TCC Podcast #239: Transcript of “Writing For Launches with Kristina Shands”

Full Transcript: Kira:  Being a launch copywriter is not the easiest thing in the world. You've got to understand launch strategy, be able to write sales pages and emails, maybe even write webinar scripts, Facebook and Google or YouTube ads, and more, and often even just support your client through the launch experience, which can be a rollercoaster at times. It's the kind of work that can easily lead to burnout if you're not careful. Our guest for the 239th episode of The Copywriter Club Podcast is former Think Tank member, Kristina Shands. She joined us to talk all about the work involved with writing and strategizing for launches, and she talked about ways to make launches more enjoyable too. Rob:  So, before we get to our interview with Kristina, we want to tell you that this podcast is brought to you by The Copywriter Think Tank. This is something we've been talking about quite a bit recently, and if you're tired of hearing us promote the Think Tank, maybe just visit the copywriterthinktank.com and find out what it's all about. It is our private mastermind for copywriters and other marketers who want to challenge each other, create new streams of revenue in their business, to receive coaching from the two of us, and ultimately grow your business to six figures or find more time for the things that you value, whatever your goals are, it's designed to help you reach them. If you've been looking for a mastermind to help you grow as a copywriter or as a business owner, again, visit copywriterthinktank.com to find out more. Kira:  Yeah, and we're not going to stop talking about it anytime soon. So, sorry. Okay, let's jump into our conversation with Kristina, as we usually do, with her story. Kristina:  The roundabout way is how I got here. I spent a lot of time in college just doing random stuff, and then I discovered this thing called public relations, and I figured out I could write pretty well. So, I got a degree in public relations and worked for nonprofits, and then one day, I came in, and my boss said, "Our grant isn't approved for next year, you're the only person that I can let go, and sorry." And so, I was like, "Oh, okay." So, I spent a year working with other fundraising coaches, worked as a grant writer. I've taught fundraising to local nonprofits, and then I worked with graphic designers. And I had some friends that owned a web company, and I had no idea what I was doing, but I knew I could write. I'd still at this point didn't know what copywriting was, I just knew I could write scripts and I could write stuff. Had no direction whatsoever. And then ended up finding out what internet marketing was, and got into that world, studied with some of the first, Frank Kern, sort of those types of copier, those types of internet marketers. And then became a VA, discovered launching from a client, came into her company as a junior copywriter, and that was when I was like, "Oh, wait, there's a science behind copywriting. It's not just writing words randomly and asking someone to do something, there's actually a formula and science and metrics and things that I can actually study." And then from there, it became a really dive into what it takes to be a real copywriter, how to become a better copywriter, about storytelling. And because my client was doing a lots of launches, I just got to study with her and watch her team do launches. From there, I just went on and started working with other friends and coaches and found my way through the maze. I've just been really lucky to get really great referrals and learning as I go and studying, and then found my way here. Long story short, I happened into it, and I'm really glad I did. Rob:  So, Kristina, I'm curious, going back to PR days, fundraising days, when you started mentioning that, I'm like, "Okay, how do you fundraise? What are the secrets to fundraising?" Because when you're offering somebody a product to sell or to buy, obviously, I'm going to give you money and I'm going to get something in return. But with fundraising, I'm going to give you money and maybe I'm going to get a few nice feelings in return or what, how do you make that work and be successful? Spill the secrets. Kristina:  It is absolutely the same thing. It's all about a feeling. So, you think we're selling a product, and you're not, you're selling a solution, as a fundraiser. And I worked for environmental companies in a state that's not known for environmental friendliness. I worked with clean energy and clean water groups. And so, trust-selling clean water to someone who is in a state where we've got tons of rain and dams and lakes that we can swim in year round, not year round, it gets cold here, but it's all about a feeling, it's all about selling a promise, selling the future, selling an emotion. Getting them to see that they can be part of the solution instead of part of the problem. So, how I nurtured and cultivated and solicited a major donor is how I do the same for one-on-one clients. And I really need to sit down and map it out because there was a system that we use from fundraising that directly correlates to prospecting. And it's a really beautiful, nurturing, proactive system, but when you're selling in fundraising, you're selling a solution. You're selling being part of a community that cares. It was a lot easier when I worked for a nonprofit that rescued bear cubs. It was really fun because we just got to put cute bear cubs on picture envelopes, and then say like, "Hey, give us money, the bears are hungry." And people would send us money. Putting a picture of a dirty stream and saying, "Hey, we need to clean up the stream." This is a little harder, but also getting really creative, getting to know people. I spent a lot of time on the phone with people, on the phone listening to like, do they have kids in the background? Where are they showing up in the newspaper? What other nonprofits do they support? What is their future? What do they want? And really getting to know them. It's the same thing as like when you're looking for one-on-one clients, you really get to know your clients, and before you even present a solution to them, you have an idea of how you want to work with them. And same thing with major donors. So, it's a really, really fun place to be in, it's just, the mindset of nonprofit work is very difficult because they think it's a scarcity, there's only a limited pot of money and lots of sacrificing, which is not always the easiest. But it's a really great place to be. Kira:  Kristina, how long have you been a copywriter now? As you were sharing your story, I couldn't tell if it's like, it's been a decade of copywriting for your own business, or if it's been a couple of years. Kristina:  I've been on my own since 2009, as a copywriter, I would probably say seven years, actually knowing what copywriting is. And then actually claiming a launch copywriter and that I know what I'm doing, I spent like three years. There's different evolutions of the confidence level. But actively studying it, actively going and putting myself in situations where I have to get better, three or four years. Yeah. But I've been trying to do this entrepreneur thing for a long time, and so, I'm just now starting to hit my stride as an entrepreneur, which is what you don't really learn when you first start out, how to pay taxes, how to set up a business entity. That stuff, I struggled with for a long time. Kira:  Kristina, let's talk about launching, because this is what your expertise is in, can you share with us how the launch space has changed over the last, at least the last three years that you've been focused on it, how it's evolved, and almost like a state of the union on launching? Kristina:  Yeah, absolutely. I think for launches, it's really come, there were just a few ways to launch at first. You had like your teleseminars, you had your telesummits, and you had your product launch formula sort of model. And then now you've got like your five-day challenges, your webinars, you've got your training series, you've got more advanced summits. So, things have progressed, but it all comes down to launching in a way that is good for you, and how you want to show up and how your clients want you to show up. It's all about building relationships. None of that's changed, it's just how the technology has changed. I'm sure that people are going to be launching using Clubhouse, and TikTok, and we've got Chatbots and all of that. And it all comes down to what you're comfortable, how you're comfortable showing up and selling, what your strengths are, and what you have the resources to handle. So, the how of launching may have changed over the years, but what you're actually doing hasn't changed at all. It's still building a relationship, creating a transformational experience, asking them to say yes. That will never change when it comes to a launch process. Kira:  How did we know what's good for us when we're launching? And maybe this is also a question for when we're working with clients too, and we're coming in and working on the launch strategy with a client, how do we start from the beginning to think about like, "Well, what is really good for this particular client?" And maybe even like, "What is good for me too as the person assisting this client?" Kristina:  Yeah. I think it starts with, what are their strengths? So, what are they really, really great at doing? And then what is the promise that they're selling? So, if you're selling a high-end coaching program, and all you're doing is teaching, but the teaching isn't part of the coaching program, that might not be the best way for people to really feel and see how it would be like to work with you. And on the other side of it is this, if you really, really hate video, but you're being pushed into doing a three-part video series, and then selling on video,