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Audiences

Why People Don’t Want the “Real” You

by Brian Clark on August 10, 2011

image of joy division lp cover

Everywhere you turn these days, you hear about authenticity.

They say you’ve got to be real in order to connect with today’s social media savvy audiences and consumers.

But it’s not necessarily true.

Go out and be “real” when you’re having a bad day, and people will quickly call you out for not reacting in the “right” way.

Or, cross a line with your audience that disturbs their expectations of you, and you’ll quickly find that people didn’t want that much of the “real you” after all.

And yet, it’s unavoidable — the world of marketing in general, and specifically online marketing, has heavily gravitated to a greater emphasis on an authentic human voice over canned messages and corporate speak.

So what’s going on with this authenticity stuff?

Glad you asked. Let me give you a bit of an offbeat example involving “authentic” t-shirts on the way to answering you.

The case of the vintage t-shirt

I’m a t-shirt guy.

I’m especially fond of cool t-shirts that I’ve owned forever — sometimes for decades — and they show it.

I’m proud of my SXSW Interactive shirt from 2000 even though it’s seen better days. And I was mortified when I had to replace my Joy Division, Unknown Pleasures t-shirt after it was “liberated” during a party I threw in law school, but what are you gonna do?

Let’s look at the larger trend in “vintage” t-shirts:

  • Group 1: People who have cool t-shirts that they bought way back when and now proudly wear as raggedy badges of hipster honor.
  • Group 2: People who shop in vintage clothing stores looking for old, ironic t-shirts, perhaps hoping to be viewed as members of Group 1, or at least … ironic.
  • Group 3: People who buy new reprints of older, popular t-shirts, and then buy other products to begin a rigorous process of making the t-shirt look old so they appear to be in Groups 1 or 2.
  • Group 4: People who go to Target to buy the same t-shirts as Group 3, except these shirts are pre-aged by the manufacturer, effectively commodifying Groups 1, 2, and 3.

Would you agree with me that Group 1 is the only “authentic” example, with each subsequent group diverting a step further away from authenticity?

And yet, people are spending good money for things that aren’t “real.” In fact, Groups 3 and 4 often spend more money to appear authentic than the people who actually qualify.

Is it really true that people want “real,” or could it be they want … something else?

Who’s your favorite person?

The problem of authenticity in marketing is age-old.

The emergence of social media has allowed people to forget Marketing 101, and go right back to egocentrism.

In other words, you’re focusing on your favorite person — yourself — instead of focusing on them, the people you’re trying to reach and influence.

Seth Godin famously said that authenticity in marketing is telling a story people want to hear, and then making the story come true. He caught some flack for that, but that doesn’t make it any less valid.

And yet, even that’s confusing, because you start to think it’s your story that matters.

Your story absolutely matters, but only to the extent that it helps people tell the story they want to tell about themselves.

Why people buy things

Very few of the things we buy are truly necessary.

Everything else we buy is used as a way of telling the story of who we are, what we believe, and what we aspire to be.

So, in the t-shirt example, people will go to great lengths to engage in “inauthentic” commerce, because it helps them say something about themselves that’s desirable. It’s real to them, and that’s all that matters.

Am I telling you to be fake?

No, I’m telling you to get your head in the right place.

Focus on them.

Match them with aspects of yourself. But never forget that you’re helping them tell their own stories as you create your own.

Create content and products that assist in the narrative of life we all tell.

Help people tell the story of who they are, what they believe, and what they aspire to be.

That’s about as real as it gets.

About the Author: Brian Clark is founder of Copyblogger, CEO of Copyblogger Media, and a vintage t-shirt connoisseur. Get more from Brian on Google+.



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How the Art of Screenwriting Can Make You a Better Web Writer

by Amy Harrison on July 18, 2011

image of hollywood boulevard sign

One of the most useful lessons I’ve learned about writing engaging content came from studying screenwriting.

It’s that every single piece of dialogue or screen direction had to be working hard to hook viewers in and keep them gripped.

Audiences don’t like fluff or irrelevance.

Write like that and you won’t keep their attention.

And while there’s no absolute science to it, the screenwriters I trained under drummed into me a single golden rule to help me write powerfully engaging content …

Every single piece of dialogue or screen direction needs to be doing one, or both of the following:

  • Revealing character
  • Moving the story forward

It was a simple method of evaluating what was written.

For example you could ask yourself if the character’s monologue on which milk to buy from the store was really necessary for the viewer to know? Or, was it just padding to bump up the page count?

Unsurprisingly, you can use the very same rules to assess your own copywriting.

Just as a great script needs to be constantly pushing your story on or revealing character to engage the audience, your sales copy needs to be:

Moving your audience further to the goal of taking action (moving the story on)

And …

Convincing your audience that you, your product or your business (or all 3) are the right choice for them to solve their problem (revealing character)

So next time you write, make sure you’re …

Giving them characters they love

You probably already know that people buy from those that they know, like , and trust.

Now this might mean revealing your character on a personal level if you’re a teacher or a coach.

Or, it might mean giving people enough proof that your company is a legitimate enterprise and not a boiler room operation.

Either way, when you’re writing, you should be deliberately including content that allows your audience to believe in you or your business as they would believe in the hero of a gripping movie.

Take a look at your copy and ask yourself:

And remember, it doesn’t have to be as dramatic as that.

It might mean talking about your family life, or using testimonials and talking about your past experience.

All of it works towards building a picture of you or your business as a character with depth that people will know, like, and trust.

Then don’t forget to …

Make your copy a real page turner

Making your readers warm to you makes them more receptive to offers.

But you can’t just stand there all day long and give out free hugs, if you really want to help your customers, you know that they need to do something.

They have to be compelled to take action.

The first action they take is deciding that your content is worth reading with your attention-grabbing headline, and then you’re off on a journey together.

So when you’re re-reading your copy, ask yourself:

  • Do you kick your story off with an opening that gets the attention of your audience and pulls them in?
  • Are you clear and to the point about what adventure (offer) you want them to join you on?
  • Do you appeal to their emotions and prove beyond doubt that life would be worse if they decide to stay at home and sit this one out?
  • Do you take your customer by the hand and show them the excitement and wonder of what awaits them as soon as they take action?
  • Do they know exactly what they need to do to as their first step?
  • Are you using suspense, bullet points and sub-heads to push your reader along to the next line of copy, and the next?
  • Do you soothe their fears about the road ahead and encourage them that the challenges they previously thought were holding them back can now be overcome?
  • Do you persuade your customer to accept the adventure NOW, before they miss out?

These rules are a simple but very effective tool in helping you write in a way that helps you cut the crap out of your copy.

If you’ve got paragraphs or phrases that neither endear people to you nor encourage them to move to the next stage, it’s got to go.

This is Hollywood after all, what’s your dream?

About the Author: Amy Harrison is a copywriter for entrepreneurs. In addition to writing for her clients, she also coaches business owners to smash up their sales copy obstacles and get their offers out there. She is the also the author of How To Get Your Sales Page DONE!

P.S. Screenwriters wish they had it this easy …

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The Art of Keeping Your Audience Coming Back for More

by Robert Bruce on June 9, 2011

image of Dashiell Hammett quote

We’re starving for stories.

We’re dying to know what happens next.

From those nights thousands of years ago flapping our jaws around the fire, to the hypnotizing work of J.J. Abrams and Charles Bukowski, a particular plot device has hooked us all more deeply than any other.

It’s arguably the most powerful tool ever used to keep fiction, film, and poetic audiences impatient, twitchy, and breaking down the doors for more.

And we see clearly now that it was tailor-made for content marketing on the web.

There’s a lot that goes into a great marketing story, but what we’re talking about here is the ancient literary workhorse called …

The cliffhanger

Traditionally, the cliffhanger is a striking event that happens at the end of an episode, chapter, scene, or season of a story. It leaves doubt in the reader’s mind — usually regarding the fate of the protagonist — and all but forces them to come back to see what happens next.

In terms of online content, you want each “scene” to lead your readers deeper and deeper into the movie of your business.

In this media-cluttered world, your blog, emails, social media outposts, and offline activities have to be undeniably good — but that isn’t enough.

You’ll hook readers with a terrific headline … but you’ll get them to read your next piece with the way you wrap it all up.

Every piece of content has to leave them wanting more.

Arthur Conan Doyle put us (and Sherlock Holmes) through the wringer week after week in the pages of The Strand Magazine.

They couldn’t keep enough issues on the stands.

What if you ended each message in your email autoresponder with a fascinating teaser about all the great beneficial content they’re going to get in the next message?

The writers of Dallas (ask your parents) knew exactly what they were doing when they wrote the line “Who shot J.R.?”

Tortured viewers had to wait all summer to find out if the show’s wicked but charismatic main character lived or died.

What if you built mystery, anticipation, and fever around the release of your next product by building something that does so much for customers that they can’t wait to get their hands on it?

Fans of Lost were so impatient for next episodes of the show that they started posting their own scripts online to try and slake their thirst for it.

What if you sold something so valuable, and with such style, that your customers couldn’t help but become creative partners in the marketing of your store?

If you think you’re in the contracting, software, retail, graphic design, copywriting, or dry cleaning business, you’re wrong.

You’re in show business baby.

All the Internet’s a stage, and all the content creators merely players.

No matter what business you’re in, the best story wins. And one element of a great story is to leave ‘em hanging.

So who did shoot J.R.? Find out next season in the comments below …

About the Author: Robert Bruce is Copyblogger Media’s resident raconteur and copywriter.


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  1. First, the Scribe keyword research tool tunes you into the right language before you write. Once your content is created, the Scribe keyword suggestion service shows you keyword phrases you might have missed.
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  3. Third, Scribe’s link and social tools help you build backlinks from other sites, crosslink the content within your own site, and identify influential social media users who will want to share your content.

Find out more about Scribe here.



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Do You Have What it Takes to be an Effective Leader?

by Sonia Simone on April 13, 2011

image of Jillian Michaels

Last night I tuned in for one of my favorite guilty pleasures — watching The Biggest Loser on NBC.

The episode featured celebrity trainer Jillian Michaels being hurled off of the Auckland Sky Tower, the highest structure in the Southern Hemisphere.

(OK, she had a sort of bungee cord apparatus that kept her from falling to her doom. But you know there were still some cheers).

Michaels is one of those people you either love or loathe. She screams at the contestants. She’s snotty. She calls her workouts “beatings.” Professional trainers cringe at her technique.

She’s also widely adored and credited with inspiring thousands — maybe hundreds of thousands — of people to lose weight. And those contestants she screams at all seem to genuinely love her.

So is she a role model for how we can lead and inspire our audiences? Or an abusive train wreck we should do anything to avoid?

Well … it depends.

Some people truly want a boot in the backside

We have a character inside the Third Tribe who’s got a big personality. He expresses himself strongly, he’s not real big on self-doubt, and he likes to throw down challenges. He’s got a huge heart, but he’s not exactly soft-spoken.

Some Tribers absolutely love his message. He tells them to quit making excuses — to get off their lazy backsides and get to work. And they feel inspired and energized.

Others just want to smack him. My guess is they’re the types who kick themselves enough without any help from anyone else. They find him demotivating, depressing, or just plain annoying.

Some people want empathy and support

Interestingly enough, our outsized friend has a business partner who’s soft-spoken, humble, and empathetic.

He’s extremely effective at helping people overcome their fears, deal with self-limitations, and move forward at their own pace.

Those who prefer the boot-in-the-pants method may not even hear my soft-spoken friend. He’s not the right advisor for them.

But quieter souls are glad he’s there, and they get a lot of value out of his approach. They can follow his advice and benefit from it, where the boot-camp style just leaves them cold.

So which one is the real leader?

You probably have a strong answer — the answer that works for your personality.

You might think our big-voiced friend has the right stuff. That he’s not afraid to tell it like it is. That he gets results.

You might think his soft-spoken business partner would be great at helping people find answers within themselves. That he helps his own tribe find confidence by showing them just how much a shy guy can accomplish.

And in both cases, you’d be right.

I’d last about 10 minutes working out with Jillian Michaels before clubbing her in the head with a barbell. But thousands of people would do anything to train with her.

It’s got to come from you

Putting on someone else’s leadership style will only make you look like a fool.

Can you imagine anything less effective than Gary Vaynerchuk trying to imitate Seth Godin?

Chris Brogan trying to be Donald Trump?

How about Robert Scoble trying to be Arianna Huffington?

Notice that in each of these cases, the reverse is just as ridiculous.

If you’re going to lead your audience (and if you’re running a business online, that should be your goal), you’ve got to start with your own gifts. You can’t put on someone else’s leadership style like some weird costume.

But there’s more to it than just “being yourself”

Every social media pundit tells you to be authentic, to be transparent, to be yourself.

That’s important. But it’s not the whole game.

I’d like to invite you to join us for a new series of webinars and articles on what we call the Authority Rules.

We talk about where leadership really comes from … the elements that go into becoming the valued, trustworthy expert in your topic.

  • How to attract the audience you need to become successful. Until you can attract attention, you can’t play the game, much less win it.
  • How to engage that attention and become the likable expert people trust in your topic. Stop selling and start teaching … it’s more fun and more effective.
  • How to convert that engagement into sales. It’s great to have fans, but happy customers are even better.

And it all kicks off with a special report by Brian Clark outlining The 10 Rock-Solid Elements of Effective Online Marketing.

If you want to lead your market, if you want to win the game of online marketing, you need to know that Authority Rules.

Those who cultivate true authority will thrive. Find out how to get it here.

About the Author: Sonia Simone is co-founder and CMO of Copyblogger Media. Share your leadership style with Sonia on twitter.

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Donald Trump’s Top Three Tips for Dominating Your Niche

by Julien Smith on December 16, 2010

image of Donald Trump

We know his name. We know his brand.

We even know his hair.

But do we know how he does it?

If Donald Trump has created a building in your city, you know it. You not only know he has one, but you know exactly where it is.

Maybe you even know how much it cost. You might even know about buildings he’s developed in other cities.

Are there any other real estate developers you can say that about?

Why do we know so much about The Donald?

This happened to me when I was in Chicago last year. I looked out the window and BAM … there he is again. Trump International Hotel, Chicago.

So what are the methods that The Donald uses, the stuff that can help us find a larger audience, write a better blog, build a better business?

Turns out they’re simple, effective, and unforgettable.

Trump Tip #1: Be everywhere

Are you posting only on your own website? Are you only writing, but not doing videos? Are your ads appearing only where everyone else’s (including your competitors) are? Then you’re missing out on a lot of what you can do to build audience, visibility, and profile.

People need to see your face. They need to feel your energy. They need to see your hair everywhere they go.

If you’re only giving your audience a part of who you are, and only in a certain location, that’s like being a guru on top of a mountain in Bhutan. If no one can find you, you’re not likely to get a lot of disciples.

How about, instead, you participate everywhere you’re allowed to? You use every medium to which you’re allowed access?

Trump Tip #2: Don’t pay cash

The Donald may be rich, but do you really think he pays cash — whether to develop real estate or to access new audiences? Most people misunderstand how business works and think that, in many cases, they’re unable to do something that is totally within reach.

When Trump writes a book with Robert Kiyosaki of Rich Dad, Poor Dad fame, do you think it’s because they were like “High five! Let’s write a book together, just for kicks!”

Uh, no.

Top-level players do projects like these to get access to each other’s audiences. Everything is strategic. Everything is done for leverage. And “leverage” is just another word for “I didn’t pay cash to play.”

Same thing when he does Trump University and The Apprentice. All of these are audience plays. Trump doesn’t pay cash, ever.

He trades chips with people who can benefit him.

You can work the same angles. Don’t try to get your audience, or your customers, by buying them. Instead, play the game. Use chips. Think strategically about how you can use leverage to gain access to something you otherwise couldn’t.

Trump Tip #3: Exceed expectations

When I walked into the Trump International Beach Resort in Miami, I was skeptical. What I believed I’d see and what I actually experienced were vastly different.

I was shocked by how polite the staff were. I was stunned by the fact that I actually wanted to spend time there. But most of all, I was shocked by the smell.

Yes, the smell.

The air in the Trump International had a light, fragrant, airy perfume. It was amazing.

Can you shock people? Not with rudeness or vulgarity (necessarily), but with your over-the-top attitude, your expertise, your commitment to doing something great, or your extravagance?

You may not have the ability (or desire) to shock with Trump-like excess. But you can also shock with your appreciation for the little things — the details.

Be Like The Donald?

You may not take The Donald seriously. The hair does make it difficult.

Or you may think you could never translate what he’s done to your own business. It certainly isn’t easy.

But it does have a formula, and this is it:

You have to try.

About the Author: Julien Smith is a consultant, speaker, and New York Times bestselling author who has been involved in online communities for over 15 years –- from early BBSes and flashmobs to the social web as we know it today. Read his blog at InOverYourHead.net.

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