How to Write Words that Sells - Part 2

In the last article we made sure that your content doesn’t scare off your ideal prospect. If you haven’t checked it out, it’s here:  https://www.pokhmarketing.com/post/how-to-write-words-that-sells

Alright, now your content looks the part. It’s time we make it actually easy to breeze through for a reader. Once we’ve lured them in, it's our job to keep them reading whatever we wrote. 

So how do we do that?

The same way you’d do it in a bar. 

Use the BAR Test to Fix Your Writing

“As a business owner, your role is to solve problems. If someone has electrical issues, you're a certified electrician with your own business ready to fix it. This is something most business owners understand, but what if people don’t even know you exist? How can you solve problems if the guy across the street, Larry, doesn’t even know your business is there? That’s where marketing comes in—done strategically and with purpose, it helps you attract clients and drive sales”

If you make it through all that without eye glazing over or thinking that your friend was taken over by AI.. you’re  a braver man than I am.

This is actual text from an actual article I saw recently. 

It doesn’t pass the BAR test.

“Okay, What Actually Is This Mythical BAR Test?”

The BAR test is undefeated and undisputed.  It has worked for centuries and will work for centuries more.

Even if there are no mare bars in the future this test will still work. As long as humans walk the Earth you’ll be able to see this to drastically improve your writing. 

Here’s how you use it: 

You look at a piece of text and you ask yourself: 

‘Would I say this to someone in a conversation?’

It’s super simple and it works every single time.

Look at this sentence.

As a business owner, your main responsibility is to solve problems. Most business owners understand this fundamental concept, but what happens if no one knows your business exists?

In a real conversation that would sound something like: 

Most business owners already know they solve problems for a living. But that’s hard to do if people don’t even know you exist, right?

See how that makes more sense? And how it’s much easier to read?

The first sentence sounds like an alien pretending to be human. The second sentence sounds like an actual human. 

Here’s the Quickest and Easiest Way to FIx Your Writing. 

This trick works every time. It’s going to sound simple and almost childish.. But if you give this a try I promise you that you’ll be hooked. 

Read your piece of text out loud. 

See if it flows. Where do you stumble? Where does it sound weird? Would you actually say this to a human?

Pretend you’re talking to a friend. Here’s another example that I read recently:

But, most of the people running businesses nowadays barely even think about what problem their product is even solving, let alone whether or not their most likely buyer is male or female, what their age range is, what their interests are, or even what haircut they have.

This is a 47 word sentence. If you read this sentence out loud you’ll probably notice it’s a run-on sentence. It needs a period in there somewhere. Because in real life we rarely talk in 47 word sentences. 

Conversation has a flow. Some sentences are long, others are short. 

Like this one. Only three words.

Get into this habit. It’s going to change your writing for the better. I guarantee it. 

Apply this advice to your content and see how much more response you get to whatever you write. 

Talk soon, 

Aarambha 

P.S. Want me to check, rewrite and improve your materials using the BAR test and other principles we’ll be talking about?

Get in touch with our agency today. If we’re a good fit I will personally take a look at your company and your marketing, come up with a strategy of what I’d do differently and discuss it with you in depth on a call. 

No cost, no obligation. 

If you want to work together I’ll tell you exactly how that works, if you don’t want to work together that’s fine too. No hard selling, no pressure, no annoying sales tactics.

Sounds good? Then fill out this form: https://www.pokhmarketing.com/free-marketing-analysis