Lee Odden, one of the most influential marketing strategists today, elegantly breaks down the ‘content’ copywriters produce as, "... the reason search began in the first place.” If copywriters fail to produce stimulating and intriguing words to articulate the necessity of a product or company, then where is the enticement for customers to click and read? Every copywriter has the potential to sharpen their skill set, which is why learning from some of the best to have ever done it is crucial for enhanced SEO copywriting strategy. If you’re in need of some marketing enlightenment or inspiration, here are seven books that are essential reads for encompassing copywriting’s best practices:
1) Everybody Writes: Your Go-To Guide to Creating Ridiculously Good Content
By Ann Handley
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This is a book that simply emphasizes the importance of writing intelligent, original, and creative copy, from digital marketing pioneer Ann Handley. Handley goes into detail how in an age of 280 characters or less, honest and compelling copywriting is a lost art that’s crucial for establishing brands as credible and relatable for target audiences. “Everybody Writes” does a great job at dissecting the cliches of copywriting, and how to push yourself further to create content that’s both empathetic and humanizes a product or company.
2) Copywriting Secrets: How Everyone Can Use The Power Of Words To Get More Clicks, Sales and Profits
By Jim Edwards
Purchase This Copywriting Book
Author Jim Edwards has made his entire living based on helping others perfect the art of copywriting. As the founder of the Virginia-based advertising company Guaranteed Response Marketing, LLC, Edwards has written a tell-all expose detailing how to maximize profit potential through smart, impelling, attentive copywriting. From increasing email open rates, to influencing people to click on your website ads, to mastering methods of persuasion, “Copywriting Secrets” is a great read for any copywriter interested in creating more motivational content.
3) Search Engine Optimization: Proven Formulas & Tactics to Increase Your Visibility
By Erik Kleven
Purchase This Copywriting Book
While the backbone of great copywriting is unique, informative, and engaging language, implementing efficient SEO tactics into your copywriting is crucial in today’s world of marketing. This book is a quick and easy instructional introduction to learning how and why SEO techniques are effective, as well as how to implement proper SEO methods into your own copywriting. From conducting proper keyword research to dissecting SEO’s impact on content creation, Erik Kleven’s guide to SEO copywriting is one of the most current books published on the subject, and provides one digestible lesson after the other for any aspiring copywriter who’s new to Search Engine Optimization, or expanding their knowledge on the strategy.
4) Writing for the Web: Creating Compelling Web Content Using Words, Pictures and Sound
By Linda Felder
Purchase This Copywriting Book
For copywriters who are interested in honing their design skills to complement their copywriting, “Writing for the Web” is an engaging textbook that illustrates the importance of accompanying great copy with the right types of graphics, images, and sounds. Author Lynda Felder provides over 15 years of digital marketing and college teaching experience to demonstrate how effective copywriting and web design go hand-in-hand when it comes to efficient marketing. This is one of the better books available that offers guidance on both engaging copywriting and guidelines for video and animation marketing campaigns.
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5) The Copywriter's Handbook: A Step-by-Step Guide to Writing Copy that Sells
By Robert W. Bly
Purchase This Copywriting Book
Now in its fourth edition, Robert W. Bly’s “The Copywriter’s Handbook” is considered by many to be The Bible when it comes to showcasing the inner workings of current digital media trends. Effective headlines, boosting landing page conversion rates, doubling response rates; Bly leaves no content marketing stone unturned. With over three decades of marketing consulting experience, being voted Copywriter of the Year by American Writers and Artists, Inc, and more than 60,000 subscribers to his marketing tips newsletter, Bly offers infinite wisdom through “The Copywriter’s Handbook” for rookies and veterans of the trade alike.
6) Copywriting Made Simple: How to Write Powerful & Persuasive Copy That Sells
By Tom Albrighton
Purchase This Copywriting Book
Anyone who learns better from infographics, illustrations, or diagrams will appreciate the educational, yet not overly trite nor complex layout of Tom Albrighton’s “Copywriting Made Simple”. Albrighton outlines his 15 years of freelance copywriting experience through breaking down the psychology of proficient copywriting, often with accompanying images that visualize each marketing concept. “Copywriting Made Simple” focuses on what Albrighton refers to as “six proven principles of persuasion”, intended to help your copywriting dictate how a reader will “think, feel, and act.”
7) The Strategic Storyteller: Content Marketing in the Age of the Educated Consumer
By Alexander Jutkowitz
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Consumers are more skeptical and cynical than ever, which makes compelling, authentic, and invigorating copywriting all the more important. “The Strategic Storyteller” is a copywriter’s manual for anyone looking to keep their content fresh and always one step ahead of the curve. Author Alexander Jutkowitz is one of today’s most esteemed content marketing influencers, and uses a coy and comedic voice to articulate how individuality within copywriting is a forgotten, substantial component to gaining comfortability and establishing trust with target audiences and demographics. This is must-own text for copywriters focused on making their work as evergreen as possible.
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