[keyle]

Whilst I agree that a one liner teaser page is not good, I will disagree about "It’s a myth that people don’t read long copy. Of course they do."

They really don't. But the article is misleading, because the 'long copy' example provided, the highrise teaser page, is not an example of long copy. It's a well formatted bunch of meaningful information, strategically designed and placed carefully (flow) that keeps enticing users to read more of it.

It's a well documented fact that people DO NOT read long boring paragraphs. They DO, however, read highly entertaining webpages with a fairly big copy so as long as it breathes and attracts them.

So to wrap up, yes write more than a sentence, no don't write a book. Instead, carefully craft sentences to entice potential customers to turn into real future customers.

[dhbanes]

Sorry, but I think you're making the common mistake of expecting that most people will react to a particular sales tactic the way you would react to that sales tactic. Also, the example shown is absolutely a long form sales letter.

It may be true that people do not read long boring paragraphs, but I'd bet the research to which you're referring is not addressing ad copy. If it is, I'd like to see it. It is in fact well documented that long form sales letter DO convert better than short copy in many situations.

Read here for context of the example used: http://37signals.com/svn/posts/2977-behind-the-scenes-highri...

[rokhayakebe]

If you are selling a service, and in some case a product that has several features, then long copy works best. The buyer would want as much information as possible before parting with their dollar.

If you are offering a free product, then short copy is best. Users will trade trying to read what your product does to just using it instead.