Free-Reprint Article Written by: Dan Lok See Terms of Reprint Below.
***************************************************************** * * This email is being delivered directly to members of the group: * * [email protected] * ***************************************************************** We have moved our TERMS OF REPRINT to the end of the article. Be certain to read our TERMS OF REPRINT and honor our TERMS OF REPRINT when you use this article. Thank you. This article has been distributed by: http://Article-Distribution.com Helpful Link: The Digital Millennium Copyright Act - Overview http://www.gseis.ucla.edu/iclp/dmca1.htm --------------------------------------------------------------------- Article Title: ============== 3 Response Killing Direct Mail Copywriting Mistakes & How to Easily Avoid Them Article Description: ==================== Your constant challenge as a direct mail copywriter is to effectively communicate with target markets in their language. Many writers specialize in one or two niche areas. It doesn't matter. Even seasoned writers sometimes drop the ball and make easily avoidable mistakes. Additional Article Information: =============================== 834 Words; formatted to 65 Characters per Line Distribution Date and Time: 2007-10-29 10:00:00 Written By: Dan Lok Copyright: 2007 Contact Email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] For more free-reprint articles by Dan Lok, please visit: http://www.thePhantomWriters.com/recent/author/dan-lok.html ============================================= Special Notice For Publishers and Webmasters: ============================================= If you use this article on your website or in your ezine, We Want To Know About It. Use the following URL to let us know where you have used this article, and we will include a link to your website on thePhantomWriters.com: http://thephantomwriters.com/notify.php?id=5360&p=load HTML Copy-and-Paste and TEXT Copy-and-Paste Versions Of Article Are Available at: http://thePhantomWriters.com/free_content/db/l/direct-mail-copywriting-mistakes.shtml#get_code --------------------------------------------------------------------- 3 Response Killing Direct Mail Copywriting Mistakes & How to Easily Avoid Them Copyright (c) 2007 Dan Lok Quick Turn Marketing International, Ltd. http://www.WebsiteConversionExpert.com Your constant challenge as a direct mail copywriter is to effectively communicate with target markets in their language. Many writers specialize in one or two niche areas. It doesn't matter. Even seasoned writers sometimes drop the ball and make easily avoidable mistakes. Today we'll discuss 3 common mistakes I've seen in direct mail copywriting. More prevalent online but still see some real blunders in offline copy. Put these DM copywriting tips in your repertoire and use them. You'll see magic in your response rates and conversions... Response Killer #1: Leading with your product, or business, and not with what the reader wants or is concerned about. We've all heard it before, and you'll hear it again right now...the reader wants to know, "What's in it for me?" Overused? Maybe. Tired? No! You and even your product is not important to the prospect. They really and truly only want to know how they'll benefit. It's sounds completely selfish and it is. But it's an undisputed reality. So don't fight it. Avoid writing copy that discusses who your company is, your corporate history and philosophy, or your goals and objectives. Successful direct mail always focuses on the prospect. What she wants. What her pains or difficulties in life are. Your copy should address her problems and how you'll solve them as quickly as possible. And what's the best way to do this? Simple... Do your due diligence. Talk to people in your target market. Go where they go and learn about their problems. Read their publications, attend the same functions, in short...get into their world and find out what makes them tick. It's the only way to know. And when you know your target market, your copy will speak their language and speak directly to them. Your response will directly reflect the quality of your homework. You'll also be head and shoulders above many ad agency writers who never leave their desks. Response Killer #2: Failing to use copy that's proven to dramatically increase response. Some industry people may think these words are passé, overused, or no longer effective. And they're wrong. These response-boosters are used simply because they still work! Words like...free, no obligation, no salesperson will call you, limited time only, new, or ground-breaking. If you use any of these words just make sure you're telling the truth about it. People aren't dumb. If you use, limited time only, and the prospect doesn't buy the first time but later receives a follow-up mailing from you for the same limited time only offer...shame on you. Consumes can have long memories and love to prove themselves right and you wrong. If you're offering anything at no cost, tell them it's free. Tests have shown that using "free" pulls a better response than not using it. For example, a free brochure or a free sample. If there's no further obligation on their part, be sure to tell them. You'll see a better response. The phrase, no salesman will call, has proven to have a dramatic effect on response rates. And it's simple. People hate getting calls from salespeople. There's also a telemarketing stigma attached to any salesperson calling. Just make darn sure no salesperson will call them! People love products that have the aura of "new" attached to it. A new product with new ingredients or discoveries. Ground-breaking discoveries have a way of capturing the attention of consumers. There's an element of excitement and hope that goes along with something that's ground-breaking. But that's with the consumer markets. You'll need to be careful with using new with business markets and especially technology or scientific related markets. Technical people are just as interested in new discoveries. But there's an element of cautiousness or skepticism that goes along with 'new'. So tread carefully if you're writing for these markets. Response Killer #3: Misuse of features versus benefits. Of course this is probably a rule known by anyone with an inkling about copywriting. But this copy device calls for knowing exactly who your target market is and understanding what's important to them. Direct mail to non-business consumers calls for telling them the benefits they'll receive when they buy your product or service. What's in it for them. But B2B marketing can be quite different. Technical and scientific markets want to know features perhaps more so than benefits. Both can be discussed but a greater weight would fall on features. They want to know the "specs" depending on what your product is. They want hard information about tech data so they can make the most intelligent decisions about whether or not they need, or can even use, your product. They do not want promises. They want to know what it does, what it will do for them as soon as they start using it. Hard data and not benefits. Your job as a copywriter is to find out what your prospects want to know and what they need. And then talk to them in their language about how to get it. --------------------------------------------------------------------- A former college dropout, Dan "The Man" Lok transformed himself from a grocery bagger in a local supermarket to an internet multi-millionaire. Discover how you can maximize your website profits in minimum time. For a limited time, you can test- drive Dan's Insiders Club for 30-days Risk-Free and get $1,165 dollars worth of bonus gifts. Rush cover to: http://www.websiteconversionexpert.com/testdrive.html --- END ARTICLE --- Get HTML or TEXT Copy-and-Paste Versions Of This Article at: http://thePhantomWriters.com/free_content/db/l/direct-mail-copywriting-mistakes.shtml#get_code ..................................... TERMS OF REPRINT - Publication Rules (Last Updated: May 11, 2006) Our TERMS OF REPRINT are fully enforcable under the terms of: The Digital Millennium Copyright Act http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c105:H.R.2281.ENR: ..................................... *** Digital Reprint Rights *** * If you publish this article in a website/forum/blog, You Must Set All URL's or Mailto Addresses in the body of the article AND in the Author's Resource Box as Hyperlinks (clickable links). * Links must remain in the form that we published them. Clean links should point to the Author's links without redirects having been inserted into the copy. * You are not allowed to Change or Delete any Words or Links in the Article or Resource Box. Paragraph breaks must be retained with articles. You can change where the paragraph breaks fall, but you cannot eliminate all paragraph breaks as some have chosen to do. * Email Distribution of this article Must be done through Opt-in Email Only. No Unsolicited Commercial Email. * You Are Allowed to format the layout of the article for proper display of the article in your website or in your ezine, so long as you can maintain the author's interests within the article. * You may not use sentences from this article as an input for any software that steals sentences from others in order to build an article with software. The copyright on this article applies to the "WHOLE" article. *** Author Notification *** We ask that you notify the author of publication of his or her work. Dan Lok can be reached at: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** Print Publication Reprint Rights *** If you desire to publish this article in a PRINT publication, you must contact the author directly for Print Permission at: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] ..................................... If you need help converting this text article for proper hyperlinked placement in your webpage, please use this free tool: http://thephantomwriters.com/link-builder.pl ===================================================================== ABOUT THIS ARTICLE SUBMISSION http://thePhantomWriters.com is a paid article distribution service. thePhantomWriters.com and Article-Distribution.com are owned and operated by Bill Platt of Stillwater, Oklahoma USA. The content of this article is solely the property and opinion of its author, Dan Lok http://www.WebsiteConversionExpert.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX --------------------------------------------------------------------- *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* To have your article appear in this distribution list, you must absolutely be a client of thePhantomWriters. We offer a paid article distribution service, and this is one of the more than 60 groups where we submit our client articles. To learn more about our program, visit: http://thePhantomWriters.com/x.pl/tpw/index.htm Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/thePhantomWriters/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/thePhantomWriters/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
