I stood there in disbelief.

A cold, barely-eaten sandwich thrown on a cafe’ table…

And a man walking away with pride.

This friends, is a story about what NOT to do when writing copy. Unless you want to sell, that is.

It was a day like any other, and I was getting work done at the local cafe’.

Headphones on, noise canceling mode activated. I was on fire, when suddenly the guy who just sat next to my table hinted at wanting to talk to me.

The first words out of his lips?

“Do you know Travis Barker”.

Ok, a little context before moving on… for those of you who don’t know, I’ve been playing drums for over 20 years and Travis Barker, drummer for Blink 182, is my absolute hero and “virtual mentor”.

I practically learned to play drums by watching his videos and listening to his fills.

Anyway…

I took my Airpods off and started telling this guy about my story and how, yes I was “familiar” with Travis.

He said I had that “Travis vibe” with the tattoos and all.

I was hooked.

You have this random guy approaching me, and out of ALL the celebrities or people in the world I could associate such a vivid image to, he goes with my hero!

So we started chatting and I found that the guy, Glenn and I had a ton of things in common.

Self improvement, investing, learning, reading, business (he’s apparently a super well paid dentist), lifestyle design, fitness and more.

We were in sync. The conversation was flowing.

I started wondering what the guy would end up selling me.

At one point he even showed me his Rolex and his £70k crypto portfolio dashboard.

Then his girlfriend called him and he was like: “Yeah I’m here with my buddy Chris, you know, making world domination plans”.

We were best buddies after not even 10 minutes lol

But then, my friend Glenn ruined it all.

See, he was in a rush now, and the last words he left me with, left an unforgettable scar on our seemingly exciting, brief meeting…

He’d been nibbling at this sandwich since we started chatting, and he still had half of it left.

Finally, he leaves with his final words:

“Do you see this sandwich? I didn’t even pay for it! Because I am a rebel and that’s what rebels do. See ya pal”.

And just like that, he threw the half eaten sandwich on the table, packaging included, and walked away.

…

What a mic drop.

A really inappropriate and out of place one.

I was dumbfounded.

We were best buddies, the conversation had been one of the most serendipitous and open I’ve had in a while (if not ever) with a total stranger.

He made me believe that you can actually meet amazing people if you just embrace the initial discomfort of approaching them…

…and then he ruined all of it.

People are weird. And crazy. And unpredictable.

Apart from this big reminder, the main lesson here – especially when it comes to the copy you write – is about the way you close.

Your close, the way you remind prospects why they should take action, and why they should take action now, not tomorrow, is often more important than anything you have in between the lead and the CTA button.

It’s that last 1/4 of a mile that matters a huge deal.

So never settle for simply restating what you just said.

• Present your benefits, again.
• Use bullet points to showcase everything that’s included.
• Provide assurance that the process will be as smooth as possible.
• Set expectations for what happens next.

And for f*&k’s sake… don’t throw it all away like Glenn did with his sandwich move.

Because for how persuasive everything before that was, your readers will likely remember how they feel when all is said and done, more than anything else.

Need help figuring out how to do it for a specific landing page or part of your funnel? Get in touch.

Quote and reflection of the day:

“Work, hone your craft, enjoy your successes in whatever doses they may come. But do not fall in love with the poster, the image of you in a movie, winning an Oscar, the perks, the limo, being rich and famous. If that is what you’re falling in love with, you’re doomed to fail”

– Bryan, Cranston, A Life in Parts

Find a craft worth pursuing and learn to love the work. Learn to see the work as the reward, that’s where you’ll be spending most of your time anyway. Success is a byproduct of your commitment to the process.