| name | copywriting |
| description | Write persuasive copy for SaaS landing pages, emails, ads, sales pages, and marketing materials. Use when you need to write headlines, CTAs, product descriptions, ad copy, email sequences, or any text meant to drive action. Covers research, audience diagnosis, copywriting frameworks (AIDA, PAS, FAB), positioning, headline writing, emotional triggers, objection handling, editing, and A/B variant generation. Trigger on "write copy", "copywriting", "landing page copy", "headline", "write a sales page", "ad copy", "email copy", "persuasive writing", "how to write [marketing text]". |
Copywriting
Agent Behavior
When triggered, follow this process:
1. Infer First, Ask Second
From the user's request, infer as much as possible: product, audience, tone, copy type, awareness level. Only ask about what you truly cannot infer. If you have enough to start, start — deliver a first draft and offer to refine.
Always infer:
- Copy type from context (if they say "landing page," don't ask "what type of copy?")
- Tone defaults to confident, clear, conversational unless specified
- Awareness level defaults to Solution-Aware for organic traffic, Problem-Aware for paid/cold traffic
Only ask when critical info is missing:
- What the product does (if not obvious from context)
- The specific desired action (trial, demo, signup)
- The unique mechanism (if you can't find or infer it)
2. Diagnose and Choose
- Match audience awareness level to framework (see Awareness Levels)
- Select copy length based on price point and decision complexity
- Pick positioning angle based on competitive context
3. Deliver
- Write the full copy in the appropriate format
- Include 3–5 headline variants
- Include 2–3 CTA variants
- Label each section clearly (Hero, Problem, Solution, Proof, CTA)
- Run the Pre-Delivery Checklist before presenting
4. Offer Next Steps
After delivering, offer: A/B variants, shorter/longer version, adaptation for a different channel.
First Principles
1. Copy Is Salesmanship in Writing
Its only purpose is to drive action — a sign-up, a demo booking, a trial start. Your landing page is the first salesperson a cold visitor meets. Treat it like a high-stakes conversation, not a brochure.
2. Write for "You," Not "We"
- Say "you" and "your" more than "we" and "our"
- Describe their problem, not your product history
- Use their words (from reviews, support tickets, calls) — not your jargon
3. Benefits Over Features
Push every feature through this chain:
Feature → "AI-powered analytics dashboard"
Advantage → "Insights update in real time, unlike manual reporting"
Benefit → "Save 15 hours/week on reporting"
Emotional Outcome → "Make decisions with confidence instead of second-guessing stale numbers"
Lead with benefits and emotional outcomes. Features are supporting evidence.
4. Clarity Beats Cleverness
Short sentences. Active voice. Everyday words. Scannable layout.
The 5-Second Rule (landing pages): Within 5 seconds, the visitor must understand what this does, who it's for, and why it matters.
5. Persuasion Follows a Sequence
- Attention — headline that speaks to their situation
- Empathy — show you understand their pain
- Desire — paint the better future, prove it works
- Trust — stack proof, remove risk
- Action — tell them exactly what to do
6. Test Everything
Never assume — test headlines, offers, CTAs. What feels good to you rarely converts best.
7. Copy Before Design
Start with the words. Nail the value proposition, the headline, the persuasion flow. Design the page around the copy, not the reverse.
Audience Awareness Levels
| Level | What Copy Must Do | Lead With |
|---|
| Unaware | Dramatize the problem they don't know they have | Provocative question or shocking stat |
| Problem-Aware | Agitate pain, introduce the category | The problem → PAS framework |
| Solution-Aware | Differentiate — why your approach is better | Unique mechanism → FAB framework |
| Product-Aware | Overcome objections, stack proof | Proof + risk reversal → AIDA framework |
| Most-Aware | Make the offer irresistible | Offer, pricing, urgency |
Defaults: Organic/referral traffic → Solution-Aware. Paid/cold traffic → Problem-Aware.
Frameworks
Pick the framework that matches the situation. Combine them — e.g., PAS for the hero, FAB+E for features, BAB for a testimonial.
PAS (Problem, Agitate, Solution)
Best for: Problem-aware audiences, pain-driven products, cold traffic, ads, emails.
PROBLEM: "You find out customers are unhappy when they cancel."
AGITATE: "By then it's too late. The signals were there — declining usage, fewer logins —
but your dashboards don't show who's about to leave."
SOLUTION: "ChurnGuard flags at-risk accounts 30 days before they cancel, with the exact
reason why. Customers who get a proactive save retain at 3x the rate."
AIDA (Attention, Interest, Desire, Action)
Best for: Product-aware audiences, general-purpose landing pages, strong proof available.
ATTENTION: "Your team wastes 5 hours/week in status update meetings. Kill them."
INTEREST: "Project updates live in Slack threads, email chains, and people's heads.
So you schedule another meeting. Then another."
DESIRE: "One dashboard. Every project's status, blockers, and next steps — updated
automatically. No more 'quick sync' meetings."
ACTION: "Start free — your first 3 projects are on us, forever."
FAB+E (Feature, Advantage, Benefit, Emotional Outcome)
Best for: Solution-aware audiences comparing options, feature-heavy products.
FEATURE: "Real-time event streaming with sub-second latency."
ADVANTAGE: "Most tools batch-process hourly. You're always looking at stale data."
BENEFIT: "Spot issues the moment they happen. Fix a broken checkout in minutes,
not after a day of lost revenue."
EMOTION: "Sleep easy knowing you'll know before your customers do."
BAB (Before, After, Bridge)
Best for: Compelling transformation stories, hero sections, email copy.
BEFORE: "40% of new users never complete setup. You're paying to acquire users
you never activate."
AFTER: "80% complete onboarding on day one. They hit their first 'aha moment'
in under 5 minutes. They come back tomorrow."
BRIDGE: "OnboardKit builds personalized setup flows based on what each user needs.
No code. Just users who get to value fast — and stay."
PASTOR (Person, Amplify, Story, Transformation, Offer, Response)
Best for: Long-form sales pages, high-ACV products, full persuasion arc needed.
| Step | Does | Maps To |
|---|
| P — Person/Problem | Name WHO + their specific pain | Hero headline |
| A — Amplify | Consequences of inaction + aspirational future | Pain section |
| S — Story/Solution | Relatable story → introduce product | How it works |
| T — Transformation | Before/after + stacked proof | Testimonials, case studies |
| O — Offer | What they get, pricing, guarantee | Pricing section |
| R — Response | Clear CTA | CTA buttons |
PASTOR is PAS expanded with story, proof, and offer. Use PAS when concise, PASTOR when you have room.
Copy Length
| Factor | Shorter | Longer |
|---|
| Price | Free / freemium | High ACV, enterprise |
| Awareness | Product-aware | Unaware / problem-aware |
| Decision | Single user, self-serve | Multi-stakeholder |
| Risk | Free trial, no commitment | Annual contract, migration |
Rules of thumb:
- Free/freemium: Hero + 3–4 feature blocks + proof + CTA
- $50–200/mo self-serve: Full page — hero, problem, solution, features, proof, objections, CTA
- Enterprise/sales-led: Long page with case studies, ROI proof, multiple CTAs
Positioning Angles
| Angle | Copy Shape |
|---|
| Simpler | "Finally, [category] that doesn't need a consultant to set up" |
| Faster | "Set up in 5 minutes, not 5 weeks" |
| Niche-specific | "[Category] built specifically for [niche]" |
| All-in-one | "Replace your [Tool A] + [Tool B] + [Tool C] stack" |
| Transparent | Lead with pricing, no-BS tone, public roadmap |
| Premium | Lead with outcomes and ROI, justify the price |
The key question: When a visitor sees your page after a competitor's, what ONE thing should make them think "this is different"? That goes in the headline.
Headlines
Formulas
| Formula | Example |
|---|
| The Promise | "Cut client reporting from 10 hours to 10 minutes" |
| The Question | "Still building reports by hand every Monday morning?" |
| The How-To | "How to automate your entire reporting workflow in one afternoon" |
| The Number | "3 reasons your analytics dashboard is lying to you" |
| The Negative | "Stop losing deals because your CRM doesn't talk to your inbox" |
| The Transformation | "From 50 leads/month to 500 — without hiring another SDR" |
| The Speed Claim | "Go from signup to first insight in under 5 minutes" |
Rules
- Be specific. "Grow your business" → "Add $10K MRR in 90 days."
- Lead with outcome, not method. "Save 10 hours/week" beats "Use our automation tool."
- Use customer language. If they say "nightmare," your headline says "nightmare."
- Always generate 3–5 variants.
Subheadline Formula
[What it does] + [How fast / how it works] + [Proof or scale]
Headline: "Client reporting on autopilot."
Subheadline: "Connect your data sources in 2 minutes. Send branded reports to
every client — automatically, every week. Trusted by 2,000+ agencies."
CTAs
Formula
[Action Verb] + [What They Get] + [Urgency or Ease]
| Weak | Strong |
|---|
| "Submit" | "Start my free trial" |
| "Learn more" | "See it in action — watch 2-min demo" |
| "Get started" | "Start free — no credit card required" |
| "Click here" | "Book a 15-minute walkthrough" |
Placement
- Hero section — above the fold, always
- After problem section — pain is felt, offer the fix
- After proof/testimonials — trust is highest
- Sticky nav or floating button — always accessible
- Final section — paired with risk reversal
Button + Surrounding Copy
"Join 4,000+ SaaS teams saving 10+ hours/week"
[Start My Free Trial]
"No credit card required. Setup takes 2 minutes."
Line above → desire. Line below → friction removal.
Emotional Triggers
| Trigger | Example |
|---|
| Fear of missing out | "Your competitors are already using this" |
| Fear of loss | "Every month without this, you're losing $X in preventable churn" |
| Desire for status | "Join the fastest-growing SaaS teams in the world" |
| Desire for ease | "Set it up once. Never think about it again." |
| Frustration | "Tired of tools that promise 'easy setup' then need 3-day onboarding?" |
| Hope / ambition | "What would you do with 10 extra hours every week?" |
One primary emotion per section. Don't mix frustration and hope in the same paragraph.
Objection Handling
| Objection | Handle With |
|---|
| "Too expensive" | ROI: "Pays for itself in 2 weeks based on time saved" |
| "Won't work for my use case" | Specific proof: "Here's how [similar company] uses it" |
| "Setup is painful" | Specifics: "Import from [competitor] in 3 clicks. Average setup: 8 min." |
| "What if it doesn't work?" | Risk reversal: "30-day money-back guarantee. Cancel in one click." |
| "Need team buy-in" | Ammo: "Share this 1-page ROI summary" or offer team trial |
| "Locked into competitor" | Migration incentive: "We'll match your remaining contract term free" |
| "Is my data safe?" | Certs: "SOC 2 Type II. Encrypted at rest and in transit." |
Place objection-handling: in FAQ sections, inline near CTAs, in testimonials ("I was worried about X but..."), woven into feature sections.
Proof
Types (by persuasive power)
- Specific customer results: "Acme Corp reduced churn by 34% in 60 days." Names, numbers, timeframes.
- Recognizable logos: 4–5 logos above the fold changes perception instantly.
- Aggregate data: "Trusted by 5,000+ teams" or "2M+ hours saved."
- Testimonials with context: Name + title + company + specific outcome.
- Case studies: Problem → attempt → your solution → result in timeframe.
- Third-party validation: G2 badges, Product Hunt, press, certifications.
- Live metrics: "12,847 reports sent this week."
Placement
- Hero: Logo bar + one strong stat
- After problem section: Testimonial validating the pain
- After solution section: Testimonial validating the outcome
- Near CTA: Strongest proof — makes clicking feel safe
Templates
SaaS Landing Page Structure
1. HERO
- Headline (outcome-focused, specific)
- Subheadline (what + how fast + proof)
- Primary CTA
- Logo bar or key stat
- Hero image / screenshot / demo video
2. PROBLEM
- Dramatize the pain (customer language)
- 2–3 specific symptoms they'll recognize
- Cost of inaction
3. SOLUTION
- Your product as the fix
- Unique mechanism (WHY it works, not just WHAT)
- Screenshot or product visual
4. FEATURES / HOW IT WORKS
- 3–4 features, each: name + 1-line benefit + visual
- Or: Step 1, Step 2, Step 3 (reduces complexity)
- Weave in proof: "Saves our users an average of X hours/week"
5. SOCIAL PROOF
- 2–3 testimonials with specific outcomes
- Mini case study or G2/Capterra badges
6. OBJECTION HANDLING
- FAQ addressing top 4–6 objections
7. FINAL CTA
- Restate core promise
- Risk reversal
- CTA button + supporting copy
Email Sequences
Welcome / Onboarding Sequence (5 emails)
EMAIL 1: Welcome (send immediately)
Subject: "You're in — here's your first step"
Body: One clear action to get started. No feature dumps.
CTA: the single most important first action.
Tone: Warm, direct, zero friction.
EMAIL 2: Quick Win (Day 1–2)
Subject: "[First name], try this in 2 minutes"
Body: Walk them to their first "aha moment." One specific use case,
step-by-step. Show the outcome they'll get.
CTA: "Do this now" — link directly to the feature.
EMAIL 3: Social Proof (Day 3–4)
Subject: "How [Company] got [result] in [timeframe]"
Body: Short customer story. Problem → tried your product → result.
Make it relatable to their situation.
CTA: "See how it works for your use case"
EMAIL 4: Objection Buster (Day 5–7)
Subject: "The #1 question new users ask"
Body: Address the biggest hesitation. Answer it directly. Use proof.
CTA: "Start your first [key action]"
EMAIL 5: Urgency / Upgrade (Day 10–14)
Subject: "Your trial ends in [X] days — here's what you'll lose"
Body: Recap what they've done/could do. Paint the loss of going back
to the old way. Make upgrading feel easy and safe.
CTA: "Keep your progress — upgrade now"
Cold Outreach Sequence (3 emails)
EMAIL 1: The Hook
Subject: Short, curiosity-driven, no salesy language.
Examples: "quick question about [their process]"
"[mutual connection] suggested I reach out"
"noticed [specific thing about their company]"
Body: 2–3 sentences max.
Line 1: Observation about them (shows research).
Line 2: The problem you solve, framed as a question.
Line 3: Soft CTA — "Worth a 10-min chat?"
Rules: No attachments. No "I hope this finds you well." No feature lists.
EMAIL 2: The Value Add (Day 3–4)
Subject: "Re:" previous subject (keeps thread)
Body: Share something useful — a stat, insight, or resource relevant
to their problem. No pitch. Build credibility.
End with: "Happy to share how [similar company] handled this."
EMAIL 3: The Breakup (Day 7–10)
Subject: "closing the loop"
Body: 2 sentences. Acknowledge they're busy. Leave the door open.
"If this isn't a priority right now, no worries. If it becomes one,
here's my calendar: [link]."
Re-engagement / Win-back (3 emails)
EMAIL 1: "We miss you" (gentle)
Subject: "It's been a while, [name]"
Body: Acknowledge they've been away. Highlight 1–2 new things since
they left. No guilt. Make coming back easy.
CTA: "See what's new" — link to changelog or key feature.
EMAIL 2: Incentive (Day 5)
Subject: "Come back and get [offer]"
Body: Specific incentive — extended trial, discount, free migration help.
Restate the core benefit they're missing.
CTA: "Reactivate with [X% off / free month]"
EMAIL 3: Final (Day 14)
Subject: "Should I close your account?"
Body: Loss aversion trigger. "Your data/settings are still saved, but
we'll archive your account on [date]." One-click reactivate.
Email Copy Rules
- Subject lines: 6 words or fewer. No clickbait. Lowercase often outperforms title case.
- Preview text: treat it as a second subject line — don't waste it.
- One CTA per email. Multiple CTAs = no clicks.
- P.S. lines get read — put your strongest proof or secondary CTA there.
- Plain text outperforms HTML for cold outreach. Use HTML for product emails.
Ad Copy
Google Search Ads
STRUCTURE:
Headline 1 (30 chars): Primary keyword + benefit
Headline 2 (30 chars): Differentiator or proof
Headline 3 (30 chars): CTA or offer
Description 1 (90 chars): Expand on the benefit, add specifics
Description 2 (90 chars): Proof point + CTA + friction removal
EXAMPLE (project management tool):
H1: "Project Management Made Simple"
H2: "Trusted by 5,000+ Teams"
H3: "Start Free — No Card Required"
D1: "See every project's status in one dashboard. No more status meetings."
D2: "Setup takes 5 minutes. Join teams at Spotify, Stripe & Shopify. Try free."
RULES:
- Include the search keyword in Headline 1 (quality score)
- Numbers and specifics outperform vague claims
- Match the ad copy to the landing page headline (message match)
- Use all available headline and description slots
- Add sitelink extensions for secondary CTAs
Meta (Facebook / Instagram) Ads
PRIMARY TEXT (125 chars visible, up to 1,000):
Line 1: Hook — the pain point or bold claim (must work in 125 chars)
Line 2–3: Agitate or expand
Line 4: Solution — introduce the product
Line 5: Proof — one specific result
Line 6: CTA — what to do next
HEADLINE (40 chars): Core benefit or offer
DESCRIPTION (30 chars): Supporting detail
EXAMPLE (analytics tool):
Primary text:
"Your analytics dashboard shows you what happened yesterday.
By then, the damage is done.
[Product] streams events in real time — so you catch issues
in minutes, not after a day of lost revenue.
Acme Corp cut incident response time by 80%.
Start free → no credit card needed."
Headline: "Real-Time Analytics. Finally."
Description: "Free 14-day trial"
FORMATS TO WRITE FOR:
- Single image: primary text + headline + description
- Carousel: each card = one benefit or feature, final card = CTA
- Video: script the first 3 seconds (hook) + 15-sec version + 30-sec version
RULES:
- Hook must work in the first line (before "See more")
- Speak to one audience per ad (don't generalize)
- Social proof in ads outperforms benefit claims for retargeting
- For cold audiences: lead with the problem (PAS). For warm: lead with proof.
LinkedIn Ads
SPONSORED CONTENT (150 chars intro visible):
Line 1: Hook — speak directly to the role ("Engineering leaders:")
Line 2–3: Problem or insight they'll recognize
Line 4: Your product as the solution
Line 5: Proof + CTA
EXAMPLE (DevOps tool):
"Engineering managers: your team spends 30% of sprint time on deployment issues.
[Product] automates rollbacks, monitors deploys in real time, and cuts
failed deployments by 60%.
Used by engineering teams at [logos].
Book a 15-min demo →"
RULES:
- Address the job title directly in line 1
- B2B proof (company names, titles, metrics) matters more than emotional hooks
- LinkedIn audiences are skeptical — lead with credibility, not hype
- Offer gated content (report, benchmark, template) for top-of-funnel
- Direct product CTAs work for retargeting and bottom-of-funnel
Product Descriptions
Short-form (for directories, marketplaces, comparison sites)
STRUCTURE (50–100 words):
Sentence 1: What it is + who it's for
Sentence 2: The core benefit (outcome, not feature)
Sentence 3: Differentiator (why this over alternatives)
Sentence 4: Proof point (scale, logos, or key metric)
EXAMPLE:
"[Product] is a real-time analytics platform for product and growth teams.
Spot conversion drops, feature adoption trends, and UX issues the moment
they happen — not in tomorrow's report. Unlike legacy tools, setup takes
5 minutes with no engineering resources. Trusted by 3,000+ SaaS companies
including [logos]."
Long-form (for product pages, app store listings)
STRUCTURE:
1. One-liner: [Product] helps [audience] [achieve outcome] by [mechanism].
2. The problem (2–3 sentences in customer language)
3. How it works (3 steps or 3–4 key capabilities, benefit-led)
4. What makes it different (unique mechanism, 1–2 sentences)
5. Social proof (key metric, testimonial quote, or logos)
6. CTA
EXAMPLE:
"[Product] helps CS teams predict and prevent churn before it happens.
Most teams find out a customer is unhappy when they cancel. The signals
were there — declining usage, fewer logins — but buried across dashboards
that don't connect the dots.
[Product] flags at-risk accounts 30 days out, tells you exactly why,
and recommends the right intervention. Three steps: connect your data,
set your risk thresholds, let the model score every account daily.
Unlike generic analytics, [Product] was built specifically for B2B SaaS
retention — trained on patterns from 10M+ subscription events.
Teams using [Product] retain at-risk accounts at 3x the industry average.
Start your free trial →"
Social Media Copy
LINKEDIN POST (thought leadership / product):
Line 1: Hook — bold claim, contrarian take, or surprising stat
Line 2: [blank line — forces "see more" click]
Line 3–8: Story or argument (short paragraphs, 1–2 sentences each)
Line 9: Takeaway or insight
Line 10: Soft CTA (comment, share, or link)
TWITTER/X THREAD:
Tweet 1: Hook + promise ("I analyzed 500 SaaS landing pages. Here's what
the top 1% do differently. 🧵")
Tweets 2–7: One insight per tweet. Concrete, specific, actionable.
Final tweet: Summary + CTA (link to product, newsletter, or resource)
RULES:
- First line is everything — it determines if anyone reads the rest
- Write at a 6th-grade reading level
- One idea per post. Don't stack 3 insights into one update.
- Native content (no external links) gets 5–10x more reach on LinkedIn
- Threads outperform single tweets for engagement on X
Research Checklist
Before writing, gather:
- VOC (voice of customer): Exact phrases from reviews, support tickets, sales calls, Reddit, Twitter. Extract: pain descriptions, desired outcomes, objections, emotional language. Use these phrases directly — borrowed language converts better than invented language.
- Competitor copy: Scan 3–5 competitors. Note claims everyone makes (table stakes), claims nobody makes (your opportunity), and the dominant tone.
- Unique mechanism: The underlying method or architecture that makes the product fundamentally different. Not a feature list. If you can't articulate it, the copy will sound generic.
Editing Checklist
| Check | Action |
|---|
| Cut filler | Remove: just, really, very, actually, basically, simply, in order to |
| Shorten sentences | If it has a comma, try two sentences |
| "So what?" test | Every line — would the reader care? Cut or add a benefit. |
| Kill passive voice | "Reports are generated" → "Generate reports" |
| Remove weasel words | "Helps you save time" → "Saves you 10 hours/week" |
| Check "you" ratio | More "you/your" than "we/our" |
| One idea per paragraph | Two points? Split. |
BEFORE: "Our platform basically helps teams to easily manage their projects in a
more efficient way by providing a comprehensive suite of tools."
AFTER: "Manage every project in one place. No more juggling 5 tools."
A/B Testing
What to Test (by impact)
- Headlines
- CTAs — wording, placement
- Hero structure — copy-first vs. demo-first vs. video
- Proof framing — logos vs. testimonials vs. metrics
- Page length
Creating Variants
Change ONE variable. Everything else identical.
HEADLINE VARIANTS:
A: "Cut client reporting from 10 hours to 10 minutes" (specific promise)
B: "Client reporting on autopilot" (ease)
C: "2,000+ agencies automated their reporting. You're next." (proof)
CTA VARIANTS:
A: "Start my free trial" (standard)
B: "See it work with my data" (curiosity)
C: "Start free — no credit card required" (friction removal)
Run both versions on equal traffic. Wait for 100+ conversions per variant or 7–14 days. Statistical significance > gut feeling.
Pre-Delivery Checklist
Before presenting any copy, verify:
