copywriting v1.0.0

name: "copywriting" description: "Write conversion copy for landing pages, emails, and product pages: voice-of-customer research, offer-first page structure, headline and CTA patterns, before/after rewrites with rationale, and a pre-launch testing checklist. Triggers on conversion copy, landing page copy, sales pages, marketing emails, headlines, CTA button text, or copy rewrites."

Copywriting

Purpose

Turn vague marketing copy into copy that converts. This skill is built for agents drafting real pages and emails, not for workshop handouts: it researches the customer's actual words first, structures the page around the offer, rewrites weak drafts line by line with the reasoning shown, and hands off a checklist for testing what ships.

Workflow

1. Research the customer's words before writing anything

Never invent pain points. Gather voice-of-customer data first:

• Review mining (fastest, free): Amazon, G2, Capterra, Trustpilot, Reddit, app stores. Mine 3-star and 4-star reviews first; they are specific and rational, while 5-star reviews are usually generic. Mine competitor reviews too: the gap their reviews reveal is your copy.
• Customer interviews: Jobs-To-Be-Done style. Ask what was happening that made them look for a solution, what they used before, what made them choose you, their biggest concern before buying, and what they would tell someone considering you. Ask "why" repeatedly. Record, transcribe, keep exact phrases.
• Sales calls: search transcripts for "we tried X, it didn't" and "we needed something that..."
• Support tickets and churn surveys: the words people use before they know your terminology; what they wanted but didn't get (objection fuel).
• Extract four buckets: pain language, desire/outcome language, objection language, trigger language. Find the 3-5 phrases that repeat across sources; those are your "category sentences" for headlines, subheads, buttons, and FAQs.

Minimum viable research: 20+ reviews or 3 interviews. Below that, label the copy assumption-based in your output and say so plainly.

Full method table, question bank, and swipe-file guidance: references/voc-research.md.

2. Structure around the offer, one page one goal

The offer sits above the fold and is the highest-leverage element on any page. Skeleton:

1. Headline: value prop, message-matched to the ad or email that sent the visitor (same words, not synonyms).
2. Subheadline: expands, adds specificity, 1-2 sentences max.
3. Primary CTA: visible above the fold, states what they get.
4. Social proof: logos, counts, testimonials. Numbers beat adjectives: "4.8 stars from 312 reviews."
5. Problem/pain: in their words, not yours.
6. Solution/benefits: features translated into outcomes, 3-5 key benefits.
7. How it works: 3-4 steps, reduces perceived complexity.
8. Objection handling: FAQ, guarantee, comparison.
9. Final CTA: recap value, repeat CTA, risk reversal.

Email skeleton: hook, problem/agitation (2-3 lines), solution (2-3 lines), one clear CTA. Same operating rules:

• One goal per page or email. Single conversion action. Every competing link is a conversion you gave away.
• Message match is mandatory. If the ad promised a 60-second quote, the first thing on the page is the 60-second quote. Mismatch costs more than any design flaw.
• Benefits before features. Show outcomes, then how.
• Write at 5th-7th grade reading level. Short paragraphs. Scannable subheads that lead with the information.

3. Headlines

Clarity beats cleverness. A stranger should read the headline and know what the offer is and who it is for. Patterns:

• {Outcome} without {pain point}: "Ship features without the QA bottleneck"
• The {category} for {audience}: "The CRM for solo consultants"
• Never {unpleasant event} again: "Never chase an invoice again"
• {Question naming their main pain?}: "Still reconciling books by hand?"
• [Benefit] + [for whom]: "Faster checkout for your busiest days"
• Numbers + specificity: "Cut onboarding from 3 weeks to 2 days"

Headline test: cover the logo and ask whether a first-time visitor could say what they get. If not, rewrite.

4. CTAs

Formula: [Action verb] + [What they get] + [Qualifier]. Strong: "Start my free trial," "Get the complete checklist," "See pricing for my team." The button states what the clicker receives, never the mechanism.

Weak (never ship): Submit, Sign Up, Learn More, Click Here, Get Started.

• One action per page. Repeat the primary CTA down the page and put social proof next to it.
• Match friction to intent: a trial instead of a demo for cold traffic, name-and-email instead of seven fields for top of funnel.

5. Rewrite with the rationale shown

When revising a draft, return before/after pairs, each with a one-line reason tied to a rule: VoC language, offer clarity, message match, specificity, friction. Never rewrite silently; the rationale is how the person reviewing your work checks it. Worked examples: references/rewrites.md.

6. Test before calling it done

• One variable at a time: headline, offer, CTA, form length, proof, in that order. Change everything and you learn nothing.
• Copy beats design. Headline and offer tests move numbers more than layout tweaks; test Tier 1 copy elements first.
• Decide the primary metric before launch. Run long enough to reach significance (often 2-4 weeks depending on traffic).
• Run every draft through references/testing-checklist.md before it ships.

Output Contract

When asked to write or revise copy, return:

1. The draft copy organized by labeled section (headline, subhead, body, CTAs).
2. The VoC evidence behind it: which customer phrases you used and where they came from, or "assumption-based, no research run."
3. For rewrites: before/after pairs with a rationale per change.
4. Open risks: what is untested, which assumptions could be wrong, what to test first.

Operating Rules

1. No invented pain points. If the customer's words don't contain it, it doesn't go in the headline.
2. Offer above the fold, always.
3. Specificity over adjectives. Numbers, times, counts.
4. One conversion action per page or email.
5. CTA buttons state what the clicker gets, never the mechanism.
6. Message match is mandatory: echo the traffic source's promise in the same words.
7. Unverifiable claims get cut or labeled as opinion. Numbers need sources.
8. If research was skipped, say so plainly and mark the copy assumption-based.

References

• VoC research playbook: methods table, interview question bank, extraction buckets, swipe-file guidance.
• Pattern library: frameworks (AIDA, PAS), page and email skeletons, headline and CTA formulas, weak-vs-strong lists.
• Worked rewrites: four before/after rewrites with the rationale for each change.
• Pre-launch testing checklist: yes/no questions for every draft before it ships.