Categories
Archives
Search
There are so many metrics surrounding direct marketing. So many facts, figures, test results and other sundry measurements.
It’s tempting to think the only thing that matters with direct marketing copy is to get the tried and tested elements in place.
If that were the case, you would be able to buy DM copywriting software.
You would just enter a few lines of information about your product - price, offer and audience - and the software would draw on a database of thousands of previous, proven DM letters and ads. Press Enter and you would have near-perfect copy delivered to your screen in the blink of an eye.
Sounds cool, eh?
The trouble is, the ‘metrics’ approach to direct response writing - whether written by you or a machine - limits your potential considerably.
One major attribute of every good direct response piece is how it touches its audience at a personal level. Great DM speaks to us as individuals. It touches our hopes, fears and ambitions. It makes us feel, it makes us ‘want’.
And by that, I’m not talking about the ’smack-em-in-mouth’ approach. As in, “If your life isn’t insured, your children could end up on the streets”. Or, “Get out of debt in 30 minutes”. I don’t think our industry is served well by manipulating the fears of decent people. Or over-promising in any way.
>> An example of DM copy that touches the reader
A long time ago I was given the job of beating a control brochure that was selling a book on the subject of US forces in Vietnam.
I changed nothing except the captions under the photos.
I remember one photo that showed an American ‘Tunnel Rat’ about to enter one of the Viet Cong’s tunnel systems. A scary job, to say the least. The existing caption said something like, “At the entrance of a tunnel system”.
There are two things wrong with this caption. First, it is redundant, telling you nothing the photo itself doesn’t already communicate. Second, it fails to ‘touch’ the reader in any way.
It’s a long time ago, but my rewrite was something like this, “Tunnel Rat tenses before plunging into the darkness”.
What I wrote was probably much better than that. I spent a lot of time on that brochure. But hopefully you get the point. What I did was use words that said something the photo alone didn’t express. I also put the reader in the mind of the soldier. To some small degree. I simply wrote in a way that engaged the reader’s emotions.
Good DM writing does that all the time.
And yes, the new brochure beat control.
>> How this applies to the Web
When it comes to touching your reader on a personal level, the web offers more opportunity and potential than any other mass medium. Online, people respond immediately and positively to any sense that a web site has a personal voice. People love that someone is ‘there’.
Where can you add these personal touches? Where can you reach people on an emotional level? Just about anywhere in the text. In headlines, subheads, body text or links.
(By the way, don’t start writing captions for all the images on your site. In a print brochure people generally look at the photos first, and then read the captions second. Not so online. Visitors to web sites look at the text first. They want to know if your site will give them what they are looking for.)
You’ll be most successful with this personal approach if you use a light touch. Put the verbal hammer and exclamation points away. There’s no need to shout. Just make sure the text sounds like it was written by a living, breathing, feeling human being. Don’t just state the facts…write in a way that touches the reader’s emotions. Help them feel it, not just read it.
Things really begin to fly when you combine the proven principles of direct marketing with the personal potential of the web.
Nick Usborne is a copywriter, author, speaker and advocat of good writing. You can access all his archived newsletter articles on copywriting and writing for the web at his Excess Voice site. You’ll find more articles and resources on how to make money as a freelance writer at his Freelance Writing Success site.
In the competitive world of the 20th century, we generally viewed competitors as the enemy. And a competitor was anyone who sold to the same target audience as us - even if they sold a different item. After all, since there was a finite group of customers and a limited amount of money, if they spent it with your competitor, there was less for you.
Fast forward to the 21st century. We have a different view of the world. We now recognize that the pie is big enough for all of us. As Cavett Robert, co-founder of the National Speakers Association, said “The number of slices of pie is only limited by the size of the pie. Just make the pie bigger!” (paraphrased)
So how can you and your competitors create deals that benefit both of you - and your clients? Here are a few ideas:
1. If your competitor sells a product that is similar to yours, joint venture on a mailing to the list of people who have already purchased their product. You can offer your product and share in the profits. People in a target market are rarely satisfied with one item; instead, they will continue to buy items that are similar.
2. If your competitor publishes a book, ebook, or website, ask them to refer people to your site as a resource site. This can be included in their product or as a follow-up email to their clients.
3. If you offer a member site, ask your competitor to refer people to your site - for an affiliate commission. For example, SellYourBrain.com is a member site that helps people finish information projects like ebooks. The natural competitors are ebook authors who tell people how to write ebooks. However, by their referring their purchasers to SellYourBrain, the client is more likely to finish their ebook - making the ebook author look better in their eyes.
4. In turn, offer your competitor’s product for sale on your member site. Again, SellYourBrain offers a monthly discount coupon good toward the purchase of ebooks on how to write ebooks.
5. When you’re interviewed for a story about your product or service, offer to give the reporter related resources. The reporter will love having additional people to round out the story and your competitors will appreciate your referral. You come out as the hero to both groups.
Joel Christopher, noted online list-building expert, uses the phrase “co-opetition”. That’s a good word to adopt. Look for ways to build cooperation with your competition - so that your clients and prospects are the winners.
Dr. Jeanette Cates is an Internet strategist who works with experts who are ready to turn their knowledge and their websites into Gold. Her reputation as a speaker and trainer has earned her the title of The Technology Tamer. Jeanette shares her news and views in OnlineSuccessNews.com
Affiliate marketing is most probably the key to the survival and progress of many cyberspace businesses. And this is why affiliates are being sought everywhere by almost every online company. One traditional marketing arm will not be sufficient for one online business who will be competing with other online companies which are offering the same products and services. Thus, affiliate marketing is very vital.
Fortunately, many people with business blood in their veins realize the important role of affiliate marketing in e-commerce. And conducting affiliate marketing seems like a relatively easy method that even a person without a masters degree in business can do it. This is why there are many affiliates signing-up everyday. These new affiliates are supposed to open the doors of new leads for the online business. But nothing like that is happening
Many affiliates are not earning enough money and they find no significant activity going on in their websites. Is affiliate marketing a mistake? The answer is “no”. This practice is based on sound marketing concepts. And the major reason why most affiliates don’t earn enough money is that they have committed one or more of these mistakes.
Mistake #1: Hard Selling
An affiliate must not do “hard selling”, which is basically shoving the product down the throat of the customer. An affiliate should leave the “hard selling” part to the website of the online business. The affiliate’s own website should not contain anything that resembles “hard selling”.
What an affiliate must do in his website is to “pre-sell”. To pre-sell is to slowly convince the visitor of the importance of a service or a product by having excellent, information-laden, and authoritative content. Then, the affiliate will “suggest” an action for the visitor, which may be to check out the service or the product.
Mistake #2: Too Flashy Websites
An affiliate is supposed to respond to the need of the visitor, which is to obtain information. This means that the affiliate’s website should have information. Unfortunately, some affiliates are lured into making their websites into one electronic show, in which there are too many banners and too many “blinking” features that seek attention.
If there are too many banners and too few content, the visitor will most probably roll his eyes and hit the back button.
Mistake #3: Ignoring Search Engine Optimization
Activity in the affiliate’s website can be increased if the website’s URL ends up in the results page of search engines. Otherwise, the affiliate’s website is doomed to silence. It simply becomes a lifeless stone in the ever increasing world of e-commerce.
A person who intends to make more money in affiliate marketing should re-evaluate his website and determine if he has committed the mistakes described here.
Peter Garant’s affiliate resource site sells cheap website articles to webmasters that understand the need for unplagerised and high quality content on their websites.