I can’t help it, I LOVE what I do.
And if I weren’t writing copy, I’d be writing novels… or composing music… or something else that requires BOTH sides of the brain.
Sometimes I get a project I wouldn’t mind doing even if I didn’t get paid a dime. Like yesterday, for example, I picked up a sales letter project for the company where I used to work as Marketing Director.
They sell high output black lights to the entertainment industry, and they want to create a promotion to send out to all the equipment rental houses offering them a trade-up for their old fixtures.
They hand in their old, crappy fixtures (even if they don’t work) and get $300 credit toward a new one. Plus, their old fixtures are recycled.
The company president (my former boss) wanted to create a flyer to send in the mail. But here’s the thing:
Flyer = BORING.
The number #1 sin in marketing is boring your prospect. A flyer may be great for posting on a bulletin board (if done right), but it’s not for direct mail.
There is nothing personal about it… and nothing interesting, either. Plus, it’s the WORST way to use direct mail.
So I came up with some ideas:
- First… let’s make it a sales letter, not a flyer. You can sell just about anything with a well-written sales letter.
- Second… since they’ll be recycling the old fixtures (and the customer will save money doing it), let’s call it the “Easy Being Green” Promotion.
- Third… let’s create a character named “Tree Frog Bob” to be the “spokesfrog” for this promotion.
- Fourth… let’s include a toy stretchable flying frog as a “grabber”, which will make the envelope “lumpy” to add intrigue, and guarantee it gets opened.
The headline “ties in” the grabber…
“It’s Time To S-T-R-E-T-C-H Your Green With
Wildfire’s ‘Easy Being Green’ Promotion.”
Trade Up Any Old, Embarrassing Blacklight Fixture For
$300 Credit Toward A Brand-New Wildfire 400W Spot or Flood
Then, in the deck, there is a cartoon drawing of our spokesfrog, Tree Frog Bob.
Tree Frog Bob is here to tell us that even though he’s from the deep Amazon, he’s heard about the recession… and he thinks the best way out of it is to just focus on the green: saving it… and making it.
And being in the green just got a whole lot easier with Wildfire’s “Easy Being Green” Promotion.
The theme continues through the sales letter. Notice how it suddenly has more interest and appeal. I’ve even created some slightly humorous back-story elements for Tree Frog Bob that are woven throughout the sales letter…
Such as how his cousin’s mother-in-law’s brother’s son knew this guy whose girlfriend once dated this other guy who knew this agent up there in Hollywood. So when he heard about a call for a green spokesfrog… well… he knew it was his lucky break!
The point is… this WILL get opened. It WILL get read… and perhaps even passed around the office for its entertainment value. (Plus, it’s a pretty darn persuasive sales letter, too!)
Here’s the lesson: NEVER be boring. Be curious. Be interesting. Be personable. Be cheesy if you have to. But don’t be boring.
You can add interest to your marketing in several ways…
- Tell your story.
- Be personable.
- Write like you talk.
- Write about what your prospects are interested in.
- Create “cartoon” characters to be your spokesperson.
- Get rid of all corporate or legal-sounding B.S.
- Use colorful language.
- Use common metaphors and figures of speech.
- Insert a “grabber” in your envelope to guarantee it gets opened.
That’s just off the top of my head.
If you’re ready to move beyond the same old boring drivel, and actually generate a response for a change, then visit my services page.
