Category: WritingCategory: Writing

Do I want free donuts? Yes.

Do I want rewards? Well wait, what are the rewards? How do I get them?

I went out for a donut and iced coffee today.

The owner and I got talking about websites, social media, and email marketing of course – yes, I’m loads of fun at parties!

The owner told me the challenge of getting people into their reward program (buy enough donuts and coffee, get free donuts).

Her pitch is basically, “do you want to join our rewards program?”

And those go (usually) three ways:

1. Yeah, sure.
2. No, thanks.
3. Wait, what’s the rewards program?

For me, if you ask someone who’s buying donuts if they want free donuts, I think that changes the response a bit, to something like:

1. Uhh, yes.
2. Wait, what?

➡️ Think of this when writing subject lines.

Your “West Coast Tour Dates Announced” subject line is great for fans on the West Coast, but a horrible subject line for everyone else.

For someone like me in Pennsylvania, I have no incentive to open that email. Go have fun, West Coast!

But a subject line that says, “Do you remember when those cowboys got us back on the road when our van broke down?” – that’s for everyone! I want my van-repairing cowboys!

Then, of course (ahem), include your West Coast tour info later in the email, for your West Coast fans.

➡️ Think of this when asking your social media followers to subscribe to your newsletter.

When you say “sign up for updates,” people who’ve been on the internet for more than five seconds can already assume what they’re signing up for; deals, discounts, sales, bargains, big BUY NOW buttons.

Boring.

Make it easy for your fans to say “yes, I want that.”

Do you want free donuts? Yes.

Do you want more of my art? Yes.

Do you want more photos of my travels? Yes.

Do you want more writing? Yes.

Don’t tell me to sign up for updates, tell me what I’m getting.

Make your ask so good I have to say yes.

Promoting your creative work should be art. It should spark curiosity, wonder, and delight.

Facts ain’t art:

• “We talked to Brad about how the band got started. [LINK]”
• ”Jen tells us how she launched their label. [LINK]”

Yes, you talked to Brad, and they told you things.
Jen talked about the start of their label.

They didn’t just say, “yeah, we started the band in high school, and played a few shows.”

They probably told you about their horrible first show, or that they met their guitar player for the first time at some weird diner on the far end of town.

Jen maxed out two credit cards, and sold their vintage NES collection to finance a record they believed in.

Tell stories, not facts.

Stop posting “NEW VIDEO [LINK]” on social media or in your newsletter.

Post how filming got cut short because a thunderstorm rolled in and all your gear got covered in mud.

• “We had to replace $3000 in music gear after shooting this video [LINK].”
• “We spent 17 hours in the blazing sun to shoot this video.”
• ”This is the same warehouse they filmed the fight scene from the Matrix.”
• ”The cell-phone we used as a prop in this video was actually our bass players from 2002 – who else had one of those?”

Your project isn’t just competing with other bands and labels in your genre, you’re competing with Disney and HBO.

• “Din Djarin found a baby Yoda. [LINK]”
• ”The Roy family run a company. [LINK]”

Unpaid interns can write those facts. That’s safe. That’s easy.

Sell it like a new movie, an up and coming TV show.

No one cares that you talked to someone. We all talk to people everyday.

But stories sell concert tickets, vinyl, recurring monthly subscriptions to Disney+ and Netflix.

Less facts, more stories.