EW Skill — Sales Copy

Dependency chain. Read these in order before writing anything:

1. core/runtime-contract.md (short operating contract; does not replace the full rules)
2. core/obsidian-workspace.md (resolve storage and persistence rules)
3. core/anti-ai-rules.md (full standard)
4. core/ai_slop_commandments.md (mechanism reference and diagnostic checklist)
5. core/voice-profile.md (voice resolver; require the resolved profile's Completed: field to be exactly Yes, otherwise stop and run onboarding)
6. Any .md files in the active voice's references folder, as resolved by core/voice-profile.md

This chain applies on direct invocation (/ew:sales-copy) exactly as it does on dispatch through /ew. Direct invocation skips routing, not constraints.

---

WHAT THIS SKILL IS FOR

Sales pages, email sequences, and direct response copy. Writing that exists to produce a measurable outcome: a purchase, a booking, a subscription, an enrollment.

Sales copy is the most honest form of writing because it can't hide its intent. It either converts or it doesn't. The number tells you. The discipline here is writing that moves people toward something they genuinely need — not manipulating them into something they don't.

Manipulation is not this skill's tool. Clarity, specificity, and legitimate persuasion are.

---

THE STRUCTURAL SPINE: THE CUSTOMER AS PROTAGONIST

The Triad of Craft and the writing commandments converge on one insight for sales copy: the customer is the protagonist, not the product. The product is the key knowledge found at the midpoint of their journey. The copy must tell their story, not yours.

The sales copy as hero's journey:

Ordinary World: The customer's life before. The problem that exists. The pain that is real. State it more specifically than they've heard it before — this is what creates the "they understand me" moment that earns trust.

Inciting Incident: The moment their ordinary world is no longer acceptable. What made them start looking? What made the pain acute enough to act? Naming this is the difference between copy that resonates and copy that gets scrolled past.

The Woods: What they've already tried. What failed. Why the usual solutions don't work for this specific problem. This section is often skipped — it shouldn't be. Acknowledging failed attempts proves you understand the problem deeply.

Key Knowledge: The mechanism. Why this product/service works where others didn't. Not a feature list — the one insight about the problem that makes the solution make sense.

New Equilibrium: Life after. Specific. Grounded. Not "transform your business" — "you stop writing from scratch every time and start from a brief that already has the argument."

---

THE OPENING

The sole purpose of the first sentence is to get the reader to read the second sentence.

The opening must do one of three things: name the reader's problem so specifically they feel seen, challenge a belief they hold, or present a specific outcome they want. No preamble. No warm-up. The reader made the decision to stay or go in the first three seconds.

What works:

The problem, stated precisely: "You've bought three copywriting courses. Your conversion rate is the same as when you started."

The specific outcome: "A sales page that converts at 8% when your current one converts at 1.2%."

The challenge: "Most sales pages fail before the reader reaches the first CTA — and it's not the CTA that's broken."

What doesn't work:

• "Are you tired of...?" — exhausted opener, signals template
• "Imagine a world where..." — futurism invitation, signals AI
• "I used to struggle with this too..." — false vulnerability, signals performance
• Long story openers that bury the point past the 300-word mark

---

SPECIFICITY IS THE PROOF

In sales copy, specificity is the mechanism of trust. Every vague claim is a credibility debit. Every specific claim is a credibility credit.

The specificity upgrade:

❌ "This program has helped hundreds of businesses grow." ✅ "47 solo consultants used this to book their first $5,000 client within 90 days."

❌ "Our clients see amazing results." ✅ "Amara increased her newsletter conversion rate from 1.8% to 6.3% in 60 days using only the cold traffic sequence in Module 3."

The number, the name, the timeframe, the specific mechanism — these are what make claims land. Without them, you're asking the reader to trust you on faith. Most won't.

Name the mechanism: Don't just say the product works — explain briefly why it works. The mechanism is what separates a claim from an argument. ❌ "This headline formula gets clicks." ✅ "This headline formula works because it triggers pattern interruption — the reader's brain stops scanning when it encounters something that doesn't fit the template it was expecting."

---

OBJECTION ARCHITECTURE

Every unconverted reader is a reader with an unaddressed objection. Your copy must find and answer the three to five objections that kill the most conversions — before the reader has to ask.

The main objections in most sales situations:

1. "Is this for someone like me?" — Too broad, won't work in my situation
2. "Will this actually work?" — Skepticism about the mechanism or promise
3. "Can I trust you?" — Credibility gap, insufficient proof
4. "Is it worth the cost?" — ROI isn't clear
5. "Is now the right time?" — Urgency isn't real

Address each with specifics, not reassurance. Reassurance ("We're confident you'll love it!") doesn't address objections — it papers over them. The reader can feel the difference.

Objection: "I've tried things like this before and they didn't work." Reassurance: "We think you'll be pleasantly surprised!" Address: "Most [category] courses teach the framework without the implementation step. This one starts at implementation. Here's what that looks like on day one:"

---

PROOF ARCHITECTURE

Proof is not a section at the bottom of the page. It is distributed throughout the copy, placed nearest to the claim it supports.

Types of proof, in descending order of power:

1. Specific named results with numbers and timeframes — the most trusted form
2. Named testimonials with specific outcomes — not "John changed my business," but "John's launch converted at 4.2% where his previous launch was at 0.9%"
3. Your own demonstrated expertise — specific, named, verifiable
4. Mechanism explanation — showing you understand why it works
5. Social proof (numbers, logos, media) — useful but weakest without specifics

Never use:

• Anonymous testimonials
• Testimonials with only first name and last initial
• Testimonials that only praise the person, not the result
• Claims you can't substantiate

---

EMAIL SEQUENCES

An email sequence is a conversation across time. Each email must earn the right to send the next one.

The first email's job: Establish why the reader is here and what they'll get. Not a full pitch — a clear reason to open the next one.

Middle emails: Deepen the argument. Each email handles one aspect of the case for action. One idea per email. Every email ends with a forward pointer that makes the next one feel necessary.

The sales email: After the relationship and the argument are built. The offer, stated clearly and honestly. The mechanism, the proof, the CTA. One CTA. No hedge. No apology for selling.

Subject lines: Write for the opened inbox of someone who doesn't know what's inside. The subject line earns the open; the first line earns the read.

---

WHAT THIS SKILL DOES NOT DO

This skill does not generate false urgency ("only 3 spots left" when there are unlimited spots), manufacture scarcity, or write copy that misrepresents what the product does. These techniques work once and destroy trust permanently.

If the offer is good, honesty converts. If the offer requires manipulation to convert, the offer is the problem — not the copy.

---

POST-GENERATION REVIEW

After producing any draft, stop. Re-read core/anti-ai-rules.md Sections 1–7 with the draft in front of you. Go line by line through the pre-publish checklist in Section 7. Fix every failure before presenting the output.

Sales copy that reads as AI-generated destroys the trust it needs to convert. The review pass is not quality control — it is the product.

PRE-LAUNCH CHECKLIST

• Does the opening name the reader's specific problem or desired outcome in the first 3 sentences?
• Is the customer the protagonist — or is the product?
• Is every claim backed by a specific number, name, or mechanism?
• Are testimonials named and outcome-specific?
• Are the top 5 objections addressed with specifics, not reassurance?
• Is the mechanism explained — not just claimed?
• Is there one clear CTA per section?
• Have you run Sections 1–7 of core/anti-ai-rules.md?
• Is all urgency or scarcity real — not manufactured?
• Does the copy end having proved something, or just asserted it?