on our own interests. Many great writers are perceived as such because they are also voracious readers. In turn the styles of the writers, whose words they consumed, became a piece of the reader’s writing style.

In the classic sense of the word, we all plagiarize. We all borrow ideas, thoughts, styles and voice from others who have mined the art of writing.

Writers are blessed in the 21st Century to have the Internet to conduct a broad range of research requirements. The trouble writers face today is using the ‘copy and past’ function on their word processing software and taking chunks of research from someone else and then passing it off as if they were the original authors.

“Originality, I fear, is too often only undetected and frequently unconscious plagiarism” - W. R. Inge

Our writing skills are often an amalgam of all we have absorbed in our writing, but we must do our best to present our articles in a manner that includes our own thoughts and when the words of others are used they should be cited. Your credibility as a writer is at stake.

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You did your homework. You carefully evaluated the marketplace and found an underserved niche of customers who are rabid for some quality information. You then found, or wrote, the perfect eBook to satisfy their needs. You created your eBay auctions and sat back waiting for sale after sale.

A few trickled in. And then It stopped. Nothing more.

What went wrong? You know your research was spot-on. There is a market for the material. You also know you have a spectacular productperhaps the best of its kind or something irresistible and unique. You did everything right, but to no avail. Why did you not experience the rush of eBay sales you had anticipated?

The problem probably wasn’t in your assessment of the market. The problem most likely had absolutely nothing to do with the quality of your eBook. In most cases like this, the reason for lackluster sales is completely unrelated to the quality of the offering. The issue lies in sales copy.

Too often, eBook sellers neglect to write truly spectacular listings for their products that will inspire customers to sell. They wrongly believe that an interested customer base and a good product will be enough to produce the kind of results they want. Sales copy, however, is as necessary a component to the process as either of those two elements.

Writing a great auction creates the necessary bridge between the hungry marketplace and the awesome product. Without a good bridge, the customers never get to the eBook.

This simple fact is truly understood by the most successful eBook sellers. Take a look at your listing and compare it to the names you recognize as being large-volume sellers. Odds are, their listings motivate people in a way yours do not. Examine other eBook offerings on eBay that are not doing very well. You are likely to find a series of listings with stale, flat or unhelpful sales copy.

If your eBook launch on eBay was a disappointment, take another look at your listing and consider if it really does everything it can to sell your product. You simply cannot afford to let a product’s subject matter and title sell the eBook. You must intervene and build a truly inviting bridge between your customers and the eBook.

How can you get a better sales page? Writing sales copy is a skill. Like any other skill, it must be learned. Invest some time in reading about how to write copy and work on your craft. If you rely purely on your instinctive understanding of what makes an eBook sell, you are likely to be disappointed. Find out what the experts have to say and implement it into your auction.

Many full-time eBook sellers rely on the services of writers who specialize in advertising copy. These copywriters can write the sales pages you need for you (at a cost, of course). Employing a professional for your auctions may seem over the top, but if you are considering a major launch for your eBook or are planning on making eBook selling on eBay your primary area of business it can be a worthwhile investment.

A great product and an interested customer base are only the first steps to success. The third is bridging the gap between the two with auctions that truly inspire purchases.

John Thornhill trades on eBay under the username planetsms. For more advice on how to succeed on eBay with information products visit http://www.planetsms.co.uk

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Imagine! 40 is old. The California State Supreme Court has said that when are you are 40, employers can discriminate against employees using this age as the excuse.

I attempt to ignore all headlines in the newspapers. I try not to react to how I feel when I read them.

I try I really do, but I cannot stop today.

It’s not new, but now, extremely blatant. I’m angry, but so what. That’s my problem. Let it go and move on.

I gave up that particular battle years ago. I became self-employed in various disguises. I chose to be in a business that did not discriminate because I was a woman.

In my last salaried position I was paid half the salary of the former male manager. Did more and received less. I then decided only to work in a way that I was paid for my skills, not my age, weight, gender or marital status. This was my motivation. Enough was enough. Finished up, walked away and never looked back. On to better things.

I started as an independent contractor, then went on to manage other independent professionals. The next step was owning my own business. I reinvented my business several times over, and in the process, myself.

During all this time, I don’t recall reading a newspaper or paying attention to headlines. Maybe I knew more than I thought at the time.

As my wise daughter so brilliantly asks: “What does it have to do with me?” Rightly so. Stop wasting time with things that have nothing to do with you or things and people you cannot change.

The solution?

Ignore what doesn’t serve you- in my case, news headlines- and use that time to start your own business. Small, big, it doesn’t matter. Just do something.

Hear the one about the Cat Massage Lady? She started a business giving cats massages. Really. Then she went on to books, tapes, CDs, videos and seminars. Now she’s training others to do the same.

There is Art for Infants, Scrapbooks for Anything and not one of the thousands of new businesses has anything to do with the internet. They all have to do with necessity being the mother of invention, desperation and a desire not to be discriminated when you are 40. Oh, yeah, and making money, too.

Walk through your house, room by room , including the attic and the garage. What do you do well? What excites you? If it excites you, it excites someone else. How can you make it work for others?

Whether you are 7, 47 or 70, you can start your own business. I saw a young girl in front of a Designer’s Showcase house that was selling cake slices and cookies. I asked how she was doing and who made the sweets. She said she did, made $34.00 and was happy and proud.

So was I. No one told her she couldn’t. There may be no limits to her desires.

By now you are saying, OK, that works for others, but not me. On the contrary. No more excuses. If you already own a business or are an independent professional, you can still do something else. Create something new or invent a niche within your existing business.

If you have a 9-5 job, set aside 10 per cent of your day, that’s 24 minutes, and take inventory. What are your hobbies? Look at what’s missing and fill the void.

But first, STOP! Stop reading headlines or doing anything that provides no benefit to your life or does not align with your own personal values.

Learn that living your own life will leave you with no time to read the headlines and loads of time to be creative and really Celebrate Your Life, no matter what your age.

About The Author

Joanne Victoria is a San Francisco Bay Area based author who speaks on creating your dream life. To book Joanne to speak at your next meeting, e-mail her at mailto:Joanne@joannevictoria.com.

Sign up now for Joanne’s FREE monthly e-zine Lighting Your Path!-Discover Your Inner Truth at: JoanneVictoria-subscribe@topica.com

Joanne Victoria -Coach, Speaker, Author

Tel:415-491-1344 joanne@joannevictoria.com

http://www.JoanneVictoria.com/programs.htm

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