The Rule of 3
Tricks of the Trade Dept.
Here’s the deal:
You can figure how to do most things. It just takes focus.
Alright, maybe not surgery. But just about anything else. Car repair. Salsa dancing. Composting. Raising kids. Table manners. Copywriting is no exception.
And now for the good news. The Neighbors have a gazillion things on their to-do lists, and sitting down to read this post isn’t one of them. Which means advantage: you.
This month’s trick is handy when you have to write something that describes your product or service. (Not that you ever have to do that, I know…)
If your palms are already breaking out in a sweat at the thought, here’s the thing: it’s a whole lot easier than you think.
See, our minds are built to like things in threes. Tricycles. Triangles. The holes in a bowling ball.
That said, one of the easiest ways to craft simple, straightforward copy is to list your top 3 benefits. (Remember, as I’ve written before, there’s a difference between the features of your offering and the benefits it gives to your clients and customers. Huge. Don’t forget that for a second.)
Think of the top three benefits of your service or product. Fast, easy, cheap. Free, simple, friendly. 24/7, safe, clean. Shorter words tend to work best, and repeating them can help reinforce what you mean to say.
When in doubt, return to easy. People like easy. Sometimes, I like the word “simple” as a stand-in. Because it means the same thing. But it’s more refined, less cheap.
Once you notice the Rule of 3, you’ll start to see it everywhere. Billboards. Taglines. Website headers. TV commercials. Magazine ads. And when you start using it yourself, watch how people respond. If they light up, you know you’re on the right track. Let me know how it goes.
