7 Ad Essentials

I hope you had a fun and safe 4th of July celebration over the weekend. I certainly did, even if it did rain a little (only in Seattle!). So last week we briefly spoke about one of my favorite topics, the Robert Collier principle. If you want to review, or are unfamiliar with that term, you really should go check out the blog post here.

For the next several tips we’ll discuss what I call the 7 essentials for any advertising you do. The first few may seem obvious, but you’d been amazed at how many critiques I get and they’re missing some, or most of these essentials.

The first thing you always need is your basic business card information. You and your company’s name, full address, website(s), phone number, fax, e-mail, your Facebook page,etc. Again, this may seem basic as you read this but it’s amazing how often these little things get overlooked. Plus, be sure you have the information correct! I’ve heard horror stories of wrong phone numbers, misspelled websites, etc.

Next, if client’s coming to your brick-and-Mortar place of business is an option whatsoever, you MUST include a map and directions to your location. Not everybody knows where you are located or will remember, even your best clients. If you leave a prospect or client wondering or confused they won’t do anything!

If you don’t have an offer you don’t really have an advertisement. Offers are vital with any direct response and direct mail campaign. Quite frankly, it’s what makes direct response marketing what it is.

With offers, it’s almost always better to give them an ‘either or’ option instead of only one. For example, you may have a basic and deluxe version, Gold or Silver Editions, etc. These will almost always out-perform a simple yes/no option.

Here’s an advanced tip. When 65% or more of your clients start taking the deluxe option over the basic, add a “Best” option. You’ll want to keep the other two, but it’s been my experience that 10-20% will start taking the “Best” option when you present it.

Later in the week we’ll cover a few more of the 7 essentials all your marketing must contain.

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Advanced Tip on Offers

We’re going to wrap up our nearly two week long discussion on deadlines and offers. Who knew there could be so much! To see the previous post and to catch up on all of my tips, check out the previous blog post.

With offers, it’s almost always better to give them an ‘either or’ option instead of only one. For example, you may have a basic and deluxe version, Gold or Silver editions, etc. These will almost always out-perform a simple yes/no option.

Here’s an advanced tip. When 65% or more of your clients start taking the deluxe option over the basic, add a “Best” option. You’ll want to keep the other two, but it’s been my experience that 10-20% will start taking the “Best” option when you present it.

Finally, with deadlines, multiple deadlines are very effective and work well with long deadlines. For instance, you could use something like:

This offer expires in two weeks, but if you respond in the next two weeks you’ll get and additional FREE gift.

The power of taking something away over time is a very strong way to get people to act sooner rather than later.

Don’t Exaggerate

For the last week I’ve been discussing the 13 big mistakes I often see when critiquing sales letters. To review where we left off see my blog posts below from last week. Below are the next two mistakes copywriters often make.

4. Exaggerated Claims.
Many copywriters and marketers think the more astonishing your claims are the more persuasive. This is a fallacy. If a claim is exaggerated, it seems and feels untrue. You thus lose that all-important credibility.

Tip: First you should dramatize your advertising claims with the help of short emotional words. Then prove each claim. Expert comments and testimonials can be a big help. Give a reason why.

In the headline from last week, the roofer is giving away a big screen TV because his crew usually doesn’t do anything in January and February and his suppliers are slow also. He explains that in the letter.

5. Confusing offer.
So many sales letters do not make a clear, easily understandable offer. The result is few or no orders. Reason? When consumers are confused, they don't act--they do nothing. Confusion always breeds inaction.

Tip: Think through your offer very carefully and write it down before you prepare a single word of your sales letter.

No Deadline, No Offer

We finished off the last post with “reason why” marketing in your offers. To recap, see the blog post below. Now we’re on to number 6 in our series of 7 tip for crafting an offer. This may be the most important of the 7 tips you’ll get, so pay close attention.

For an offer to really be irresistible, you MUST have a reason for immediate action. In direct response marketing, we call them deadlines.

If you don’t have a deadline, you don’t really have an offer. Most importantly, you don’t want to hide your offer. You can to make it big and clear. A headline is not something to hide from the client, hoping they don’t see it. It’s the complete opposite. You want them to know the deadline, make it big and clear to create urgency and an immediately response, NOW, not later.

Here’s an insider’s tip most don’t know. Multiple deadlines, especially if you’re deadline is not for a few weeks, can work very well with an additional bonus for a fast response. Here’s an example:

This offer expires on June 30, 2009. But if you respond by June 10th, you’ll get ________________________.

And fill in the blank with your incredible bonus gift, Free report, additional savings etc.

Having a reason why for the deadline is also key. Its can tie right back to the reason why you’re making the offer in the first place. If we use our vendor example from last week (see it here), we can easily say our vendor has only allowed us this offer until a certain date. This may not be the best reason, but it’s a BELIEVEABLE reason, which is all we’re really concerned with.

Here are just a few ways to create deadlines in your marketing:

• Within “X” Number of Days
• By “X”-Date
• By Date stamped in RED in the letter.
• Limited to the first “X” number
• There’s a Waiting List! You can’t even get it right now!

www.3DMailResults.com

Don't Confuse Your Clients

Last week we talked about your clients favorite radio station, W.I.I.F.M., or “What’s in it for Me?” Today we’ll talk about the second of the 7 tips for crafting a compelling offer. To review, see my previous blog post below.

First and foremost your offer must be clear. Confused people do nothing, and nothing is the last thing you want from prospect or client.

In general, “half off,” is better than 50% off. Further, “two for one,” in general, is better than “half off.”

I say in general because it all depends on your target audience. The words and phrases you use will get better or worse response based on your chosen target audience. Review segmenting your lists here at my blog.

Second, you must get in the habit of offering only one thing with each piece of marketing. Here’s an online example. In most cases, you want to collect your clients contact information right when they first visit your site. Everything should be concentrated on that one goal. You wouldn’t want to sell them your widget, try to get their contact information, and have them come by and visit your shop all at the same time!

Here’s on off-line example. If you’re running lead generation advertising for your dental practice, you want the only offer to be to call or visit a website for more information. You’re not selling them on the dental work itself, just a call to action to get more information. It would be foolish to try and sell a root canal in that situation, wouldn’t it?

Finally, the offer must be a good (perceived) value. Going back to our dentist example, to validate our offer, we may want to put a value on the information we are providing, thus giving our information a high perceived value.

Be wary of using percentage off for your offers. As a society, we’ve become increasing skeptical of these offers. We have ingrained in our minds that they’ve simply over-inflated the original value of the product or service, and then cut down to the “real” price with the percentage off. However, this can work when there is a widely known “published” price of an item.

Later in the week we’ll talk about the value of offering discounts, premiums (free gifts) or both. See you then.

www.3DMailResults.com

Tune into Your Clients Favorite Radio Station, WIIFM

We’ve been discussing the elements of crafting an irresistible offer for your clients. So far we’ve discussed what an irresistible offer is and how they must match your prospects or clients interests in terms of Geographic’s, demographics and psycho-graphics. To review, see my last blog entry here. Today we’ll start on the first of 8 tips for crafting your offer.

The biggest factor in crafting an offer is to set your radio dial to your clients favorite station, W.I.I.F.M. or “What’s In It For Me?”

It’s vitally important to remember that your clients are NOT interested in what you are selling. However, they ARE interested in the results of what you’re selling and what it does for them at a personal and emotional level.

You must ask yourself, are you selling the camera?

Or are you selling the memory?













(Yes, that’s really Venice. A picture my wife took from a gondola in the Grand Canal in July, 2007. It doesn’t even look real, does it!?!)

The easiest way to turn what you’re selling into what your clients want is to take your features and turn them into benefits. So if I’m selling my camera, I’m not selling the fact there’s 23 different settings for day, night, low-light, objects in motion, a car setting, train setting etc.

I’m selling that when you finally get to take that dream vacation to one of the world’s most beautiful cities, you can rest assured that you’re pictures will be so stunningly beautiful, that every time you look at them you’ll be transported back right to where that photo was taken, every time you look at it.

www.3dmailresults.com

Segment your List to Match your Offer

We are picking up our discussion on offers after a brief hiatus. To review where we’ve been, see my blog post from last week.

When you’re crafting an offer, you MUST take your target audience into consideration, but their demographics and their psychographics. We’ll start with the basic on demographics,

Demographics are characteristic that make-up your target audience. In Business-to-Consumer markets they include (but not limited to):
• Age
• Gender
• Occupation
• Income
• Martial status
• Children
• Rent/own home

And many others not listed here. You must consider each of the common characteristics of your market when crafting an irresistible offer.

For example, if you’re selling adjustable beds, and you’re offering a free video with testimonials, demonstrations etc your main demographic is more than likely people over a certain age. You’d probably want to offer the option of a DVD or VHS. Whether you drive them to a website is also a consideration. Driving them to a phone call may be a better option. Careful consideration must be given towards biases that exist in any list.

In business-to-business some common demographics include:
• Industry or SIC codes
• Job title
• Annual sales
• Number of employees
• Public or private
• And others

Whether working in the B2B or B2C environment careful consideration must be taken in examining the demographics of your list. Next week we’ll start with the first of 8 tips you can use to craft your next irresistible offer. See you then.

www.3dmailresults.com

Irresistible Offer, Part II

Earlier this week I introduced the idea of an irresistible offer to you. To review where we’ve been, check out my blog post from Tuesday. We’re going to pick upwhere we left off here.

When crafting an offer, the very first thing you mustconsider is your target audience. An offer that doesn’t resonate with your audience will not be successful,no matter how good you think it may be.

But how do you make it resonate? Your offer mustmatch your target audience’s interests, needs andmotivations. For the ultimate success in matchingthese three areas, you must find a starving crowd and segment your list(s) using geographics, gemographics and pyschographics (buying habits).

Geographic targeting is probably the easiest to defineand recognize so we’ll start there. Geographics is the physical area which you can serve, or the effectiverage your business has. How far will your clients cometo you, and how far will you travel to them. A window washer may have an effective range of a 15mile radius around his office. A real estate agent itmaybe 25 miles.
These are certainly not limited to your local community. Most people would consider a dentist to be a “locals” only business. However, I personally know of a handfulof dentists who have clients fly in from all over the country to specifically visit their offices. It all dependson WHO you’re marketing towards, and the specificmessage you put forth.

I also know a retail store owner who sells parts and accessories for race car drivers. He’s able to travelto a different track on race weekends, wherever thebiggest race of that weekend is held, and open hismobile shop. Because he’s willing to travel to exactlyto where his customers are located, he has extendedhis effective range.

Next week we’ll discuss the ways you can segment yourlist and create an Irresistible Offer using demographicsand psychographics.

http://www.3dmailresults.com/

How to Create an Irresistible Offer, Part I

Over the next several weeks we're going to talk about creating an irresistible offer. This is a vitally important element of your marketing campaign.

I often get letters to critique and the most commonly missed or lackluster element is the offer. So sit back and hold on tight as we wind down the adventurous ride that is the irresistible offer!

So what is an irresistible offer? It’ what you dangle in front of your target market that gets them salivating for your product/service. It triggers emotion and focuses on an end results.

The ultimate reaction you want from your clients or prospects from your offer is, "I'd be a fool if I said No to this!" Every piece of marketing you do must have an offer. And it can't be a ho-hum, run-of-the-mill offer. It must be something so great, so ideally matched to your target audience that there is no way someone could possibly justify ignoring it.

An irresistible offer can be used for lead generation in both B2C and B2B to get your prospects to 'raise their hand' and identify themselves as potential clients. The can also be used for a one-step sell of your product/service.

Finally, don't ignore the importance of making offers to your existing clients as well. You see this error all the time. Here’s an example I’m sure you can relate with.

Look at the lengths cable and satellite companies will go to get a new client. You see or hear the ads and you think, “Hey! What about me, I’m the guy paying for you to run those ads!” Don’t let your current clients feel ‘betrayed’ by such offers. Keep them in mind.

You should be using an irresistible offer in all three scenarios, lead generation, one-step sales and to your existing clients.

Stay tuned for later this week as we'll discuss the importance of matching your irresistible offer to yourperfect target audience. I'll see you then!

www.3DMailResults.com