3 Ways to Make Your Copywriting Hard to Ignore and Harder to Resist

Let’s look at a piece of copy that comes from the swipe file of copywriting legend Drayton Bird.

Drayton shared it in one of his emails recently, calling it a “masterclass nobody can ignore.” 

High praise coming from Drayton.

Some quick context: The following copy is the call to action of an ad that ran during the last great recession.

Let’s take a look:

Drayton Bird’s example of copy that “fights to sell.”

It's short, just one paragraph long.

But damn is it compelling. 

There are three powerful psychological factors at work that make it so powerful.

Want to know what they are? 

Let’s break ‘em down. 

Create Urgency

“Let nothing, absolutely nothing, interfere with immediate action.” 

You can feel the urgency, right? 

This ad is basically saying, “our offer is so important, you can’t afford to wait another second.”

You almost feel like you want to make this a priority.

Make A Compelling Promise

“A change for the better justifies no delay.” 

Again, we’ve got urgency, but in addition to urgency, we’ve got a compelling promise: by acting now, you will see change for the better. 

In fact, you’ll make more money as early as next week, and become financially independent the following year. 

Where do I sign?

Warn Prospects About What They Stand to Lose

This call to action includes two warnings. 

The first is you’ll watch other people make bank while you continue to struggle. Who wants that?

The second is that you don’t have much time, and if you wait, you could lose this chance forever. Loss is the most effective form of scarcity there is. 

How Does This Help Your Copy?

Think about your own calls to action for a sec.

Maybe it’s booking a meeting, or subscribing to your newsletter, or buying your product.

Is your call to action really as compelling as it could be?

Is it urgent?

Does it include or imply a promise?

Does it show what your prospect could lose by not taking action now? 

Drayton says “copy that fights to sell costs no more than copy that doesn’t. And that’s how you make more money without investing more money.”

Wise words. 

How hard is your copy fighting?