KickAss Copywriter

I’ve been so off kilter, since Thanksgiving!

Do you think it’s a legitimate excuse for us bloggers to neglect our own blogs because a holiday interfered with our sacred schedule?

I see some gracious nods in agreement out there, but I also hear my all too familiar responsible voice saying, “The answer is simple.  You’re just lazy.”

Humm, is that true?

I’m not sure the lazy label actually tells the whole story.  I think there’s more to it than that — at least with me, anyway.

One of the contributing factors that I’ve noticed over the years is that I really like to hibernate in the colder weather.

Maybe I’m part Polar Bear?

No, really, this malady usually sets in around Halloween and goes through New Year’s Day.

So, maybe I’m simply responding to the season’s change the same way all of nature does … all of nature is preparing for its dormant state, so why not us?

We all are, after all, so connected to nature’s rhythms … if we are ‘in tune’ enough to realize it.

Too bad our culture doesn’t allow us to slow down, sit by the fire, contemplate and re-connect with our inner selves, during this time of year.  I think we should allow some time for this.

http://www.kickasscopywriter.com

I simply don’t understand what kind of ‘expert’ some companies hire to write their ads for them!

Whatever vehicle you’re using to market your product or service … make it SELL something.

In today’s “attention-deficit” world, where people are bombarded with marketing messages, yours better grab their attention FAST …

 and keep it until they ‘do’ what you ask them to do. 

“It’s just a branding ad,” some may say.  Well, unless you’re Microsoft, Coke, Pepsi or Nike, you can’t afford to only brand.

Brand if you want … just sell something, too.

I just read an ad that didn’t even tell me who they were, until the very end. 

OMG, that defies even the most elementary rule of ANY kind of advertising.

Just yesterday, I read one of the worst ads I’ve seen in a long time, and it was in a venue for direct marketing, which made it all the more abominable.

I mean, if it was in a consumer publication, or Forbes or Newsweek, maybe …

But, this was a company in the direct marketing arena and was advertising in a DM publication.  B2B, yet!

Unforgivable.

There wasn’t even a gripping headline to capture the reader’s attention!  So, why should anyone read it?  Answer, they wouldn’t.

The only reason I read it was to see just how bad it was.

So, I thought I’d jot down a few things that a print ad should include, no matter where it appears.

 Make your Print Ads Work Hard …Make em Sell.

Five Critical Elements to Include in Your Print Ads:

     1.  Capture readers’ attention with a gripping headline.

     2.  Followed by a lead (opening paragraph) that expands on the headline and ensures further     reading.

     3.  Build trust, by telling them enough about who you are.

     4.  Show the benefits to the reader.

     5.  Give them a reason to call, go online, or write for more information or better yet … to ‘invest’     in your product/service.  (To buy is just a purchase.  To invest is to get great benefit for them.)

     6.  Always, always give them ALL of your contact information.

In conclusion, don’t waste valuable real estate, when you can make every, single marketing dollar pay off. 

 Be clear.  Be interesting.  Give them a reason to DO something that will get them closer to investing in your product or service.

http://www.kickasscopywriter.com

Which category does your email marketing effort fall into?

Do you think you do a pretty good job, a good job or is your email marketing prowess the VERY best it can be?

The Nov. ’07 issue of Direct Magazine, included a roundtable discussion among some ESPs (email service providers).

The execs of Silverpop, Lyrsis, Responsys and StrongMail Systems weighed in on some of the biggest issues facing email marketers today.

These are the folks, who provide the systems we’re all using and who stay in constant contact with the ISPs … trying to adapt to their ever-changing rules.

 Here are some of the major issues discussed: 

• Deliverability

As Bill Nussey, CEO Silverpop, said, “Deliverability’s getting funky again.”He learned in his talks with ISPs, that they intend to really step up authentication over the next few quarters.  But, of course, to complicate things further, each ISP has a completely different technique and requirement.

So, the goal of these ESPs is to invest in the technology and implement the techniques for their email marketing clients.

Content

How important is content as it relates to the spam filters?  You’re probably among the 90% of email marketers who think it matters a lot, right?

But, all the studies show only a tiny amount of filtering is done on content nowadays.  What, then, is the BIG factor for spam filters?  The answer is … reputation. 

Ouch, that puts it right back on the email marketers’ shoulders, doesn’t it?  That means YOU!  The ESP vendors can ensure the technology side is as optimal as possible, but they insist they cannot ensure delivery when their clients (you and me) are responsible for variables, such as their list practices. 

So, how good is your list?  Is it a quality opted-in list from your own site?  Did you buy the list from a reputable 3^rd party, whose names asked to hear from companies like yours?

Whomever you email, make sure they want to hear from you and also that you speak as specifically to their wants/needs as possible.

Blow up your List

This refers to re-opting your list and getting rid of people on your list, who don’t respond.  And surely, you’re already purging those bounce-backs (bad addresses)!

Segment your List

This is mandatory for larger concerns, with huge lists, whose buying patterns are different.  For the most part, email ‘blasts’ are a thing of the past.

But for every email marketer, the watchword is about your reputation.

Every email marketer must be sensitive to your readers.  If you aren’t, and you talk to them in terms that are too general, they’ll just block you or get off your list. 

Keeping happy customers equals higher ROI.

Multi-Channel Integration

This notion was first employed by tying email marketing with direct mail … and the results were very good.

Taken a step further, now marketers are tying their web analytics and email systems together, rendering …

Behavior-based Targeting

No one doubts the intelligence and results of this sophisticated form of segmenting/marketing.  However, it’s too expensive right now, according to Silverpop’s Bill Nussey.

As more ESPs make this technology available in their toolbox, the more it’ll penetrate the market. 

As technology is being developed, some day we’ll be able to control real-time offers, based on what the visitor is doing on your site. 

This new, automated technology is being called, ‘offer management.’

Strategy

The experts think that email marketers need to spend more time on the strategy behind their message.

They also think there should be a more cohesive strategy to integrate this channel with others and to optimize the channel.

Adopt a Program Approach

This is more than a campaign.  The email execs said their most successful email marketers are the ones who’ve adopted a ‘life-cycle program approach.’

What this means is that you’d send out your initial campaign.  Then, you’d send another email to those who didn’t respond in a set timeframe.  And maybe even another.

Then, a print-on-demand piece would be sent out and some decision is made after that.

This is a program across the life cycle as opposed to an old school approach of:  Target segment, infer results and target segment again.

So, whether you’re just doing a pretty good job, a good job or a great job with your email marketing efforts, chances are very good that new technology will soon be allowing for more and more targeted, timely email communications.

Here’s to the continued evolution of email marketing!

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