The Power of...

You certainly must know that Many Big Marketers consider COPYWRITING to be the most important skill you need to be earning online.

There's a lot of good copywriting around. But even in good copywriting there are some manerism that in my opinion don't help to achieve the desired result. No doubt the most over-used in copywriting is the Exclamation Mark. As a result of this over-use it's become a very ineffective means of expression. But nevertheless, it still appears everywhere, often in pairs or big flocks. Conveying practically no longer any real emotions. I don't mean that the feelings that the copywriter expresses are not true - whether it is or not is no the point here. The important thing is that the READER, seeing those expression marks, doesn't feel anything "extra". Nothing over what he/she would feel if there was no exclamation marks.

While exclamation marks in a book or a newspaper may be needed for stressing something you are saying, making it more violent, "louder", on the Web you have other options. On a webpage or in HTML email you can for example stress a word using bolder, bigger characters in a different color. And it will generally work much better.

Yes, in a plain text emails you can't use colors and bold characters. But there is another unpleasant aspect of too much exclamations: they tend to trigger those bitchy "spam-filters". While failing to arise much excitement in the reader.

I'm not saying that exclamation marks are not to be used at all. I simply see much to many of them, and they usually don't achieve the result they were intended for. Not with me in any case, and I doubt if they do with you.

OK, that was mostly "against". But I also have got a positive suggestion for you. In fact it will be the main topic of this article...

Relatively little used today, which makes it very noticable and powerful. What it is? It's the ellipsis. Three little dots ending a sentence. Or rather - suspending it only, leaving the reader aware that something is to follow, and that something for some reason is letting the reader wait. Arousing that readers curiosity, waking his/hers impatience... Isn't that what most copywriters want most of the time?

OK, it's not quite as loved by sentimental shool-girls of the old as the exclamation mark. But let's make a small experiment. What's the title of the present article? It's "The Power of...". Power of what? you say. Somebody who has just seen that title can't possibly know that... Perhaps that title is just awful and could be easily made much better.. How? By using exclamation marks of course! ;-)

Seriously - please take a look at each of these suggested versions of the title, one after another:

1. The Power of...

2. The Power of SuperWidget

3. The Power of SuperWidget!!!

Sincerely, which of those titles best incites you to read on in order to see what's it all about? I'm sure you will agree that no number of exclamation marks can compete with the psychological trick of the number 1.

Let's take a look at another example. This time we want to convey the feeling of suddeness and shock. Which version does this the best?

1. And then KABOOM! It happened!

2. And then... KABOOM! It happened!

3. And then - KABOOM! It happened!

My bet is on number 2: softly, slowly... and THEN! (By the way, you can notice here that this is NOT a crusade against exclamation marks.)

Elipisis is all suspence, uncertainty, hesitation... Yes, but here I hope to have shown how it can for example enhance the exact opposite - the violent feeling of a sudden KABOOM!

An rather interesting thing about elipsis, in realation with the Internet and marketing, is that it can't easily "transcribed" into visual elements, such as: colors, size and shape of the characters etc. In any case, much less easily than exlamation marks. Which is one more reason why you should consider using it more in your copywriting.

========================================
Piotr Obminski is an Internet marketer living in Poland. He's open for interesting JV proposals. His sites include: http://net-profits-udder.com http://e-liber.pl
========================================

---

How to Make Your Claims Believable

When you hear claims like??Best Lawnmower in the country?Absolute Lowest... Read More

9 Tips for Better Billboards

It is a given that billboard advertising "outdoor" is not... Read More

How To Write Eye-Grabbing Headlines That Catapult Your Prospects Into Your Ads

If you're interested in improving the selling results of your... Read More

4 Ways to Double the Power of Your Business Cards

Sure, everyone needs business cards. But why not make your... Read More

LED Score Boards

LED scoreboards can be utilized in most of the sporting... Read More

Direct Mail Catalogs & Brochures: Write Captions That Sell

Many prospects skim through catalogs and brochures, glancing at the... Read More

How to Use the 3 Most Common Direct Marketing Measurements to Increase Your Profits!

John Wanamaker, a 19th century entrepreneur, once famously made the... Read More

Advertising, Public Relations, Newsletters, and Newsletters for Your Small Business

If you own a small business you should consider ways... Read More

Do Your Adverts Get You More Sales?

Philadelphia retailer and US Postmaster General, John Wanamaker, once said,... Read More

If You Invest Money on Advertising, then You could Save Thousands through this Simple Little Secret

A few years ago, I analysed the statistics of where... Read More

How to SAVE Yourself from Spending too Much Money on Advertising!

How much money have you spent in Advertising, Promotion &... Read More

3 Inside Secrets To Making You Richer Using Direct Mail!

Making money using direct mail isn't easy. And anyone who... Read More

The Forgotten Advertising Tip

I'm sure while you have seen many tips on advertising,... Read More

3 Simple Steps to Getting Thousands in Free Advertising

Many entrepreneurs believe that they understand what public relations is,... Read More

10 Ways To Improve Your Print Ads

1) Include a coupon in your large ads. This can... Read More

Electronic Display Boards

Electronic display boards signify high priority messaging, allowing you to... Read More

How To Tame The Buying Beast Inside Your Customer

What if you can understand and control your customer's mind?... Read More

How To Track Your Advertising Like A Hawk

Tired of pouring endless money into advertising? Do you wonder... Read More

Go Ahead Im Listening

In today's fast paced environment, interaction with family and friends... Read More

Womentisements

The unnecessary and extensive use of female models in advertisements... Read More

8 Low Cost Ways To Advertise, Promote and Market Your Business

We all are looking for ways to market our businesses... Read More

Getting the Most Out of Your Networking Group

Here is my personal list of things to do at... Read More

Yellow Page Advertisers: Your Calls are Going to Decrease - Heres the Remedy

Response rates to Yellow Page advertising are decliningThere's no getting... Read More

Understanding The Basics Of Advertising

I get the L.A. Times delivered to my door every... Read More

5 Tips for Hot Yellow Pages Ads

Yellow Pages advertising is one of the most popular forms... Read More

Top 9 Reasons To Advertise

Advertising is not for every company. But some require it... Read More

The Ultimate, ?Must-Have? Home-Based Business for YOU

The Ultimate, "Must-Have" Home-Based Business for YOU a Underemployed, Unemployed,... Read More

10 Simple Techniques To Make Your Ad Get Powerful Attention

1. Make your ad's keywords and phrases standout by enlarging... Read More

Fax Broadcast Services Get Your Message to Millions

If your company is one of those innovative businesses that... Read More

Cinema Advertising is Big Business, So Mergers are a Natural

Cinema advertising has always been an effective marketing tool for... Read More

Crazy Ads? Maybe Youre Just Out of The Demo!

My father called me to complain, again. He's 82 and... Read More

Direct Mail Rules of Thumb

First and foremost - You should identify your target market.... Read More

Graphical LED Display

Graphical LED Displays utilize high-resolution graphics and video to transmit... Read More