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Hello!
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I've been AWOL because - life - but I'll try to be better now.
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If you're looking to develop a more outside-in approach to your writing, you're in luck. I'm going to talk about my learnings from Joanna Wiebe's course - Conversion Copywriting - on LinkedIn Learning. :)

Let's start with VOC.

When most people sit down to write copy, they start with what they want to say. That's the first mistake.

The most persuasive copy doesn't come from inside your head. It comes from the mouth of customers. This is the principle behind Voice of Customer (VOC).
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VOC is the raw language customers use when they talk about their problems, hopes, and decisions. It is not polished. Neither is it "brand voice." And that's exactly why it works.
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When you use VOC to craft copy or content, you're not guessing what your audience cherishes the most. You're just reflecting it back to them in their own words. That's what creates instant relevance and trust.

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Let's get down to brass tacks. How do you collect VOC?

1. Surveys: Ask open-ended questions like "What was going on in your life that brought you here today?"
2. Customer interviews: Five conversations - smartly managed - can reveal more than five "brainstorming sessions."
3. Review mining: Search Amazon, Google Reviews, or Yelp (if you're in the US, UK, and Canada) for products/services like yours. Look for phrases that express pain or relief, such as "I was tired of..." or "Finally found..."
4. Sales calls: Listen for objections or excitement. "The price seems high compared to what we're using now" or "This would save me so much time every week!"

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Joanna shared a striking example.
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A rehab center tested four headlines. The wining headline wasn't written by a copywriter.

It came straight out of a customer review - "If you think you need rehab, you do."
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This line outperformed the more polished versions by 400%.

So, your next high-converting headline isn't hiding in your brainstorm document.

It's out there - in survey responses, online reviews, sales call recordings, or focus group conversations.​
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In the next few editions, I'll talk about each of these methods in detail. Whether you write long-form content or short copy, VOC is always useful.
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Best,
Satabdi
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