copywriting

What this skill does

## Channel Formats and Anatomy

### Blog Articles

A well-structured article follows this progression:

1. **Title**: lead with the core benefit or topic; keep under 60 characters for search engine display; weave in the target keyword naturally
2. **Opening paragraph** (100-150 words): immediately establish relevance through a provocative question, a data point, a counterintuitive claim, or a vivid scenario; declare what the reader will gain; place the primary keyword early
3. **Sections** (3-5 with H2 headings; use H3 for nested topics): each section delivers one distinct idea backed by evidence, examples, or data
4. **Wrap-up** (75-100 words): distill the main insights, reinforce the central argument, and direct the reader toward a next step
5. **Meta description**: stay under 160 characters; incorporate the primary keyword; make it compelling enough to earn the click from search results

### Social Media Posts

- **Opener**: arrest attention in the first line with a question, a number, or a bold assertion
- **Middle**: deliver 2-4 tight points or a brief narrative arc
- **Action prompt**: tell the reader exactly what to do next (reply, click, share, save)
- **Tags**: include 3-5 contextual hashtags, adapting to platform norms

### Email Campaigns

- **Subject line**: cap at 50 characters; lean on curiosity, urgency, or obvious value
- **Preheader text**: extend the subject line's promise without repeating it
- **Visual anchor**: a hero image or banner paired with a single benefit statement
- **Body blocks**: 2-3 scannable sections, each introduced by a bolded lead sentence
- **Single CTA**: one unmistakable action per message
- **Footer**: unsubscribe option, company details, social profile links

### Conversion Pages (Landing Pages)

- **Primary headline**: communicate the chief benefit in fewer than 10 words
- **Supporting line**: add nuance or specificity beneath the headline
- **Hero area**: combine headline, subline, main CTA button, and a visual or demo
- **Benefit blocks**: 3-4 sections organized around outcomes, using icons or imagery
- **Proof elements**: customer quotes, partner logos, performance statistics, mini case studies
- **Objection resolution**: FAQs or trust indicators addressing common hesitations
- **Closing CTA**: restate the primary action at the bottom of the page

### Press Announcements

- **Headline**: factual and newsworthy, under 80 characters
- **Supplementary line** (optional): provides additional context
- **Dateline**: city, state/country, and date
- **Lead** (2-3 sentences): cover who, what, when, where, and why
- **Supporting paragraphs**: expand with detail, quotations, and background
- **Company boilerplate**: standardized organizational description
- **Press contact**: name, email address, phone number

### Customer Success Stories

- **Title pattern**: "[Client name] achieves [measurable outcome] with [your product]"
- **Overview box**: client name, sector, company size, product used, headline metric
- **Problem**: describe the business challenge the client was facing
- **Approach**: explain what was deployed and the implementation method
- **Outcomes**: present quantified results with precise figures
- **Client quote**: a direct testimonial from the customer
- **Next step**: prompt the reader to explore a demo, contact sales, or browse more stories

## Channel-Specific Writing Principles

### Blog Articles
- Target an 8th-grade reading level for general audiences; raise complexity for specialized readers
- Keep paragraphs to 2-4 sentences
- Insert subheadings every 200-300 words for scannability
- Alternate between prose, bullet lists, and numbered steps to vary rhythm
- Back every section with at least one proof point — a statistic, an example, or a quote
- Favor active constructions and front-load each section's key takeaway

### Social Platforms
- **LinkedIn**: maintain a professional yet personable register; use line breaks generously; personal anecdotes and professional reflections perform well; the "see more" fold appears around 1,300 characters
- **Twitter/X**: be sharp and direct; lead with the strongest words; use threads to develop longer arguments; engage in replies
- **Instagram**: write visually-oriented captions; open with storytelling hooks; use line breaks for readability; place hashtags at the end or in the first comment
- **Facebook**: adopt a conversational register; questions boost comment engagement; posts under 80 characters tend to outperform for link shares

### Email
- Subject lines should provoke curiosity, signal urgency, or promise tangible value
- Personalize where data allows — name, company, past behavior
- A single, visually prominent CTA per message drives higher conversion
- Optimize for scanning: bold key phrases, short paragraphs, bulleted lists
- Treat mobile as the primary viewing context
- Continuously test subject lines, send timing, button copy, and layout

### Web Pages (Landing and Product Pages)
- Prioritize outcomes over feature lists
- Address the reader directly with "you" and "your"
- Avoid jargon unless the target audience expects it
- Every section should answer the implicit reader question: "Why does this matter to me?"
- Minimize conversion friction: fewer form fields, explicit next steps, trust badges adjacent to CTAs

## Search Optimization for Writers

### Keyword Approach
- Assign one primary keyword and 2-3 related terms to each piece of content
- Place the primary keyword in: the title, the first paragraph, at least one subheading, the meta description, and the URL slug
- Distribute secondary terms through body copy and subheadings organically
- Never sacrifice readability for keyword density — always write for the human reader first

### On-Page SEO Checklist
- Title tag: under 60 characters, contains the primary keyword
- Meta description: under 160 characters, includes the primary keyword, written to earn the click
- URL slug: concise, readable, keyword-inclusive
- H1: exactly one per page, closely aligned with the title tag
- H2/H3 tags: descriptive, incorporating secondary keywords where it feels natural
- Image alt attributes: describe the image accurately, include a keyword when genuinely relevant
- Internal links: 2-3 links pointing to related pages on your own site
- External links: 1-2 references to credible third-party sources

### Making Content Search-Friendly
- Cover topics thoroughly — search engines reward comprehensive, in-depth treatment
- Address adjacent questions readers are likely asking (mine "People Also Ask" for inspiration)
- Regularly refresh and update your top-performing content
- Format for featured snippet eligibility: definition-style paragraphs, step-by-step numbered lists, comparison tables

## Headline and Opening Techniques

### Headline Patterns
- **How to [get result] [without common pain]** — "How to Double Your Open Rates Without Increasing Send Volume"
- **[Number] [descriptor] methods for [outcome]** — "7 Tested Methods for Reducing Customer Churn"
- **Why [popular assumption] is wrong (and the better path)** — "Why Publishing More Content Misses the Point (And What Actually Works)"
- **The [modifier] guide to [subject]** — "The Definitive Guide to B2B Content Marketing"
- **[Do X], not [Y]** — "Build a Community, Not Just a Following"
- **What [notable result] revealed about [topic]** — "What 10,000 Split Tests Revealed About Email Subject Lines"
- **[Subject]: what [audience] should know in [year]** — "SEO: What Marketing Teams Should Know in 2025"

### Opening Line Formulas
- **Unexpected data point**: "73% of marketing leaders say their top obstacle is not budget — it is prioritization."
- **Against-the-grain assertion**: "The most effective marketing campaigns begin by eliminating most channels."
- **Direct question**: "When did a promotional email last genuinely influence your buying decision?"
- **Hypothetical scenario**: "Picture launching a campaign already knowing which messages will resonate."
-