In Spring 2019, the universe sent me a new kitty.
Looking back, it was perfect timing.
A month or so earlier, my husband and I had to put down one of the beloved kitties that moved with us from Finland.
RIP Ceci
Her terminal illness had finally reached the point where a good quality of life was no longer possible – not even with continued treatment.
30-ish days later, when Sassy tip-toed by our apartment patio and she heard me “baby talk” Denny, our remaining Finnish kitty, she promptly plopped down in front of us and starting meowing for attention.
She sure picked the right patio.
Both my husband and I are animal lovers with a special softness for abandoned animals. All of our cats thus far have been rescues.
So, can you guess what we did next?
Yep, we fed her. And boy, was she hungry!
Just like that, we became her favorite patio to visit. 🙂
It was as if, by some grand design, we found each other.
Sassy was a somewhat-friendly but abandoned street cat in need of a home. And we were a home with a softness for rescues and a hole in our hearts.
We took her in.
Adding a new adult kitty (and a queen, at that) to a home with another adult kitty (and a tom, at that) wasn’t a super smooth transition.
Both kitties have had to learn to live together in this new dynamic.
For example, Sassy sometimes gets jealous of Denny.
The jealousy sets in when Denny is in my lap getting his cuddles.
One day I said to my husband: “I think Sassy is jealous because Denny gets more cuddles than her.”
It’s true, though. He definitely gets more cuddles.
But not because he’s the favorite. Or because he’s the original.
He gets more cuddles because he ASKS for them.
With the exception of bird watching time (early in the AM), Denny is always in the mood to cuddle. He hops up into my lap anytime I sit down.
Denny’s getting petted while Sassy sits and stares.
It’s no surprise she’s jealous.
Sassy’s learning, though.
No, she still won’t hop up in my lap as Denny does.
She meows and then jumps up on the couch cushion next to me to gear up for her version of a satisfying cuddle session.
Because she’s learned to ask for it, she gets more attention and has less reason to be jealous of Denny.
Jealousy is NOT the moral of this story.
ASKING is.
In copywriting, you have to ASK for what you want.
Give people a clear and specific invitation: a call to action.
CTA element #1: What do you want to happen next?
“Click below to…”
“Answer a few questions…”
“Join me on Facebook…”
“Schedule a 20-minute call…”
“Send me an email…”
“Reply and tell me…”
It’s not just about you, either.
The call to action also has to connect to what THEY want.
CTA element #2: What does your prospect want to happen next?
Both aspects belong in your calls to action.
“If you want to get outcome X, do action Y.”
“Join program Z, so you can get outcome X.”
But Paige, this is a basic marketing/copywriting principle!
I know.
You’d be surprised how much copy I review that’s still missing clear and specific calls to action. For example:
I once reviewed a client’s sales sequence in which not a single email asked for subscribers to join her program.
And this was a SALES sequence!
Guess what subscribers did?
You guessed it: nothing!
She had a super-engaged list (i.e. lots of opens and clicks) but no buyers.
After the review, my client sent a single email invitation to finally ask subscribers to join her program.
People signed up in droves.
All she did was ask!
Check your emails, landing pages, sales pages, and even your website pages for clear, specific, and relevant calls to action.
Don’t assume your people know what the next step is (even if it seems glaringly obvious).
Lead the experience.
You didn’t think I forgot my CTA, did you? 🙂
If you’d like my help getting better results from your existing emails, landing pages, sales pages, websites, or even full funnels, hire me to review your copy.
Like the client I mentioned above, you’ll get the professional insights you need to measurably increase signups, subscribers, and sales.
“Better results sound great!” – Click here to see how a copy review can help.
