A sales page is a webpage trying to convince people to buy some stuff from you.
And for your sales page to do just that, you need one thing:
Build a rock-solid argument that gets your prospect to “realize” he has a big, burning problem and that your product is a life-changing, miracle cure that will solve his problem.
Inside this infographic and expert-written, gigantic article, you’ll discover:
- The anatomy of a perfect sales page: the essential ingredients that virtually GUARANTEE you’ll convert more readers into buyers. These are the 11 psychology switches that need to be turned on for a high converting sales page that gets your readers to scroll down, read and ultimately buy from you.
- Mouth-watering examples: breakthrough sales pages copy examples crafted by conversion experts, carefully dissected piece by piece.
With that said, let’s dive right in…
Quick jump to sections:
“Buying is an emotional human experience when we exchange our hard-earned money for a product or service”.
Joseph Sugarman AKA the Godfather of copywriting.
The Anatomy of a Perfect Sales Page
0. Understand Your Target Market
There’s one thing you need to get right to craft a powerful, high converting sales page:
Know. Your. Customer.
That means:
- His core demographics (where he’s from, what industry he’s in, what’s his age range…)
- His hopes, fears and dreams (his key motivators)
- The exact words he uses to describe their problems
If you DON’T know that, stop this post right now and head to the #2 tip of this article . I’m sharing simple, actionable strategies to help you uncover the secret wants of your target audience.
On top of this, here are a couple of strategies you can use to identify how your customers talk about their problems:
If you don’t know who you’re targeting, you just can’t be build an argument that appeals to them. Trying to appeal to everybody equals appealing to nobody.
It’s that simple.
1. Structure a Clear Narrative
79% of people scan read, rather than read every single word. Source.
Mindset
- Your page layout helps the reader scan easily
- The objective of your sales page is to get read. You want the reader to say YES while reading your copy. You want him to be so compelled to read that he cannot stop reading.
- Every single element on your page has a purpose
Always ask yourself, “is talking about [X] going to help me [get the result I want]?”
If the answer is no, don’t be a moron and get rid of it.
The key here is to tie the topic you want to talk about to the result talking about it will get you. For instance:
Topic: 3 customer testimonials that show the exact results they got from my product
Result: the prospect feels “Oh! It has worked for them, so it should work for me”.
Formula
- My sales page needs a section covering [topic] so I can [benefit for the prospect] to [result you’re after]
- My sales page needs a section covering [the exact content of the course] so I can [show my prospect all the value that’s inside] to persuade him to buy.
- My sales page needs a section covering [the major questions he’s asking himself] so I can [show him all his concerns are taken care of] to persuade him to buy.
Examples
Take a look at this great email capture pop-up:
Let me show you a great long form sales page example:
Bottom-line: every element on your page has a purpose
2. Show Them What They Can Be
Our attention span lasts an average of eight seconds.
Mindset
“The sole purpose of the first sentence in an advertisement is to get you to read the second sentence”. Joseph Sugarman.
View your products and services as a tool that enables people to achieve their dreams. Your goal here is to HELP your reader visualize what it would feel like if he could fulfill all his dreams.
Here’s the thing:
People don’t buy your product because it’s cool.
They buy your product because it provides a transformation.
They buy your product because it helps level up their life.
Because it helps them…
Look sexier
Become richer
More likeable, popular
Be the first
Make their life comfortable
Look less lame
Have more freedom
Save money
Look like an authority figure
etc…
If you’re not starting a with a promise that satisfies your prospect’s core desire and offers a real transformation, you lose all hopes of ever selling to him.
The ingredient: a big, fat headline.
This is the FIRST thing the visitor see and it’s your single chance to grab your audience’s attention and motivate them keep them reading.
Checklist
In a nutshell, a solid headline:
- Piques crazy curiosity (eh, what is this?? I gotta find out NOW what it’s all about)
- Wraps up the transformation you offer (AKA communicates the huge benefits your customer will get from buying your product)
- Implies instant gratification (you mean that’s possible, that quickly? I gotta check this out)
- Can be read and understood in about 5 seconds
- Is easy to understand (clarity) and specific (use numbers)
- Be tied to at least one of these eight foundational “desires” common to everyone:1. Survival, enjoyment of life, life extension.
2. Enjoyment of food and beverages.
3. Freedom from fear, pain, and danger.
4. Sexual companionship.
5. Comfortable living conditions.
6. To be superior, winning, keeping up with the Joneses.
7. Care and protection of loved ones.
8. Social approval.
Source
Formulas
Use these formulas to craft your perfect dream introduction:
- How to get [desired result] in [time period]
- How to turn [pain point] into [desired result]
- How to turn [get result] even if [address the objection]
- A [product type] that helps you [result] in [length]
- What if you could [result]
Examples
Directly addresses who their customer is: creators
Show the end benefit (AKA the dream): take control of their career
Show the end benefit: become a top conversion optimizer
Provides a specific time frame [AKA how long does it take for my dream to come true?]: in 3 months.
Shows the end benefit: finding your dream job
Shows the problem beneath: crack the code of finding your dream job
Provides a sneak peek of what’s inside: word-for-word scripts, tactics…
Resources
- Tips # 12 to # 15 of this post (includes the exact strategies I use to come up with juicy headlines fast)
- Headline generators: Portent, Title Generator, Internet Marketing Course
3. Hit Them Where It Hurts
Mindset
95% of our purchase decision making takes place in the subconscious mind. Source
“Harmony is the key. The moment you get the reader to say “No” or even “I really don’t believe what he is saying” or “I don’t think that relates to me,” you’ve lost the reader”. Joseph Sugarman
You must understand their exact hopes and pains. You must have emotional resonance.
And you know why? Because It has been proven that emotions constitute potent, pervasive, predictable, sometimes harmful and sometimes beneficial drivers of decision making.
Yes, you read that right:
“Non-rational influence” (emotion) is more effective than logical persuasion AKA emotions shape decisions
Look, your target market is coming to your sales page with specific emotions in mind and a freaking good sales page describes your prospect’s deepest pain point and problems in vivid details at the start. Remember: you want them to knod their head and say yes , you want them to keep reading.
Checklist
- Identify the challenges they are facing: what’s getting in the way of reaching their goal?
- Appeal to emotions, dreams and fears rather than logic
- Identify the power words that align with your prospect’s problems
- Use words that come straight out of your customer’s mouth
- Get your prospects to say things like:“How does he know?”
“OMG, that’s exactly what happened to me”
“He’s reading my mind…”
Formulas
- Do you suffer with…
- Confused about…
- Sick of being…
- Struggling with…
Examples
Example 1: The old woman in the motel.
Example 2: The little old lady in the cottage
Which one sounds more appealing to you?
Bottom-line: You want your prospect to nod in the affirmative and agree with you. You can’t sell someone the solution to a problem they didn’t know they had. Plus, tomake your audience trust you, you need to make them say things like “Yes! Finally, someone who gets me!”
4. Educate Them
74% of buyers chose the company that was the first to add value — Source.
Mindset
Unless you’re selling a crappy, scammy product, the goal of your marketing should be to EDUCATE the customers…..and not JUST trying to just sell them!
Here’s what I mean by educating them:
Give them away enough USEFUL information (to help them make a decision).
Yes my friend, a good sales pages:
- Educates your prospects on their problem
- Provide valuable insights, secrets, “behind-the-scene information that’ll help them understand their problem + why it needs to be solved
Formulas
- Let’s bust some myths about [topic]
- The top 5 blunders when it comes to [topic]
- Which of these lies is holding you back from success?
- Surprising insights from [experience, people]
Examples
5. Show Them What They Can Get
44% of buyers feel that only 25% of their providers help them maximize their value.
Mindset
Tell them exactly what’s inside your product in a benefit-oriented way. Tell them how you’re going to help them achieve those dreams and erase these pain points. Break down exactly what they’ll learn/get/be able to do when using your product/service/program.
Checklist
- Be specific
- Use numbers
- Focus more on benefits than features
- Use outcomes AKA learn so you can [result]
Formula
-
Here’s what you’ll get
-
Here’s exactly what [product] includes
-
How to do [action] that gets [result]
-
Our # 1 secret to [result]
-
The one thing you need to [result]
-
How to use __ technique so you can [result]
-
Our [x]-step system for getting [result]
Examples
Here are a few ass-kicking copy bullets taken from one of my favorite copywriting online course:
How to “calibrate” your language to improve sales conversion.
The little “dating” trick to use in copywriting for fun and profit.
3 elements to constructing magnetic headline.
The 4-weeks program to doubling your organic traffic.
Resources
6. Show Them The Results
72% say reading a positive customer reviews increase their trust in a business. Source
Mindset
“The proof of the pudding is in the eating”.
People don’t buy things, they buy results.
There are various mediums you can use on your sales page:
- Have a software that solves specific problems? Show them how it works [VIDEO]
- Offering a product that helps people to eat healthy? Put up [PICTURES] of some of the actual meals.
- Offering SEO services that triple traffic in 2 months? Show Google Analytics [SCREENSHOTS].
Dozen of people bought your products? Show them what results they got. But wait, not only:
You want these reviews to show your customers, struggles, challenges and transformations so they can inspire your prospects and get them to relate.
The ingredient: SDT Principle
The SDT (aka Show Don’t Tell) principle has one purpose:
Enable your prospect to experience your product through action, senses and feelings. On top of your sales copy, use images or videos to reinforce your message.
- We process visuals in 13 milliseconds. That’s 60,000 times faster than text.
- 40% of learners respond better to visual information than text alone. Source
- People who use visual aids are 43% more persuasive than those who don’t. Source
Examples
7. Show Them Their Options
You want to be super transparent about the choice your prospects have.
- It educates your prospect on the choices they’re having (hint: they don’t also know their options)
- It builds trust
Here are the typical options your prospect has when landing on your sales page:
- Try other programs (reasons they’re not as good as yours)
- Hire someone (reasons why it’s not the best alternative)
- Your product (reasons why it beats 1 and 2)
Examples
8. Get Them To Like You
Mindset
Cialdini’s principle The more you like someone, the more you’ll be persuaded by him.
According to the Godfather of psychology Robert Cialdini, we prefer to say yes to those we know and like.
We like those who are similar to us, give us complements, and cooperate with us toward common goals. Liking is based on sharing something similar with people you like, and it’s also based on something as superficial as how attractive a person’s looks are!
Here are a few ways to help them get to LIKE you:
- Share your story: show your vulnerability (AKA a time when you were most embarrassed, frustrated, or discouraged)
- Share your client’s stories
- Show your beliefs / struggles / triumph
- Establish authority
- Label them
Examples
Share your story
Here’s how Brian Dean from Backlinko does it:
The labeling technique
Copy Hackers: Long-Form Sales Pages Is Designed for Fast-Moving Hackers Like You…
Establish authority:
9. Put Their Mind At Ease
Mindset
Here’s the thing:
Every person has some form of buying resistance.
So whenever people read your offer, there will be friction.
Said simply, your prospect is gonna be hesitating about whether taking your offer or not.
Your goal is very simple:
Overcome every single objection.
Your job is to help them overcome that buying resistance addressing the typical fears driving it. To do that, you have to provide specific answers these questions:
- He doesn’t get me
- It worked for him/them but won’t work for me
- How can I be a 100% sure this works
- I don’t like/trust/believe him
- I can find the same thing for free/cheaper elsewhere
- I can buy later
- It’s too expensive
- What happens after I click the purchase button (hint: they want instant gratification)
Provide arguments to these questions and you don’t need anything else to make the sale.
Examples
Almost everybody today is offering money-back guarantee.
To stand out and show your customer you’re confident the product delivers, you can offer a 110% no question asked money-back guarantee
Bottom-line: provide a risk-free environment. Give your customers the confidence that even if they make a purchasing mistake, they WIN.
10. Jolt Them Into Action
Once you’ve laid out the value, benefits, testimonials, you gotta jolt your prospect. AKA make them want it, make them want IN.
Here are proven strategies you can use to increase the perceived value of your offering:
Refame
- This program = cost a fine meal dinner
- 5 monthly payments of $97, less than the cost of a daily latte
\
Use the infomercial hack [the seed of curiosity]
AKA offer a juicy bonus (and name it’s value) on-top of your product.
Is that it, hell no?
So read on.
But I didn’t stop there.
Let me explain.
But wait, there’s more!
Get it within the next 48 hours and I will also throw in an exclusive bonus worth $498.
Don’t say: Receive a free eBook
Say: Receive a free 197$ value eBook at no price to you.
Use the exclusive club hack [AKA the desire to belong]
Look, you can’t make everyone happy, so stop trying. Instead, be crystal clear on who your product is serving and who it is not.
People hate one thing:
Being told no
Formulas
- Don’t buy this if…
- This isn’t for you if / This program won’t work for you if
- Don’t bother if you don’t have the balls to implement
11. Have a Crystal Clear CTA
Mindset
The goal of your sales page is for your prospects to take action AKA buy your product. You want to give your customers a clear picture of what action he needs to take NOW to get the benefits he wants.
You wanna make it stupidly simple so they just know what to click.
- Your biggest enemy is the back / close-this window button. You have one, single call-to-action button. NO distraction (AKA sign up to newsletter)
- If your sales page is looong, you’re going to want to have multiple CTA buttons along the way. Why? Because visitors can just click the button here they feel the most convinced.
- Your call-to-action button stands out: make sure color chosen doesn’t blend into your design.
- Include the price of your product. If you have payment plan options, show them.
- About the price: an important copy point to consider is the price. If you’re selling a product or service at a very good price, then make the price larger. If the product is expensive, you’ll want to underplay it (I didn’t say hide).
- Ask a question that reminds the transformation your product offers. For instance:
Ready to make more money with every email you send?
Are you ready to build an email list and turn it into reliable income? - Make sure to illustrate the process for purchase so they understand what they’re getting themselves into (e.g. click this button to be taken to this order page)
Formulas
- Instant access to [product name] + all bonuses
- I want this!
Example
Resources
Dig Deeper
How to write irresistible content (including magnetic headlines and attention-grabbing copy that’s focused on your audience). Starting at tip #12.
The Advanced Copywriting Strategies for Online Sales: An exquisitely detailed, take-you-by-the-hand online course on copywriting that’s jam-packed with proven advice, formulas and scripts you can use right now to write copy that sells and turn leads to paying customers.
