Copywriting Formula to Master Storytelling

A simple 5-step copywriting formula to help you master storytelling:

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 6, 2023

If you don't understand human emotion, it's tough to write great stories.

I struggled to write effectively for the first 6 months on social media.

- I didn't have a system
- I didn't understand the psychology
- I didn't know anything about copywriting

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 6, 2023

Because of that, I dreaded writing each day.

I stared at a blank screen, and then sloppily threw together some messy content.

When I finally pressed "post", all of my worries came true.

Nobody read it.
Nobody engaged.
Nobody cared.

That sucks.

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 6, 2023

I have an easy formula for writing compelling stories.

It's my variation of PAS (problem/agitate/solution) called PAIPS.

- Problem
- Agitate
- Intrigue
- Positive Future
- Solution

I'll break down a piece of content that had 276k impressions using this format.

Let's go: pic.twitter.com/FHP3zIJKLH

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 6, 2023

1. Highlight Something Painful:

The 1st line highlights a painful problem that people in my audience experience:

They feel taken advantage of at work.

This line is intended to do 2 things:

1. Elicit a strong emotional response
2. Get the reader to the next line

Then... pic.twitter.com/QIKb3ePmCO

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 6, 2023

2. Agitate the Pain:

Next, we're going to turn the knife. Make it hurt a bit.

This gets under the reader's skin and makes them...well...agitated.

Once someone is agitated, they are much more likely to be open to a solution.

Here's how I went from problem to agitation: pic.twitter.com/5FlrtuYYAn

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 6, 2023

3. Introduce Something Intriguing

Next, I introduce something intriguing.

I want the audience to think, "Wait, what's that?"

So in this post, I introduce something called the Creator Funnel.

My goal is to get them to lean in with interest to carry them through the content. pic.twitter.com/fDM8U7fm7t

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 6, 2023

4. Paint a Positive Future:

Now that we have the audience's attention, I work to paint a picture of what a positive future would look like.

A positive future tied to following the intriguing Creator Funnel.

You can see that here: pic.twitter.com/8lskD3r07N

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 6, 2023

5. Present Your Solution:

The last step is to introduce our solution into the equation.

In this particular instance, the solution was my newsletter, and my intention was to drive subscribers.

You can see that here: pic.twitter.com/JcfkbPxxYf

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 6, 2023

6. The Results

This post ended up with:

- 276,798 impressions
- 1,646 engagements
- 371 comments

And 600+ new subscribers to my newsletter (nice).

Mission accomplished.

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 6, 2023

TL;DR

- Pain
- Agitate
- Intrigue
- Positive future
- Solution

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 6, 2023