A well-intentioned reader gave me a bit of a backhand compliment the other day:
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Just so you know, I love how Ben Settle wrote his emails and then connect it with something he promotes.
And guess what?
I found the one who look similar to him.
And that is…
You, Mr. Persuasive Page.
Thank you for creating ads in his email the other day.
Without that, I would never find you.
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(If you don’t know — Ben Settle is a prolific email copywriter.)
My take on this email?
In Japanese there’s a saying:
生まれてくれてありがとう (umaretekurete-arigatou)
Which, in English, means something like “Thank you for doing me the favour of being born”.
A Japanese friend once said it to me. And as an English native speaker, I found it a really weird compliment.
I mean, it doesn’t actually … praise me?
(I didn’t choose to be born — and it wasn’t really for you!)
And it’s the same for this email I got.
Clearly, it was meant as a compliment.
But … it actually isn’t.
“Why not?” you ask. “Why wouldn’t someone want to be likened to one of the world’s best copywriters?”
Tsk, tsk.
Must you even ask that, Petunia?
Look, I have a simple philosophy:
If you imitate someone, you simply become an inferior copy of them.
And that instantly disqualifies you as someone worth listening to.
After all … why would anyone listen to the cheap rip-off when they can listen to the original?
Thus, in your copy … in your marketing … in your branding … in your art …
Be YOU.
(And not your inspirations or influences.)
Those two simple words are the key to the most powerful uniqueness your brand will ever have.
This free tip has been brought to you by the one … the only … the inimitable …
Daniel Throssell
P.S. Want to know something ironic?
Most people don’t even know what it means to ‘be themselves’.
Because they only know how to imitate … and they’ve never seen anyone else being “them”!
If that’s you, it might actually help to bring on someone else to write for you — an expert copywriter who can find your ‘voice’ and put it into words for you.
And then, show you how to do it for yourself.
If you’d like my help doing that, jump on my waitlist here — then reach out to me with your details.