Affsum Session: Copywriting Clinic
Yes, that’s right. It’s been MONTHS since Affiliate Summit East 2008, and we’re less than a month away from Affiliate Summit West 2009. And I’m just now getting around to giving you the skinny and my notes on this incredibly helpful session. Why now? Now there’s video:
The panel consisted of:
- Lisa Riolo, Founder, Hammock Ventures (Moderator)
- Adam Gilad, CEO, Gilad Creative Media, Inc.
- Scott Polk, CEO, Purplestream Marketing
- Anik Singal, CEO, Affiliate Classroom Inc.
As I mentioned, this was a fantastic panel. In fact, I might consider this hands down the best panel I’ve attended at any trade show. It was FULL of useful information. Watch the video for yourself (ignore my head in the front row :D) or check out my notes!
Bullet Point Review!
- Copy writing is salesmanship in writing (Anik).
- Headlines are huige – your copy can suck if your headline kicks butt, but the other way around doesn’t work (Anik).
- Simple video dresses up your content (Anik).
- Making an ugly order button actually helps because it stands out – believe it or not, conversions go through the roof (Anik).
- Think of headlines as plot points (Adam).
- Act I is the Familiar World. Turn pain into calling. If you can articulate their pain better than they can – it will bring trust & bring them to the calling (Adam).
- Act 2 is the Road of Trials. Meet new allies and villains – in copy writing allies can be testimonials, villains are negative – brings you to the death of the protagonist (Adam).
- Act 3 is the Resolution. Give them to sword to slay the dragon – the order information and a promise of how great it will be when they get there (Adam).
- Write for your reader (Scott).
- Optimize against the competition (Scott).
- 350-450 words is a good start (Scott).
- Use main keywords you’re optimizing for in the 1st sentence, twice in the first 200 words (Scott).
- Editorial content is what powers the web (Scott).
- People have difficulty getting started, but the key is tight copy.
- Use of active verbs – creates motion & engages users.
- Try to evoke senses when selling -> smell/scent works well. They’re related to positive emotions.
- Listen & read things around you – it will inspire you to get started.
- Process of writing and process of editing are two very different processes.
- Take 12 hours in between the creative of writing and the technical of editing as a buffer period.
- Build momentum – make them want to turn the page (Adam).
- Take note of evocative words.
- There are good books that are just lists of words.
Points brought up during the Q&A
- Adjectives are your enemy.
- Reading out loud helps develop the rhythm of language.
- How does attention span factor in?
- -> The story should be compelling enough and people are drawn in.
- -> The sub-headlines should tell the story.
- Never assume people have read the page before or after on a website – have good site navigation too.
- Tone – more professional robot or real person writing?
- -> That personal aspect is what draws people in.
- -> Talk to them in your voice.
- -> Consistency of voice is important.
- Humorous content is vital.
- What can brands with stuffier businesses do to liven up without adding personality?
- -> If you can’t do it within the funnel, ask affiliates to try stuff or do stuff elsewhere on the site.
- Any tools to check what you’ve written to improve it’s SEO?
- -> SEO Toolkit – keyword density analyzer
- -> Make title tag for search engines
- Have depth – don’t be too dumbed down.
- Supporting information is good, but don’t clutter the conversion funnel.
- It’s difficult to speak in absolutes and don’t disrupt the process.
- Multi-variant testing with copy gives you a realistic picture of what’s going on.
- Pop your sentences into Google to see how many others use those same phrases.
- Copyscape can analyze your content to see how unique it is.
I easily took the most notes of the conference at this session. Great tips all around, and I espeically loved hearing Adam relate copy writing to screen writing – my major in college was Theatre Arts, emphasizing on dramatic writing, so that was a nice way to bring together my visions of what I was going to do for a career and the reality of what I am doing for a career. Very awesome and I hope to see similar clinics like this offered at future shows!
Read MoreDays 2 and 3 of Affiliate Summit East 2008
Well, while I’d intended to recap each day… that didn’t exactly happen as you can tell. I do intend to post the notes I took from the sessions and the impressions to help everyone learn the great stuff I learned. Some of the more hot button sessions can’t be covered in mere bullet points, so it will take me a day or so longer to get my thoughts together for those.
I covered Saturday & Sunday (mostly… the ShareASale party was nice although I didn’t stay long), so let’s jump right into Monday & Tuesday, the busiest days of the conference.
Day 2 – Divide & Conquer
- In many ways this is the day that the summit starts. In the past the breakout sessions have only been on Monday & Tuesday, however this year they were extended to Sunday. Regardless, the keynote was given on Monday by Newark, NJ Mayor Cory Booker. If you didn’t want to jump up ready to go, you didn’t listen to what Mayor Booker had to say. It was a great speech, and I already posted my thoughts about it.
- The blogger’s lounge helped save my sanity. It was nice to be able to go in there in the 30 minute breaks between sessions & chat with people and do a little bit of work. Had the wifi worked out better for me (not sure if it was my ancient laptop or the actual connection that was the issue) I would have been able to get more posts up during the actual conference. I hope to have a better laptop by the next show I go to so I can just live blog it!
- Of the 3 sessions I attended, the best was Content That Kills. It was informative, had great tips and information, and there were good questions asked by the audience. I may be biased being a writer by heart, but it was good stuff.
- The other sessions I attended that day were the Performance Marketing Alliance Q&A, which turned more into a witch hunt filled with personal issues unfortunately, and How is Social Media Changing Affiliate Marketing, which apparently it isn’t because that question was never really answered. More on those in their own posts.
- The Great Affiliate Road Rally was a slaughterhouse win! With just three cars in it this time, the first place car took off like a shot and left the others in their dust! Congrats to them & to the others? Well remember the entry fee went to charity & you won’t feel so bad 🙂
- Monday night I had dinner with a lovely group of new friends & colleagues and then headed over to the LinkShare event at Tia’s. The event was a whole new group of people to talk to and had a great time talking some shop and reminiscing over Police Academy flicks with Wil Reynolds & Jim Kukral.
- Oh no, that wasn’t the end! After that we headed back to the hotel where we shut down the bar there and moved across the street to a small bar by the water & had a great time chatting with people and generally schmoozing before rolling into bed.
Day 3 – Epic Games
- It was a matter of sleep vs. sessions I wasn’t overly excited about attending, so I missed the Ask the Experts table discussions & The Future of Affiliate Marketing to sleep in & get refreshed for the Copywriting Clinic, which I very much wanted to attend. I hear I didn’t miss much.
- Speaking of the Copywriting Clinic, Lisa Riolo did an excellent job moderating and the panelists were excellent. I took 3 full pages of notes on this session, so you’re in for a huge post later on!
- The Ethical Issues in Affiliate Marketing session turned into the biggest fail session of the conference for me. The moderator Haiko de Poel Jr was doing a pretty bad job… usually when you’re the moderator of a panel of “experts” your job is to pass questions to the best suited panel member, not challenge the question back to the audience member who asked it. I have much more to say, so I’ll save it for later.
- The un-keynote was very relaxed and I actually got up & talked…which was big for me knowing that it was being video taped! I just hope when I look back at it that I don’t look like a fool lol.
- Luckily I was able to attend the Red Sox vs. Rangers game at Fenway with some fellow baseball loving conference attendees. Being a moderate baseball fan I was really thrilled to be there & the game was crazy! The Red Sox almost blew a 10-0 lead in the 1st but came back in the last inning to tie it up and then ultimately overtake the Rangers with an epic score of 17-19 Red Sox. We only spent a few innings in the stands before the rain started, but I got some great pictures and we continued watching the game from inside near the concessions so it wasn’t a waste.
- More bar shenanigans, then some piano playing until late kept me up long enough to decide not to go to bed before my early flight out of town. Overall what a great end to a great conference.
Final Thought – Springer Style
Overall I had the best time at this conference – not just because it was fun and I met a lot of terrific people who I’ve had the chance to get to know online and now have had the opportunity to meet in person – but because I just learned so much that I “get it” now. I remember back in February going to the Affiliate Summit West and having a conversation with my husband that I was actually starting to understand more and more about the industry and that I really felt like this was an industry I could get excited about.
And I have… and this reinforced so much for me how much I really like this industry! I’m back to the “real world” here and ready to conquer it!
Read MoreLast Call for Affiliate Classroom Live! Pass
This is all she wrote, folks! I’m giving you until 7pm PST to enter to win my available pass to Affiliate Classroom Live! August 9th at the Boston Seaport Hotel in Boston, MA. This is conveniently the day before Affiliate Summit East kicks off, so if you’re attending ASE, you can work this easily into your schedule.
The Affiliate Classroom Live! pass is a $300 value. Learn from and interact with the industry’s top professionals… somehow including myself! This half-day workshop for affiliate managers will focus on:
- Networking – We’ll place you in peer groups where you can meet one another and begin building relationships.
- Roundtable Discussions – Join with your peers and a topical expert to discuss affiliate marketing best practices and advanced affiliate management strategies.
The speakers will be:
- Peter Figueredo
- Trisha Fawver (yes, that’s me)
- Lee Gientke
- Sam Harrelson
- Rebecca Madigan
- Heather Paulson
- Lisa Riolo
- Brad Waller
The winner will be drawn at random – all you have to do is email your interest to Contests@Trishalyn.com to enter! I will announce the winner tomorrow.
Read MoreAffiliate Classroom Live! August 9th
Part of advancing your career is continuing your education, so its important to learn what you can, when you can. Continuing doing their part for the affiliate community and affiliate managers, Affiliate Classroom is offering another Affiliate Classroom Live training session for Affiliate Managers the day before Affiliate Summit East in Boston this August.
I attended their full day session last February and I have to tell you – it was a completely invaluable experience. I learned so much… it was worth devoting an entire day to. I also recapped my impressions of the various sessions via this very blog. The only bummer to the whole day was the length of time in grossly uncomfortable chairs with no tables to write on. Incidentally, I spent most the time sitting on the floor using the chair as a platform – I’m just not a lap writer.
They’re at it again, this time taking in the feedback they received and cutting it down to a half day of mostly round table discussions lead by experts – and me.
That’s right, yours truly will be leading a round table discussion at this summit’s event titled: Virtual Social Butterflies: Online Networking & Its Importance for Affiliate Managers
Successfully managing an affiliate program relies heavily on being an approachable manager, developing good relationships with your affiliates. It’s equally important to develop good working relationships with your peers in the industry. We’ll talk about the blog community, social networks, social bookmarks, Twitter, and how they can benefit the affiliate manager.
Besides me, since I’m hardly an “expert” in this field, discussions will be lead by Sam Harrelson on web 2.0, Lisa Riolo on pitching your affiliate program internally, Brad Waller on the NY Affiliate Tax implications, a presentation by Heather Paulson on effective strategies, and some other well known industry leaders. So come on out and let’s talk! Register for the event now at AffiliateClassroomLive.com!
Thanks to Affiliate Classroom’s Rachel Honoway for extending the invite to me!
Read MoreSquished Boobs Save Lives
Periodically we’re reminded that Affiliate Marketing isn’t entirely about making money. There are good things that can be done with the passive income that we make (or wish we made). Regardless, this is something that affects everyone – even men have mothers, girlfriends, wives, sisters, and daughters.
Missy Ward has started the campaign & many affiliate marketers have joined her. They are raising funds for donation & participation in the Seattle 2008 60-Mile Breast Cancer 3-day walk in September. Along with Missy will be Jen Goode, Tiffany & Irene Spaulding, Anne Fognano & Tammy Carney, Heather Paulson & Jen Campbell, Karen Garcia, Laura Przybek, Angel Djambazov, & Lisa Riolo.
As they say there’s more than one way to skin a cat, and with Missy & Co’s forethought there’s more than one way to donate to the cause. Of course there’s the straight donation, which can be made at 60-MileWalk.com, where the team has already raised $2,312.00 of their $20,000.00 goal as of Friday evening. Your donation is deductible as a charitable contribution as allowed by law. According to the website, donations of $250 or more will be acknowledged in writing.
Or, if you’d rather donate AND support all at once, you can do what I did and make a purchase from their CafePress store. Deck yourself out with all kinds of swag under the sun and not only support the cause but spread the message.
So take time out from your day and spread the word and help the cause. Let’s help them reach their goal. I’ll be with you in spirit ladies! Make this baby VIRAL!
Read MoreDebriefing from Affiliate Classroom LIVE Training
The training has been over for about 2 hours now and I’ve been sitting in my hotel room on the 16th floor with a brilliant view of west Las Vegas thinking about whether or not I should share my views with you on the training tonight or wait until I’ve had some time to absorb it and wind down more from the experience to write about it.
However I’ve decided in the interest of reporting to you, I should talk about my initial impressions at least while they’re still fresh in my memory. I will be dropping names!
First, the event was hosted by Anik Singal from Affiliate Classroom. Super gracious guy and a pleasure to talk with. Good job Anik for a great event!
The first speaker of the day was the keynote by Ned Farra. Ned talked a bit about Zappos.com and their history. Being previously unfamiliar with Zappos, it was interesting for me from a case study type point of view.
Next we heard from Bryan Rhodes & Stephanie Harris from Shaaf Consulting on a typical affiliate manager day. A lot of GREAT tips & tricks on how to allocate your resources (i.e. time & money) where they’re best served, making your job more efficient, and coping with being an affiliate manager. I think this was one of my favorite sessions of the day because they were engaging and even as fairly new to this game as I am, I could totally relate! I think this is the most actionable session for me.
Afterward we heard from Clarke D. Walton, a lawyer specializing in internet law. Some people seemed bored by this, but I was fascinated by the legal side of things. He shared some great case studies that really helped me to understand the legal perspective of affiliate marketing.
Amit Mehta, a 7 figure super affiliate, then talked about how to recruit and keep super affiliates. Good stuff, a lot of which I’d heard before, but definitely worth while. I learned some new tricks that I’m DEFINITELY going to keep in my back pocket 😉
I admit… the next couple of sessions were after lunch, which I was rushed through and had to take with me back into the meeting room, and I was less than enthused about the content. Todd Farmer & John Vehlewald from kowabunga gave a good talk about the difference between CPA and Traditional affiliate programs. It was interesting from a publisher point of view, but not very useful to me as a manager considering our printing products and the types of campaigns we run.
Lisa Riolo talked about metrics… I wish she could have gone a bit more in depth but the overview was good. Actually, more in depth in this setting so late in the day might not have been the best idea, so I’ll accept it! She did help me really understand how to make metrics more actionable.
Next up was Michael C. Jones from Pepperjam talking about affiliate marketing technology. Okay, I’ll admit it – I was bored. Partly because he was using a slide presentation that wasn’t included in the packet of materials we were given, contained a ton of information, and talked too fast. I’m really hoping that I can approach him via email later this week so I can get the PPT and really read it and soak it in. It was some stuff I already knew regarding coding and whatnot so nothing too ground breaking for me, personally.
Worst/Best Session of the day came from Heather Paulson. I was really interested in the topic of engaging affiliates and she started out great…then she seem to lose the audience. Keep in mind that this was an affiliate manager training day, so when you ask how many people have ever heard of xx tool and no one raises their hand, saying “uh, you should” may not go over well. The rest of her talk kind of went sour in my mind from there. Her information was overwhelming and almost pointed to “you can’t do this, hire me to do it!” without actually saying that. Maybe I took it the wrong way, I’m open to that, but it just rubbed me the wrong. I admit though, I did pick up some useful tips that will really improve my actions as an affiliate program manager, so it wasn’t all bad.
Lastly Rachel Honoway talked more about the new AC Certification courses to become a bona fide “certified affiliate manager”. I really want to take the courses! They’re fairly reasonably priced ($1500 for a 10 module course).
Oy tomorrow is a lighter day with just booth set up, registration, and the meet market, but work is work!
Read More
