The Great Debate: Short Sales Copy vs. Long Copy

I presume the debate of short copy vs. long copy has been going on for decades (to be modest). And if you're like me and the other thousands of Internet marketing nuts and enthusiasts then I'm sure you've noticed this topic coming back into discussion on some big name blogs. Although, I read it not too long ago this topic was posted on Mr. John Reese's blog at the end of February '05.

Mr. Reese states he sees "long format sales copy" on websites as becoming less and less effective in the coming years. Well, I agree 100% with this. I wrote in his blog I've had better response with a 15 page sales letter than I've had with a 22 page letter. But, I think the length of your copy entirely depends on the product you are selling and who you are marketing it to. For example, a short list of features can be a big enough description to sell a PC headset, but we all know it will be near impossible to sell an ebook this way.

As Jeff Paul states in "Killer Copywriting" you've got to tell the entire story. You can't write 30 pages for the sake of making your letter 30 pages and expect it to have major pull. If your story can be told in 15 pages then you're probably better off leaving it at 15 becuase you're sure to turn off some of your readers with what maybe boring dribble and repetition. A little tip: As Michel Fortin said in an interview I was listening to recently web surfers are "click happy". Meaning their attention spans are very short. So, you're going to want to take this into consideration in writing your sales copy.

To get a little more a recent, a week or so ago I received an email from Michel Fortin notifying his subscribers of his new blog post on this subject. The floor is now open for discussion. I'd love to hear from you on what you think about this topic. If you have had better response with long or short copy or anything at all pertaining to this subject.