People buy for emotional—not logical—reasons. And the key to making an emotional connection is through arousing desire.

But there’s much more to the spectrum of human desire than the “7 deadly sins” 99% of other marketers talk about.

Otherwise, how would you account for altruistic motivations like compassion, duty, honor, love, service, etc.? Or even the slightly “lower” motivations like approval, belonging, learning, or artistic expression?

I’ve been thinking a lot about desire lately. We are motivated by our desires, which is why tapping into desire is the KEY to creating a strong persuasive appeal.

“Spiritual Copy” is about inspiring people to respond… and not appealing strictly to “lower” desires. It is about recognizing the good (the divinity) in every single one of us.

When you appeal only to the “lower” motivations, it’s all too easy to come across as manipulative… and that puts up walls of skepticism and resistance. Just look at how most money-making opportunities are marketed, and you’ll see what I mean.

I’m going to propose a different model. I call it “The Holistic Model of Core Desires”.

Mystics tell us we are made up of body, soul, and spirit. The soul is that part of us which experiences individuality—our emotions and will (or to use the traditional terminology, the heart and mind). The spirit is that part of us that recognizes our unity with God and the Universe.

We are composed of all three: body, soul, and spirit. The “7 Deadly Sins” only appeal to our “lower” natures. But we are holistic beings. And humanity is much more evolved than most people–especially marketers–tend to give them credit for. (To illustrate, read this.)

Here is my new model of desire, based on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, and chapter 5 of Chip & Dan Heath’s wonderful book, Made to Stick…

The Holistic Model of Core Desires

Physical Urges: (Body)

Flesh: The desire for food and drink… for bodily comfort and pleasure.

Security: The desire for safety, protection, & stability. The desire to be free from fear, pain, worry, danger, or hardship.

Emotional Yearnings: (Heart)

Esteem: The desire to be set apart… to be competent… to achieve… to gain approval. The desire for independence, status, fame, and glory.

Belonging: The desire for love & affection from family, friends, & mates.

Mental Pursuits: (Mind)

Aesthetic: The desire to experience symmetry, order, beauty, and balance.

Learning: The desire to satisfy curiosity… to know and understand… to discover.

Highest Aspirations: (Spirit)

Self-Actualization: The desire to have “peak experiences”… to realize our full potential… to become who we’re truly meant to be… to fulfill our destiny.

Transcendence: The desire to help others realize their potential… to be a force for good… to become one with God.

The key to creating a more persuasive message is in reaching across the entire spectrum of desire. It’s perfectly okay to appeal to “Body”, “Heart”, or “Mind” level desires… but for maximum persuasive impact… to inspire your prospect to respond… you must also appeal to desires born of the “Spirit”.

For example…

Say you’re offering a way for your prospect to make more money. You certainly need to communicate the extra security… the more comfortable life… the protection of loved ones…

But don’t neglect to point out how having financial freedom can allow them to become who they were truly meant to be… that it will allow them to realize their full potential—which can only happen with complete financial independence to experience those things that will help them learn and grow, and live a fulfilling life in every way—physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.

That is the heart of Spiritual Copy.

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I can’t help it, I LOVE what I do.

And if I weren’t writing copy, I’d be writing novels… or composing music… or something else that requires BOTH sides of the brain.

Sometimes I get a project I wouldn’t mind doing even if I didn’t get paid a dime. Like yesterday, for example, I picked up a sales letter project for the company where I used to work as Marketing Director.

They sell high output black lights to the entertainment industry, and they want to create a promotion to send out to all the equipment rental houses offering them a trade-up for their old fixtures.

They hand in their old, crappy fixtures (even if they don’t work) and get $300 credit toward a new one. Plus, their old fixtures are recycled.

The company president (my former boss) wanted to create a flyer to send in the mail. But here’s the thing:

Flyer = BORING.

The number #1 sin in marketing is boring your prospect. A flyer may be great for posting on a bulletin board (if done right), but it’s not for direct mail.

There is nothing personal about it… and nothing interesting, either. Plus, it’s the WORST way to use direct mail.

So I came up with some ideas:

• First… let’s make it a sales letter, not a flyer. You can sell just about anything with a well-written sales letter.
• Second… since they’ll be recycling the old fixtures (and the customer will save money doing it), let’s call it the “Easy Being Green” Promotion.
• Third… let’s create a character named “Tree Frog Bob” to be the “spokesfrog” for this promotion.
• Fourth… let’s include a toy stretchable flying frog as a “grabber”, which will make the envelope “lumpy” to add intrigue, and guarantee it gets opened.

The headline “ties in” the grabber…

“It’s Time To S-T-R-E-T-C-H Your Green With
Wildfire’s ‘Easy Being Green’ Promotion.”

Trade Up Any Old, Embarrassing Blacklight Fixture For
$300 Credit Toward A Brand-New Wildfire 400W Spot or Flood

Then, in the deck, there is a cartoon drawing of our spokesfrog, Tree Frog Bob.

Tree Frog Bob is here to tell us that even though he’s from the deep Amazon, he’s heard about the recession… and he thinks the best way out of it is to just focus on the green: saving it… and making it.

And being in the green just got a whole lot easier with Wildfire’s “Easy Being Green” Promotion.

The theme continues through the sales letter. Notice how it suddenly has more interest and appeal. I’ve even created some slightly humorous back-story elements for Tree Frog Bob that are woven throughout the sales letter…

Such as how his cousin’s mother-in-law’s brother’s son knew this guy whose girlfriend once dated this other guy who knew this agent up there in Hollywood. So when he heard about a call for a green spokesfrog… well… he knew it was his lucky break!

The point is… this WILL get opened. It WILL get read… and perhaps even passed around the office for its entertainment value. (Plus, it’s a pretty darn persuasive sales letter, too!)

Here’s the lesson: NEVER be boring. Be curious. Be interesting. Be personable. Be cheesy if you have to. But don’t be boring.

You can add interest to your marketing in several ways…

• Tell your story.
• Be personable.
• Write like you talk.
• Write about what your prospects are interested in.
• Create “cartoon” characters to be your spokesperson.
• Get rid of all corporate or legal-sounding B.S.
• Use colorful language.
• Use common metaphors and figures of speech.
• Insert a “grabber” in your envelope to guarantee it gets opened.

That’s just off the top of my head.

If you’re ready to move beyond the same old boring drivel, and actually generate a response for a change, then visit my services page.

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There is no simpler and more elegant definition of marketing than this:

Getting the right message to the right person.

I love this definition because it immediately reveals the process of marketing, and implies a 3-step action plan.

If you’re going to get the right message to the right person, what’s the first thing you need to know?

Who that person is! So…

Step #1: Identify Your Ideal Prospect

This is where most business owners make a HUGE mistake. They aren’t clear on who their Ideal Prospect is. They think they should “cast the net wide.” But when you try to appeal to everyone, your message becomes so general it appeals to no one.

I teach that marketing starts and ends with the prospect. It is NOT about what you sell. It’s about who you’re serving.

Step #2: Create Your Message

You cannot create a strong message without knowing who your Ideal Prospect is. The message must be specifically targeted toward this prospect and create deep resonance. It should promise to solve a problem, meet a need, or fulfill a desire… all while building that all-important know/like/trust bond.

Step #3: Get Your Message To Your Ideal Prospect

Many business owners make the mistake of starting here. They waste thousands of dollars on advertising, direct mail, traffic generation, etc., without first being clear on who they’re targeting and what their message is. Do Steps 1 & 2 first. Then invest your money in getting the message out there while testing and refining your message as you go along.

Yours in Spirit,

Joshua Aaron Stanley
“The Spiritual Copywriter”

P.S. Want to know the secret to creating resonance, eliciting emotion, and forging a connection while moving your prospect to action? My “Spiritual Copywriting in Practice” Training Program starts June 24…

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I’m back! And I have much to say about my absence. (More on that in the coming weeks.) But for now…

Listen in below as Ed Philipp of www.TeleseminarWebFolk.com interviews me on the foundations of copywriting and creating a persuasive “Core Marketing Message.”

Here’s what I cover:

• How to create a message that engages your ideal clients and resonates with them.
• The 3 critical ingredients for creating a powerful and strategic “Core Marketing Message”.
• How to lower price resistance while eliminating the competition.
• How to turn your website into a lead-generating machine.

Just click play… (And be ready to take lots of notes!)

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If you sell your products or services on a traditional multi-page website (rather than a one page long-copy sales letter), then you’ll want to make sure your Home Page is performing two absolutely critical functions.

Without them, your website is nothing more than an online brochure. It will fail to turn visitors into buyers. And you’ll wonder why the heck everyone is so hyped about online marketing.

But when your Home Page is performing these two functions, you’ll finally start turning words into wealth… and clicks into cash. You’ll have a virtual ATM machine!

Here’s the secret…

Beyond the obvious challenge of “engaging your visitors”, your home page MUST:

1.    Communicate your Core Marketing Message, which consists of 3 elements…

a.    Who you are and what you do.
b.    What benefits you provide to whom.
c.    Why they should do business with you. (Your USP, or Unique Selling Proposition)

2.    Capture your visitor as a lead in your database. (So you can establish a relationship with him and nurture him into buying.)

At least 90% of business home pages fail to do these two simple tasks. And most of the other 10% don’t do them effectively. (Merely slapping an opt-in form on the Home Page just doesn’t cut it.)

That means if you can get this right, you’ll have a tremendous advantage over the competition. You’ll be the winner, while your competitors are the ones left wondering what all the online marketing hype is about.

(For an example of this in action, visit my Home Page.)

I could go very deep discussing each of these functions. Which is why I’m finishing up an entire course called “How To Create Your Core Marketing Message”. I’m putting the finishing touches in the 115-page workbook. And I’m recording the audios as we speak.

Stay tuned for more developments…

Oh—and be sure to download the FREE How-To Guide on Covert Written Persuasion.

Aaron

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