marketing copy: Are There Eye Stutters in Your Marketing Copy? - 06/14/13 02:24 PM
Are There Eye Stutters in Your Marketing Copy?
"Eye stutters" are related to what I call "Stop signs," but are slightly different. These happen when your eye and your thoughts encounter "bumps." Stop signs, you may recall, are misused or misspelled words that make you stop and go back to figure out what the writer meant to say.
While they aren't as serious as stop signs, they do interrupt the flow of your message, so it's good to be on the lookout for them - and remove them. 
 
One form of eye stutter happens when you use the same word … (66 comments)

marketing copy: When Marketing - Don't Flaunt Your Impressive Vocabulary - 05/26/13 05:01 AM
When you have a large and impressive vocabulary, save it for personal use. It doesn't belong in your marketing copy.
All copywriters know this, so I was shocked yesterday morning when some really bad advice arrived in my inbox.
It was an email from EzineArticles.com with a link to "100 Words Every Expert Author Should Know." I was curious, so followed the link – and could not believe my eyes.
They were suggesting that these were words writers should use to spice up their copy. Hopefully, aspiring writers who don't already know better will read the comments from working … (62 comments)

marketing copy: Why you can sell in person, but your marketing copy fails: You aren't addressing your prospects' concerns - 02/06/12 08:02 PM
Before you begin to write any marketing copy, consider who you're writing to, what matters to them, and why it matters.
It isn't your years in the business or your designations or even how many homes you've sold. It's what's going on in their lives that matters to them.
Unless your message zooms right in on your prospects' concerns, they probably won't read past the first sentence.
Is it their fear of choosing an agent who will ignore them? Is it their desire to find an agent who can lead them through the buying or selling process and protect … (7 comments)

marketing copy: Excessive Adjectives – Too Much of a Good Thing in Marketing Copy - 02/02/12 07:26 PM
Excessive (or Unusual) Adjectives –
They're Too Much of a Good Thing in Marketing Copy
I don't use many adjectives as a real estate copywriter – and I never use any uncommon ones. They simply don't belong in marketing copy because they would draw attention to themselves and away from the message.
But not everyone understands that, so their copy becomes almost startling.
 
Knowing that I'd get a giggle from it, one of my ezine readers sent me the descriptive copy he spotted on a website a few days ago. He thought it was too funny not to … (8 comments)

marketing copy: Why you can sell in person, but your marketing copy fails: Blame your English teacher - 01/30/12 03:41 PM
Why you can sell in person, but your marketing copy fails: Blame your English teacher.
You may be writing under the  mistaken belief that a marketing letter needs to sound formal.
Your high school English teacher might approve, but prospective clients aren't impressed. Face it, formal writing is stiff and boring, and no one reads "stiff and boring" unless they have to. And they don't have to read your letter.
A good sales letter is conversational
 It sounds like you're talking to an individual person about a subject that interests both of you. And what interests them … (9 comments)

marketing copy: Why you can sell in person, but your marketing copy fails: First, blame Mom - 01/29/12 07:06 PM
When you get face to face with sellers, you can get the listing. When you have a buyer, you're able to establish an instant rapport and guide them smoothly through finding and buying the perfect home.
But … when you try to write a prospecting letter, your efforts fizzle and your results are dismal. 
Why?
The list of reasons has to be headed by your natural reluctance to toot your own horn. And for that, you have to blame Mom – or Dad – or any other adults who influenced your early years.
If you were raised … (8 comments)

marketing copy: Watch out for those $40 Words! - 05/17/11 08:59 PM
Are you ever tempted to use $40 words when posting to your blog or writing to a prospect? Be careful with that!
There are a couple of copywriting "rules" that everyone should follow (unless they're writing to appeal to people in academia.)
The first is to never use a big word if a little one will do the job. In other words, say "use" instead of "utilize." (They have a slightly different meaning, anyway!) Instead of "facilitate" say "help." Instead of "gormandize" say "gobble."
The second is to check the reading level of what you've written before you send it off. … (13 comments)

marketing copy: Another Marketing Copy/Blog Entry Word Usage Glitch - 10/18/10 08:36 AM
I've written about word usage glitches before, but a new one has been jumping out at me, so I have to mention it.
Lately I've been seeing more and more agents here on AR - and on their websites - who either get "lose" and "loose" mixed up or who forget to proofread their work before sending it out.
I'm sure everyone knows the difference. But just in case...
"Lose" refers to something you've lost. You lose the deal. You lose your car keys. You lose your patience dealing with agents who don't present your offers in a timely fashion.
"Loose" … (15 comments)

marketing copy: Toss the Trash, Polish What's Left - 10/06/10 12:23 PM
The challenge to write about something under my kitchen sink and then relate it to my business left me puzzled for all of about 45 seconds.
While I hadn't thought about it at all before, the things under my sink fit perfectly. Two in particular: The garbage disposal and the jar of silver polish.
As a writer, my method is to get it all out there on paper, then start editing.
Once the first draft is finished, the next step is to cut and slash - and toss anything that doesn't fit with the main idea or doesn't add … (8 comments)

 
Marte Cliff, Your real estate writer (Marte Cliff Copywriting)

Marte Cliff

Your real estate writer

Priest River, ID

More about me…

Marte Cliff Copywriting

Address: 1794 Blue Lake Road, Priest River, ID, 83856

Office: (208) 448-1479



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