One of the biggest mistakes made by business people is operating with prejudice based on ignorance. In the crucial areas of sales and marketing, this mistake is made most often by neglecting the absolute most effective vehicle for obtaining new customers and reigniting the interest of existing ones. An important mentor of mine, Dan Kennedy calls it "writing your own check". This vehicle is known commonly as a sales letter.
Basically, a sales letter done right gives you a salesman that does the job around the clock and never asks for time and a half. You can tell good advertising copy because it is copy that creates money for your business. Too bad most business owners never employ a sales letter in any form.
This omission is devastating to the bottom line, or at least what the bottom line could be. To clear it up, there is no one way or format to create a blow them out of the water, panting for more sales letter. So have no fear.
To get started: Go to the nearest library and pick up a pile of magazines from the popular genres. The areas you are most interested in are sports, fitness, health, fashion, and entertainment. Pick a specific category within the genre and then a more general one. In the area of health and fitness, pick up Men's Health and then more specifically one dealing only with getting bulky through weightlifting. Read through them and focus on the ads.
You'll know the sales letters because they are usually full or half page, but not always. They frequently offer a free report if you contact them. Very often the focus is on the product or service and there is almost no mention of a company name. Trutfhfully, the big corporation advertisers you see during the final episode of Seinfeld or whatever, don't have a clue about sales letters or how to use them.
Trust me, you'll know really good sales copy right away. It is interesting to read and makes you interested in the product or service being sold. Put a book placeholder and go get two or three past issues. If you see the same or very similar ad in those back issues, the ad is very likely a successful ad.
What the big companies do is promote a brand with entertaining ads with dancing lizards or whatever. Before you begin to think that sort of thing is real world advertising, remember that advertising must be readily measurable. Did it work or didn't it. Often, these companies can't measure the return on the millions spent. This is not for you. You have to get the benefit of your product to the average potential customer right now.
So strategy #2 is have a way of conveying a benefit to your customer that is unique in your market. Right up front you want to answer the question: "Why should I be doing business with you v. my other choices for the same product or service?" Bluntly, what can you do for me , and it better be unique and more beneficial than the what the other guy can do for me.
It is likely that you have heard about the Unique Selling Proposition (USP) and the power of a good one. Billionaire philanthropist Tom Monaghan turned Domino's Pizza into the goliath we see today with this USP: "Fresh Hot Pizza delivered in 30 minutes or Less, Guaranteed."
That simple USP frankly brought the big boys to their knees and had them playing catch up.
So you might be wondering where Rule #1 is?
It's have a good headline for your sales letter. A whole different topic for a future discussion.
About the Author:
When you learn the art-and-science of writing great direct-response copy for money letters, postcards, and ads, you can literally write any size paycheck you want. Check out the Copywriting Clinic for 97 specific tricks-of-the-trade. Good copywriting = more money. You are welcome to reprint this article - but get your own unique content version here.
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