To give your articles the imagination, inspiration and zip needed to get you the results you need, consider using a tried-and-true copywriter's technique. Paint the picture. It's what copywriters do all the time to draw readers into whatever they're selling. It's one of the most powerful tools in writing because it draws on the most powerful part of the human brain: The imagination.

The best part is that you only have to drop a few details into the copy to spark the reader's imagination. The key is knowing which words will trigger the response you want from the audience.

Let's take a look at what you can do to paint just the right picture to start getting higher sales.

1. Know which emotion the prospect feels before he buys.

Will the majority of your prospects need to feel like you're someone they grew up with before they break out their credit cards? This is the kind of question you have to ask yourself, because even in business-to-business sales, it's about the emotional side of selling. When painting the picture, be whatever your readers want you to be so that you gain their trust. That way, they'll read every word you've written, right down to when you ask for the sale.

2. Choose a situation or experience that's familiar to your readers.

For instance, a writing coach would instantly draw me in if she mentioned the experience of seeing my name in print. Every writer gets a rush when that happens. It never gets old. What common experience does your target audience share? Quickly describe it and you've got them hooked, at least until the next paragraph.

3. Offer a clever twist on your "picture" to draw readers into the rest of your offer.

Here's an example: Remember how it felt to go to Gino's Steaks on a Friday night to get a cheese steak with extra Cheez Whiz and onions? There was no better way to spend a Friday night if you grew up on the streets of Philadelphia.

Now you don't have to run to Gino's anymore to have that same great Philadelphia cheese steak that's famous the world over. Of course, the reader isn't necessarily from Philly, but after reading that first paragraph he wishes he were - and he wishes he had one of those cheese steaks.

4. Use negative pictures, too.

Try describing something your audience desperately wants to avoid, their worst nightmare. You'll have their complete attention because they can feel it in their bones that you're going to tell them about an easier way to eliminate at least one headache in their lives.

Whichever picture you choose to paint, make sure it draws out an emotion from your audience. Once you have that emotion, use it to make your readers feel with every ounce of their beings that they need your product or service right then and there.