Hey there health marketer,
2023 is finally here. Now is the time to form good habits, do away with bad ones and set yourself up for a year filled with success.
That’s what I want for you anyway.
What do you want to get done in 2023?
If you want to start writing better health copy this year then you’re in the right place. In this post you and I will take a deep dive into what it takes to improve your copywriting.
We’ll talk about the best way to learn and retain new copywriting skills. I’ll explain why consistency will make or break your copywriting. And I’ll even share my plan to bring you more value this year.
Let’s get into it.
Have you ever spent hours studying a copywriting course only to forget the information a few days later?
Or prepped for a big presentation only to mind dump all the facts and figures soon after it’s finished?
Why is it so hard to hold on to new information?
Well, it’s because of the way your brain works. You see, your brain naturally remembers essential information that keeps you alive.
That’s why you’d never walk out into a busy street, eat foods you’re allergic to or pick a fist-fight with a wild animal. Your brain works hard to remember these things so other info becomes less important.
This forgetting phenomenon isn’t new.
In fact, in 1880 a German psychologist named Hermann Ebbinghaus knew all about it. He performed a series of experiments to understand why we forget things so easily and how we can prevent it. [1]
Ebbinghaus tested his ability to remember nonsense syllables after varying lengths of time. What he discovered can help you hack your brain to become very good at writing health copy.
The Ebbinghaus forgetting curve:
One of the things Ebbinghaus learned was that as time passes memories of new skills start to fade.
That probably isn’t earth shattering information for you. But you will be surprised by how quickly it happens.
We can start to forget new information a few hours after we’ve learned it. That’s why you might have taken a copywriting course in the past but don’t remember much of what you learned.
So does this mean that trying to learn new skills is pointless and we should give up?
Not at all. Now that we know what Ebbinghause discovered we can use it to our advantage.
He found that scheduling frequent re-learning sessions completely changed his ability to remember. Doing this helped him retain more information.
It looked like this:
As you can see information was still forgotten after the initial learning period. But regular re-learning sessions steepened the curve and more information was retained.
You may think the 140 year old forgetting curve is outdated. But in 2015 a research team repeated the experiment and had the same results. [2]
So it’s safe to say that what Ebbinghaus discovered applies to you and I today.
You can use the way your brain works to your advantage. By re-learning copywriting skills regularly you will dramatically increase your chances of success.
Now that you know how to keep your copywriting skills, what’s the best way to learn them?
There are plenty of ways to learn a new skill. But one way is the key to unlocking your potential and writing good health copy fast.
Application.
Applying what you learn primes your brain to remember information in a powerful new way.
This applies to copywriting, skill-building and even in science…
Let me explain.
A group of researchers investigated Nobel Prize winning scientists. [3] They wanted to know why some high profile scientists received the award and others didn’t.
That’s a pretty loaded question and no doubt there are plenty of variables that determine the answer. But these researchers focused on the number of research papers the scientists wrote.
Would a scientist with a few hit research papers be likely to receive the award? Or was another scientist with a large number of less popular papers more likely to receive it?
They found that some scientists with a few hit papers received the award. But most Prize winners published many less popular research papers throughout their careers.
What can we take away from this study?
The more health copy you write, the better you will become. And if you want to get really good at writing then you need to write a lot of copy.
Looking at it another way.
Which music groups have had the biggest impact on the world? Bands like Queen who put out 14 albums, had 53 Top 40 singles and 6 number 1 songs? Or one hit wonders who caught the media’s attention for a while only to be forgotten years (or even months) later?
The answer is pretty obvious. The more work you put out the greater your chances for success are.
So, the more blog posts, marketing emails and sales letters you write, the better your copy will become.
Creating content can be hard. And sometimes it can feel impossible. What can you do to conquer these feelings?
By now, I’m sure you’d agree that learning by doing is a super effective way to write better health copy. But I want to prepare you for what will happen next.
As you begin applying your copywriting skills you will make… MISTAKES. (gasp!) It’s sad that our society has made “mistake” such an ugly word.
If you want to get good at writing health copy (I mean scary good) then mistakes are a crucial part of the process. After all they are the key to mastering any skill.
You see, when you make a mistake a few different things happen.
Realize that none of these things can happen without applying your skills. You can read thousands of copywriting books but until you apply what you learn it’s all for nothing.
In the world of surgical nursing we have a phrase for learning how to master a procedure: See one, Do one, Teach one. It means that after being shown a new skill the best way to learn is to perform it and then show someone else how to do it.
That’s what I’m doing right now. By sharing knowledge with you I’m re-learning it and making my own writing even stronger. And you can do the same thing.
Do you need to build a website, publish a blog and teach others how to write health copy to get any good at it? No, all you need to do is write health copy consistently and the skills will follow.
And when it gets hard to do (because it will) remember, simply trying to write improves your odds of success.
I want to leave you with one last study before I share my plan to bring you more value in 2023. If you’re the type of person who believes hard work pays off then you’re going to want to read this.
A group of researchers set out to learn which qualities lead to career success. [4] They focused on grit and resilience. Which quality was a better predictor of entrepreneurial success?
They also wanted to know about consistency of interest. Does staying interested in your work affect grit or resilience? And if it did, could it also predict success?
Questionnaires were given to 111 entrepreneurs. A few sample items on the questionnaire were:
They came up with two big takeaways after reviewing the answers:
So, what can you take away from this study? DON’T GIVE UP.
It sounds cliche, I know and I’m sure you heard it as a child “winners never quit and quitters never win”. I think a better way of putting it is “If you want to succeed, never stop trying.”And remember staying interested in your work doesn’t equal career success. It’s okay to be bored.
Things like deep research, editing and brainstorming aren’t always fun. View them like speed bumps on your way to success.
Now let’s talk about what I’m going to do to help you this year. I want to give you more valuable content than I ever have before. Information you can use to start writing health copy that works.
To do that, I’ll publish 1 super helpful blog post every week this year. My goal is to help 10,000 health marketers learn how to write effective health copy that sells. This year you and I are going to grow and together we will achieve our goals.
So, if you’re interested in becoming the best health marketer you can be. And you want to learn proven health copywriting tips that will take you to the top of your industry. Then you’re going to want to sign up for my weekly newsletter.
Every week you’ll get proven health copywriting techniques delivered to your inbox. Tips you can start using right away to drastically improve your health copy.
Ready to make some moves?
Hit the subscribe button below to get weekly access to valuable copywriting insights.
I’m Brandon Davis and I sincerely hope to help you write effective health copy that sells.
Talk to you next week.
References
[1] Gromada, J. (2021, September 8). Learning & Relearning: The Power Of Consistency. mindedge.com
[2] Jaap, M. J., Dros, J. (2015, July 6). Replication and Analysis of Ebbinghaus’ Forgetting Curve. emerald.com
[3] Erkol, S., Sikdar, S. (2022, October). Consistency pays off in science. research gate.net
[4] AWAI. (2022). State of the Industry Report on Copywriter Rates and Top Performing Marketing Methods. AWAI.com