Brochure
Purpose: It’s designed to BRING CREDIBILITY TO THE LETTER
Supports the letter
Shows you are a real firm - includes pictures
Customers can order with confidence that their order will arrive and they’ll be happy and satisfied.
· Clearly show what you are selling: Jeff Dobkin’s 2-Second Rule: can readers see what you are selling in 2 seconds or less?
· Splash with color! Here’s that place to turn on the four-color!
Design it to keep people in package longer - the longer they stay in the package, the more likely they will order.
· Bulleted lists work well in here and have high readership
· Photo captions have highest readership of any part besides the headline. Make sure your photo captions sell the product, show the features or the benefits. Don't just say, “Here's a photo of…”
· Extensive use of compelling subheads
Use imaginative subheads over all copy blocks
Jeff Dobkin’s 100-to-1 Rule - write 100 sub-headlines, go back and pick out your best ones
Show product, because you can’t in the letter
Here's the place to get technical, semi-technical, with features and benefits mixed in: Most people don’t care if it’s a .050” tube with a .12” wall thickness built to an .002 tolerance - but it makes you sound like you know what you’re talking about and your product is well developed.
· Design the brochure to fit the envelope
The letter sells, the brochure tells
· Check The final weight - you wouldn't want your brochure to kick it up to the next ounce.
Copy/Offer
· Start out with the objective to keep the reader in the package and interested in what you have to say.
· The first line or two doesn’t sell. Create these lines with the 100-to-1 Rule
· Then, lead with your biggest benefits and best offer first!
How can you best express your offer?
Add to offer:
Buy one, get one FREE
Hurry up incentive - limited time offer
FREE GIFT with offer
· Great price - put it up front, early in package
Mediocre price - move to middle after benefits
Poor price - bury 3/4 of the way through package after benefits and explanation of free gifts
· Think: Who is the exact person you are making this offer to?
Who is your PRIMARY target? Don’t forget - This is the ONE person you are writing to.
Who in your firm decides what price is best?
Split Pricing test - the market selects the best price
Include FREE GIFT, better yet, 3 FREE GIFTS! Best Gifts: Printed materials
Cheap to produce
Ship easily, and
· Booklet Titles drive the offer - and response. You can have people order just to get the premiums - which is OK with me, really.
· Long packages are only for professional writers.
The Jeff Dobkin 2-paragraph rule of readership survival: whenever you have 2 paragraphs back to back that are dull or boring your readership will fall off, so will your income.
Long package if consultive sell, or expensive product
· In support of long copy: You are writing a package for the 2 people in 100 who are thinking about buying - these are the 2 you are writing for, not the other 98.
· Purchasers will read your long copy because 1) they are interested and hungry for information, and 2) they are looking for reassurance that they have made the right decision.
· In larger sales or B2B mailings recipients may throw out your long 4-page letter, but will be happy to read 4-1 page letters! This will also build continuity.
· Question: Should you include a letter?
Answer: Only if you would like to increase your response by 30 to 40%. Use a letterhead with a selling or endearing (branding) slogan.
· Most effective space in your letter? Upper right-hand side of first page. Use a Johnson Box. Summarize your best offer and FREE gift there. It may look like an ad - OK to set in different type style.
Draft the widest salutation
Too narrow a salutation will turn off readers
Options:
“Dear Colleague”
Add “and Friend” after salutation
Neighborhood alignment: “Dear Neighbor”
· Layout
Make it look like a letter
Courier style type - 12/12
Short on space?
Courier 10/12 or 10/11
Bookman 8/9 or New Century
Schoolbook
Really short on space? Times Roman
Indent all paragraphs 4 or 5 spaces
Dobkin Rounding - first line shorter on right than subsequent lines in paragraph
DON’T LET THE COMPUTER CALL THE LINE ENDINGS - Your computer is STUPID - it doesn’t know what looks good, what makes the most sense.
Adjust copywriting for widows/orphans
No paragraph longer than 7 lines, max
Vary paragraph length
· Foreshortened paragraph in center
May be smaller type, italics, or different typestyle - Good way to save on space if letter is too long
Attracts eye to this area
Breaks up copy into better-looking blocks
You need this in EVERY letter
· Bulleted list of benefits in center
Bulleted lists have highest readership
· Use letter design graphic elements
Bold - once a paragraph or just a few times
Does the bold inadvertently break across two lines? If just a few words are in bold don’t run on two different lines
Italics - emphasize action words, phrases
Underline occasionally, don’t break onto two lines
CAPITALS - only once or twice in letter.
FREE - usually set in caps. Use FREE in prominent word-placement positions line corners and end of lines.
Dash - keeps people reading, use frequently
· Keep letter adjusted for scanning readers. If their eye drifts down the page does it fall on a coherent story. Do certain words that you want seen stand out? Do you end the line with FREE so it stands out?
· Set “FREE” 2 points larger so it stands out
· Sign Legibly
Your signature may be referred to as “the great scribble” by your office, but customers want something they can read and a name and signature they can relate to.
P.S.
Restate offer, give biggest benefits
Offer premiums or gifts again
Show guarantee unless blocked off elsewhere
Ask for action twice, give phone number
· Give Phone number several times in letter
· Ask for order several times, also
· One page letters are OK if you…
If you don’t need to sell too hard
If you don’t need to explain anything
If the audience is familiar with your product/service
If letter is slightly too long for one page: shown in preferred order -
1. Look for widows that can be eliminated
2. Steal space by reducing leading between paragraphs
3. Reduce typeface size or use a condensed typeface style
4. Bring copy margins out to edge of page, allow letter to go from top to bottom, then reduce printer output to 90%. This will reduce printed vertical dimension by one inch, and reduce horizontal dimension by 3/4 inch.
· Two pages
Least favorite: print on back of page one (I only do this when there is a weight restriction or the budget is tight.
If weight allows, go to two separate pages
Preferred: 11 x 17 sheet, print on pages 1 and 3.
My Preferences - there are no 2-page letters. Go to 11 x 17 sheet, create 3-page letter. Back may be left open, or continue with light copy, or separate ad sheet on back (doesn’t look like part of the letter).
Order Form/Catalog
· If you have a 50-page catalog, how many order forms do you have in it? Only one? Shame on you!
Preaddressed is best - you’ll get all tracking info and won’t have to struggle reading someone’s handwriting - at least for their name and address.
Have your phone number in bold
· Shipping Costs - are you penalizing people for ordering more? Doesn’t a larger order mean you have more room to bury a shipping cost?
· Are your part numbers for each item designed to help you internally or assist the customer in their ordering?
Lists
The MOST important element in any mailing.
RFM? Compiled? Response?
12 places to buy a list
Magazine Publishers - subscribers list
List Brokers
List Compliers
Associations, Directories: Check out National Trade and Professional Associations of the United States - www.columbiabooks.com; 888-265-0600, and Encyclopedia of Associations by The Gale Group (800-877-GALE)
Trade Show Attendees
Check out www.TSCentral.com & www.tradeshowdataweek.com
Catalog Houses
Catalogs of Mailing Lists
CD ROMs
Internet
Your Competitors
Reference Directories of lists
SRDS List Source (800-851-SRDS), Oxbridge Communications Directory of Mailing Lists (800-955-0231)
House List
Questions to ask a list broker