Creative Masterclass: From Mail to Social Media

CREATIVE MASTERCLASS

October 15

Herschell Gordon Lewis

Exploit the21st century difference:

1. Increasing informality2. Increasingly emphatic

persuasion3. Inclusion of validation4. Promise of fast action

The Internet is primarily responsible for all four trends. They apply to both e-mail and Website copy and have bled

over to all media.NOTE: The dynamics of e-mail

and Web site differ because email arrives unannounced and

Website copy usually is the result of a search mechanism.

The edge direct has over other mass media is the

edge action has over branding.

That means:Recall is a weak substitute for a

transactional response.

Example of recall –Ten minutes after listing, test subjects were asked to recall

these possible automobile names:

TigerPrestoXecrovtuHolidaySunlight

No surprise…By a huge margin, the one most recalled was:

Xecrovtu

Adjustments in marketing for “difficult

times” :1. Acknowledge tough times2. Emphasize sincerity and

rapport3. Wallow in statesmanship –

“You don’t have to give up your lifestyle.”

4. Specify apparent proof 5. Imperative, not declarative

If you take nothing else away from this session,

remember this:

Imperativeoutpulls

declarative.

Careful –The amount of

perceived imperative alters

receptivity:

Combination of “official” notice and threatening tone

You get this

email and click here:

Click again and get this:

What are the pros and cons

of this

?

How do you transmitan imperative?

“Let’s”leads convivially…

“You should”shows authority…

“You must”can generate resentment…

all for the same directive.

SUGGESTION:Instead of

You must…use

You have to…(Why?)

Are you specifying(not just suggesting) a recognizable comparative

benefit in:√ health√ wealth√ social position

or√ professional position

?

Prospective buyers always will interpret an

unclear statement in a way that’s

most beneficial to themselves.

That is why The Clarity

Commandment is more significant now than ever

before in marketing history.

The Clarity Commandment:

When you choose words and phrases for

force-communication, clarity is paramount.

Don’t let any other component of the

communications mix interfere with it.

A simple litmus test:If the typical reader or

online message-recipient can’t determine what

you’re pitching… within ten seconds… you’ve violated The

Clarity Commandment.

What might the Rotary Club have said in a half-page ad in its magazine that would add clarity and response?

Ad for an accounting company, aimed at

non-profits.Is this the optimal

headline?

One pulled almost 20% better than the other. Which one? And why?

Another. Which one pulled better? Is it a pure test? (If not, why not?)

What makes thisan

effectivemessage

?

An uncomfortable, useless,

but too-common development as

marketers become more and more desperate for

attention:

The “Huh?” Factor

Huh?

(Full page ad) In ten

seconds: What is

it?

(Full page ad)In ten

seconds: What is

it?

Would you hire

the writer and art director

who “created”

thisb-to-b ad?

IBM ad in

Business Week –

a classic“Huh?”

Suppose you read the

heading and the first

sentence of text. What would you conclude

this company

does?

(Ad in Business

Week)OK, what do they

do?

Huh? This envelope held nothing but paper, so the instruction must have been aimed at me

personally. I’ll show ‘em.

Why is it that so

many ads in

marketing media are aimed at people in

the marketer’s office, not at possible business targets?

Is there a reason for misspellings?

When your target’s first reaction is “Huh?” you should know

your message is less than

professional.

Repeat: When your

target’s first reaction is “Huh?” you should know


professional.

Repeat: When your

target’s first reaction is “Huh?” you should know


professional.

Who decided to match the

picture with the

text?(What

might you have used?

OK,what

isshe

selling?

This might have been your 137th guess.

A message aimed at a mobile audience demands

three elements or it loses:

1. absolute clarity2. ease of response

3. undeniable relevanceWANT TO LOSE?

OMIT ONE OF THOSE.

What a deal: Call China for

about $12.00.

Can you believe

this ancient

scam still exists?

(Sent as a fax)

Ugh.Sixty years out of date.

John Caples (or at least, his masterpiece) lives.

The original, written in 1926…still much imitated today:•They grinned when the waiter spoke to me in French•They laughed when I told them how I beat stress•They laughed when I said I’d lose weightHundreds of others

Paralleling:Associating a familiar story or an episode or an equivalence

with your offer:“Just as

[that]makes [or made] sense,

[this]makes sense [for you now].”

An attempted parallel in Entrepreu

r magazine.

Does it succeed in generating

general interest?

The word- parallel

emphasizesthe point

His good fortune… is your good

FORTUNE!

Too much advertising mis-uses…

“TheGenieWish”

The Genie Wish:Stating a wished circumstance the

reader could misinterpret to his/her

advantage…and your disadvantage.

Example:

Example:

You write:

What is the one thing you want

most?

That’s a mis-used“Genie Wish” headline.

“What is the one thing you want most?”

opens the door to disappointment. Instead:

“Is this the one thing you want most?”

Still not optimal. The professional would avoid

“The Genie Wish”:“Mystery solved.”

The telling difference between semi-effective

copy and effective copy:

Specifics outpull generalizations.

This marketer knows:Find a

specific benefit for yourself

and ride it hard.

Opinion,please:In what ways is this too much? In what ways too

little?

Choice of words:

•You will be among the first to…

•You will be one of the first to…

Why isamong

a weakener?

Psychologically, it automatically kills

exclusivity.

Choice of words:

•You will learn how to…•You will discover how to…Suggestion:Eliminate learn and earn from your selling vocabulary

Why are learn and earn weakeners?

Because they suggest the sender of the message is superior to the recipient.

Keep the recipient in apparent command.

Two points here:

1) The word “Learn” adds nothing and may even

reduce response.

2) Specifics outpull

generalities (note last bullet).

Avoid these words in force-communication

messages:

• quality• service• value• needs (as noun)

• “Remember,”• What’s more• …means business

•When it comes to…

YOUR hand is on the trigger.

Don’t fire blanks.

Did they need a professional copywriter for this heading?

Thee-mail

catechism

(Follow these five steps religiously and you’ll be

hypercompetitive.)

The rule is easy.The rule is obvious:

1.Make aclear offer.

Top line comes on first. Then rest of image. Click on “Play Video” and…

Solid offer holds while video plays: Goes directly for order.

Always … ALWAYS…

send yourself a sample message, to be sure recipients are getting what

you’re transmitting.


2. Make your offer fast.

The all-text (right) pulled three times as many responses. Any guess why?

What is

wrong with this – just the first

bits of 1417 words

?

This is how it ends…

diarrhea of the finger-tips.


3. Make your offer timely.


4. Make your offer unique to

you.


5. Make your offer relevant to

the recipient.

Evolution of e-mail: Buddy-to-buddy

In e-mail, time is NOT on your side.

Grab the target.Shake the target.

Right now.

Email is the only medium in which the approach

“It’s important to meso it’s important to you”

is a valid marketing ploy…but only if properly used.

Why?Because email is the ultimate one-to-one, arm-around-the-shoulder medium. Rapport is the key to response and to

fewer opt-outs.

Soin an email message,

“I”is infinitely superior

to

“We.”

The Web is price-driven.We can predict wildness:The addition of daily deal vouchers and aggregators

to the marketing mix already affects the future

plans of social media.

WARNING:Your first-time

Web visitorhas the

attention-spanof a gnat.

Logic suggests testing:

WARNING:Responders disappear at

checkout.Study conducted by Kefta Inc., San Francisco technology and service provider: Between half and 90% of orders placed in a shopping cart are abandoned

before checkout.

How about“social media”

?Are they…

or will they be…major marketing

factors?

Pro:1. Social media are

one-to-one.2. Customers

become direct

salespeople.

Con:1.Marketer

loses control.2.Phony

pitch becomes obvious.

Do you see the marketing point this satire makes?

E-mail and social similarities and differences

E-MAIL•“This is for you.”•Demands fast action.•Supposedly unique discount.•One-way communication.•Generally targeted.•“We love you.”•“I know who you are.”

SOCIAL•“Hi, there.”•Reward for reply.•Incentive matches the vendor.•Two-way communication.•Hyper-targeted.•“Prove you love me.”•“I know who you are.”

If you plan to use Facebook or MySpace or Twitter or Pinterest as a

marketing tool…please, please, please:

Test.(Best test: as both vendor

and as potential consumer.)

What is the significance of this, at online checkout?

This was as of July…blink and it will change again

Suggestion:Use Twitter for lead

generation, not for actual offers…

and have super-clear materials as quick follow-

ups.

From “Net Applications”

Sequence: clutter … chaos … skepticism … rejection?

Example of the two-

edgedsocial media sword

Don’t know either one. Philosophically and psychologically, ultimate results of

this kind of message?

“Social” are new media.The rules are still

forming. Always analyze your results, and you’ll

generate a constant flow of rules you can use…

profitably.

A dozen implicitly weak words and phrases:

• administration• approximately• define• earn• facilitate• features

• formulate• indeed• needs (as noun)• product• respond• work

A dozen words and phrases with power

• free• free gift• limited time• right now• surprise• hot

• not sold in stores• first time offered• good only until [DATE]• Don’t miss out• I’ll look for your order• Try it at our risk

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Creative Masterclass: From Mail to Social Media

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