The “Salted Popcorn” Method To Writing Crazily Compelling Copy

Have you ever made yourself a fresh pot of popped corn? The pot steaming as you drizzle on melted butter. Quickly followed by a generous sprinkle of salt.

You reach over and pop one in your mouth. Then seconds later… you have another… and another… and before you know it, you’re looking at an empty bowl and greasy fingers you’re tempted to lick (let’s face it, you do).

This is the addictive quality we want in our copy. And here’s why:

If you get your prospect reading the first line… they’re much more likely to read the second. If they read the second… they’re much more likely to read the third. And so on.

The deeper your prospect gets into the copy, the more likely they are to buy.

This is the power of “salted popcorn” copy. So the question is, “how do we get this addictively delicious quality?”

There are a few ways. But first, let me share with you some feedback I recently got from A-List copywriter, Kim Krause Schwalm:

“Tyler, your emails hook me in from the start (maybe it’s those crazily compelling subject lines) and keep me reading. I love the way you tell your stories and always teach a valuable lesson. I subscribe to lots of emails, but I find myself stopping and reading yours almost without fail!” — Kim Krause Schwalm, A-list copywriter and copy mentor

Why am I showing you this?

1) It’s a bit of social proof that what I’m sharing works for me and will likely work for you (i.e. I’m “selling” you on the ideas in this article).

2) What Kim shared is a “power lesson” in writing compellingly addictive copy.

What do I mean?

Let me list them out:

1) Get them hooked from the start
2) Write crazily compelling subject lines
3) Tell stories
4) Share something valuable
5) Make them want to read the next one

Ok, let’s dive into each of those in detail:

1) Get them hooked from the start
If you don’t get your prospect eating the first piece of popcorn, they won’t touch the second. So you need to reel them in from the get-go.

Of course this starts with writing compelling subject lines (which we’ll get into below). But the first sentence is also very important.

The first sentence should be short, punchy, curiosity-driven, and grab your prospect by the throat, nearly forcing them to read more.

Take Joe Sugarman’s famed “Vision Breakthrough” ad. The first sentence reads:

“I’m about to tell you a true story”

Or Jim Rutz’s ad with the headline “Sorry Your Control Died” and first sentece:

“Remember how great it was?”

Of course, it doesn’t have to be entirely curiosity driven like those. Your first sentence can be benefit-driven too. Something like:

“In this article I will share with you some techniques to write compelling copy.”

Of course, your first sentence will depend heavily on your subject line. Which brings us too…

2) Write crazily compelling subject lines
Why are subject lines so important? Well, let’s use the face-to-face sales analogy. In this context, subject lines are like “the handshake”. They’re how we greet our prospect.

And first impressions are everything.

Plus, the subject line is really the first “popcorn”. You want to make it look extra tasty. I’ve found that using a nice balance between curiosity and benefit works best for crazily compelling subject lines.

That way, they’re curiosity is piqued and they know there’s something of value for them in the email.

3) Tell stories
It’s no secret that storytelling is addictive.

It’s why you’ll binge Netflix for 8 hours straight or tear through your favorite book in an afternoon.
And there’s science to back it up.

In fact, hearing stories releases the love hormone “oxytocin”. So stories literally get you “high”.

There are a few different ways to use stories in emails.

You can write a “story email”, where the “rub” of the email is based around a story. Like, for example, an email I wrote teaching persuasion lessons I’ve learned from my dog.

Or you can “pepper” your email with stories. Just like you may use fresh-cracked pepper on your popcorn.
Here the idea is to leave little tidbits of story throughout.

This can help you prove a point. Teach a lesson. Give valuable proof. Or just keep them reading.
The more you practice writing stories, the more natural it will become.

4) Share something valuablePersonally, I’m not into the “always add value” shtick. I think there are times to add value and times to simply sell.

But here’s a hot tip:

A fabulous way to sell is by demonstrating value. But don’t just add value because some guru told you to do it. Do it strategically.

And if you’d like to “train” your list to open your future emails, giving them something valuable will help. But value doesn’t always mean teaching.

Value can be inspiration. Or a boost in morale. Or even a good joke.

Try to be a pleasant ray of joy in their otherwise humdrum day. And you’ll be golden, Sunshine.

5) Make them want to read the next one
When writing, your job isn’t just to get them to read one email… but the next one too. And the one after that. And the one after that.

Because just like each sentence is a “popcorn”, each email is a “popcorn” too.

So when you get them to start “eating” your tasty corn… before they know it, they’ll be reading your 101st email… and buying from it too.

Of course, this is an extremely short list of ways to write compelling copy. It doesn’t even scratch the surface.

If you’d like to learn more ways, head to the link below to get a free download of my book, “Email Emperor” which shares a bunch more tips like the ones you read above:

www.copybymccune.com

Tyler McCune
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P.S. This is part of the “brainstorm” for a kindle book I’m writing: “The ‘Foolproof’ Guide To Writing Highly-Readable Emails… Even If You’re Not A Good Writer”. If you want to be notified when it launches, you can join my list at the link above.