Copywriting
Wednesday, January 18th, 2012
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We all make mistakes, but years ago a teacher told me, “If you’re not making mistakes, you’re not doing enough.”
Mistakes can be learning experiences, but as valuable as it is to learn from our own mistakes, it can be more profitable to learn from the mistakes of others.
Throughout my 30-plus years of direct marketing, here are five of the most common mistakes I see mailers make. And regardless of our own experience, we can always profit from the lessons others had to learn the hard way.
1. Refusing to make a long-term commitment to direct mail
Successful direct mail is methodical. It requires a plan and the discipline to follow the plan. It is not a get-rich-quick scheme.
Not everything will go right on every mailing. Whether you are a startup or a mature mailer, some tests (more…)
Tags: direct mail budget, direct mail copywriting, direct mail lists, direct mail offer, direct mail planning, direct mail strategy, direct mail testing
Posted in Campaign Planning, Copywriting, Strategy, Testing, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Thursday, August 11th, 2011
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Too often, we receive direct mail that’s offensive to the eye.
Big blocks of text crowd the page. Narrow left and right margins choke the life from the words. And small sans serif type makes the copy difficult to read.
Visually, these letters are uninviting.
Tips to Increase Readership
Graphic designers may love the look of grey-colored type, but readers need text printed with high contrast. Illustrations and graphics can enhance a mailing, but when overused they pull the reader’s eye in so many directions that it’s virtually impossible
What might appeal to someone’s sense of design doesn’t necessarily help the reader. And with only a few seconds to capture the reader’s attention, any distraction to the eye flow can doom the mailing.
Even when you mail award-winning copy with an offer that meets the recipient’s every need, few people—even those who respond to your mailing—will read the entire direct mail letter. But when you follow a few proven techniques, you can lead more readers to the letter’s most (more…)
Tags: copy editor, direct mail design, direct mail graphics, direct mail readership, direct mail response, direct mail response rates, direct mail strategy, direct mail testing, editing copy, how edit direct mail, how increase readership, increase direct mail response
Posted in Copywriting, Graphic Design, Strategy, Testing, Thought Provoking | No Comments »
Wednesday, July 27th, 2011
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Whether you’re promoting an idea, a product or a service, successful direct mail copy persuades the reader to take a desired course of action.
Years ago, the televangelist Don Stewart successfully wrote to his supporters saying, “Send $25 now. I’ll explain later.”
But today we live in an “age of skepticism,” and without facts to support the letter’s claims—and a clear understanding of the mailing’s purpose—the direct mail copywriter cannot write his or her most persuasive appeal.
Facts help build creditability, and every promise needs to be supported with believable data. But, to do his or her best work, the direct mail copywriter needs more than product information. Before beginning to write, your copywriter also needs (more…)
Tags: direct mail copywriter, direct mail copywriting, direct mail reseach, direct mail response, direct mail testing, increase direct mail response, research for copywriter
Posted in Copywriting, Miscellaneous, Strategy, Testing, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tuesday, June 28th, 2011
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Direct mail is a sales medium. We use it to sell ideas, products and services. And like any other form of sales, its success is based on trust.
Regardless of how much the prospect may value your offer, if he or she doesn’t trust the person attempting to make the sale, it’s not going to happen.
In direct mail, our salesperson is the letter signer. And to establish trust we use testimonials, money-back guarantees and clear, straightforward language.
By definition, an asterisk “indicates omission…”
An asterisk signifies that the claim being made isn’t complete. There are qualifications and/or limitations to what you’re being told. In blunt terms, an asterisk says that (more…)
Tags: copywriting, direct mail, direct mail copywriting, direct mail design, direct mail graphics, direct mail guarantee, direct mail readership, direct mail response, direct mail sales, direct mail strategy, direct mail testing, increase direct mail response
Posted in Copywriting, Miscellaneous, Strategy, Testing, Thought Provoking | No Comments »
Tuesday, May 17th, 2011
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Too often, people and organizations put all their attention into getting the big things right, but ignore the details.
There’s a word to describe this. It’s “mediocrity.”
Giving attention to the details can’t ensure your success, but ignoring the small stuff can quickly bring about your downfall.
Every detail has bottom-line repercussions and it’s irresponsible to think of any aspect of direct mail as trivial, unimportant or inconsequential.
Here are a few fine points often overlooked in a mailing. None will ensure your success, but collectively, they can make a huge difference in your (more…)
Tags: direct mail copywriting, direct mail graphics, direct mail readership, direct mail response, direct mail strategy, direct mail testing, how increase readership, increase direct mail response, test direct mail
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Tuesday, April 12th, 2011
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With direct mail, it’s often said, “The letter sells while the brochure explains.” With this in mind, it’s important not to let your explanation get in the way of making the sale.
I do a lot of “Beat the Control” work, and whenever I’m up against a package that includes a brochure, my first instinct is to test eliminating the brochure. More times than not, dropping the brochure will increase the mailing’s response.
Why? Because when people are reading your brochure, they aren’t responding. Too often, the brochure becomes a distraction and diverts the reader’s attention from the letter’s call to action.
Yet, there are times when it makes sense to test a brochure.
With some products and services, you can better communicate their benefits with a picture, illustration or (more…)
Tags: direct mail, direct mail brochure, direct mail design, direct mail graphics, direct mail response, direct mail strategy, direct mail testing, increase direct mail response
Posted in Copywriting, Graphic Design, Miscellaneous, Strategy | No Comments »
Wednesday, March 9th, 2011
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Whether you call it an order form, a response form or a response device, it’s one of the most crucial components of any direct response mailing.
The response form is the tool the prospect uses to complete the sale. Yet when creating a new direct mail package, we don’t always give the order form the time, attention and respect it deserves.
Too often, we write copy that excites readers and motivates them to accept our offer only to lose the sale (or contribution) with simple, easy-to-correct design flaws in the order form.
Here are 18 tested and proven ideas you can use to make your response form more profitable. (more…)
Tags: direct mail, direct mail copywriting, direct mail order form, direct mail reply form, direct mail response device, direct mail strategy, direct mail testing, increase direct mail response
Posted in Copywriting, Graphic Design, Strategy, Testing | No Comments »
Tuesday, February 22nd, 2011
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When receiving direct mail, the outer envelope is the first thing we see. Yet too often, its design is an afterthought.
But without a convincing envelope, even the strongest offer and best-written copy will take a quick, one-way trip to the trash.
When creating a new direct mail package, I try to think like a door-to-door salesperson. The outer envelope is my knock on the door and how effectively I use it, will determine the mailing’s success.
ELEMENTS OF THE ENVELOPE
Eye-study research reveals that recipients will spend no more than 7 seconds deciding whether to open the outer envelope. Fortunately, we have five tools we can use to convince the recipient to look inside. These are (more…)
Tags: direct mail, direct mail design, direct mail strategy, direct mail testing
Posted in Copywriting, Graphic Design, Strategy, Testing, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Wednesday, December 1st, 2010
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When times get tough, everyone wants to cut direct mail costs. After all, if we can bring in the same amount of money and spend less, our profits increase.
And there are ways to cut costs without necessarily hurting the effectiveness of your mailing.
Cut Costs or Make Money?
You can, for example, trim your package format by ¼ inch or so to make it run better on your printer’s press, use a cheaper paper, test smaller formats, omit package inserts or eliminate the premium.
But don’t act too quickly.
Before getting caught up in the rush to cut expenses, we need to remember the objective (more…)
Tags: cost of direct mail, direct mail, direct mail response, direct mail strategy, direct mail testing, test direct mail
Posted in Copywriting, Graphic Design, Premiums, Strategy, Testing, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tuesday, November 2nd, 2010
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I still remember my first direct mail letter. I reworked it to perfection. Every word was just as I wanted it to be. The benefits to the reader were clear, the offer was strong and the call to action was unmistakable.
Then we mailed the letter, and I waited. And I waited some more. But nothing happened. Not even a single response. No one even bothered to complain about the letter.
Finding the right person to mail
Finally, after waiting a few more days, I went to see the agency’s owner and confessed my failure. I explained the letter’s objectives, my approach, the offer…how I had checked and rechecked every word but failed to get even one response.
Without even looking up, my boss said, “Check the lists.”
And I was ready for this. I’d already prepared a report on the mailing lists we were testing and started to go through the long list. But he said, “No, that’s not what I mean. (more…)
Tags: direct mail, direct mail lists, direct mail strategy, direct mail testing, mailing lists, test direct mail
Posted in Copywriting, Data, Miscellaneous, Strategy, Testing | No Comments »
