How to Write a YouTube Video Sales Letter (VSL) Script for a Guru
I've written a TON of video sales letters for gurus (mostly in the financial, biz opp, and real estate spaces).
Why?
Because Youtube ads DONE WELL drive sales, generate leads, and grow email lists fast.
Here's a basic template that works well:
THE YOUTUBE AD TEMPLATE:
[Part 1]: Pattern Interrupt (Hook / “Headline”):
Your ad is unskippable for the first 5 seconds. You have a captive viewer and the way we usually leverage this is by using a native-style headline.
Here’s a Method That’s Helping [world class example] to [blank]
A Simple Way To [desired result] That Works For [world class example]
[World class example] is making $xxx,xxx,xxx every day because of [characteristic/view/strategy]
[PART 2]: Engage/Disqualify:
Use famous people your customers respect like Bill Gates and Warren Buffett to get rid of the scammy feeling of a sleazy biz-op.
Use an existing narrative about these successful businessmen from the press or a book to highlight a core characteristic people need to succeed when [doing the thing they want, trading stocks, starting a biz, etc.].
[Part 3]: Hero's Journey:
Lead into the guru’s story explaining how they too use the aforementioned core principle (from Part 2) to do “the thing” your customer wants to do.
Make sure the guru's story is presented in a way that even a total beginner would understand. Walk them through how the guru started, how the guru has achieved what they want to achieve, and how the guru's success led them to create [your offer].
[Part 4]: Social Proof:
Show where [you/your product] have been featured in media etc
Show other customers who have these tools to achieve [the desire]
[Part 5]: Long CTA:
You don't want the video to end too quickly before the viewer has had a chance to click through to your offer page, so in this phase you'll want to elaborate on the features + benefits of what they're going to get.
EXAMPLES:
ALEX BECKER:
Here in My Garage (TAI LOPEZ)
THEMES & CONCEPTS:
a. Break / Rebuild belief patterns (Advice, Story)
What [the old way] used to look like. What the new breed looks like. How to adapt. Positioning yourself as the one who can show them the way. What will be covered in the webinar?
b. Tell them, don't show them (Advice)
Make a clear argument why the old way is broken but don't say how to implement the new way. That's for the webinar/course. It leaves it open-ended enough that if you want to learn how to survive you must advance through the funnel.
c. Behind The Scenes Lifestyle (Office Tour, Most Tai Lopez ads)
Tried and true Youtube formula. Just show off your lifestyle, office, etc. Meander from point to point.
d. Name Dropping and Borrowing Credibility (Bezos, Gates/Buffet, Icahn)
This has been shown to work best overall. For example, Sam Ovens will just reference people he's read about lately or… you can comb through books and find things that are in alignment with your training/offer and then pivot.
STRUCTURES & STYLE:
a. YouTube:
The average time frame of best ads is somewhere between 1-7 minutes.
Don't worry about length though… people will watch long ads on YT.
b. Selfie vs Vlog style vs Cinematic:
All 3 work. It depends on video/channel placement and age. Mix it up.
c. Shoot Multiple 5-second intros for same ad concept:
Possibly the biggest thing you can learn to make a lot of ads quickly. The initial 5 seconds that you can't skip is the most important part of the ad.
For instance, "Here in my garage" for Tai Lopez's famous book ad was take 8. The ad would have always ended the same but the first frame or words would have been different.
So, multiple intros for the same ad:
"Here in my garage"
"College is a scam, let me tell you why"
"Just got this new bookshelf"
"The biggest thing I learned from the billionaire Warren Buffett"
d. Shoot with demographics in mind to get more scale
Your account structure will always have 12 demographic groups per targeting (keyword/channel placement/interest/behavior). So film with diff demographics in mind.
THE INFAMOUS ALEX BECKER YouTube Script: