If you are in the business of selling a product or service, you are aware that word choice in marketing materials matters greatly. Your words must inspire, convey the benefits of the product or service, and leave your readers wanting more from you, the expert on the topic.
Whether you are posting engaging Facebook and Twitter statuses, providing calls to action at the end of your blog articles, or promoting a service or product via a newsletter or another form of writing, you have one purpose in mind: You want your readers to DO something.
There are three ways you can create a sense of urgency with your words. Feel free to take this wording, adapt it to serve your market, and apply it to your next product or service offer.
Three Ways to Create a Sense of Urgency
Goal: Encourage prospects to act now, instead of later, increasing your response rates.
1. Put a deadline on your offer.
If you are using snail-mail, you want to make sure your deadline is 8-12 weeks from the date you drop the mail off at the post office. This is because the national average delivery time for third-class mail is close to 2.5 weeks.
If you are emailing the offer, you can use words such as “ends today” or “good until next Wednesday.”
Example: “This offer expires October 28th. After that, it’s too late.”
2. Specify a Timeframe
If you are not comfortable putting a firm deadline on your offer, you can also specify a time frame. This means the reader has a certain period of time in which to act on the offer.
Example: “Please reply within the next 5 days to claim your savings.”
3. Time-Limited Offer
Time-limited offers still convey a sense of urgency with your readers; however, there are no firm deadlines or timeframes. This is a powerful technique to use if you want your readers to understand the urgency to act, but you don’t necessarily want to put a deadline on the service or product offer.
Example: “This offer is for a limited time only. I urge you to hurry before it expires.”
The next time you sit down to write for your business, and you want your readers to take action, I encourage you to try one of these techniques. Creating a sense of urgency with your words is a powerful tool for increasing your response rates, ultimately meaning more money in your pocket.
