Double Your Business With A Thesaurus
“You cannot bore people into buying” said advertising giant David Ogilvy. With an eye towards improving your marketing efforts, here are a few ideas (and examples) to bear in mind as you write sales copy. Whatever you sell, following these rules should help:
Who’s in charge? “This credit card lets you control your own life!”
Tap into fear. “This life insurance policy ensures your newborn will get into college.”
Unlock a puzzle. “What’s your dog thinking?”
Be exclusive. “Membership in the RB Sunrise Rotary club is by invitation only.”
Tease the reader. “Root canals without pain? Amazing!”
What’s In It For Me? “Save 60% on an iPhone!”
Grab the reader. “Learn French in an hour.”
Paint pictures. “Our Church WILL close down unless you make a donation today…”
Be negative. “Still making these mistakes in your golf game?”
Provoke the reader. “Spending more on shoes than you should?”
Show passion. “It’s fire season again – JOIN A CERT CLASS NOW!”
Appeal to curiosity. “Think home ownership’s impossible? Think again.”
Be urgent. “Since you opened this email, four children died from malaria.”
Draw attention. People focus on bullets and messages in a PS.
Spell properly. Typos suggest poor quality control in your products.
Despite the recent fall-off in direct mail, my mailbox remains a great resource for effective copy. I constantly look to see if every word produces results, and I see both good…and bad…content daily.
The good authors knows they have three seconds to grab my attention or they’ll be fired.
Because, despite being less expensive to use, email and social media invite abuse of the language. This is a reality which, in the long-run, doesn’t help your cause…whatever that cause might be.
You may not know that I am a graduate of NYU’s Direct Marketing program and a member of their charter class. I’m frequently reminded of the words of my first professor in this program, who was fond of saying; “It’s only ‘junk mail’ when it doesn’t work!”
And because it must be so carefully thought through, “Junk mail” beats most other media for effective copy.
One last thing to consider, of course, is direct mail’s Achilles heel; its dependence on the post office as a delivery method, and all the attendant costs and political risks that this implies.
However, as you plan your next marketing effort, take a good look at snail mail as a viable option. I’m thinking you’ll find some creative ideas in your mailbox that can help increase your own bottom line, and using it as a communications vehicle will help tie your entire marketing program together.
With that said, I wish you a week of profitable marketing.
————————
Get great advice on how to write better copy at www.askmrmarketing.com.