As far as I’m aware, there is no actual Master of Business Administration (MBA) with a specialization in copywriting.
But there should be.
So in this blog post, I’m writing a curriculum for what I would recommend if I were in charge of putting a course together in copywriting.
Marketing Management
Topics include:
- History of advertising, marketing, and sales from early marketplaces to online
- Types of media and how different types of copy are used in each
- Direct marketing/direct response versus other types of marketing
- Developing marketing plans
- Ethics in marketing
Mandatory reading:
- Marketing Management by Philip Kotler
- Successful Direct Marketing Methods by Bob Stone and Ron Jacobs
Psychology, Sociology, and the Power of Persuasion
Topics include:
- Psychological drivers for behaviors and decisions
- Consumer habits (loyalty/disloyalty, trends, following the crowd)
- Buying motivations
- How to build rapport and connect emotionally
- Persuasion and influence
- Action, how to call people to it (and why people don’t act)
Mandatory reading:
Sales Funnels
Topics include:
- Analyzing sales sales funnels for opportunities and troubleshooting
- Connecting with people where they spend their attention
- Creating end-to-end funnels (from attention to post-sale)
- Strategies for growth and profitability
Mandatory reading:
- The Sales Funnel Bible by Aaron Hoos (that’s right, I’m shamelessly recommending my own book!)
- The Ultimate Marketing Plan by Dan Kennedy
Credibility and Reputation Management
Topics include:
- What is credibility and authority and how do consumers ascribe it to businesses?
- USPs — analyzing them and developing them
- Positive versus negative reputations and what factors influence these
- Components that contribute to credibility and authority (i.e. testimonials)
Mandatory reading:
- The Brand Called You by Peter Montoya
- Blue Ocean Strategy by W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne
- Reputation Rules by Daniel Diermeier
Formulas and Structures
Topics include:
- An overview of classic copy formulas and why they work
- Attention/Interest/Decision/Action (AIDA)
- Storytelling in copywriting
- Components of copy (Headlines, Benefits, Overcoming objections, Calls to action)
Mandatory reading:
Attraction and Attention
Topics include:
- Attention-getting with headlines and subheadings
- Powerwords
- Use of images
- Basic fundamentals of color/design
Mandatory reading:
Measuring Results
Topics include:
- The purpose of measuring
- An overview of metrics, analytics, and statistics
- Measuring the right things (and avoiding errors/assumptions)
- How to split test
Mandatory reading:
Project
The student will be assigned a product or service and will create a marketing strategy for that offering. Then, the student will create an end-to-end sales funnel that is to include the following components:
- Attention-getting marketing in at least 3 different media (and must include at least one broadcast media, one print media, and one online media)
- Social copy
- Sales copy for a sales letter (for web or magazine)
- Website copy
- Pre-sales relationship-building copy
- Post-sales follow-up copy that drives additional sales
The student may deploy this copy in any appropriate sales funnel and must also defend each choice of media.