A few years ago, something happened that provided incontrovertible proof of the importance of an infallible rule in copywriting. I knew it all along but never saw it proven to me in such a personal and direct way.

What am I talking about?

No, it’s not the headline. It’s not being emotional. It’s not benefits. And it’s not split-testing, either. In fact, my opening paragraph gave you a clue.

Sure, the headline, the benefits, and all those things are important. Very important. But the one element I’m referring to, the one element that can transform flimsy, “yeah-right” copy into a sales-inducing powerhouse, is…

… Proof.

Other than poor targeting and shoddy copy, the lack of proof in your copy is what probably (and most likely) causes it to fail. But when I talk about “proof,” I’m not just talking about one or two types, but seven. Yes, seven different types of proof!

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Theodore Levitt once said, “People don’t want to buy a quarter-inch drill, they want a quarter-inch hole.”

This is one of the most quoted passages in marketing in trying to explain the difference between features and benefits. However, the quote is incomplete and leaving out something that, to me, is far more important.

And that is, what’s the purpose of this quarter-inch hole? What does the reader plan on doing with it? Even better, what’s the end-result the reader wants to achieve with it?

The answer to that question is, in my estimation, the real benefit. The ultimate benefit.

Not the hole. And certainly not the drill that created it.

Sure, it is a benefit to some degree. But “benefit,” defined in the dictionary, is “something that improves, enhances, or promotes well-being.” So let me ask you, how is one or one’s well-being enhanced by a quarter-inch hole?

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Today, Scotty Stevens asked me the following question:

“How far would you travel to meet a potential client, if they had the deposit ready for your services? My girlfriend thinks the customer is pulling the strings if they don’t at least meet me halfway. Before, I’ve always traveled as far as it takes, even if it meant driving all the way to the customer, but is that setting a weak precedent?”

Good question, but it’s the wrong one.

“How far would you travel” is irrelevant. A better question is, do they value your time? Do they respect it enough that they are willing to pay for it? In other words, are they willing to cover your travel expenses and pay for you to go out of your way for them?

If so, then I’d be willing to travel anywhere.

I would always consider travelling to meet a prospect if the project was large enough, and provided they paid for what is commonly referred to in this industry as “TMI” (i.e., travel, meals, and incidentals). And in some cases, for my time, too.

(By the way, travel includes lodging, and incidentals include photocopying, long-distance calls, Internet connection in the hotel room, car rental, etc.)

Plus, I would ask them for an advance so I can take care of my own expenses. I would avoid getting them to handle my trip on their end. I would want to have full control over the choice of airline, hotel, restaurants, etc.

If you were driving to meet them, then the client — or, in this case, the prospect — should pay for your gas, normal wear-and-tear on your car (such as $[X] per mile), your meals, and any incidentals. And lodging too, if you were staying overnight.

There’s a very good reason for this.

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Yesterday, I had a tweet burp.

(If you’ve been living under a rock in the past year, a “tweet” is a brief, text message on micro-blogging platform Twitter.)

I call it a “tweet burp” because it’s something like a brain fart. But I prefer “brain burp.” Reason is, unlike a brain fart where one forgets something basic or says something meaningless, what I thought, and subsequently tweeted about, was surprisingly meaningful.

And for some, even profound.

They are tips on how to Twitter better. (Try to say that 10 times in a row really fast!) Let me share it with you by posting some of the highlights here.

Some of these tips are not extraordinary, of course. Most of them are common sense. But they are things I do in my own social media involvement that has proven to work well for me. I recommend you do the same…

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Today, a client has requested, out of the blue, a refund for copywriting work performed last year. Yes, last year!

Can you believe it?

Over seven months have passed and this one client is asking for his money back. His excuse? “I need the money.” Of course, I refused. But he sounded desperate, so I presume he won’t be happy with my decision.

Likely, he will pull tooth and nail to make his case, likely by highlighting all the negatives, warts, and things he doesn’t like as to justify his case.

The thing is, while the client did not hide the fact that he’s strapped for cash, we had an agreement. I can sympathize, but why should that be my responsibility?

As Larry Winget often says, “A deal is a deal.”

I ask for 100% of the fee upfront. No exceptions. I work hard enough as it is to market my services, find clients, and then write copy for my clients. Why would I want to work twice or three times as much just to get and/or keep my money?

Even though there’s an agreement in place, which states that I give no refunds but do offer a 30-day revision period for rewrites, it still irks me on a number of levels.

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“If you like to gamble, I tell you I’m your man. You win some, you lose some, it’s all the same to me. The pleasure is to play, it makes no difference what you say.”
 — From “Ace of Spades” by Motorhead

I’m getting fed up.

It seems to me that product launches of late have less to do with substance and strategy, and more to do with tricks and tactics. Blame it on the economy. But I think we need to blame it on something else. Something more sinister.

In fact, have you not noticed that a growing number of marketers are urging you to join their “club,” as if it’s some secret, back-of-the-room, clandestine poker game?

Admittedly, gambling can be profitable. Very profitable. After all, the more you gamble, the greater you win, right? But do we really need to gamble?

What about the long-term? What about building businesses rather than just making money? What about investing instead? What about investing in your customers that can pay sometimes 10 to 100 times more over the long run?

For example, someone mentioned a new pay-per-follower program on Twitter. (Ugh. How is that any different than from spammers buying bulk email lists?) I responded, and this pretty much sums up my philosophy — it should be yours, too — with:

“I’d hate to treat my customers like prisoners or prostitutes.”

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If you’ve spent much time at all here, you’ll know Michel’s a fanatical tester. But he’s not alone in his passion for quantifiable results.

For instance our friend Alex Mandossian preaches to anyone with ears to hear that, “Nothing is true or false, but testing makes it so.”

(Hope I got that right, Alex.)

That’s so important. Because while copy always has been and always will be indispensable in selling — especially on the web — any copywriter who thinks words alone are enough is doing his clients a huge disservice.

At Success Doctor we’re passionate about copy, but we also recognize words have limitations. When you tune your copywriter’s radar into markets that value testing, you’ll quickly discover — it’s the most competitive markets that place the greatest premium on testing over “gut” feeling.

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