The power of conversation lies in the fact that it’s ephemeral.

An item of sales literature is printed and sits around in a physical form. It can exist for months, years, or even decades.

The photo above shows a Book Society promotional postcard I found while rummaging through some old papers in my mother’s house.

It had been sitting there for about 50 years.

But a conversation, held between two people, or a group of people, is ephemeral.

A conversation takes place only in the present. In the moment. Now.

On the face of it, you might conclude that when you’re selling stuff, permanence is better than being ephemeral.

Better to print up some sales brochures than to have a conversation that exists only in the present and is then lost forever.

Hmmm… Tell that to a salesperson and I think they’ll disagree.

Most salespeople will tell you that the best way to close a sale is to engage the prospect in conversation, one on one.

They steer the conversation to the point where the prospect says Yes, and signs on the dotted line, or takes out her credit card.

Never let the prospect say, “Let me think about it”.

Don’t give them the chance to stick a promotional postcard in a drawer and leave it there for 50 years!

Salespeople use the immediacy of conversation to close the sale NOW.

Any decent direct response copywriter will tell you immediacy is key to a successful sales pitch.

Direct response copywriters have always known about the power of NOW.

They may not be able to sit down with their prospects one at a time, but they DO use language in ways that convey the same kind of immediacy and urgency.

Buy NOW. Don’t delay. Offer expires at midnight tonight. Limited supplies!

These phrases and others like them are designed to bring the reader into the present moment… to buy immediately.

Conversational copywriting also taps into the power of NOW.

Conversational copywriters aren’t the same as direct response copywriters.

We’re more open and transparent. Less pushy. Less salesy. Fewer sales clichés.

We use everyday, conversational language.

It feels like we’re sitting across the table from our prospect, as a friend.

In the here and now.

And by doing that – by being in the present with each reader – we can leverage the power of conversational language to drive immediate action.

As conversational copywriters, we can drive more sales… with honesty and integrity.

While there are plenty of reasons to love the conversational approach, the power to drive immediate action is one of the most compelling of them all.