An interesting question from Nigel West highlighted two points about preparing the letter for a mailshot:
Q: “Hi Carol
I’m just in the process of mailing out the sales letter that you helped me with (bit of an understatement).
As ever the mechanics of printing the letter is causing a bit of a headache, partly because I want to use both sides of the paper and don’t have a duplex printer.
At the weekend I had a mailing from Streetwise Publications and noticed that it consisted of a printed, but unpersonalised, information booklet, for want of a better phrase, and a single A4 response form that was personalised.
It’s quite tempting to do this as my letter is 4 A4 pages so would fit on folded A3, but I wondered what you thought about doing this?”
Regards Nigel West
A:
Printing First… Are you using Word? If so, there’s a neat trick you can use when you want to print double-sided on a printer that normally prints single-sided.
Click File, Print then choose Odd Pages in the Print box; bottom left
If you have an odd number of pages in your document, e.g. 5 or 7 pages etc. remove the last page of the document.
Return the pages to the printer paper tray – be careful of the direction and which side up the pages need to be placed so you don’t overprint what you’ve already got.
Click File, Print then choose Even Pages in the Print box
Your documents should be printed and collated OK.
If you are merging data into your letter, complete the merge to a document (instead of straight to the printer) and run the print job from the merged document.
Using A3 Paper
To answer your main question, I have used that layout successfully for a client who sends letters to 13,500 prospects each time.
The main offer letter is 4 pages, printed onto A3 and folded to A5. The response form is pre-printed and then personalised by the client ready for mailing.
The collation is handled by a mailing house.
We have had good responses but it is worth noting that the letters were sent with stamps applied – they did not have franked / postal imprints on them and previous tests we’ve run have shown the stamps always out pulled franked envelopes.
But, when it comes down to it… and you know what I’m going to say… testing is the only way you can be sure of the impact using this layout has on response from your prospects for your particular offer.
Nigel, this is a good question to share with my other blog readers – thanks for asking and good luck with your mailing.
~ Carol Bentley
I enjoyed Jonathan Jay’s weekend seminar. I met a lot of motivated, success-hungry business owners and the seminar content certainly stimulated me into action – hence the delay in sharing with you until today; I’ve been a bit busy since I got back. 
Jonathan’s anatomy of a sales letter – 15 steps – delivered a similar content structure to my own formula and many of the attendees experienced a ‘light-bulb’ moment when he described the Marketing Funnel.
For me his Business Building Formula was extremely interesting, more so because Jonathan generously gave permission to share it with you; I’ll do that in a moment.
By the way, if you want to see Jonathan in action for yourself he is running a few more weekend events, the next is at the end of March. Take a look at www.successtrackonline.com
Business Building Formula
Here’s the formula:
NM: Niche Market. We’ve talked before on this blog about focusing on specific segments of your market. Targeting a niche market means your message is more focused and more relevant to the people you are reaching out to.
QL: Qualified Lead. The difference between a cold, ‘never-heard-of-you’ prospect and one who has already bought from you, requested information or has purchased similar products or services elsewhere.
AS: Automated Systems. Don’t aim to complete every part of the process yourself or in-house. Where possible automate delivery. For example arranging automatic delivery of digital products online is easier than you sending out emails – especially as you might miss an incoming request. Physical products can be supplied automatically through a fulfilment company.
PP: People Power. Jonathan described two aspects to people power. He advised keeping your overheads and potential for problems to a minimum by keeping the number of employees as low as possible. The exception to that is when you are looking to sell your business because potential buyers like to see a vibrant, well-running team in place. A couple of people running a multi-million pound (or dollar) business is incongruous in their minds. A year before you intend to place your business on the market take steps to swell your ranks to give a better perceived value to your business.
QP: Quality Product/Service. This, of course, is paramount. If you don’t have a quality product or service that your clients value then your chances of success are slim.
DPM: Decent Profit Margins. The whole purpose of running a business is to make a profit (I know, I know I’m stating the obvious!) But unfortunately a lot of businesses reduce their profit margins when they get into price-cutting. And for some businesses that can spell disaster.
LO: Low Overheads. Jonathan gave the example of a newly formed business splashing out on expensive smart offices, posh furniture, the latest technology… effectively going on an ego-trip to make themselves look, and feel, good. Dependent upon your market you may need to have this type of persona, in which case look into using office/meeting rooms for client appointments and get an upmarket address through serviced offices. You can, for example, get a very exclusive address in London for your post without actually having your office there and paying exorbitant rents.
RR: Risk Reversal. Your guarantee or promise that removes the risk of buying from your prospects shoulders.
RP: Repeat Purchases. The lifeblood of any business is the continuing relationship with clients. You want your new clients to continue to purchase from you. Even if your product or service is effectively a 1-off purchase finding associated products or services you can provide or connect your clients with can bring in extra revenue.
PF: Product Funnel. This is the range of products or services on offer. The purpose is to encourage the first purchase with a low cost, low risk, low commitment transaction and then move your prospect onto higher value items step-by-step.
When these elements are combined as shown in the formula they result in:
BP: Big Profits
and
EP: Eternal Happiness!
Add the right MS: Marketing & Sales strategy and you boost your results exponentially.
What are your thoughts about this formula?
Carol Bentley
We never stop learning. I know… it is a cliché but it happens to be one that I believe in and actively follow.
If you’ve been following my blog for a while you’ll know that I love discovering anything about marketing, copywriting and all things related. One of the ways to do that is to attend marketing seminars, just to find out what other people have experienced.
Listening to other marketers often confirms my own experience and sometimes I’m lucky enough to gain an extra nugget of marketing – or copywriting – gold. And that’s why I’m off to Jonathan Jay’s seminar in Reading this weekend.
If you are planning to be there do make a point of saying “Hello”. It will be nice to put a face to a name I’ve seen on my subscriber list or in the comments.
Whatever you are doing, have a great weekend.
~ Carol Bentley
Written by Carol Bentley |
Enter your password to view comments.
Gerwyn Jones asked:
“I try to follow the AIDA formula when writing copy. I’ve heard of ‘more complicated’ formula’s, using pre headlines etc. Could you give me an idea of what formulas you follow and how do they work? Thank you”
The AIDA formula is a long-standing favourite for structuring your sales message when writing a direct response style letter.
AIDA is an acronym for:
Attention: Attract your prospect’s Attention
Interest: Create a strong Interest for your prospect
Desire: Stimulate your prospect’sDesire for what you are offering
Action: Clearly tell your prospect what Action to take
In chapter 6 of my book; I Want To Buy… (which I know you have a copy of Gerwyn) I introduce the extended version I follow: AIDA-A. My additional A is another Attention that has a similar function to the headline; your strong P.S.. I describe the process in more detail in chapter 10.
I’m not the only professional copywriter who has created their own variation of the AIDA formula.
Robert Collier’s formula was
Attention
Interest
Description
Persuasion
Proof
Close
Victor O. Schwab suggested AAPPA
Get Attention
Show people an Advantage
Prove it
Persuade people to grasp this advantage
Ask for action
There is a whole section on copywriting formulas in Richard S. Hodgson’s The Greatest Direct Mail Sales Letters and in his Direct Mail & Mail Order Handbook.
It’s worth remembering these formulas are simply a guide to how to organise the content of your letter and to make sure you haven’t missed an important element. A more complicated formula may confuse, rather than help, you with your writing.
For most professional copywriters the formula is not slavishly followed because the structure is part of the copywriting skill. It is one you will also develop as you write more and more sales letters.
A good way to be sure you’ve included everything you need to – in your letter; order form; on the envelope – and you’ve written it in the most persuasive way possible is to have a final checklist. Chapter 19 in the book has a 20-point checklist for your letter and a 31-point checklist for your order form.
Pre-Heads
You mention pre-heads in your question Gerwyn. A pre-head is part of the initial Attention in the AIDA acronym and should be a natural introduction to the main headline. One advantage of having a good, enticing pre-head is that it moves the main, larger font headline down to the area of your page where your prospect’s eyes naturally rest when they first look at the page.
Advance Notice of A Useful Gift
Recently I discovered a far more extensive checklist – 10 A4 pages long – that Kevin Finn, a US based copywriting agent, uses to review his copywriter’s work before it is submitted to the client. I have got permission to share this with you and will be including it as a PDF download gift for subscribers in tomorrow’s post.
If you subscribe to this blog you will receive the post password in your notification email.
If you are not yet subscribed you still have time – anyone subscribing – and verifying – before 10.00a.m. tomorrow will receive the password. You can subscribe below and claim 2 valuable reports: 16-page Copywriting Interview Transcript and ‘31 Time-Saving Tips for MS Word‘
Until tomorrow,
~ Carol Bentley
Looking back over the last few months my posts have covered a wide variety of topics but, as this is supposed to be a copywriting blog, I think it would be a good idea to get a bit more focus on how or what you write in your sales message affects your results.
So – over the next few posts I aim to do that… with your help
You see, one of the challenges with writing a blog is deciding what to write about; what is most useful to you, my reader, at this moment in time? What tips or techniques would be of most value to you?
Joining in your reader’s internal conversation, answering the question in their head is a powerful way to get their attention. Sussing out what that question is can sometimes be tricky. So – I’m going to be rather lazy here – and simply ask you “What copywriting question do you want answered?”
So, if you are willing to ask I’m willing to share my insights.
It could be a question about
- headlines;
- sub-heads;
- bullets;
- content;
- letter flow;
- structure;
- layout and design;
- the order form…
basically anything to do with crafting and delivering your compelling message.
Please use the comment link below to ask your question (and Yes, you can ask more than one question if you want to). Thanks.
Note: Because these questions will be answered on the blog they do need to be general type questions that help anyone reading the posts. If you want a more personal and private consultation you can book a makeover review. Visit www.carolbentley.com for details on the makeover and other copywriting services.
~ Carol Bentley
Just in case you want to know more about using Twitter in business.
Following my previous post I was told about the Twitter Handbook, which is about to be published but can currently be freely downloaded. I got my copy and I’m browsing through at the moment.
It’s got some interesting insights for business use and, if you’ve downloaded the guide mentioned in my earlier post, you’ll probably find this useful too. Check if it is still available at http://twitterhandbook.com – If you want it I suggest you get it as soon as possible.
~ Carol Bentley
P.S. Thanks for the tip Nigel
Wedding planner: The recommendations you discussed here are really useful. It abso...
Samantha: That is kind of hard of a bargain when monetizing online. That wa...
Lynkez: Dear customer, to effect reliability and a sustainable flow we he...
Nancyshanice: handling your customers well is something very nice, because you ...
Carol Bentley: Hi Brian, (sorry for the delay in replying, your comment got bloc...
Brian Moseley: When I open your RSS feed it puts up a whole lot of strange chara...