Persuasive Copywriting: Cut Through the Noise and Communicate with Impact (2ND ed.)

Understanding how people make decision- and being able to exploit this insight- distinguishes the best copywriters from the rest. In Persuasive Copywriting, Andy Maslen goes beyond the basics of writing to sell and explores buyer psychology. He shows you, step by step, how to translate emotional impact into competitive advantage. Fully updated, the second edition includes new interviews from leading agencies and copywriters across the globe. It gives you indispensable advice on how to measure and benchmark effective copy. Practical and inspiring, Persuasive Copywriting gives you the confidence and the skills to create, quantify and sell stand-out copy in a cluttered marketplace.

Andy Maslen is Managing Director of Sunfish, a writing agency specializing in corporate communications, direct marketing and digital content, and CEO of the Andy Maslen Copywriting Academy. A lifetime fellow of the Institute of Direct and Digital Marketing, Maslen works globally with clients such as the NHS, Prudential, The E conomist, BBC Worldwide, Hamleys, London Stock Exchange, RSPB, The New York Times and PricewaterhouseCoopers. He is co-founder of the Copy Cabana conference and a bestselling author of numerous fiction and non-fiction books.

There is a crying need for good copy today because of the internet. Yet there is a dire shortage. If you wish to succeed, read this book at least three times. And if you have to judge copy, read it too. All good stuff, blessedly free of jargon.-- "Drayton Bird, the godfather of direct marketing"

I rated Andy 10/10 as a speaker. I rate Persuasive Copywriting even higher. It has smashed into the essential reading list on our curriculum, for art directors as well as copywriters.-- "Marc Lewis, Dean, School of Communication Arts"

Persuasive Copywriting will give your writing charisma. It refines your words so they hold your reader's gaze, drawing on lessons from Ancient Greece to fMRI technology. It's about more than how your copy can persuade and sell, though. Your writing will inspire, charm and comfort too.-- "Joe Fattorini, journalist and presenter of The Wine Show"

If you're someone who likes rules but likes breaking them more, this book is for you. Andy provides a balance of discussion, guidance and coaching, delivered with enough wit to make you spontaneously snort-laugh your way to great copywriting.-- "Elle Graham-Dixon, Head of Planning Global Ford, BBDO New York"

• Section - ONE: Copywriting in context;
• • Chapter - 01: Creativity - A genuinely marketable skill?;
  • Chapter - 02: The right and wrong way to judge copy;
  • Chapter - 03: The impact of new channels - From mobile to social;
  • Chapter - 04: Blood brothers or ugly sisters - How do copy and content fit together?;
• Section - TWO: Motivation versus reason - Tapping into your customer's deepest drives;
• • Chapter - 05: Harnessing the power of emotional copywriting to persuade your prospects;
  • Chapter - 06: Three big ideas you should use for copy before highlighting the benefits;
  • Chapter - 07: A powerful process for developing customer empathy through copy;
  • Chapter - 08: Copywriting hacks - Flattery will get you everywhere;
  • Chapter - 09: The ancient Greek secret of emotionally engaging copy;
  • Chapter - 10: Copywriting and connecting on social media;
  • Chapter - 11: Creating calls to action - Top tips to bring home the bacon;
• Section - THREE: The pleasure principle - Making your writing more enjoyable and compelling;
• • Chapter - 12: Balancing pleasure and profit - Five techniques to write fantastic copy;
  • Chapter - 13: How to engage your imagination and free your creativity;
  • Chapter - 14: Tone and technique in copy - Finding your voice (and that of others);
  • Chapter - 15: The definitive guide to when grammar matters in copywriting;
  • Chapter - 16: Injecting life into your sales pitch - An age-old method

Persuasive Copywriting, second edition, is the ultimate copywriting survival guide for the 21st century. With the majority of creative professionals developing their skills on the job, it is notoriously difficult to benchmark successful copy. This book provides a step up for those who already know the basics, and are seeking more advanced, psychology-driven techniques to gain the competitive edge. With practical insight into human decision making and consumer engagement, it inspires the clear-cut confidence needed to create, quantify and sell stand out copy in a cluttered marketplace.

This second edition of Persuasive Copywriting complements the how to perspective of copywriting, with impressive interviews from leading ad agencies and copywriters across the globe, addressing day to day issues faced in a multitude of roles. Updates include practical advice to measure and benchmark effective copy, guidance on creating and critiquing briefs, plus four new chapters on how to weave copywriting skills into the wider industry. These cover particularly useful ground around storytelling, content marketing and the impact of evolving channels like mobile and social media. Practical and inspiring, it is a vibrant, all-encompassing guide to copywriting; an essential to every marketer's bookshelf.