I’ve just finished teaching the fine folks who signed up for the beta round of my copy course, all about how to write compelling copy for their travel agent website.
We’ve covered a LOT of ground — including the research you have to do before you start writing, the importance of gaining clarity on your niche, and what the ideal home page looks like.
(I’ve also learned that I tend to lose my voice after speaking for two hours straight on a live call … #pleasesendsoothingtea).
But do you want to know the single most important thing I taught?
The one thing that makes the biggest difference between “blah” copy and “o-m-g this travel pro gets me!”?
An absolutely indispensable travel agent marketing tip?
Here it is: Get specific.
Because specificity sells.
(Feel free to slap that on a t-shirt and wear it).
In short, generalities = boring copy, but specifics = vivid, captivating, high-converting copy. Hallelujah!
Travel Agent Marketing Tip: Why Specificity Can Help You Sell on Your Website
When I write copy full of vivid, specific detail for a client, sometimes I’ll get a little pushback.
They’ll ask: Emily, aren’t we getting too specific?
Won’t we turn away web visitors who can’t relate to these specifics?
Like, if you wrote your copy with a really, really specific audience in mind — say, a middle-aged man named Bob, who wears Brooks Brothers’ blazers and collects vintage cars — that would definitely be too specific, right?
Wrong. In fact, that’s exactly how specific you should be getting.
In marketing, we talk a lot about ideal prospects and ideal clients — but when you write your website copy (or any copy, really), try writing with just a single ideal client in mind. Just write to one person, and give him or her a name and back story (beyond simple demographics like income and age), and write what you think will really resonate with this one person.
Now that may feel like you’re getting wayyyy too specific … but writing this way will make your copy feel more conversational — not stiff or corporate, like it would if you were trying to write to a whole segment of people.
Writing to one person makes your writing sound personal.
That sounds obvious, but it’s really, really powerful.
Plus, it’s a mindset shift that should help calm your writing nerves. When you’re just writing to Bob, or Patricia, or Chantelle, it’s not a scary process. You’re not thinking about how the whole world will be able to read what you’re writing.
It’s just a chat with a friendly acquaintance that you really want to help out.
Not so scary now, is it?
So get writing. Bob, or Patricia, or Chantelle (or whomever!) can’t wait to hear from you.
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