Pay $1497.00 for Copyhackers Limitless? Think I’m crazy? This review of Copyhackers seven months later tells it all. No sugar coating, here.
Yet the tattoo of value follows the Copyhacker logo like a neon sign.
Still, this hefty price tag was a huge hurdle. I’m a stay-at-home dad pushing fifty, homeschooling a high-functioning autistic teen, and reinventing myself as a writer, a content marketer, and now a conversion copywriter, so I watch every nickel.
Yet, if you want a program to spend your hard-earned cash on, check out the pros and cons of Copyhackers.
Then, decide for yourself.
Copyhackers Retrospective
Pros
1.Copyhackers’ Sound Theory and Practice
The idea of conversion copy rests on how prospects see a better version of themselves in your copy. So, to give readers that experience you must know what your ideal customer would say, feel, and think. Therefore, customer research is the most pivotal part of the conversion copywriting process.
Rule of One
Also, the idea of one is so important. Because you as a copywriter are writing a letter to one reader (your one person reading your copy), you need to make certain your message is Windex glass clear. You do this with the one rule.)
Here’s what The Rule of One means:
You’re always solo. You’re writing with one vision with…
- One reader
- One big idea
- One promise or outcome
- One offer
You write to one reader, your ideal customer.
Each sentence in your copy has one job, to get your one reader to want to read the next sentence.
You have one message or big idea you want to tell him/her. Convince your one reader to buy into believing. Forget the product or service. You’re selling belief.
And everything in your copy will sell your one reader your one offer that matches his wants. This filters his belief… into a vision.
The picture in your one reader’s mind?
Ahhh, that’s what you’re hired as a copywriter to conjure. That’s to capture the ideal customer on the wild, wide-open space of the blank screen.
VOC is the Difference-maker but…
Therefore, conversion copywriting (CC) relies on voice of customer data. This characteristic separates the CC strategy from direct response (DR) copywriting tricks.
Although, CC uses a few DR techs. DR visualizes their one audience member as a skeptic that needs convincing. Conversion copy doesn’t see their ideal audience member as a skeptic.
Rather, CC assumes that one reader is not skeptical if he reads clear copy that paints him into his unfinished hero story.
Conversion copy bridges the two self-images: one, of who they are now, and two, who they want to be.
Plus, this CC copy aims at being the company’s solution to solve their one reader’s most pressing problem. Notice the difference. DR assumes the problem keeping prospects from becoming customers is their objections.
CC focuses on the image and voice of ideal customers as reflective of Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s journey in their web or email copy.
The conversion copywriting strategy is versed in Ogilvy’s tradition and theory. Plus, it gives a great, big, bear hug to new research such as the jobs-to-be-done-theory.
And Copyhacker’s theory comes from the founder, Jo Wiebe’s own research as well. Jo teaches twenty-four courses drawing from her own experience of what she has learned in her business interactions over the past decade or more.
This balanced approach of taking the best ideas from direct response copywriting theory, innovative marketing research, and Jo’s first-hand experience make CC unique.
But the use of voice of customer (VOC) data to guide every word said to drive the engine of running effective copy…that’s remarkable. That’s the throwback to Neil Postman’s work on how print media changes with video media present.
Prospects become ideal customers when they hear their voice in the copy’s words and images… ingenious. These perspectives become Jo’s step-by-step tutorials of what to do in every copywriting situation.
And this chance to hurdle costly mistakes gives Copyhackers’ theory and practice invaluable value.
2.Copyhackers Has Been Around for 10 Years
Copyhackers’ evolution has been revolutionary. Direct response copywriting techniques meet with marketing research theory.
Together, each became part of a new creature. Before Copyhackers (CH), there were no conversion copywriters. CH’s intense training gives you a Jo spoken blueprint of how to build everything step-by-step.
The hardest part for you as a student of Copyhackers is turning into a sponge large enough to soak up each morsel of Jo’s copywriting wisdom.
With the company’s tenth anniversary, per Paul my friend from sales, Copyhackers has no plans to leave the market of copywriter education.
Jo has created an elite staff. This group produces quality video how-to programs on a regular basis.
Subject matter for videos varies. But its scope is enormous. Videos cover topics like mind reader hacks, how to write an effective homepage, and the coveted sweeps efficiency copy edits. Jo’s library of videos keeps growing with every new boot camp or professional development presentation.
3.Copyhackers Price Point
With a Black Friday deal, I couldn’t complain when $97.00 disappeared from my business bank account balance each month. Although, there are other competitive programs, none of them matched the intensity of the CH program for each skill.
The knowledge and skill level of staff and faculty is off the charts.
Copyhackers also had a yearly subscription rate which dropped the per month price even lower. But at the time, I didn’t have the money. And I wasn’t ready to join Cortez and burn the ships of escape from this learning expedition.
4.Copyhackers Ongoing Training
Another perk of the Copyhacker subscription is ongoing professional development. Jo offers Copyhacker students first choice to any of her bootcamps or topical workshops. Quite a number of these, she hosts with herself leading a team of copywriting industry influencers and high sought-after presenters.
As a quick study, you’ll learn these bootcamps are a win-win venture. These give the CH staff time to get out the kinks before a course goes live a month later. Also, it helps Copyhackers staff to predict demand, how big is the population interested in this course video topic.
5.Copyhackers Limitless Option
May 2022, the offer came to be a Copyhacker with professional development for life. That value was set at $1497.00.
This included the use of a copywriter-driven database software program, Air story featuring the Ultimate Message Map. The map catches customer voice data to create targeted persona driven copy for sales, landing, and email copy, etc.
Plus, you get access to all video recordings, future recordings, and all your saved notes within these pieces of training along with diagrams and graphics you’ve posted. This also includes pdf templates, google docs, and access to a free Copyhacker staff copy review. That’s one free copy review a month.
6.Copyhackers staff Is the Prime Rib of Service
Jo’s support staff is exceptional. It doesn’t matter whether the need is on the technical or the instructional side, each staff is superb. Each staff member is attentive, helpful, and positive.
For example, Betsy Muse reached out to help me via direct messenger and through the learning platform, Copy Quad, on several occasions.
I’ve heard via email from Lance and Joel to help me resolve technical problems as well. Both helped me to feel taken care of and listened to as they worked to resolve my tech issue.
I even talked to Jo on chat when I was debating whether to become a Limitless Copyhacker. She answered all my questions. All Jo’s salesforce was patient and knowledgeable. They helped me to know all my answers before making a purchase.
7.Copyhackers’ Boot Camps
At the end of each class’s final module, you’ll find a boot camp. These boot camps give you a hands-on experience of taking each lesson in a course and putting it into a product destined for your portfolio. It’s so much more than spec work.
8.Copyhackers Alumni
You can find Copyhacker alumni everywhere. Each one I have talked to is both helpful and friendly. I connected with Charlotte Davies before I even signed up for the program. I have a letter-writing buddy thanks to Copyhacker’s Copy Quad platform.
Also, I have reached out to others over LinkedIn and discovered a diverse group. One CH graduate I connected with used to work as an animator for Pixar. That gives you a taste of the variety of Copyhacker students out there.
9.Copyhackers Over the Shoulder Tutorials
Jo doesn’t only wait for the boot camp to let you put copy and copy planning techniques into practice. She sprinkles short tutorials using her laptop throughout a module. Joanna has an application that allows her to edit website copy on screen in real-time.
These videos are quick to show viewers how web copy and email copy lack conversion copywriting technique. And how this is a missed opportunity.
In this way, if you are writing a landing page, email, sales page, or funnel using each of her lessons, she gives you demos to follow. You see the theory in action.
That opportunity to hit the application mode is something that sets the CH program apart. What a refreshing alternative to a long transcript and fast forward or the rewind button that you get with other learning platforms.
10.Copyhackers Copy Quad Segmentation
Another perk with Copyhackers is the segmentation of chat forums. With Copyhackers there is an organization tagging just like on Reddit. This helps you find the information you most need fast.
There’s no sense of not being as important as the more experienced copywriters who join Copyhackers for a refresher course or to build their business into six figures.
Tags like #newcopywriter help you to get the advice you need. And Jo’s forum stresses that the theory taught here is the application of Jo’s own conversion copywriter procedures and methods. This keeps forum users reiterating her ideas.
So, with this expectation, users can comment in any forum and speak the same language. That gets rid of comments that aren’t helpful either from beginner or seasoned conversion copywriters. Jo’s all-encompassing copywriting theory bridges any reasons for egalitarian division.
11.Copyhackers Certification
There is a possibility to join a network of approved, certified Copyhackers. After a trial period of two years and a portfolio assessment, you are a Copyhacker approved provider.
This certification is good for one year before reassessment of your body of work takes place again.
Your portfolio copy from the bootcamps gives you the portfolio-stored email series copy, website landing page, website sales page, and Facebook ad copy later reviewed by the Copyhackers staff for certification.
Cons
1.Copyhackers Has No Phone
Yes, it does sound hard to believe. But Jo has no business phone. So, if you run into tech trouble, password issues, or instructional questions you have zero backup.
Thus, keep passwords secure and try to sign on Copyhackers using other search engines than Google. If it weren’t for the link, they sent me that Monday, I wouldn’t have known my password was correct and it was Google’s search engine page links that were the problem.
2.Copyhacker and Their Questions-asked money back guarantee…
When you sign up for Copyhackers, check their conditions for a money-back guarantee. The subscription is sold as a questions-asked money-back guarantee.
You cannot get a free week of Copyhackers’ access and ask for a refund.
The guarantee requires that you get through so many essential modules and turn in your work. If you’ve done that work as far as taken notes and gone through the essentials, they will review it and decide whether you get your money back.
The Questions-asked label right next to the encircled 7-day money-back guarantee can fade into white noise in your head, so be careful.
This is a buyer beware issue. Make time for the class. If not, don’t default to cancel. Still, I can see why Jo and CH requires questions asked for a refund. When I got into the material, I found so much value; I was convinced this was worth my investment of time and energy.
3.The Copyhackers Don’t Work Weekends
They might not do windows either. Who knows? But they do not under any circumstances work weekends. This is great for staff, but if it looks like your payment didn’t go through…it’s hell. Also, that means that if videos won’t play that delays your badge for that topic.
4.Copyhackers Copy Quad
What everyone wants is to be able to post their copy and get it reviewed. Instead from November 2021 to May 2022 users asked each other for feedback. Copyhackers encouraged you, as their student, to bring your copy to a Thursday Zoom-type call.
If you attended, you might get your copy reviewed. But your copy evaluation wasn’t automatic.
Since May 2022, Copyhackers gave users what they wanted, free copy reviews. The CH team reviews copy once a month and one piece of copy from each subscriber. You can get their team to review more for an added charge.
5.Copyhackers Is a Small Company
The company model is much like that of Elna Cain’s courses through Teachable. Guest hosts, experts in their respective genres, come and give workshops. Each downloadable course has space where students view content and take notes within the CH platform.
The end of each module in the lesson has a link to a Reddit type forum where you can interact with others who also are taking that course. But with monthly copy reviews, the Copy Quad forum folded in May 2022.
Notes are savable within each course. Attachments are often pdf or google docs.
If you can’t get the document you need, you ask around. Betsy Muse was great about making sure I got the doc I needed. A handful of staff run the company. Jo looks like she shoots video from her home as proven by her cat making surprise appearances in each course.
Copyhackers site needs maintenance. There is a list of upkeep on digital tasks that’s left undone. For example, Copy Quad links are still at the end of each course section. This could be an issue for new students.
Forum replacements are uncertain. Muse said that since they moved to the free copy review business model, they would suspend Thursdays and Copy Quad use. So, an old Facebook Group is a placeholder for now.
6.Copyhackers Transcripts
The transcripts included with course videos have errors. Hearing-impaired students, God bless you.
Don’t believe me?
Here are six samples.
- Now I’ve done competitor content audits for all of my clients, bounce exchange to crazy. I even a client like Google, which may seem to have few, if any company can benefit
(Well, good to know when the client check to Copyhackers clears…Jo tells all. Crazy huh?)
- Sometimes a sentence is a parent.
(That’s a new one to me. You?)
- Moving and continuing to read through it, but to slow down and read through this heavy Blake, as you call it a brick,
(No idea what she was talkin’ about.)
- You are a level 10 creep go and then it just kind of locks you out of your mouth.
(Computer issues????)
- I’m actually going to stop talking for a boat.
(Of course, this was comin’ Jo being Canadian.)
- That’s could be when you start sending out your first colony malaria for segmentation email.
(Malarian stricken copywriter colonies…. news at eleven.)
The transcripts included with the course videos again reiterate how small the company is.
7.Copyhackers Airstory
Airstory is a customized software program. Joanna Wiebe of Copyhackers designed to make copywriting more efficient. This program replaces countless Google docs and other pdfs originally included with the beginning modules-related videos of the CH platform.
Airstory is huge, full of templates and feels difficult to use.
Spreadsheets and data fields aren’t easy to edit or fill in.
Airstory uses a type of electronic card system. This is supposed to help you piece together ideas and concept maps together. But because there’s no ability to cut and paste and transfer from google docs and Microsoft Office programs, its operation feels clunky.
I sense what I felt as I tried out Carol Tice’s Writer’s Den database. Great concept, but not user-friendly.
You may need to take a course to figure out how to best use Airstory.
8.The Sad Story of My Copyhackers Socks
I have had a pair of Copyhacker socks promised to me since November of 2021. I did not receive my sock pair until May of 2022. When I did get them, they weren’t the one size fits all variety as they had advertised. With a wide, size twelve foot, they now hang out in my wife’s sock drawer.
For six months, I asked for my socks…six months. It became my running joke in Copy Quad.
9.Copyhackers by the Month
Paying for Copyhackers by the month is difficult. Each month putting together $97.00 worth of business for educational expenses can be tough as an entrepreneur in a startup phase.
But the requirement for two years Copyhackers affiliation before an opportunity for certification comes open limits options. So, commitment is a must. This can be a challenge in a business moving from feast to famine.
10.Copyhackers Online Learning Feels Overwhelming
Two Modes Spell Confusion
The scope of class material is tremendous. That means it can feel like a lot to handle. Each video played in succession to lead you step-by-step from the beginning of a product to its end. But not all users are using this program like that.
Many CH students are using it to learn the method and create specs for their portfolio. This spec strategy works best when moving along with the bootcamps.
Special Learning Paths
Another confusing part of the Copyhackers interface is the choice of the traditional and nontraditional switch. Nontraditional routes give you access to all videos, and you build your own learning path depending on the project. This is great for refresher courses.
The Path to Badges
The traditional, in contrast, has a set path to learn each skill. There’s one module set to teach you how to write a landing page for instance. Another helps you create an email series.
The explanation of everything about building funnels takes up a separate course as well as sales pages, and eCommerce. Simple functional layouts.
You take all the hours in a 10X course, and the CH staff reviews your work and then sends you a badge to show completion of educational hours.
Furthermore, if you watch common videos in a module the computer can’t track whether you’ve seen the video before in a different context.
For example, if you were to watch a video in 10X Landing pages that is the same exact one in the Email 10X course, the computer won’t recognize you have even watched this course video before.
11.Copybadges
The copybadges tell prospects that you have taken all course of instruction to learn a skill. They don’t tell prospects you have passed a test to verify your knowledge level.
Therefore, badges don’t qualify as social proof like HubSpot badges do. Portfolio building is key in your educational plan.
Bonus Insight: Copyhacker Certification Delay
Copyhackers students share an opportunity to certify with the company’s list of providers. In this way, if Copyhackers has excess jobs you can get on a Copyhackers’ overflow list of providers.
Now with the CH label, you have someone back your skills with credibility.
Waiting two years before a student’s portfolio review can take place…that’s a long time. That’s two years of monthly subscription fees you must pay for this opportunity to open.
This is a huge con.
And it wasn’t easy to look up this information which holds you to the two-year tenure requirement.
Sum Up: Why I’m a Copyhacker for Life
As you can see, the Copyhackers experience has bumpy spots along the way. But Copyhackers Limitless is a great deal for a multitude of reasons.
The value that Jo has poured into each lesson is tremendous. I’ve found nothing like it and if you do the research, I’m sure you’ll agree.
For instance, I have a training on writing amazing About Pages this past Thursday at 11 am. It costs about $40.00 to go, but Copyhackers students get the instruction without cost.
There are replays of all bootcamps. You can move right along with them and create copy for emails and webpages that gives prospects a mirror image of themselves.
Also, the volume of videos is attractive. It seems the Copyhackers team has put together a tutorial on anything a client could hire you to do. If it has to do with web or email copy, nothing is beyond their scope.
- Funnels
- Facebook Ads
- Landing pages
- Sales pages
- It’s all there and more…
Atop value, I confess I love the service quality. Jo, Ange, Betsy, Paul, Lance, Ry, they’re all super helpful and friendly.
The Bottom Line
Thanks to Copyhackers the only thing that keeps me from my dream of full-time copywriting is the time it takes to learn and practice the techniques and theories.
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