Copywriters Podcast

We’re past the point of wondering about or fearing AI when it comes to copywriting. At this point, the big question is: What do I need to know, do and have to make it work for me? I say that because copywriters at all levels of skill and in all niches are using AI in all kinds of ways. It’s no longer the new new thing. It’s a part of the business, and it continues to grow in importance and ability...

We have a very special guest today. A legend among insiders, Caleb O’Dowd is a master marketer and copywriter. He has been launching and scaling businesses from zero to seven figures and eight figures, through the smart use of great copy and strategic sales funnels. In more industries than I can count. Including some of the most brutally competitive. I was thrilled when Caleb agreed to come on Cop...

At the highest levels of copywriting, big financial publishers ask copywriters to do a “re-lead” when they want to increase conversion on a proven offer. What’s that? A re-lead is basically a reframing of the intro to a sales letter, in the hopes that the reframing will spur greater sales. And it’s probably no coincidence that when my mentoring clients show me copy they’re having trouble with, the...

You could say the purpose of a sales funnel is to create desire that leads up to a sale, but these days, if that’s what you say, you’ve left out an important part. A part that very well could make the difference between a sale and no sale. With trust in general at such an all-time low and the feeling of isolation so rampant, people want a little more. They want to feel like you, as a business or a...

Our returning champion is Brenna McGowan, the master of the pre-launch. Today she’s going to tell us about a special pre-launch technique called Anticipation Marketing™. Perhaps the best advantage it gives you is it puts you front and center in your prospects’ minds, and at the same time gets them eagerly looking forward to getting the full details about what you’re going to launch. Maybe even mor...

It’s the day before the day of the night before Christmas as we put this on the air, and a very unknown year looms ahead. One thing for sure, no matter what happens: The market will be more unforgiving in 2025 than it was in 2024. Why? It’s simple. Competition keeps growing. So does impatience among almost all consumers, and mistrust among many of them. What this means to you, as a copywriter, is...

So, we’re right in the middle of the Christmas shopping season as we come to you this week, and I’m wondering: Have you figured out how to delight your customers and fatten up your bank account? If you haven’t you’re not alone. Many copywriters and businesses don’t know exactly what to do to join in the holiday buying and selling fun… so they don’t do anything. Which is a shame, because there’s a...

For the copywriting word of the year, I’d like to nominate the word “authenticity.” It’s a big deal right now. People talk about it a lot. I will give you an example on today’s show of how an accidental Facebook ad created more engagement than anything else I’ve ever seen. I went over the ad with my clients and we figured out that it was the way they used authenticity in the writing of it that tou...

Have you ever heard a song and thought, “Dang! How did they do that? I wish my copy was that catchy!” Well, Nathan and I have thought the same thing and in fact pondered the similarities between writing a song and writing copy. You see, we’re both songwriters. We stoutly assert that we are both amateurs at this. At one point, music was Nathan’s business. I never got that far. It’s always been just...

Ever wonder why some copywriters consistently crush it while others struggle to get conversions? This episode dives deep into the Five Stages of Copywriter Awareness—a transformative framework that shows the path from instinctive, mediocre copy to breakthrough results. If you’ve ever felt like your copy was missing something, this episode will pinpoint exactly where you’re stuck and how to advance...

Once you’ve finished your copy, the anxiety begins. And it almost always boils down to the answer to this question: How good is this copy–really? When people ask me to critique their copy, they’re often amazed at how quickly I can get to the heart of things. Once I have an overall opinion, I’ll drill down to a lot of specifics. But I think it’s important today not to talk about those specifics, bu...

Today we’re going to do another episode of “Just because it’s a story, it’s not a hero’s journey story.” What I mean by that is, many people have been misleading copywriters and salespeople for a while now. Saying, if you’re going to tell a story, it’s got to be a hero’s journey story. As you may know, in my book The Persuasion Story Code, I show 25 types of stories that are decidedly NOT hero’s j...

It’s become so common we don’t even think about sometimes, but subscription products have really taken over our world in a way no one could ever have predicted. And along with them, new demands and new opportunities for copywriting. If you look at the past, you’ll see a lot of promotions were based on a single sale, with the copywriter or the business HOPING that the customer might buy the upsell....

If you would like your lead magnets to perform better and get you more qualified prospects and customers, wouldn’t it make sense to look at the most popular form of engagement in the world for some clues? I’m talking about video games. According to the sports and gaming platform Sportskeeda, last year gaming was a $396 billion industry. Movies, $284 billion and music, only $28 billion. Marketing l...

Four months ago, I was completely skeptical about AI and how it would ever fit into copywriting. I saw a post on LinkedIn by Brian Halpin, a copywriter working in Jason Parker’s agency. Brian talked about some unbelievable results, nearly one million in sales, that they had gotten with a VSL that was 80% written by AI. I’ve known Jason for more than 10 years, and Brian’s post piqued my interest. J...

The term “cult” has become such a loaded word lately. People who aren’t members of certain groups call the groups a cult, and the members of those groups resent and deny it. Yet, are all cults bad? Maybe some are, maybe some aren’t. But on today’s show, Nathan Fraser is going to talk about a special kind of cult that, in his view, is not only GOOD — but actually necessary to the survival of some o...

Ever wonder how to set yourself, your product, or your business apart? It’s a big puzzle these days. The best general advice I’ve heard is from recent podcast guest Scott Zetlan: “Different is better than better.” It almost sounds silly, but in the super-competitive marketplace, where products live in the real world, it’s not silly at all. It’s actually profound. Because here’s what it means: When...

Job one for a copywriter is getting and keeping attention. We always give that our best shot. But there are some situations where you need to do this more intensely, and you don’t want to come across like a screaming insane person yelling loudly just to get attention. So we need to come up with some unusual techniques, to increase the intensity without pushing our prospects away. That’s what today...

Today we’re going to talk about two words that can change your writing forever. Not just your copywriting, but especially your copywriting. One word is a first-grade word and the second word is a fourth-grade word, according to people who seem to know about those things. The words are “but” – with one ‘t’ – and “therefore.” Why are these words so important and who, besides us, says so? It’s becaus...

You know FAQs – that list of frequently asked questions, and answers? Are they a copywriting chore you would just as soon avoid? Well, today I’d like to offer a different way to look at them. As a huge, and mainly underutilized, marketing opportunity. I want you to consider this possibility: An FAQ section doesn't just inform. It also persuades. But not in a cheesy, ham-fisted kind of way. See, it...

OK, finally. You’ve got your copy written. At least your first draft. Now what? That’s what a subscriber to the podcast asked me on youtube a few weeks ago. The best I can do to answer that question is tell you how I look at copy, whether it’s my own, or a client’s. Today’s show is about a series of steps I go through to review copy with a mentoring client or in a one-off copy critique. Some of th...

These days, things in copywriting are changing so fast it can make your head spin. Junior copywriters aren’t sure there’s a career path, because of AI. Experienced copywriters are finding clients have different and sometimes confusing demands that you never would have heard five years ago. Our special guest today, Scott Zetlan, has some answers for junior copywriters, experienced copywriters, and...

One of the hardest things for copywriters and business owners to get right is running ads to cold traffic on Facebook and Instagram, and making those ads profitable. If you’ve tried this for yourself, I think you know what I mean. So does today’s guest, who has discovered some important techniques that work and has also discovered the mistakes to avoid, and is going to share valuable info about bo...

I would say our guest today Will Siebler takes a Zen approach to copywriting. On the home page of his website, he has a picture of a lonely but sturdy coffee cup on a table. On the coffee cup is the word “Begin.” But the shimmering peace is shattered by a few words overlayed on the picture: “I’m Will. I write words that make your clients say, ‘Shut up and take my money!’” It’s a quiet confidence y...

Listen to this: “A perfect summer day is when the sun is shining, the breeze is blowing, the birds are singing, and the lawn mower is broken.” That’s from author and sportswriter Jim Dent, and it perfectly captures how a lot of us feel in the summertime. Lazy and happy to be so. And that’s fine. But don’t mistake your state of mind for the state of business. While more retail sales happen in Novem...