The Shortest Copywriting Lesson on the Internet

19 January 2026

1 min read

Copywriting has one goal:

Get someone to do something.

If you can achieve that goal with AI, great.

If you can’t, hire a human—or learn how to write copy.

So, how do you write copy?

Welcome, my friend.

It’s time to begin the shortest copywriting lesson ever told:

  • Know what you want them to do.
  • Know why they’d want to do it.
  • Then write exactly that.

~ Fin (i.e., End of lesson)

Everything else you write—headlines, formulas, frameworks, the fancy stuff—is just scaffolding around those three lines. But those three lines? That’s the foundation. Miss any one of them and your copy collapses.

Want people to click? You damn well better know why they’d click.

Want people to buy? You damn well better know why they’d buy.

Want people to call? You damn well know what I’m going to tell you:

Know. Why. They’d. Ever. Pick. Up. The. Phone. And. Call!!!

That’s copywriting.

It’s knowing why people do what they do.

Then writing in the simplest, clearest way to get them to do it.

And if you can’t figure that out…

You damn well won’t be in business for very long.

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Jef van de Graaf - Freelance Canadian Copywriting - B2B Copywriting Services

Article by
Jef van de Graaf™

I'm a freelance copywriter specializing in all things website-related. Whether it’s driving traffic with SEO copy or optimizing your messaging to convert visitors into clients, I ensure your website delivers results. If you could use my help, contact me here.
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