Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for moreThe Customer Interview Prompt for Writing Sales Pages That Actually ConvertWhat if we could use AI to create a detailed customer persona and then “interview” that persona to extract the exact language we need to write a sales page that connects and converts?Smart Prompts For AISep 3 READ IN APP Smart Prompts For AI by Kaizenable.com is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.SubscribedThe first sales page I ever wrote for my own consulting business back in 2017 was a complete disaster.It was a monument to jargon. I talked about “leveraging synergistic AI paradigms” and “optimizing data-driven workflows.” I was so proud of it. I thought it made me sound like the smartest guy in the room.The result? Crickets. I got more questions about my Australian Shepherd from the photo on my “About Me” page than I did about my actual services.I learned this one the hard way: Nobody cares how smart you sound. They only care if you understand their problem.From what I’ve seen working with dozens of clients since then, this is the single biggest mistake we all make. We’re so deep in our own world, so in love with our own solutions, that we suffer from the “Curse of Knowledge.” We can no longer imagine what it’s like to not know what we know. So we write copy that speaks to ourselves, not to our customers.For years, the best marketers have used a simple trick to solve this. They conduct deep, one-on-one interviews with their ideal customers. They don’t ask about the product; they ask about the customer’s life. Their frustrations, their goals, their fears, their secret wishes. They dig for the emotional, visceral language the customer uses to describe their own problems.Then, they take that transcript and build their entire sales page from it. It’s an incredibly powerful technique. It’s also incredibly time-consuming and expensive.But what if we could simulate that entire process? What if we could use AI to create a detailed customer persona and then “interview” that persona to extract the exact language we need to write a sales page that connects and converts?This isn’t about a magic prompt that spits out a perfect page in one click. This is a process for using AI as a tool to get out of your own head and into your customer’s.The Real Reason Your Sales Copy FailsRefer a friendLet me give you a real example. Last year, I was working with a fantastic medium-sized business in the Seattle tech scene that had developed a powerful new data dashboard for e-commerce stores. Their sales page was a lot like my old one. It was all about the features: “real-time analytics,” “asynchronous data pipelines,” “customizable reporting modules.”They were frustrated because their traffic was decent, but their conversion rate was abysmal.We spent an afternoon talking to three of their actual customers. And you know what we found? Not a single one of them ever used the words “data pipeline” or “reporting modules.”They said things like:”I just want to know which ads are losing me money right now.””I’m tired of having to bug my developer just to see my daily sales.””I lie awake at night wondering if a new product is a hit or a dud.””I feel like I’m flying blind.”See the difference? It’s the difference between the feature (the what) and the outcome (the why). It’s the difference between logic and emotion. Great sales pages are built on emotion and justified with logic.The problem is, getting that emotional language is the hardest part. That’s where this system comes in.The System: From Brain Dump to High-Converting CopyWe’re going to do this in three steps. It might seem like a bit of work upfront, but I promise you, it will save you dozens of hours of staring at a blinking cursor and will produce a result that’s light-years ahead of what you’d write on your own.Step 1: The Raw Material Brain DumpWe can’t start with an empty page. The AI needs the raw materials, the facts about what you do. We need to get all that “Curse of Knowledge” jargon out of your head and onto the page, but in a structured way. This is the only time in this process you’re allowed to talk about yourself.Don’t overthink this. Just copy the prompt below and fill in the blanks as best you can. It’s not for the final page; it’s just for the AI’s internal context.SubscribedThe Brain Dump PromptI need to gather the raw information for a sales page. Please just store this information for context for our next step. Do not write any copy yet. 1. **Product/Service Name:** [Your Product/Service Name] 2. **What It Is (1-2 Sentences):** [In the simplest terms, what is it?] 3. **Who It's For:** [Describe your ideal customer in a few words, e.g., "freelance graphic designers," "small coffee shop owners"] 4. **Key Features (Bulleted List):** * [Feature 1: e.g., "Automated invoicing"] * [Feature 2: e.g., "Project time tracking"] * [Feature 3: e.g., "Client portal"] * [List up to 5-7 key features] 5. **How It Works (Simple Steps):** * Step 1: [e.g., "Connect your bank account"] * Step 2: [e.g., "Create a project and add tasks"] * Step 3: [e.g., "Send an invoice with one click"] 6. **What Makes It Different:** [e.g., "It's designed specifically for freelancers, not big agencies," "It's simpler and more intuitive than competitors like X and Y"] 7. **Price:** [e.g., "$29/month," "One-time fee of $499"] Run that prompt. The AI will likely just summarize it back to you. Perfect. Now it has the logical facts. Let’s move on to the important part: the emotion.Step 2: Creating Your “Ideal Customer Persona”Now, we’re going to use the AI to build out a detailed, empathetic profile of the person we’re trying to sell to. This persona will become the “subject” of our interview. The more detail and empathy we can bake in here, the better our final copy will be.The Persona Builder Prompthe raw information provided in the previous step, create a detailed and empathetic "Ideal Customer Persona." The persona's name is [Choose a name, e.g., "Alex"]. Flesh out this persona with deep, specific details. For each category, write in the first person, as if you ARE Alex. Use visceral, emotional language. 1. **Role & Demographics:** [e.g., "I'm a freelance graphic designer in my early 30s."] 2. **Their Deepest Pains & Frustrations (related to the problem you solve):** What keeps them up at 3 AM? What are they secretly afraid of? What makes them bang their head on the desk? (e.g., "I'm terrified of chasing clients for money. I hate feeling like a bill collector, not a creative." "I'm constantly disorganized, and I'm scared one day I'll drop a major ball for a big client.") 3. **Their Biggest Goals & Aspirations (related to the solution you provide):** What does their dream scenario look like? What feeling are they chasing? (e.g., "I just want to do the creative work I love and get paid without the drama." "I want to feel in control of my business, like a real professional, not just a person who is good at Photoshop.") 4. **Their Current (Bad) Solutions:** What are they doing now to try and solve the problem? (e.g., "I'm using a messy spreadsheet to track my projects, a separate app for my to-do list, and I create invoices by hand in Word. It's a nightmare.") 5. **Their Hesitations & Skepticism:** Why haven't they bought a solution like yours yet? What are they skeptical of? (e.g., "I'm worried it will be too complicated and I'll spend more time learning the software than doing my work." "I've tried other tools that promise to solve everything, but they're always built for big teams and feel bloated and confusing.") Run this prompt. Read the output carefully. Does it feel like a real person? If not, you can ask the AI to revise it. For example: “Make Alex’s frustrations more specific. What’s a recent example of when their current system failed them?”Once you have a persona that feels real, you’re ready for the main event.Step 3: The “Customer Interview” Master PromptThis is where the magic happens. We’re going to instruct the AI to play two roles: an expert interviewer and the customer persona we just created. The interviewer’s job is to ask targeted questions that pull out the exact emotional language and story arcs needed for a high-converting sales page.This might not be the most elegant solution, but it’s incredibly effective. It turns the AI from a simple writer into a strategic brainstorming partner.The “Customer Interview” Master Prompt **THE SCENARIO:** You will now simulate a deep, one-on-one customer interview. You will play two roles: 1. **The Interviewer:** An expert marketer and empathetic listener. The Interviewer's goal is to uncover the deep emotional drivers behind the customer's problems and desires. 2. **The Subject:** You will act as "Alex," the Ideal Customer Persona we just created. You must answer all questions *as Alex*, speaking in the first person. Stay in character completely. Use the emotional, visceral language from the persona profile. **THE TASK:** The Interviewer will ask a series of questions, grouped by theme. For each question, The Subject ("Alex") will provide a detailed, honest, and emotional answer. The output should be a transcript of this interview. **INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT:** **Part 1: The Problem & The Pain** Interviewer: "Alex, thanks for talking with me. Let's go back to before you found a solution. Can you tell me about a specific moment when your old way of doing things really cost you? What was happening, and how did that make you feel?" Alex: [AI generates Alex's answer here] Interviewer: "That sounds incredibly frustrating. When you felt that way, what was the biggest fear in the back of your mind? What did you worry would happen if you didn't fix this?" Alex: [AI generates Alex's answer here] Interviewer: "What was the most annoying, tedious part of the process for you? The thing you dreaded doing every day or week?" Alex: [AI generates Alex's answer here] **Part 2: The Dream & The Desire** Interviewer: "Let's shift gears. If you could wave a magic wand, what would the ideal solution look like for you? Don't think about specific features, just describe the feeling. What would your perfect workday feel like?" Alex: [AI generates Alex's answer here] Interviewer: "And if you had that, what would it allow you to do? What bigger goal would you be able to achieve?" Alex: [AI generates Alex's answer here] **Part 3: The Search & The Skepticism** Interviewer: "When you first started looking for a solution, what were you skeptical of? What did you see on other websites that made you roll your eyes?" Alex: [AI generates Alex's answer here] Interviewer: "What was the one thing you were looking for that would make you feel like, 'Okay, this is different. This is actually for me'?" Alex: [AI generates Alex's answer here] **Part 4: The Transformation & The Outcome** Interviewer: "Now, imagine you've been using the perfect solution for a few months. What's different? What's a simple, concrete example of how your life is better?" Alex: [AI generates Alex's answer here] Interviewer: "What's the single biggest emotional benefit you've experienced? Is it confidence? Peace of mind? Freedom? Tell me about that feeling." Alex: [AI generates Alex's answer here] End From Transcript to Sales PageRefer a friendWhen you run that final prompt, you will get a goldmine. You’ll have a transcript filled with the exact words your customers use. You’ll have their pain points, their dreams, their objections, and their desired transformation, all in their own voice.Now, your job is no longer to be a “writer.” It’s to be an “editor.”Your sales page structure practically writes itself:Headline: Pull from the “Dream & Desire” section. Find the most powerful outcome. (e.g., “Stop Being a Bill Collector. Start Being a Creative Again.”)Opening/Problem: Use the exact story from “Part 1” of the interview. Start with that painful, relatable moment. (e.g., “Remember that sinking feeling when you realize you forgot to invoice a client from two months ago?”)Agitate the Pain: Use the language from the “biggest fear” question. (e.g., “It’s not just about the lost money. It’s the fear that you look unprofessional, that you’re not cut out for this.”)Introduce the Solution (Your Product): Frame your product as the answer to their “magic wand” question. (e.g., “What if there was a way to get paid on time, every time, without the chase? What if you could feel like a professional, in complete control of your business?”)Overcome Objections: Look at “Part 3” on skepticism. Address those objections head-on. (e.g., “You’ve probably tried other tools that were bloated and confusing. We’re different. We’re built for one person: you.”)Show the Transformation: Use the stories from “Part 4” to paint a picture of the “after” state. Use testimonials (real ones, if you have them) that echo these sentiments.Call to Action: Make it about achieving that ultimate emotional benefit. (e.g., “Start Your Free Trial and Reclaim Your Peace of Mind.”)The first draft the AI generates from the interview prompt won’t be perfect. You still need to bring your human touch to it. Smooth out the language, inject your own brand’s personality, and add specific details. But you’re no longer starting from a blank page of terror. You’re starting from a deep, empathetic understanding of your customer.Quick tip from my own experience: Once you have a draft, create 3-5 different headlines based on the transcript. Run them by a few people (or even a past client). The headline is 80% of the battle, so it’s worth the extra effort.This process takes your role from “stressed-out writer” to “strategic editor.” It uses AI for simulating and scaling the process so you can do what you’re best at: connecting with your customer and solving their problems. You’re just using their own words to do it.Smart Prompts For AI by Kaizenable.com is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Subscribed |
