Seems I’m ranting a lot these days, and a little more opinionated than the norm. Perhaps it’s my broken back, which is killing me, that’s making me more sensitive or irritable. I don’t know.

But something someone recently said in my copywriters forum irritated me. And it’s not what this person said specifically, but the mindset behind it that’s bothering me.

In a thread about an Internet marketer who was recently arrested (yes, it had something to do with forced continuity, but it had more to do with refusing refunds and avoiding customers than it had to do with forced continuity itself), one member said:

“There is NO such thing as an honest business man. (…) Ask any accountant.”

Now, I have no clue as to why this person said this. And my opinion here is not about this person specifically. Again, it’s about the thinking process that some people have when they make such assertions.

Personally, I believe this view of business people is skewed, off, and wrong. It’s destructive, too.

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This is another article written by one of my associate copywriters, Joe Valente, as an introduction to one of mine — which I linked on this blog entry further down. But Joe’s article is so good, I decided to reprint it here.

Essentially, it’s about appealing to different buyer personalities with your copy. Some people are driver types. Others are more analytical. Some are expressive and colorful. Others prefer the warm-fuzzy type of copy. Either way, your copy should chiefly appeal to the predominant personality of your market.

So before I go any further, you better read this article. (There are also many great lessons about copywriting used — and some hidden in the article itself. About storytelling, about the power of metaphor, and about human behavior. I suggest you read it, then read it again. Look for them. It’s that powerful.) Take it away, Joe!

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