Hook Your Direct Mail Sales Letter Readers With Good Transition Sentences

Anglers in Maine catch trout using dry flies with barbless hooks. Unless they keep tension on the line all the way to the net, they lose the trout. Your sales letters must do the same. But how?

One secret to keeping busy business readers hooked is to use irresistible transition sentences. Transition sentences come at the end of one paragraph and the beginning of the next. Good transition sentences leave your readers hanging in a number of ways.

One of them is to tell your reader that a number of things are coming up, forcing your reader to transition to the next paragraph to learn what some of those things are. If you've ever listened to a person with a pronounced stutter, you know how hard it is to wait while that person completes a thought. Your prospects are the same. If you almost complete a thought at the end of one paragraph, they will begin reading the paragraph that follows to complete your thought. But that's not all.

Another way to keep your reader hooked throughout your copy is to end one paragraph with "that's not all" or a similar phrase. Or to start your next paragraph with the word "another." Each device shows the prospect that you have not finished, that the prospect has more to learn. And so the prospect keeps reading. And yes, there are some other hooks you might want to try.

You can start a paragraph with the word "you," the one word that prospects and customers never tire of seeing in print. Or you could try another proven tactic.

And that is starting a paragraph with the word "and." Read the Gospel of Mark in the Bible sometime. It's one of my favourite books. You'll find the narrative almost impossible to stop reading, it's so exciting. That's because the writer begins so many of his sentences with "and" that you are compelled to continue reading to discover what comes next. (I won't give away how the book ends. Read it and find out.) But there's another device that's just as powerful as the word "and." Do you know what it is?

It's the question mark. Put one at the end of one paragraph, with the answer at the beginning of the next paragraph, and you'll keep your readers headed towards your net.

So here's the one thing you need to remember. You've figured out by now that the secret to effective transition sentences is to keep your prospective buyer in a state of suspended satisfaction, one where they must keep reading your letter to the end before they feel gratified. And there's only one sure way of doing that.

© 2005 Sharpe Copy Inc. You may reprint this article online and in print provided the links remain live and the content remains unaltered (including the "About the author" message).

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Alan Sharpe is a business-to-business direct mail copywriter and lead generation specialist who helps business owners and marketing managers generate leads, close sales and retain customers using business-to-business direct mail marketing. Learn more about his creative direct mail writing services and sign up for free weekly tips like this at http://www.sharpecopy.com.

---

Web Writing - Dont Lose Your Visitors Attention!

Did you know that your writing can have a huge... Read More

Long Copy vs. Short Copy? If You?re Still Debating This, You?re Missing The Point!

I've seen this ongoing debate debate jump up again recently... Read More

Want a Sticky Site That Sells? Forget Content!

An interesting debate is currently raging among copywriters, web designers... Read More

Keeping It Real: The Only Copywriting Trick That Works

Much of today's accepted copywriting wisdom comes from old books... Read More

How You Can Proofread Your Own Work

Putting out a high quality product is a given these... Read More

Grammatical Mistakes DONT Sell

When you receive a sales letter with typos or grammar... Read More

Its Not What You Say But How You Say It

Copy is all about words. Or is it?Copy is about... Read More

Write Hard-Hitting Headlines With Magic Words That Sell

Writing a killer headline for your copy is simple! You... Read More

Dont Be Satisfied With Your First Draft

Sometimes it's a struggle to figure out what's the best... Read More

Writing Great Website Sales Copy

Many small businesses fail because their owners don't pay enough... Read More

10 Tips for Aspiring Freelance Copywriters

Every week I receive a couple of emails from people... Read More

Tech-writers: A Necessary Evil

New to tech-writing, or thinking about starting? The key to... Read More

Cleaning Up Your Copy

When you are beginning to write, you gather as much... Read More

9 Tips for Great Design of Your Marketing Materials

1) Don't just hire a good designer. Hire someone who... Read More

How To Become Qualified As A Proofreader

The field of proofreading is not as easy to get... Read More

5 Critical Mistakes Most Freelance Copywriters Make

Think you have what it takes to be a freelance... Read More

Your Article Headlines will Make or Break Your Business

Most people with an online presence will have to regularly... Read More

8 Reasons to Outsource Your Copywriting

Thinking of hiring a staff writer? Think again. Below, I... Read More

Real Estate Professionals Need You to Write for Them!

Ask yourself these questions:Are you an experienced writer?Do you want... Read More

How To Write An Effective Ad

A letter or postcard allows you to "talk" one-on-one to... Read More

3 Tips For Writing Better Headlines

The single most important element of your website's copy is... Read More

Freelance Writing As A Career

Most people would love to make a living from freelance... Read More

Copywriting Makeover: Making An Emotional Connection - Part 1 of 2

One statistic shows that over 80% of all buying decisions... Read More

Pulling Sales with Your Ad Copy

One of the best marketing tools available to your internet... Read More

3 Tips For Writing Content That Will Make You Sales

Content is king. Without content your website is an empty... Read More

How to Write Adverts that Forces People to Respond

Think for a moment some day and consider the kind... Read More

Its the Headline, Stupid! - Writing Powerful Headlines

"It's the headline, stupid," is the sign that hangs over... Read More

Fill Your Readers with Confidence

Site visitors generally stay with you for as long as... Read More

7 Steps You MUST Take Before Writing a Word of Copy!

Copywriting ChecklistOkay, you know you have your product (or service)... Read More

Segmenting Your Target Audience Through Your Copywriting

Ask any copywriter what the first commandment of copywriting is... Read More

How To Become A Freelance Copywriter In New York

As a freelance copywriter in New York, your work is... Read More

How To Find Editing Services Online

Quality is what you need. What you don't have is... Read More

Power Keys To Writing Power-Packed Marketing Copy

In order to maximize your sales efforts and fully seize... Read More