I
have to tell you, I was very skeptical in the beginning.
Nervous even. I had one finger on the "buy now"
button, and one finger poised, ready to request a
refund. I guess, when I bought Michael Masterson's
course, I was anxious that this would be one of those
screaming, ranting, raving sales letter courses that
tells you that you HAVE to write all copy the same
way with a tone that sounds like a used car salesman
on steroids. I just wasn't going to do that.
Let
me explain. I'm not a newbie. I've been in copywriting
(for various mediums) for over 20 years. I even published
my own copywriting course (http://www.copywritingcourse.com)
that deals primarily with website and search engine
copywriting. The one thing I've never gotten involved
with, however, was writing sales letters.
I
guess I always had too much else going on to learn
how. I did know enough to understand that writing
sales letters is a specialized art that required a
lot of training. I also knew there was a TON of research
conducted over the past few decades to determine what
really worked and what didn't. Lastly, I knew successful
sales letter writing - the kind that pulled in million-dollar
responses - was not something you could just jump
into.
I
finally decided this was something I wanted to do.
I wanted to learn to write sales letters, and I wanted
to do it the right way. And what the heck, it was
$39 a month, and I could cancel at any time. Plus,
if it was really bad, I could ask for a refund anytime
within the first 30 days.
I
did it! I clicked the "buy now" button and
started the process.
What
I Didn't Like About This Sales Letter Course
Let
me clarify something before I tell you what I didn't
like. This is a correspondence course. The lessons
are mailed to you (along with a nice binder to keep
them in). You complete the lessons and return them
via mail or email. It is a self-paced course, but
it is also instructor led to a certain extent.
Really,
there was only one thing I didn't like about this
sales letter writing course, and it is a sheer matter
of personal choice. My only concern was that you get
little feedback about your assignments throughout
the course.
What
happens is this. You complete the first section of
the course and the initial assignment. Your assignment
is thoroughly reviewed and mailed back to you. I was
really impressed with the amount of time my instructor
spent reviewing my assignment and the comments he
gave. The instructors move quickly, so you get feedback
within a couple weeks.
Then
you complete the rest of the course on your own. You
don't mail in any of your other assignments to have
them reviewed until the end of the course. In the
process of completing the other assignments, you're
actually writing your sales letter in different sections.
Then, when you're finished, you mail (or email) the
final assignment in to be reviewed.
Now,
I do need to clarify that there is a student services
department and a forum where you can ask general questions
and what not. But they do not give feedback on your
sales letter writing assignments.
What
I Did Like About the Course
What
I did like FAR outweighs what I didn't like. I've
always said the best way to learn is through a combination
of examples and practice. The course is professionally
written and gives you lots of both… examples
and practice elements.
It
was easy to follow and laid out in an organized manner.
The sections weren't very long and could be completed
in a fairly short amount of time. (Important to me
because I have a copywriting agency to run!)
The
course is set up for newbies, but - even though I've
been writing copy for two decades - it was still interesting
to me. While I may have known a lot of the information
in the course, I needed to study how that information
applied specifically to sales letter writing.
I
was truly impressed at the quality of information
(including many insider secrets you usually only get
from having years of experience in the business).
Every lesson had something that made me think, and
all the lessons flowed logically as I went through
the entire course.
Michael
Masterson's course is published by AWAI (the American
Writers & Artists Institute). In addition to the
course, they offer a wide range of "job placement"
opportunities in the way of forums, databases and
conferences. So, in addition to learning to write
sales letters, you also get help finding assignments
once you've graduated. That's a BIG plus for those
just starting out or those who are new to direct mail.
Lastly,
as I mentioned before, when you do get feedback from
your instructor, it is helpful, thorough, detailed
and insightful. Your assignments are not just skimmed
and topped with a short "great job!" and
returned to you. The ideas and suggestions the instructors
make truly are helpful.
Do
I recommend it? Oh yes… definitely! But only
if you're serious about becoming a copywriter or enhancing
your skills as a copywriter. This is not recommended
for people who aren't dedicated to becoming the best.
It will take some work to complete.
I've
enjoyed taking the course and learning how to apply
different skills and talents to writing sales letters.
Most of all, though, it's been profitable because
it will lead to a whole new world of copywriting projects!
Karon
Thackston is a graduate of Michael Masterson's Accelerated
Program for Six-Figure Copywriting and is also a seasoned
website and search engine copywriting pro.
