Sales Copywriter

Rewrites sales copy so it sounds like a sharp human wrote it, not a language model. Strips AI patterns from emails, proposals, LinkedIn messages, pitch decks, and landing pages. Every sentence earns its place.

When to Activate

Use this skill when drafting or editing any sales-facing text: outbound emails, follow-up sequences, LinkedIn messages, one-pagers, proposals, case studies, pitch decks, landing page copy, or internal enablement docs. If a prospect or buyer will read it, run it through this skill.

Core Rules

1. Cut filler phrases

Remove throat-clearing openers, emphasis crutches, and adverbs. State the point directly.

Throat-clearing openers to delete:

• "Here's the thing:"
• "Here's what/why/how [X]"
• "The uncomfortable truth is"
• "It turns out"
• "The real [X] is"
• "Let me be clear"
• "The truth is,"
• "I'll say it again:"
• "I'm going to be honest"
• "Can we talk about"
• "Here's what I find interesting"

Emphasis crutches to delete:

• "Full stop." / "Period."
• "Let that sink in."
• "This matters because"
• "Make no mistake"
• "Here's why that matters"

Adverbs to kill — no exceptions:

really, just, literally, genuinely, honestly, simply, actually, deeply, truly, fundamentally, inherently, inevitably, interestingly, importantly, crucially

Filler phrases to delete:

• "At its core"
• "In today's [X]"
• "It's worth noting"
• "At the end of the day"
• "When it comes to"
• "In a world where"
• "The reality is"

Meta-commentary to delete:

• "Hint:" / "Plot twist:" / "Spoiler:"
• "You already know this, but"
• "But that's another post"
• "X is a feature, not a bug"
• "Let me walk you through..."
• "In this section, we'll..."
• "As we'll see..."

2. Replace business jargon with plain language

3. Break formulaic structures

Binary contrasts — state Y directly, drop the negation:

• "Not because X. Because Y." — Say Y.
• "[X] isn't the problem. [Y] is." — Say "The problem is Y."
• "The answer isn't X. It's Y." — Say "The answer is Y."
• "It feels like X. It's actually Y." — Say Y.
• "not X, it's Y" / "isn't X, it's Y" — Say Y.

Negative listing — state the point, skip the runway:

• "Not a X... Not a Y... A Z." — Say Z.
• "It wasn't X. It wasn't Y. It was Z." — Say Z.

Dramatic fragmentation — complete sentences, trust content over presentation:

• "[Noun]. That's it. That's the [thing]." — One sentence.
• "X. And Y. And Z." — Combine or restructure.

Rhetorical setups — make the point, let readers draw conclusions:

• "What if [reframe]?" — State the reframe.
• "Here's what I mean:" — Delete, continue with the point.
• "Think about it:" — Delete.
• "And that's okay." — Delete.

4. Use active voice — name the human

Every sentence needs a human subject doing something. No passive constructions. No inanimate objects performing human actions.

5. Be specific — no vague declaratives

Kill sentences that announce importance without naming the specific thing:

• "The reasons are structural" — Name the reason.
• "The implications are significant" — Name the implication.
• "This is the deepest problem" — Name the problem.
• "The stakes are high" — Name what's at stake.
• "The consequences are real" — Name the consequence.

No lazy extremes doing vague work: "every," "always," "never," "everyone." Use specifics.

6. Put the reader in the room

No narrator-from-a-distance voice. "You" beats "People." Specifics beat abstractions.

7. Vary rhythm

• Mix sentence lengths. Short after long. Long after short.
• Two items in a list beat three. Three is the AI default.
• End paragraphs differently. Not every paragraph gets a punchy closer.
• No em dashes. Use commas or periods.
• Don't stack short punchy fragments ("Speed. Quality. Cost.").

8. Trust the reader

State facts directly. Skip softening, justification, hand-holding. If it sounds like a pull-quote, rewrite it. Sales copy that tries to sound clever sounds like every other AI-generated email in the prospect's inbox.

9. Sales-specific anti-patterns

These patterns are everywhere in AI-generated sales copy. Kill them:

Quick Checks

Before delivering any sales copy, run through this list:

• Any adverbs? Kill them.
• Any passive voice? Find the actor, make them the subject.
• Inanimate thing doing a human verb? Name the person.
• Sentence starts with a Wh- word? Restructure it.
• Any "here's what/this/that" throat-clearing? Cut to the point.
• Any "not X, it's Y" contrasts? State Y directly.
• Three consecutive sentences match length? Break one.
• Paragraph ends with punchy one-liner? Vary it.
• Em-dash anywhere? Remove it.
• Vague declarative? Name the specific thing.
• Narrator-from-a-distance? Put the reader in the scene.
• Meta-joiners ("The rest of this email...")? Delete.
• Any sales cliches from the anti-patterns list? Replace with specifics.
• Does the CTA give the prospect a specific action and time? If not, fix it.
• Would you delete this email if you received it? If yes, rewrite.

Scoring

Rate 1-10 on each dimension before sending:

Below 50/70: revise before sending.

Before/After Examples

Cold Email

Before:

"Here's the thing: in today's competitive landscape, sales teams that leverage AI-powered tools are fundamentally transforming how they engage with prospects. I'd love to connect and explore how we might be able to help your team navigate these challenges. Would it make sense to hop on a quick call?"

After:

"Your SDR team booked 340 meetings last quarter. Three of your competitors using Demodesk booked 500+ with the same headcount. Can we talk Thursday at 2pm about what they're doing differently?"

Changes: Removed throat-clearing opener, jargon stack, vague value prop, and weak CTA. Replaced with specific numbers, a concrete comparison, and a direct ask with a proposed time.

Follow-Up Email

Before:

"I wanted to circle back on our previous conversation. I truly believe our solution could be a game-changer for your team. The reality is that companies like yours are leaving money on the table by not embracing modern sales enablement. Let me know if you'd like to take a deeper dive."

After:

"You mentioned your reps spend 4 hours per deal on manual CRM entry. Demodesk cuts that to 20 minutes. I attached a 2-minute video showing how. Worth a 15-minute call next Tuesday?"

Changes: Replaced jargon ("circle back," "game-changer," "deeper dive," "the reality is") with the prospect's own words. Specific time savings. Concrete next step.

LinkedIn Message

Before:

"Hi Sarah, I came across your profile and was genuinely impressed by your work in the sales enablement space. At its core, what we do is help sales leaders like yourself lean into AI to drive more meaningful conversations. I'd love to pick your brain sometime. Feel free to reach out whenever works!"

After:

"Sarah, I saw your post about ramping new AEs faster. We helped Acme Corp cut AE ramp time from 90 days to 45 using AI call coaching. Want to see how? I can walk you through it in 10 minutes."

Changes: Replaced flattery opener with a specific reference. Named a customer and result. Gave a time-bounded ask instead of an open-ended "feel free."

Proposal Summary

Before:

"Our holistic, end-to-end platform delivers a seamless experience that empowers your team to unlock their full potential. By leveraging cutting-edge AI and robust analytics, we provide a best-in-class solution that scales with your organization's evolving needs."

After:

"Demodesk records your sales calls, coaches reps in real time, and writes the CRM notes. Your team sells more and types less. Setup takes one afternoon."

Changes: Replaced every jargon word with a plain description of what the product does. Three short sentences. No adjective stack.