|
No letter can persuade, convince or sell if it doesn't get read. That's why, in direct mail, the very first job of the copywriter is to get your envelope opened.
I have no illusions that this is an easy task. All I have to do is think about how I open my own mail to realize how quickly a potential profit-builder can turn into junk.
When I go through my mail I become a kind of Las Vegas blackjack dealer, dealing the letters onto appropriate piles. The magazines go here, the bills go there, the personal letters get read immediately, and, of course, I check out the endless solicitations and offers, deciding which make the sale and which become junk mail. Here's my method for deciding what gets thrown away:
Any letter from Barbra Streisand or Bono goes on the junk pile. (We were never really that close). Any "special opportunity" or chance to become incredibly rich has no appeal whatsoever. Any sweepstake, game or instant winner is an instant loser. Checks that aren't checks and prizes that aren't prizes earn my instant and intense enmity.
What does work on me is probably what works on you: benefits!
That's what belongs on envelopes and gets them opened. If the copywriter can prove to readers that the contents of the package contains some useful information, you will get them into the package and at least get a shot at selling them.
Here are some battle-tested copywriting tips and techniques that can help make YOUR envelope a winner.
And now, the envelope, please . . .
1. Don't feature your corporate name and address if it doesn't mean anything to the reader
For example, there's a good chance that the words "Quicken" or "QuickBooks" means more to prospects than the name "Intuit." That's why it's okay to put your corporate name, return address and logo on the back of the envelope.
NOTE: Did you know that the only time postal regulations require you to include identification on the envelope is when you're mailing at the low rates available to fundraisers?
2. Load up your envelope with copy
There's no law that says teaser copy has to be just one line long. A while ago I completed a direct mail package for SunSoft that featured teaser copy fifty words long. Yes. That's a lot. But I was confident that our carefully targeted readers would be interested in the benefits of Solaris software. On that basis we made the decision to be aggressive on the envelope. It worked just fine.
I have no illusions that this is an easy task. All I have to do is think about how I open my own mail to realize how quickly a potential profit-builder can turn into junk.
When I go through my mail I become a kind of Las Vegas blackjack dealer, dealing the letters onto appropriate piles. The magazines go here, the bills go there, the personal letters get read immediately, and, of course, I check out the endless solicitations and offers, deciding which make the sale and which become junk mail. Here's my method for deciding what gets thrown away:
Any letter from Barbra Streisand or Bono goes on the junk pile. (We were never really that close). Any "special opportunity" or chance to become incredibly rich has no appeal whatsoever. Any sweepstake, game or instant winner is an instant loser. Checks that aren't checks and prizes that aren't prizes earn my instant and intense enmity.
What does work on me is probably what works on you: benefits!
That's what belongs on envelopes and gets them opened. If the copywriter can prove to readers that the contents of the package contains some useful information, you will get them into the package and at least get a shot at selling them.
Here are some battle-tested copywriting tips and techniques that can help make YOUR envelope a winner.
And now, the envelope, please . . .
1. Don't feature your corporate name and address if it doesn't mean anything to the reader
For example, there's a good chance that the words "Quicken" or "QuickBooks" means more to prospects than the name "Intuit." That's why it's okay to put your corporate name, return address and logo on the back of the envelope.
NOTE: Did you know that the only time postal regulations require you to include identification on the envelope is when you're mailing at the low rates available to fundraisers?
2. Load up your envelope with copy
There's no law that says teaser copy has to be just one line long. A while ago I completed a direct mail package for SunSoft that featured teaser copy fifty words long. Yes. That's a lot. But I was confident that our carefully targeted readers would be interested in the benefits of Solaris software. On that basis we made the decision to be aggressive on the envelope. It worked just fine.
|
