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Words that sell
by Dawn Josephson
We all know the English language contains hundreds of thousands of words. But did you know that only 21 of them can easily sell your clients?
It’s true.
When you know what these proven words are and how to use them to your company’s benefit, you’ll save time and money when selling to prospects. In fact, once you master the use of these 21 words, your business will quickly get the results it deserves. In fact, this paragraph contains 10 of the 21 words. Did you spot them all?
What’s in a word?
The exact words you use in your company’s marketing materials can make the difference between success and failure. Choose the right words and your prospects will find you and your company irresistible. Choose the wrong words and you’ll spend most of your time convincing prospects to do business with you.
Why waste your time selling prospects on your products or services when you can let strategically written marketing pieces do the work for you? When it comes to writing marketing pieces, your word choices do matter.
Following are the top 10 of the 21 words that sell. Use them wisely and watch your marketing response rates soar.
You/your
You is the most powerful word in the English language. It’s more powerful than the word money; it’s more powerful than the word sex. Prospects want to feel as if you’re talking to them directly, and the word you accomplishes just that.
Instead of writing Our clients report increased productivity as a result of using the Widget 2100, write You will experience increased productivity as a result of using the Widget 2100.
Keep every sentence in your prospect’s perspective.
Money
Ask people what they wish they had more of, and chances are they’ll say money. People love to save money just as much as they love to earn it. If your product or service saves people money or helps them earn more money, state it along with a monetary figure people can grasp.
For example:
Using the Widget 2100 saves you money – more than $5,000 per year!
Health/healthy
The second thing people wish they had more of is good health. People want products and services that either improve their health or refrain from negatively impacting it.
For example:
Vitamin X improves your health and well being by… or
Pesticide Y has no known health implications or
Product Z is part of a healthy diet.
Guarantee/guaranteed
By nature, most people are not risk takers. They want assurance that they’re not wasting money and your product or service can live up to its claims. By giving some sort of guarantee, you put prospects at ease and make them trust you.
For example:
We’re so confident the Widget 2100 will work for you that we offer a full money-back guarantee.
Easy/easily
Between 40-plus-hour workweeks and increasing demands at home, people want easy things. They don’t want products or services that make their life more difficult. So always state how easy your company makes things.
For example:
The Widget 2100 makes it easy for you to… or,
With the Widget 2100, you can easily remove spots from your carpet once and for all.
Free
Everyone loves getting something for nothing. That’s why the word free continues to be one of the top selling words of all time. Realize that the free offer doesn’t have to have a high monetary value, just a high perceived value.
Some freebies that work include: free consultation; free estimate; free report; free shipping; and buy one, get one free.
Yes
Face it, you love to be told “yes,” don’t you?
Yes means you have permission, you were right or you can get what you want. Yes is one of the most pleasing words to the human ear. So tell your prospects yes often.
For example, in your marketing materials, you can ask a series of positive yes/no questions, and then write: If you answered yes to any of these questions, then the Widget 2100 is what you’ve been searching for.
Quick/quickly
In today’s microwave-age society, people want things quickly. They don’t want to wait weeks or even days for the results you promote. They want to know they’ll see a quick return for their investment now.
While the perception of quick results may vary from person to person, as long as you know your product or service is quicker than something else, state it.
For example:
Lose weight quickly,
Make money quickly and
Quick and tasty meals from your own kitchen.
Benefit
Most written marketing pieces state the benefit of the product or service. But, they neglect to actually use the word benefit. When people read the word benefit, they subconsciously perk up. They know they’re about to learn something that will impact their life, so they want to know more.
For example:
As an added benefit to this product, you get (state the benefit).
Person’s name
People love to hear the sound of their own name and they love to read their name in print. That’s why so many souvenir shops sell personalized items, from magnets to coffee mugs. Including the prospect’s name in a marketing piece, especially in the middle of the sentence, boosts attention levels.
For example
As you can see, Steve, the Widget 2100 makes perfect sense for your needs.
The remaining 11
The other eleven words that sell are: love, results, safe/safely, proven, fun, new, save, now, how-to, solution and more.
While synonyms to these 21 words are acceptable, synonyms are not as powerful as the actual word itself. In order to appear fresh in your marketing piece, use the appropriate word wisely, and don’t overdo it.
As your marketing writing prowess increases, consider combining words that sell in the same sentence. For example, maybe your product works quickly, safely and easily. Or, perhaps your service makes cooking easy and fun. Or, are your proven results guaranteed? You get the idea.
Since short marketing pieces are more powerful than long ones, make sure every sentence packs a punch.
When you use the 21 words in every marketing piece, you quickly increase your prospect’s interest in what you write, which ultimately leads to more money for you. Master the use of these proven words. It will give you the easy solution to low marketing response rates you’ve been waiting for.
Can you do it? Yes! And you’re going to love the results. Guaranteed.
Dawn Josephson is the president and founder of Cameo Publications, an editorial and publishing services firm. She helps professionals transform their ideas into written material. She is the author of Putting It On Paper: The Ground Rules for Creating Promotional Pieces that Sell Books. Contact her via e-mail or by calling .
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