This course is now part of our advanced business writing bundle.
Learn how to write clear and effective copy for software and other technical products
When you’ve been given the task of writing marketing content, what you create can have a great impact on how many people take an interest in your company. For example, it can affect how many sign up to what you’re offering them.
Get it right, and your work can create a crowd of interested prospects and new customers.
Get it wrong, and, as they say, crickets.
Cherryleaf’s online technical copywriting training course teaches you how to write clear and effective marketing copy, in a straightforward and efficient way. Let us share with you the best practices we’ve developed for writing copy for software and other technical products.
Who is this for?
You don’t have to have a technical background to benefit from this course. This course is designed for anyone involved in writing marketing copy for software, technical products and services. It’s for those who:
- Are unsure where to start, and which topics to include
- Want a framework they can use to guide them through the process of writing great content
- Want to have a way of checking they are doing it right
- Want to learn the latest techniques in copywriting
- Are unhappy with the performance of their copy
- Want to write better, more effective content
Our story
There are, of course, other courses on copywriting, but they usually try to be all things to all men. And more specialist information on marketing technical products tends to be available only at conferences or in books.
We’ve been teaching technical writing skills for years. So when one of our technical writing clients (a software company) told us they were looking for a course on copywriting for some of their staff, we decided to create a new online course that met this need.
Not many people know this, but we’ve being doing technical copywriting on the quiet for many years. This has included writing white papers for clients such as Adobe and Datomia, improving website copy, and writing articles. That’s because there’s now a customer journey for web-based applications that integrates marketing copy, onboarding instructions, and online Help. It also means technical people, such as developers and Technical Writers, are now getting involved in writing marketing content.
In developing this course, we reached out to developers, Technical Authors, and documentarians to get their feedback on the draft course. We put the course outline on Google Docs, and over 25 people added their comments or made suggestions by email. The result is, the course teaches the right skills for them, and we think, for you as well.
What will I learn?
You will learn:
- How to write clear, compelling, and persuasive marketing content in a consistent way
- How people make buying decisions today
- The purpose of copy in the context of modern marketing activities
Delivery method
Learning Materials
- The course modules are delivered over the Web in small, manageable video presentations. The content is released weekly, over a period of four weeks, but you can take longer to complete the course if that is better for you.
- These are full of practical examples and techniques you can use right away. You can download the course handouts as PDF files.
Your project
- You’ll be given a project (based on a real, open source application) to work on throughout the course. This is a great way to put your learning into practice.
Topics covered
Overview
Getting started
- What makes a good copywriter?
- What are your skills?
What is copywriting?
Overview of modern marketing
- The customer acquisition process
- Push and Pull marketing
- The free item of value
- GDPR requirements
- How we buy items is changing
- The 5 steps in IBM’s Outside-In marketing
- Journey mapping
How people buy
- Their emotional journey
Copywriting in an Attention Economy
- The Attention Economy
- Dominating a niche
- What does this mean for your copywriting?
- The four stages of business maturity
What makes you different?
- How to differentiate yourself
Overview of market research
- Researching the audience
- Discovering the users’ vocabulary
- Thinking in keywords
- Listening systems and analytics
- Useful software tools
A framework for copywriting
- Ground rules
- Cherryleaf’s 7 point framework for technical copywriting
- Topics you should include in your content. This includes:
- The 3 main types of pain
- Your story – how to structure it
- Your system or solution – how to describe it
- The 7 types of proof
- The Call to Action
Planning and writing multiple page copy
- Long letters and sideways selling
- Personalising the message and solution
- White papers
- Squeeze pages (lead pages/lead magnets)
Writing techniques
- Reader focused writing
- Power words, Up words, Action words
- Clear English
- Voice and tone
- The 9 emotional motivational factors
- Memorable copy – telling sticky stories
- Elements of eloquence
- Words to avoid
- Advice on grammar
- Headline writing
- Images
- Usability
Copy examples
- The swipe file
The content brief
- Briefing colleagues or freelancers
Measuring your performance
- Analysing and critiquing copy
- Measuring and testing
Planning
- Timing messages to predictable events
Troubleshooting
- Tools and techniques to use
Summary
- Checklists you can use
How to book
This course is now part of our advanced business writing bundle.
Contact us for more information
Interested in this training course?
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