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The 12 Best Copywriting Books & Courses (to help you become a better copywriter)
You've just discovered copywriting and want to get better. GOOD. Well here's my top advice and books for getting better at copywriting. These copywriting books are ranked in the order you should get them:
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Let's go through each of them and discuss:
• What I love about the book
• What skills you'll learn from the book
• Who it's for (beginner or experienced writers)
1.) The Boron Letters - by Gary Halbert:
Price: Free online or $22 on Amazon
What I love about it: This was originally a set of free letters published by the famous copywriter Gary Halbert. I stayed up till 6am every night going through these letters. Unbelievable beginners guide to copywriting and business.
What skills you'll learn: Writing. Keeping someone's attention. Creative ways to make money. First 3 chapters are about "Life" in general. Direct mail. I would HIGHLY suggest you physically print these out on a printer to read.
Tone of voice: Super hilarious and a bit vulgar. You may wake your spouse up with laughter whilst reading.
Good for: Total copywriting beginners.
All chapters linked: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25
2.) Advertising Secrets of the Written Word - by Joseph Sugarman:(re-named "Adweek Copywriting Handbook")
Price: $16 on Amazon
What I love about it: He goes through 30 different "triggers" that cause someone's brain to switch into "buying" mode. These are super helpful, and a great resource to re-read when you're feeling unmotivated!
What skills you'll learn: Writing. Style choices. The 30 Triggers and how to use them.
Tone of voice: Casual and easy. I like Joe Sugarman's style because he isn't "hypey" at all. He's very genuine and not scammy like some other classic copywriters.
Reading Level: Total Beginner.
Other Joseph Sugarman Resources:
3.) Ogilvy on Advertising - by David Ogilvy:
Price: $19 on Amazon
What I love about it: Written directly by the guy who started the famed Ogilvy and Mather advertising firm in New York (which "Mad Men" is based off of).
What skills you'll learn: Large-scale advertising. Brand advertising. How to layout ads like a billion dollar brand. Tone of voice: Informative and pretty funny. Less talk and lots of examples.
Reading Level: Beginner.
Other Free David Ogilvy Resources:
4.) Getting Everything You Can Out of All You've Got - by Jay Abraham:
Price: $11 on Amazon
What I love about it: Not only about copywriting, but business in general. This is probably MORE a business book. Lots of great examples of businesses growing their existing revenue.
What skills you'll learn: Focusing on which parts of your businesses can be grown with the least amount of effort.
Tone of voice: Factual and to-the-point.
Reading Level: Intermediate. Best if you already have an existing business.
Other Free Jay Abraham Resources:
5.) This Book Will Teach You How To Write Better - by Neville Medhora:
Price: $5 on Amazon
What I love about it: This could be a 300 page book, but it was distilled down to 54 pages for super-quick reading. This was meant to be a reference guide you can keep on your desk for when writing a piece of copy. What skills you'll learn: Mentality of a copywriter. The styling to use while writing. Formulas for copywriting. Tone of voice: Funny and informative. Reading Level: Beginner Other Free Neville Medhora Resources:
6.) Save The Cat - by Blake Snyder
Price: $16 on Amazon
What I love about it: This is a book about writing movies. It takes you through 11 different "archetypes" of screenplays you can write, and the exact elements each needs to be a great story (with lots of famous movie examples).
What skills you'll learn: Screenplay writing. The elements of a story (this is really important if you want to write fiction OR non-fiction).
Tone of voice: Informative.
Reading Level: Intermediate writers will get the most out of this.
Other Save The Cat Free Resources:
7.) A Whack on the Side of the Head - by Roger Von Oech
Price: $13 on Amazon
What I love about it: You can flip to any section and find some "new way of looking at a problem" in this book. It gets you to take existing problems you have, and flip them around in ways you never thought of before. Apply the lessons to your copy to find new "angles."
What skills you'll learn: Problem solving. Looking at a problem from different angles.
Tone of voice: Informative and fun.
Reading Level: Beginner.
8.) Breakthrough Advertising - by Eugene Schwartz:
Price: $249 on Amazon
What I love about it: Goes through different stages of large-scale advertising and the thought processes behind them. The examples are all from the 1920's and 1930's era.
What skills you'll learn: Direct mail campaign strategies. Large-scale advertising cycle. Writing copy in a scientific manner.
Tone of voice: Dry.
Reading Level: Intermediate to advanced.
9.) How To Make Maximum Money In Minimum Time - by Gary Halbert:
Price: $20 on Amazon
What I love about it: It's just kind of a random pamphlet Gary Halbert put together about making money through direct mail.....but it was one of the funniest and best books I've read in a long time!
What skills you'll learn: Direct mail. Some very out-of-the-box methods for bringing in money.
Tone of voice: Hilarious and a little crude.
Reading Level: Beginners and business owners will love it.
10.) Free Copywriting Guides
Price: Free
What I love about it: There's just a wide breadth of topics about copywriting here. If someone is driven, they can read all these guides (or even print them out) to get a great understanding of copywriting and how to do it. The best part is they're all free.
What skills you'll learn: What copywriting is, real-world copywriting case studies, copywriting exercises, how to charge as a copywriter.
Tone of voice: Informative and funny.
Reading Level: From beginner to advanced articles.
Other Free Copywriting Resources:
11.) The Copywriting Course
Price: $750/year or monthly payments
What I love about it: This copywriting course takes you from beginner to intermediate level really fast through video. Unlike books, through video you can learn a visual medium (like copywriting) much quicker.
What skills you'll learn: Takes you through Copywriting, the mentality of copywriters, actual writing examples, the psychology behind selling, has an Autoresponder Course, a Content Writing Course, and a How to Become a Copywriter Course...all those copywriting courses in one bundle.
Tone of voice: Informative and funny.
Watching Level: Beginner looking to quickly get better at copywriting.
Other Free Copywriting Course Resources:
12.) Free Freelance Writing Course
Price: Free
What I love about it: This is a free course that outlines are the important parts of freelance writing (and freelancing for other specialties). Totally free and very informative.
What skills you’ll learn: Takes you through finding the best niche to freelance in, how to get started in freelancing without any previous experience, how to find gigs, how to price your projects, what to charge, and much more.
Tone of voice: Informative and funny.
Watching Level: Beginner looking to get their first freelancing gigs.
Other Freelance Writing Resources:
Here's a helpful list of all the books and courses mentioned:
| Book | Author | Price | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Boron Letters | Gary Halbert | Free online | Beginner |
| Adweek Copywriting Handbook | Joseph Sugarman | $16 | Beginner |
| Ogilvy on Advertising | David Ogilvy | $19 | Beginner |
| Getting Everything You Can Out of All You’ve Got | Jay Abraham | $11 | Medium |
| This Book Will Teach You How To Write Better | Neville Medhora | $5 | Beginner |
| Save The Cat | Blake Snyder | $16 | Medium |
| A Whack on the Side of the Head | Roger Von Oech | $13 | Beginner |
| Breakthrough Advertising | Eugene Schwartz | $249 | Advanced |
| How To Make Maximum Money In Minimum Time | Gary Halbert | $20 | Beginner |
| Free Copywriting Guides | Neville Medhora | Free | Beginner |
| The Copywriting Course | Neville Medhora | Monthly Pay | Beginner |
| Free Freelance Writing Course | Neville Medhora | Free | Beginner |
Copywriting Book Recommendations Video:
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