One great way to practice your copywriting skills is to do this:
1. Pick a niche
2. Go to an online marketplace
3. Pick a product
4. Write two or three emails selling it
This is a useful exercise especially if you pick a niche you’re completely unfamiliar with because it forces you to do market research, which is the foundation of every piece of sales copy you write.
So you’re getting double the practice in.
And while the emails may never be put to the test, it’ll be great material for a starting portfolio.
Just some unsolicited advice for my fellow freelance copywriters out there.
But why did I bring this up?
Because not too long ago, I wrote some sales emails for a yoga program designed for basketball athletes.
As I was doing the market research, I discovered there was a correlation between a basketball athlete’s career longevity and whether or not they do yoga.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is a former basketball athlete with many notable achievements. One of the more notable ones being that his career lasted 20 years, as opposed to the average basketball athlete career lifespan of 4.5 years.
One of the main reasons why is that he religiously did yoga, which helped strengthen his muscles and kept his tissues flexible. So when he would run around on the basketball court, he’d be less likely to get injured.
And even at the age he’s at now, he’s still relatively mobile.
Funnily enough, as I was writing the emails, I realized I was slowly convincing myself to start doing yoga…
Or at least start stretching more, which I do every morning.
I don’t want tight hips by the time I’m 70, or have the mobility of a sloth.
I want to be one of those old guys that can walk as if he’s 20 years younger, or one of those that can stay in a handstand position for 15 minutes straight.
Do I sound ridiculous right now? Probably.
Is it always going to be the case where you convince yourself to use a product while doing market research on it? Not always.
Is there a point in telling that story? At this point, I’m not sure anymore.
But I can’t emphasize enough how important market research is.
It’s the most boring part of the copywriting process, which is why it’s the most important. If you read my last email, then you know what I’m talking about.
That’s why I wrote an entire chapter dedicated to getting you started in your market research process in How to Become an Email Titan, which you can check out using the link below.