Tag Archives: offline marketing

Bad example of direct mail copywriting?

by

OK, so over the past few days I’ve presented a couple examples of copywriting here, that I thought were pretty good.
 
Some of us liked the copy… some of us didn’t…
 
But hey, that’s one thing a discussion is about. While we may have different opinions, and we may not always agree… At least we can exchange ideas, and talk about something we’re all (hopefully) passionate about.
 
And as long as you agree with my opinion… then your opinion is a good one 🙂
(Whoa! Put the pitchforks away guys, I was only joking… Just tryin’ to add a little levity to the chat… jeez)

 

Anyway, I brought another one here for your enjoyment… entertainment… critique… and exuberation (I don’t know if that last one’s even a word? But if it’s not, it should be… cause it’s kinda fun to say).
 

Anyway, this next piece came in my mail a couple years ago. I saved it because I thought it was such a curious specimen, and a very bad example of direct mail copywriting
 
It’s from a car dealership, a couple towns over from where I live.
 
I remember trying to contact them, to find out what the response rate was for this piece? But all I was told, was that direct mail doesn’t work, and they were taking their marketing efforts elsewhere.
 
So I’m guessing it didn’t bring in a ton of business for them?
 
Now, as I’m sure you can tell, I have my own opinion of this (oh… let’s call it a sales letter), but what do you guys think of it?
Continue reading→

Small business marketing is not an expense (it’s an investment)

by

 

“Running a business without advertising and marketing is like winking in the dark; you know what you’re doing, but nobody else can see you.”

 

Small Business Advertising and Marketing

 

If you’ve been in business for any length of time, then you already know; there’s only 3 main ways you’re going to “stay in business”…

 
1) Increase your number of customers.

2) Increase the size (or dollar amount) of each sale.

3) Increase the frequency of repeat customers.

 

It’s not rocket science… it’s simple math!

– When you do 1 of these, your sales will go up.

– When you do 2 of these, your sales will multiply even more.

– When you do all 3, your sales, and profits, will expand geometrically.

 

Of course, there’s other ways to increase your bottom line, like cutting waste and streamlining efficiency.

But without customers, you don’t have a business; and nothing else is going to make a difference.

 

This is where advertising and marketing comes in

 
Unfortunately, here’s where most business owners go wrong…

Continue reading→

Ethics in marketing – good business? or idealistic foolishness?

by

There was a thread the other day, on one of the marketing forums I belong to, that touched upon a point of morality and ethics in marketing.

One of the members was called out for blatantly lying to, and deceiving his market, in order to promote himself as being a master marketer.

That member shot back, and basically told his detractors “The best marketers adjust the facts, so get off your high horses and start living in the real world!”

He then went on to justify his claim, demanding that he could “honestly” say he produced tens of millions of dollars for past clients, because he once worked for a company that did so.

And even though he wasn’t personally responsible for those transactions, he wasn’t lying. He was simple “adapting the truth” to fit his own needs.
 

Now, I don’t know how you feel about his justification; But to me, with that type of logic, a cashier at Walmart could say they’re a front line financial expert, managing an entire sector, at a multi billion dollar company.
 

Is it a lie? Or, is it simply an adapted truth?

To me, it sounds deceptive… what do you think?
Continue reading→

Customer Centric Relationship Marketing

by

The most important marketing lesson for every business…
 

Meet the new boss; Same as the old boss
The Who – Won’t get fooled again

 
Wow, I was just listening to the old song “Won’t get fooled again” by the Who. And let me tell you, it really brought back some memories from my youth (I guess that shows you how old I am).
 
At the end of the song, Roger Daultry sings “Meet the new boss – Same as the old boss” and it instantly got me thinking about marketing.

 

OK, I can already hear you saying… “What? How the hell can an old rock-n-roll song make you think about marketing? You friggin egghead!”
 
Well, maybe I deserved that… and maybe not. But at least let me explain where I’m coming from, before you feed me to the alligators…
 

Continue reading→

How to become an authority in your niche

by

There’s a number of great ways to become an authority in your niche, and they all come down to one thing… Becoming well known as an expert.

I know what you’re thinking… “Thanks for the insight Captain Obvious, but how do you make it happen?”

Excellent question!

 
And since you didn’t come here for a bunch of useless ‘jibber jabber’, I’ll get right to it with a short list on some of the best ways you can ‘make it happen’ – and become an authority in your field…
 
Continue reading→