Confused copywriters need to use the 1x3x3 formula

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I promise it has nothing to do with maths. Instead, this ‘focus formula’ is based on the basics and fundamentals of direct response copywriting. It is proven to work because every single successful copywriter is using that formula somehow – probably unconscious.

Also, A-List Copywriter David Deutsch, who has over $1 billion (yes billion, that’s 1,000 million) in success stories from clients teaches this 1x3x3 focus formula.

Using it will instantly improve your writing. Having a structure like the 1x3x3 focus formula, makes your writing clear and concise, so that even a brain-dead zombie would understand you and more importantly: BUY from you.

Let’s get right into it:

The 1x3x3 focus formula. Answer these three questions before writing a word of copy.

  • What’s the 1 thing your prospect should do or believe?
  • What are 3 reasons they should do or believe it?
  • What 3 proof elements support each of those reasons?

This formula is tied to the fundamentals of copywriting that sells.

Your copy should have ONE call to action.
Your copy should sell benefits.
Proof is the most important element in your copy. (The world’s greatest copywriter Gary Bencivenga agrees. Read my last post to find out what he says about proof.)

To be honest, if you read this post again, you’ll notice that I used this formula on you. Here are my notes:

What’s the 1 thing your prospect should do or believe?
Use the 1x3x3 focus formula.

What are 3 reasons they should do or believe it? Proof for that?

1. Proven to work – uses fundamentals of copywriting: One cta, benefits, proof.
2. David Deutsch said so – A-List Copywriter, with over $1 billion in success stories.
3. Improve your writing – having a formula before makes writing concise.

Before you go on: follow David Deutsch on Twitter/X. His content is mind-blowing. He truly is crazy for sharing all this knowledge for free. And he posts daily.

Not following him would be a disservice to your copy skills. Click here for his Twitter.

Harvard university agrees: Gary Bencivenga is right!

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A recent study from Harvard university concluded that backing claims up with scientific evidence increases believability by 87%. That shouldn’t be new to you. In fact…

A-List Copywriter Gary Bencivenga says: “Never make your claim bigger than your proof.”

Wait a second… did you notice something? In the beginning I told you something about a study from Harvard university. To be honest this study is completely made up. In fact I didn’t even try to find a study that shows how studies improve believability.

Yesterday I saw a meme that went like this:
“Scientists have discovered that…
(Funny picture of Leonardo DiCaprio laughing and looking through a microscope)
People will believe anything when you say scientists have discovered it”

We as copywriters and marketers NEED to back every single claim. The more credible and specific your proof is, the better. Here are my 3 favorite ways to do that:

  • Quotes, Data, Statistics, etc from credible sources. In some cases that may be a study from Harvard, in another case that could be a quote from a leader or expert in your industry. your source has to be already credible and established.
  • Reviews, Testimonials. People listen to people and want to buy what other people buy. You and me included. One of the first things I do before going to a café, buying a product on Amazon, watching a movie is to read reviews. I want to know what other people think of it. Bonus points if the reviews and testimonials represent your target audience.
    (A testimonial for a pregnancy course from a man wouldn’t be helpful I guess…)
  • Demonstration, case studies. The best kind of proof is showing that your product works.

Question for you: What would be the best advertisement for bulletproof west?

Answer: Someone getting shot with it and having no harm afterwards. Well, if you sell info products you can take the safer road. I personally like case studies: document what your customer has done and his results.

Videos on YouTube with titles like… “I tried Y for Z days…” are getting lots of views. Case studies don’t seem salesy and it shows that your product has been tried, tested and works!

If you want to be the first one to upload a YouTube Video called “I tried being on Philipp’s email list for 30 days and THIS is what happened…”, then you should join my email list. Gary Bencivenga and Harvard university begged me to not make this email list available to the public because it is so valuable to them (maybe not exactly, however that’s a different topic.)

Take the test: How good are your bullets?

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Today, we’re going to test your copywriting skills. To be more precise, your bullet writing skills. A term for this kind of test is Copy Riddles.

Copy Riddles was a paid course created by marketer and copywriter John Bejakovic. It was not just a typical course, where you get a couple of videos and maybe some PDFs. Actually, it was like solving a riddle.

Many old ads are just packed with bullet points. The key to learning how to write bullets is to understand how the copywriter turned a often boring part of the product into an exciting bullet. To actually experience this process Bejakovic looked at old sales letters and found the content the bullets teased.

That’s where the Copy Riddles start: you first get the content of the book without knowing the bullet point. Now you write a bullet point YOURSELF. After that, you can read the original bullet point. You can compare which angle you took compared to an A-List Copywriter. That way, you see the psychology that made the bullet point work.

Unfortunately, Copy Riddles is closed. You can not buy it anymore. That’s why I decided to do a little Copy Riddle myself, using a bullet point from an ad by Mel Martin. Without going into detail, Mel Martin ” changed copywriting forever in profound ways”, according to Brian Kurtz. The ad I used today is for “The Chef’s Secret Cook Book”. You can read it here (after completing the Copy Riddle). Enough talking let’s get right into it.

Write a bullet point from this short part on page 10 of the book.

“CHEF’S SECRET: (…) and the best method of cooking eggs seems to be the old-fashioned one. Room temperature eggs should go into a stainless steel or enamel pot (not aluminium)”

Your task is now to write a bullet point. Please do that, before you go to page 2. On page 2, I will reveal to you, what Mel Martin wrote in the original ad.

Pages: 1 2

Gary Halbert reveals 6-word content creation secret

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One of the most famous direct marketing education books is ‘The Boron Letters’ by Gary Halbert. I hope you have already heard of this gem and read it. If not, read on, I’ll show you how you can get them for free.

While reading, I noticed a short passage at the end of chapter 9. Something about it made me stop and think about it. In just a few words Halbert revealed the open secret for unlimited content ideas.

It’s such a simple concept, you might be tempted to ignore it. It would be a shame because its wisdom and usefulness is undeniable.

“Know this: Ideas breed other ideas.”

Kind of disappointing isn’t it? The secret to great ideas is… ideas? And if you think about it, it couldn’t be more true. I mean this idea of Halbert gave ME the idea to share and expand on this idea. Furthermore, while writing this post, I got another idea for a new post.

It’s like a snowball that is rolled down a hill. The little snowball turns into a massive sphere. Somehow our brain does the same thing, when we are creating content. All you need is a little snowball. Consuming great content (can be totally unrelated to your subject) is the snow that makes the snowball bigger, when it’s rolled down (when you actually flesh out the idea, think about it, talk about it, write about it).

By the way this totally makes sense. The way I understand it: Our brain works like a giant mind map. Our brain’s job is to connect all information we get – this also includes ideas. Ideas are connected to new ideas, which are connected to new ideas.

Ok enough talk, by this point you should have gotten the concept. A valuable starting point for top-tier copywriting and marketing ideas are ‘The Boron Letters’. If you have already read them, I encourage a re-read. I am sure you will find at least one valuable idea you overlooked last time.

This guy has put all of The Boron Letters in order for free, so check out his website: morgancrozier.com/boron-letters

Can this simple copywriting technique instantly improve all of your headlines?

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Let’s be honest: headlines can be overhyped. Some copywriters probably believe that their prospects are extremely dumb. Of course that is not the case.

Imagine the headline for this post would be: This simple copywriting technique instantly improves all of your headlines! It lacks proof. Sounds like an overhyped scam.

Just by adding a question mark at the end, I made the headline sound “softer” and more believable. It adds intrigue and is almost impossible to ignore. The reason for that: Once you are asked a question, your brain searches for an answer. Having a question unanswered can feel like torture, like an itch you can not scratch.

Please test this idea and let me know what you think of it. Until you do, I want to invite you to my newsletter in which I discuss copywriting & marketing, like I did today. Will my newsletter be helpful to you? Try it yourself!

Only for courageous copywriters

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The following copywriting and marketing idea I read from an A-List Copywriting might now be for you if…

  • you are afraid of being honest to your customers
  • your wallet is empty and you need a sale to survive next month
  • the only thing you are focused on are conversion rates and sales

Actually, the following tip is only used by a few courageous marketers, even though it is so simple even a brain-dead zombie could use it to attract higher quality customers.

David Deutsch says that by telling who should not buy your product, you turn away unqualified prospects, who wouldn’t have bought from you anyway. On the other hand, qualified prospects appreciate your honesty and buy more from you.

That way you might now attract the most amount of customers but the quality of customers will be a lot higher. Also, I observed Ben Settle doing this when promoting his monthly newsletter, or for instance in his sales letter for his elBenbo Press book (just look at his sales page). He always emphasizes that it requires thinking, that it isn’t easy, and more.

If you are ready to work hard, use your brain and time, then I would recommend to subscribe to my daily marketing & copywriting newsletter. However, if you are lazy and think AI will do all the work for you, I recommend looking for a different newsletter.