Master the Art of Writing Fascinating Copy for Persuasion (Udemy.com)

Do you want to learn an excellent method to boost your reader engagement, make your content and copy more comfortable to read, and call alert to the points your audience must understand?

Consider it or not, it's our buddy, the bullet point.

That's correct. The nemesis of every deathly-dull presentation on earth can be employed in fun, fascinating, and highly reader-friendly ways.

Here's how.

First, you need to learn the following five "basic" elements.

5 tips for better bullet points

Readers adore bullets — they make your content less difficult to skim and pull out the vital facts, so it's positively digestible.

But don't just toss them into your copy— use them wisely and creatively. Here are five recommendations for well-done bullets:

1. Good bullet points raise awareness of something that satisfies the reader.

2. Good bullet points are proportional. It's best to keep them around the exact number of lines on the screen.

3. Good bullet points are orderly. This isn't an overview for your high school English class — bypass subsections, sub-bullets, etc.

4. Good bullet points are parallel. Begin each bullet with the same amount of speech — if one begins with a noun, don't make the following one a verb.

5. Good bullet points (like headlines) aren't always whole sentences … but keep them compatible.

And note — bullet points can be in a numbered list or in the form of "unordered" bullets. But both work perfectly fine.

Now for the excellent effects … fascinations.

Fascination is an ancient copywriting word, signifying the mesmerizing elements or characteristics of a product (or service, or email newsletter, or ebook … you get the point) that can be teased out and used to draw your audience's attention to read further.

Fascinations are a particular kind of bullet point that is so exhilarating and benefit-driven that the reader just can't help but read more to discover the promised secret.

It's a fantastic strategy for:

• Luring readers back into the copy they skimmed

• Provoking the download of a free book

• Compelling someone to click on a link

• Propelling subscriptions to your site or newsletter

• Triggering the desired "Add to Cart," click

The key to a fascination is sagging the blessing teasingly without really giving away the "Secret".

Fascinations originate way back from traditional direct response copywriting. For instance, look at some copy from Bottom Line Secrets, a subscription periodical that promises insider data to make your life more comfortable. The business established itself many years ago with a sales article that was basically nothing but very captivating bullet points.

Here are some samples from that original ad:

• Why some patients are given favored status in hospitals … almost preferred treatment. This little-known information could save your life.

• How to learn about medical discoveries before your doctor.

• How and when blood pressure can fool you … and drinking alcohol without hangovers.

• The two famous cold remedies that, taken together, can give you ulcers.

• A simple way to prevent Montezuma's Revenge.

Do you see how perfectly these are combined together? They hint at a product's benefit without slopping the beans about how to get that gift. You need to subscribe if you want a simple way to prevent Montezuma's Revenge.

That's a fascination.

Where do fascinations come from?

The best way to discover stunning fascinations is to examine your product or service and determine what benefits you provide to your clients.

Remember to hold them favorably appropriate. Focus on the advantages that are most persuasive for your particular audience.

If at all feasible, use numerals and statistics. So "How to reduce your blood pressure" is good, but "How to lower your blood pressure as much as 10 points … without medication" is a lot more fascinating.

Attempt to discover an aspect of practical surprise as well. "Learn to improve your flexibility" is good, but "Add 6 inches to your toe-touch in 10 minutes … even if you've never been able to touch the ground before" is much more promising.

Put time and effort into creating your bullet points fascinating (or at least transparent and valuable), and customer response will increase.