How to Edit Marketing Copy for Impact

After writing copy for 5 years and driving $20M+ in revenue, here are the 3 best editing tips I've learned to improve your writing: 👉 Can I skim through the copy and still understand what it's about? 95% of your audience doesn't have time to read every single word. Instead, expect them to skim-read and make it as easy as possible for them to understand while doing so: ✅ Hook them with your first line ✅ Highlight, bold, or underline key points ✅ Break your copy up with headlines/talking points ✅ Use emojis (like I'm doing here) 👉 How can I make this shorter but still get my point across? Your best editing tool is your eraser. ✏️ Use it deliberately and make sure every word is pulling its weight. 👉 Is my call to action clear and easy to understand? Ask yourself: "Does my reader know what I want them to do once they read the copy?" If not, clearly let them know. ---- Don't forget to use these 3 tips in your ads, emails, and sales pages to write unbeatable copy.

Ever feel like editing your writing is endless? That it never feels quite right? You’re not alone. ↳ Most people don’t know how to edit effectively. ↳ They go in circles, unsure what to fix, or worse, fix everything at once. But here’s the truth: editing doesn’t have to be chaotic. You just need to follow a process—a clear, repeatable, focused one. 1️⃣ First pass: STORY. ↳ Does every word serve the story arc? If not, cut it. ↳ Coherence isn’t optional; it’s essential. 📝 Pro Tip: ✔️ First, figure out your core message from your 2 to 3 key findings. Cut out everything that doesn’t align with the core message. 2️⃣ Second pass: STRUCTURE. ↳ Look at your paragraphs. Too long? Too short? ↳ Does each thought build on the last, or does it wander? ↳ Does it start with a declarative sentence? end with a summary? 📝 Pro Tip: ✔️ Use the 1-3-1 technique (You can view it here: https://buff.ly/40Hionb) 3️⃣ Third pass: SENTENCE. ↳ Sentences should be crisp. If you can say it in fewer words, do it. ↳ Omit jargon. Rewrite clunky phrases. ↳ Go for simplicity, not complexity. 📝 Pro Tip: ✔️ Use varying sentence lengths— small, medium, and long to give a natural flow and tone with emphasis on the main points. 4️⃣ Final pass: DETAIL. ↳ Formatting, figures, references. ↳ Check author guidelines. ↳ Attention to detail shows you care. 📝 Pro Tip: ✔️ The audience is giving you their attention — you owe it to them to make it as polished as possible Ready to elevate your work? ▶️Grab the last thing you wrote. Give it these 4 passes, one focused lens at a time. ▶️Take it slow. Be ruthless. ▶️And watch your writing transform. ___________________________________ P.S. If you want my manuscript outline blueprint, you can get it here: https://buff.ly/4cnaH8Z Please reshare 🔄 if you got some value out of this...

✍️ Feedback. If you’re a fundraising writer (like me :)), it’s a way of life. But how can you tell if those changes could weaken your story and results? Here are 6 real-life examples... 👉 Edit 1: If your edit requires that uneven page breaks get “repaired”: Nonprofits overwhelmingly want the last sentence on each page of your appeal letter to button up neatly. In reality? A completed sentence is a stop sign for your brain. Even with a really good page turn, it's a completed thought – and one less reason to keep reading. Your goal, until the end of your letter, is to keep your reader reading. Yes, uneven breaks look awkward. Yes, readers have to turn the page in mid-sentence. Yes, it’s more like a letter from one human being to another. And these are ALL reasons to keep uneven page breaks, well, uneven. 👉 Edit 2: If your edit forces perfect grammar and punctuation: Effective fundraising copywriting writes for the silent voice INSIDE your reader’s head. And that's a voice that needs your occasional departure from standard punctuation and grammar to guide it. Are you about to ask your writer to remove a comma or ditch an ellipsis? Read it in your head first. Chances are, that punctuation is intentional. Same with formatting, btw... underlining, bold, italics, used non-rampantly, help keep your reader reading and guide them to parts that matter – critical for scanners! 👉 Edit 3: If your edit removes emotional copy to insert branding language: If you remove emotional copy to make room for brand jargon, it’s almost always the wrong move. Why? Because most brand language is broad. Conceptual. Generic. Organization-focused. Emotional copy reaches donors in a way that makes them want to pay attention now – and that’s what helps them love and remember your brand. 👉 Edit 4: If you insert language that focuses on your organization over your donor: This is “we-speak”. Our programs... our missions... our work. Don’t make this edit. Instead, keep the focus on your supporters and their generosity. The change they help make happen... the people they stand beside... the lives they touch. [This is not the we’re-in-this-together-we. My copy includes Solidarity We all the time, and yours can too. But the Royal We? It’s got to go.] 👉 Edit 5. If your edit forces writer to resolve the story: If you love your donors, try not to edit your appeal into a happily-ever-after story. An unresolved story is a story your donor can be part of... a story they can give to... a story they can help change or resolve or improve. Happily-ever-afters? Save those for newsletters. Favor unresolved stories in appeals when you can. Remember, direct response isn't about our likes or dislikes, or even what focus groups say they'll do. Direct response is about what works. 💌 ====== Want more on effective fundraising writing and nonprofit storytelling in general? I send new stuff every two weeks if you’re on this list 😊 lisasargent.com/newsletter