Remember that famous scene in Jerry MaGuire where Tom Cruise delivers a heart-felt plea to win back Renee Zellweger, only to have her reply: "Shut up. Just shut up. You had me at hello"?

There's a lesson here.

Many brands keep selling customers long after they need to simply shut up and ask for the sale. Here's what I've told clients more times than I can count:

Look at the amount of copy on your main web pages or your brochure. However much copy you have included, you are instructing a reader: "You cannot make an educated decision until you've read everything we've presented here."

If you wax on and on for paragraphs, you risk losing attention. Worse yet, you risk making something simple feel complicated and cumbersome.

So, here's what I recommend instead:

- Try a more presumptive approach. Cut your copy in half and cut to the chase. Present a killer headline, followed by your top few sales points, and then ask for the sale. Go ahead, just ask for it.

- If you're selling something very pricey or of a sensitive nature, create a baby step. Instead of a big commitment, offer a free trial, a product demo, a consultation, a 3-month membership, or some other opportunity for customers to inch closer to the big close.

And if you are marketing to moms (which I presume you are), this advice is even more relevant. Moms are subjected to incessant pleading all day long. One pack of Skittles can generate debate that lasts all the way home from soccer practice and into the house for another ten minutes of begging.

Enough already. State your case and ask once. Quickly, please.

Labels: advertising to women, Email marketing to moms, Marketing to Moms, Marketing Wisdom

Please leave your thoughts and opinions in the comments section below, even if -- no, especially if -- you don't agree with what I've written.