Back in the 40s and 50s, Flesch was hailed as the guru of clear, direct writing. His advice remains powerful and relevant today.

When Flesch recommended being “trivial,” he meant you should use details to energize your writing. That requires researching your subject and sharing specifics with your reader to create vivid mental images.

I can illustrate this simple idea with the following two descriptions.

Version 1:
I drove from Virginia to Ohio. In no hurry, I took the back roads to enjoy the scenery. Along the way, I saw a bunch of those old Mail Pouch barns. You see barns anytime you pass through rural areas, but the Mail Pouch barns are famous.

They started as ordinary barns, but painters transformed them into advertisements. They offered to paint the whole barn if the farmer agreed to an advertisement on the side. Few farmers could resist. At one point there were Mail Pouch barns along many roads in several states.

Version 2:
I drove my old Ford F-10 from Roanoke, Virginia to Chillocothe, Ohio. In no hurry, I avoided the busy interstate and took the back roads to enjoy the colorful Fall leaves. Along the way, I saw at least 20 of those old Mail Pouch barns. You see barns anytime you pass through rural areas, but many of the Mail Pouch barns are listed as National Historic Landmarks.

They started as ordinary barns, but from 1890 to 1992 painters working for the West Virginia Mail Pouch Chewing Tobacco company transformed them into roadside advertisements. “Mr. Farmer,” they would say, “If you let me paint a Mail Pouch advertisement on the side of your barn, I’ll paint the rest of your barn for free.”

Few farmers could resist. At one point there were 20,000 Mail Pouch barns along the roads across 22 states urging drivers to “Chew Mail Pouch Tobacco.”

Can you see the difference? Both versions describe the same topic, but the first is lifeless while the second uses details to create mental images.

The writer doesn’t just drive, he drives an old Ford F-10. He doesn’t merely want to enjoy the scenery, he wants to enjoy the colorful Fall leaves. In the second paragraph, there is a bit of dialogue that dramatizes the conversation between the painter and the farmer.

To be lively and engaging, you must do more than tell your reader about something, you must show what you see, use specific names, share fascinating facts. These seemingly trivial details turn dull writing into interesting and readable prose.

And nothing is more important for direct marketing copy than for it to be interesting and readable.

In the first part of this article, I told you an incredible story about the Rule of Authority, how titles, clothing, and trappings can help you get to “Yes.”

Now I’d like to suggest that you go one more step.

Instead of just giving the “appearance” of authority, why not establish actual authority?

I’m talking about credibility. Real credibility. And what does it take to establish credibility? According to a mountain of psychological research, there are four basic elements:

• Expertise
• Trustworthiness
• Similarity
• Physical Attractiveness

The first two are most important, but they all play a part.

Expertise – Having relevant knowledge is the key to expertise. What special education do you have? What kind of experience? Have you demonstrated unusual competence in a relevant area? What are your big successes? What about awards or public recognition? People look for clues about what you know and what you’ve done.

However, these clues must be relevant to the subject at hand. If you’re selling accounting software, the fact that you graduated from Harvard may show you’re smart — but the fact that you’re an experienced and successful accountant is far better.

Trustworthiness – Perhaps even more important than expertise is trustworthiness. Do people feel they can trust you? The answer is based on what people perceive your intentions to be. People want to know why you take the position you do.

Among the reasons for people rating you low on the trustworthiness scale are a knowledge bias or reporting bias.

If your prospect thinks your background or particular experience prevents you from being objective, there’s a knowledge bias. That means there’s always more persuasion when you take a position that people don’t expect you to take. (If you’re writing a letter to raise funds for a conservative cause, imagine how powerful it could be to have a liberal delivering the message. If a liberal buys into the idea, it must be convincing!)

If your prospect thinks you are just saying what people want to hear, there’s a reporting bias. So, you’ll be more persuasive when it seems you are saying what you really believe. That often means admitting that there are two sides to an issue or acknowledging flaws before presenting your position.

Similarity – While Expertise and Trustworthiness are most important, Similarity can also figure into Credibility. We tend to pay more attention to those who are like us.

Deep down in our minds, we ask: Do you think like me? Are your ideals like mine? Are you from the same social class as I am? Do you look like me? And the more yeses we come up with, more likely we are to like that person and grant his or her requests.

Of course, Similarity is based on relevance. For example, if you’re selling computers, you’ll be more effective if you agree with your prospect that programs are hard to learn than if you reveal you belong to the same political party.

Physical Attractiveness – The final Credibility key is one most of us won’t want to admit to: physical attractiveness. There’s no way around it, you and I are more likely to pay attention to attractive people. This is for a variety of reasons.

Attractiveness produces the halo effect – the pleasant feeling we get from an attractive person is associated with the message that person delivers. And according to various studies, attractive people are seen as better communicators and more fluent.

In addition, liking and identification play a part, since people like and identify with attractive people, thinking, “I can be like that person if I believe what she believes, says what she says, or does what she does.”

One caveat: extreme attractiveness can be distracting and may reduce persuasion. This isn’t rocket science, you just have to remember that the level of attractiveness must meet a prospect’s expectations. You must have beautiful hair to sell shampoo, for example, but you don’t have to be a model to give medical advice as a doctor.

Putting Credibility to Work

Remember, the only reason that direct marketing works is that it gives people a more convenient and exclusive way to buy things, get information, donate to their favorite causes, and perform other transactions.

However, basic human instincts are still at work. Most people prefer to see, feel, and shake something before they buy it. Some people never shop by mail because they can’t touch the merchandise first.

Therefore, Credibility is essential. How do you get it? Keep it? Like this:

Establish your expertise with plenty of information. Display your know-how and experience. Show your credentials before presenting your argument. Better still, allow people to discover your expertise indirectly, so it seems more natural and not part of a sales pitch. And make sure all the symbols of Authority are in place.

Create trustworthiness by avoiding any appearance of bias. Take a position that people don’t expect you to take. Say what you truly believe and say it with conviction.

One technique is to mention weaknesses or drawbacks in what you’re saying. This will appear to be contrary to your own interests, and therefore, you will appear more trustworthy. If you do mention weaknesses, bring them up before you list strengths – this generates greater belief in your position and lowers resistance to your arguments.

Try the Convert Effect. Imagine you’re selling an investment course that teaches how to trade commodities. If your spokesperson has been wildly successful with commodity trading, prospects will expect that person to promote such investments. But if you present a timid soul who previously invested in nothing more dangerous than CDs, yet found success buying and selling sugar, potatoes, and silver on the open market, THAT is persuasive.

Someone who has converted to another lifestyle – to something opposite – is always more credible. The Convert Effect plays on the feelings of similarity between the convert and the prospect. The convert seems to have overcome a knowledge bias. And the convert has made a voluntary decision to do something different and has not been forced into the decision by circumstances.

Show similarities between you and your prospect, customer, or donor. Show that your thoughts, ideals, social class, and appearance are alike. Demonstrate similarities that are relevant to the selling situation.

Take advantage of your spokesperson’s attractiveness. Whether it’s an insert in a direct mail package or a spokesperson on TV, make sure the look is attractive but not wildly beautiful. And be sure that the look is relevant to the situation and matches people’s expectations.

Use all the standard credibility techniques. Don’t forget the basics like using the most credible spokesperson, giving a strong guarantee, and presenting testimonials of satisfied customers who are similar to your target audience.

This is a true story …

Decked out in a uniform, badge, and baton, a television reporter stationed himself in front of a Las Vegas bank. On the ATM, he placed a sign with large lettering that read OUT OF ORDER — GIVE DEPOSITS TO GUARD ON DUTY. In the center of the sign was the shape of a large, gold badge.

When bank customers approached the ATM, the “guard” smiled, looked them straight in the eyes, and asked, “Do you need to make a deposit or a withdrawal?”

No bank would ever allow a guard to conduct private transactions like this, but were people suspicious? Not a bit. Without hesitation, customer after customer handed over not only cash and checks, but also Social Security numbers, credit cards, account numbers, PIN codes … private information that in the wrong hands could leave them penniless.

In fact, out of 10 customers, only 1 showed any signs of hesitation. And even that customer eventually gave in.

In two hours, the reporter gained access to over $10,000 in check deposits and account balances.

When the reporter revealed the deception and asked the flabbergasted victims why they so readily handed him money and private information, they all gave pretty much the same answer: “Because of the uniform. Because of the sign.” In other words, “Because you looked authoritative.”

The Rule of Authority

This story demonstrates the principle that people are instantly deferential to those in positions of power. It’s not just security guards and people in uniforms who command our obedience, though, it’s anyone with authority, special knowledge, impressive credentials, or even an air of confidence.

And it’s not just those with actual power to whom we kowtow, it’s anyone with the “symbols” of authority. In other words, when someone “appears” to be authoritative, we act as if they are, regardless of their actual position.

What kind of symbols do we look for in evaluating authority? Here are three of the most basic:

1) Titles: such as Dr., Professor, Ph.D., President, or Chairman

2) Clothing: such as hospital whites, army greens, priestly black, police blues, or even a gray business suit

3) Trappings: anything that usually goes along with particular positions, such as guns and badges for security personnel, prestigious letterhead for executives, expensive cars or watches for successful entrepreneurs, etc.

Why do people respond to authority figures? Because we grow up surrounded by those bigger, smarter, and more experienced than ourselves. We are taught to do what we’re told. And we’re often punished for disobedience.

First it’s our parents. Later it’s our teachers. Then it’s policemen, politicians, bosses, lawyers, priests, and gurus. And in this age of narrow specialization, we’re more prone than ever to look to experts (or those we perceive to be experts) to give us the answers and show us the way.

Which diet will take off those extra pounds? Well, here’s a nationally-recognized weight-loss authority who says she has the answer. She’s got a doctorate in nutrition. She dresses in exercise gear. And her books and tapes are in every book store. Titles, clothes, and trappings … sure, we’ll give it a whirl.

And that’s where it gets good. Because, since our reaction to authority is so powerful and immediate, those “in the know” can use this principle to get a “Yes” response more often.

Authority is good, but Credibility is better …

Now that I’ve revealed the Rule of Authority, you’re already thinking how you can use this idea in your promotions. To pump up the credentials of your letter signer. To add impact to your on-air spokesperson. To change the look and tone of your messages to feel more confident and authoritative.

And that’s exactly what we’ll discuss in Part 2.

Click picture to see advertorial sample.

There are basically two types of space advertising: promotional ads and advertorials.

Each has its place in your marketing toolbox. However, while most copywriters and designers have at least a fair understanding of promotional ads, advertorials can pose a challenge.

Designers in particular have issues with advertorials because they’re ugly.

So let’s take a look at a sample advertorial and see what makes it tick.

Just in case you’re not clear on what I’m talking about, here’s a pretty good definition for advertorial from Wikipedia:

An advertorial is an advertisement written in the form of an objective article, and presented in a printed publication—usually designed to look like a legitimate and independent news story. The term “advertorial” is a portmanteau of “advertisement” and “editorial.” Merriam-Webster dates the origin of the word to 1946.

Typical ads are designed to catch the eye with visuals and jump off the page. They are obviously ads. But an advertorial is meant to blend in to the surrounding editorial matter.

To the uninitiated, that may sound strange. Why would you want to create an ad that “blends in” and doesn’t catch your eye? Because the idea behind advertorials is that people often tune out ads. They develop “ad blindness.” After all, people don’t pick up reading matter to see ads.

By presenting the ad so that it looks and feels like surrounding editorial matter, advertorials actually have a far better chance of being noticed and read. And since they are copy-heavy and present more information than the typical ad, they engage the involvement rule: The more time people spend reading about your product, the more likely they are to make a purchase.

In the picture above, you can see an advertorial I recently clipped from a local weekly. The product is a space heater. Click the photo to get a close up view.

You’ll notice a few basic characteristics:

• Big, attention-grabbing headline. It presents a prime benefit and a complete thought.
• Newsy copy. It’s written with what journalists call the inverted pyramid, which presents important information first, then develops that information further with supporting information. It’s low-key without hype.
• Simple, informational design. It mimics the layout of the publication. In this case, it appears in a newspaper, so it uses a multi-column format, newsy typography, and a few photos with captions.

This particular advertorial breaks the rules by including a coupon and a little promotional copy in a grayed box at the bottom. But that’s okay. I’ve done the same thing when I thought it was important to push something a little harder than the core editorial copy would allow.

The challenge for copywriters is to tone down the copy so that it’s newsy while still pushing the product. It’s a balancing act between promotion and objective information. For designers, it’s about understanding that ugly works. This may not be something that goes in the portfolio, but the goal is to sell, not to impress.

You should always look at the publications where you’ll be running the ad and make sure both copy and design fit in. Often one ad can work in multiple publications, but it’s worth the extra effort to create different versions.

The best way to understand advertorials is to study a few. So here are some additional advertorial samples.

It’s not an insult to call your prospects and customers procrastinators. It’s just true. I readily admit that I procrastinate. And I’ll bet you do too.

After all, making decisions takes effort. And every day forces us to make an endless series of decisions. What will we wear? What will we eat? What will we buy for that birthday? Will we go to the beach or the mountains for vacation? Which school will our kids attend? Will we say yes to the party invitation? Should we apply for that new job? Can we afford the new car?

Your customers live busy lives. They’re stressed and tired. And they don’t want to put any more effort into making a decision about your product or service than they have to. If they can put it off, they will. And that means a lost opportunity for them and a lost sale for you.

The limited-time offer provides the perfect solution. Psychologists and sales people know that if you give people a yes or no decision to make, it’s more likely to turn out in your favor if it’s made quickly. And the best way to force a quick decision is to limit the time available.

In addition, people don’t like to miss out on a good thing. They’re hardwired to avoid loss, even if it’s just the loss of an opportunity to get a great deal.

So, while “Save 25%” is an attractive offer, “Save 25% — Offer ends Tuesday” is more likely to prompt a purchase.

Assuming I’ve convinced you that limited-time offers are a good thing, here are three tips for getting the most from this technique:

Highlight the end date. Don’t hide the date in tiny legal mumbo jumbo. Make sure people see it. Call attention to it with bold text, a bright color, an underline, or box. A time limit only works if people know about it, so you can’t be subtle about how it appears in your ads.

Use command language. Never be shy about telling people what you want them to do. Tell them to “call today,” “reply now,” “order immediately,” or “register online.” This is sometimes referred to as the “call to action” and helps emphasize the urgency of your time limit.

You might even add the word “hurry” to help connect the end date with the call to action. “Hurry! Call today. This offer ends on March 15.”

Stick to it. If you say that your offer ends on July 7, mean it. When July 8 rolls around, it’s over. If customers learn that your offers don’t really end on the specified date, they’ll stop responding.

For example, I’ve purchased several audio products from a company that incessantly offers deep discounts. Their ads and catalogs scream a time limit to these offers, but when the time expires I know I can still get the deal on their website. Or I can just wait to hear from them again, because I’ve learned they’ll just extend the deadline.

Do I still order their products? Yes, but not as often. Why should I respond now when I know I can place an order anytime and get the special deal?

If you’re looking for a way to improve the response to your ads, try a time limit. It costs you nothing and it’s proven to work.

After all, who wants to mess with copy once it’s written? It’s agonizing to rip into your own prose. But that’s exactly what it takes to turn good copy into great copy.

Here are 9 ways to polish and energize your copy when you give it that second go-around.

Write long and cut. It’s easier to overwrite and cut than to underwrite and add. Get everything down — no matter how sloppy or rough — then go back to trim and rearrange.

Be ruthless. Don’t fall in love with your own patter. Stay focused on your big idea and the action you want to create. Get rid of everything that doesn’t support response.

Avoid the windup. Often, a writer will spend some time warming up to a topic before getting to the point, especially in letters. When you’ve finished your first draft, see if there’s a better lead buried a few sentences or paragraphs in. If so, that’s where you should start.

Write lean. Small words, short sentences, and short paragraphs are easier to read and understand. With words, the fewer syllables the better. Your average sentence should be about 16 words and express a single thought. Once a sentence exceeds 32 words, it becomes harder to understand. Paragraphs should ideally be 7 lines or shorter.

Forget what you learned in school about sentence structure and paragraph development, advertising must communicate fast for people who are usually not engrossed in your subject.

Minimize the punctuation. Punctuation is meant to help organize copy and divide thoughts so they are easily understood. However, complex sentences with an abundance of commas slow readers down. Opt for simpler sentences with lighter punctuation. Avoid periods on headlines because they stop the reader for a split second. Use semicolons sparingly, since they are not understood as readily as other marks.

Write in the appropriate voice. In addition to knowing your reader, you must also know your writer. The writer of a sales letter, for example, is not you but the person signing it. So you should know how that person thinks and feels. And you should match your voice, tone, style, and mood to fit that writer.

The same holds for brochures, flyers, ads, and other items, though they are usually less personal and are written from the point of view of a company instead of a person. You may occasionally be lucky enough to have an interesting personality to use as the writer. However, in most cases, you will create these qualities as needed for each promotion. Always ask, “Who is talking or writing? Is this the most credible and interesting point of view?”

Justify the price. In any situation where you are asking for money, you must make the price appear to be a bargain, or at least reasonable. This requires you to speak in terms of “value” instead of mere price.

When selling a subscription to a website that provides artists with royalty-free photographs, for example, don’t talk about a $29.95 subscription. Instead, talk about having access to over $300,000.00 worth of photos for just $29.95. This juxtaposition of value and price transforms a transaction into a offer that can’t be refused.

Build credibility by showing a limitation. People expect exaggerated claims and are predisposed to doubt what you say. One way to diffuse this doubt is to admit a limitation along with your promise.

For example, if you’re selling an investment newsletter and are targeting what you consider to be smarter, more conservative investors, you might say, “The Conservative Investor Report can’t predict the future and can’t promise to make you rich overnight. However, it will help you put your hard-earned money in the right places, to keep it safe and make it grow.”

There is a strong promise here, but it is more believable because you have admitted a limitation and therefore sound more reasonable and honest.

Use active verbs. On a self-mailer for health supplements, I listed a series of benefits on the front panel and used active verbs for each:

Boost your energy! Relieve arthritis pain! Fight off cancer! Strengthen your heart! Lose weight fast! Sharpen your memory! Improve your vision!

Consider how much stronger this is than passive constructions, such as “You will boost your energy!” or “You can lose weight fast!” Direct marketing is all about action, so your copy must be active.

I’m sure you’ve been spurfing up a storm and have tons of testimonials by now. So let’s look at how to make them work for you.

Select testimonials from customers similar to your prospect. This increases the feeling of identification and relevance. A teacher will believe other teachers. A business owner will believe other business owners.

The more similarity you can show, the more weight your prospect will give to your testimonials. Even seemingly nonsensical similarities, such as where people live, have an effect. “Oh, he’s from Ohio too!”

Select testimonials that give specifics. Consider these two testimonials for a lawn fertilizer:

“I think Lawn Magic is a wonderful product. My lawn looks great.”

“For 6 years I tried every weed control powder and spray at my local garden store, but nothing could get rid of those darned dandelions. Then I saw your ad for Lawn Magic and decided to give it a try. I got it in the mail last Saturday and immediately tried the Quick Cover method you suggested and WOW! Just a week later, there’s not a single speck of yellow anywhere – except in my neighbor’s yard.”

Which one makes you want to try the product? Specifics turn empty enthusiasm into a powerful and dramatic moment you can almost see. Not only does this add credibility, it also clearly relays a benefit. If you have a potentially good testimonial that lacks specificity, call your customer and clarify the details.

Edit carefully and lightly. Don’t change the meaning. Don’t enhance. And don’t present words and phrases out of context. If a statement is too long, awkwardly punctuated, or otherwise unclear, you are justified in taking a blue pencil to the copy. But keep it light.

If you use the testimonial collection system I suggested last year, you will be typing up many of your testimonials and getting customers to sign off on them. Here especially, you must be careful not to enhance. You’ll lose the special flavor of actual testimonials.

Group testimonials for greater impact. Testimonials are a powerful way to build credibility and prove your claims. And they can work wonders no matter how you use them. But they pack a doubly powerful psychological wallop when you group them because they both prove your claims with objective endorsements and engage the Bandwagon Effect – “Lots of people are doing it. I want to do it, too!” Seeing testimonial after testimonial sends a visual signal that your widget has widespread appeal.

Use many short quotes instead of a few long ones. If you’re going for the Bandwagon Effect, this just makes sense. It’s a matter of showing as many people as you can who approve of the thing you’re selling. Twenty pithy testimonials can be more powerful than 5 big chatty ones. On the other hand…

Don’t be afraid of long testimonials. Sometimes, you get a gem that says it all. It may be a story, an emotional revelation, an authoritative remark from an expert, or just a simple comment that hits the nail on the head. You might want to separate it visually from the others, in a sidebar, for example. If it’s paragraphs long though, don’t use it as a testimonial; use it as a success story.

Include full names, titles, and locations when possible. This makes testimonials more real and relevant and enhances their credibility. I’ve even seen one instance where a seminar marketer included phone numbers and challenged readers to call other attendees. Obviously, you must consider privacy and security issues, but remember that, in general, full names are more believable than initials. Titles show authority, experience, or expertise. Locations, such as cities and states, help prove that people are real.

Feature photographs (maybe). They are further proof that people are real. And they help your reader identify with the testimonial-givers. This can be tricky, though. Sometimes photos can subtract impact if they are of poor quality or show people who – for whatever reason – don’t look right to readers.

One investment mailing I received used blurry black and white photos of an odd assortment of people I instantly perceived as total losers. I certainly did not want to identify with these people, so the testimonials fell flat – they even turned me against the product. Use good photos or use none at all.

Enclose each testimonial in quotation marks. Readership studies show that people are strongly attracted to quoted copy. It draws the eye. It makes reading easier and faster. And the subject matter is usually more relevant and interesting, since people are endlessly fascinated by other people – in what they do and what they say.

So for the sake of identifying a quote as a quote, use standard quotation marks around each statement. Never substitute italics for quotation marks because long lines of italicized text are harder to read.

Use a powerful headline to introduce testimonials. Don’t settle for a lame, do-nothing header, such as “Here’s what people are saying about the Laminator 2000.” Follow standard headline rules and provide a complete message, such as “Over 124,000 small businesses like yours rely on the Laminator 2000 to make their own professional-looking tags, instruction sheets, and signs.”

Creative Ways to Use Testimonials

Testimonials are one of the most flexible techniques in your creative tool kit. No matter what you’re selling or to whom, they can give a powerful boost to virtually any promotion. Here are just a few suggestions based on how I’ve used testimonials in the hundreds of promotions I’ve created:

• Build your entire promotion around one or more testimonials.
• Turn your best testimonial into a powerful, sure-to-be-read headline.
• Use testimonials to boost TV and radio ad response.
• Add sizzle to your website with a separate testimonial page.
• Build confidence in your catalog with product-targeted testimonials.
• Turn testimonials into reader-friendly envelope teasers.
• Use a powerful testimonial to start your letter with a bang.
• Spice up letter body copy by sprinkling in a few choice testimonials.
• Save a special testimonial for the P.S.
• Transform a good testimonial into a great lift letter.
• Feature a dozen or more testimonials in a separate insert.
• Boost your brochure wow factor with benefit-specific testimonial headlines.
• Give a last-minute push by including testimonials on response forms.
• Cement satisfaction and reduce returns with testimonials in your fulfillment.
• Liven up product packaging with short testimonials.

This is not a comprehensive list by a long shot. I’m always thinking of new ways to use testimonials. In fact, I’d love to hear how you’ve used testimonials in your direct mail packages, ads, television and radio spots, and other marketing materials.

Their idea was to manufacture a 6” x 12” piece of cedar wood. You put your salmon on the wood plank, put the plank into your home barbecue, and—voilà—cedar plank salmon.

When Aldrich met with the seafood buyer for the Fred Meyer stores in Portland, Oregon, he didn’t bother with sales patter. He just said, “I’m here to help you sell more salmon.” Then he let the buyer taste a filet cooked on one of his cedar planks. The reaction? “Wow!”

Aldrich provided some facts and benefits, but the buyer was sold with the first taste. Within a week, Aldrich and Maddocks had lucrative orders from more than 100 Fred Meyer stores. And they sold truckloads of those little cedar planks.

The lesson here is simple. One of the best ways to sell is to let your product sell itself. With a few proven techniques, you simply give your prospects a “taste” and their enthusiasm does the rest.

Two techniques are obvious:

Sample—A printer embosses a sample calendar with my business name, telling me I can order this very item for my clients. A generic perfume company offers two scented samples, one with an expensive name brand and one with a knockoff, challenging my wife to guess which is which. A textile company encloses a sample of a fireproof fabric and a match, daring business buyers to set the bit of cloth on fire.

When you have a good product or service, nothing will sell it as well as simply putting it directly into the hands of your prospects.

Free Trial—This is the single greatest offer in the world. You let prospects try your widget for a time period: 10 days, 20 days, 30 days, whatever. Or you can offer a free issue, shipment, or some unit of sale.

The Free Trial is often tied to a negative option. “Try 3 free issues of Wingnuts Today Magazine. If you like it, you’ll get a full year for just $14.95. If you don’t, just write ‘cancel’ on the bill. But keep the first 3 free issues as our gift to you.”

But samples and trials aren’t the only way to give people a taste of your product or service. The point is to bring products and prospects closer together. And you can do that to a lesser degree right in your direct mail package or ad.

Here are a few ideas:

Teaser Copy—I used this technique in a recent newsletter subscription package for administrative assistants. At the top of the letter, I showed a picture of the newsletter with a list of teasers preceding the offer, such as “How to dress down and still look professional,” “9 steps for motivating a lazy coworker without stressing yourself out,” and “7 ways to be a take-charge employee.” Virtually any information product offer can do the same thing.

Product Photos or Illustrations—Visuals give your prospect a sense of the quality and value of the thing you’re selling. For subscriptions and books, show the front cover. For software, include screen shots of the most powerful features. For industrial or high-tech equipment, provide cutaways with callouts describing prominent features. For less visual offerings, such as financial services, create an offer you can show, such as a special report, brochure, certificate, coupon, etc.

Letter with a Story—While it’s often best to present your offer quickly, a good story can start a letter with a bang while allowing your prospect to experience your product or service second hand. I created a package recently to sell a book on how to buy a house, and the letter told a little story before giving the offer:

I could just kick myself!

A couple years ago, my wife and I bought a new home. After we moved in, our neighbor asked us over for coffee.

What a shock! He had the same house design, but it was full of all the extras we couldn’t afford — like a fireplace, panel doors, tile, oak cabinets. It was stunning.

When I asked how much it cost, he smiled. “Nothing. I knew how to get the extras added on free.” And it was so simple, I could have done it, too. If I had only known the secret!

Testimonials—In addition to adding credibility and supporting your claims, testimonials let people vicariously sample your product or service through the experiences of others. But don’t settle for vacuous verbiage such as “I love it!” The best testimonials include specific details about using the product.

Harry Aldrich and David Maddocks made a fortune by giving prospects a taste of their product. What would happen if you gave your prospect a taste of yours? There’s only one way to find out.

If you’re the typical advertising type, you can get pretty fed up with all those direct response techniques.

How dare anyone suggest that your job is about something as crass as getting people to read a sales pitch or generating profit. After all, you’re a creative genius, right?

Besides, while you’re pretty sure that direct marketers know a thing or two about getting people to respond to ads, they don’t know squat about what’s really important. Winning awards!

I mean, sheesh! They’re so spastic. Always whipping out calculators and crunching numbers … as if numbers have anything to do with advertising!

Let’s take a quick look at a few sure ways to create ads that impress your colleagues, win pointy plastic prizes, and give you a well-deserved break from all that pesky response.

Start with a “concept.” Ads that have something interesting and relevant to say don’t win many awards. That’s because they get people involved in a topic of personal importance, which can lead to people actually reading copy instead of admiring your handiwork.

Remember, form over function. Instead of researching your audience or uncovering benefits, start with a pun, an obscure cultural reference, a witty visual, or some idea that proves you’re ultra creative and which justifies your salary.

Feature stunning photography or artwork. Years ago, I saw an ad for a fax machine with a huge, sepia toned photo of a woman’s head with tubes and wires and gadgets attached. Not a fax machine anywhere. And the copy was reduced to a few tiny lines hidden at the bottom to explain the picture.

Talk about award-winning! Irrelevant visuals and minimal copy are the keys to stifling response and stocking your lobby with those clear resin obelisks!

Design it first and fill in the copy later. Sometimes, a cantankerous client will demand that you bring in an outside writer. But be careful. An experienced copywriter may give you lots of powerful words that send response through the roof. Not only will you have less room for pictures—a design nightmare!—you may be expected to produce results with every ad.

To keep copy, and your writer, under control, begin with a layout. Leave little blank spaces and tell the writer to fill them in. And if your writer is still overwriting and risking response, let your designer edit the copy to fit.

Get fancy with type. This helps when you’re stuck with a bunch of copy that goes on and on about benefits, the offer, a call to action, and other award-losing techniques. You see, you can easily discourage reading with tiny type, unusual typefaces, lots of all-cap text or white text reversed out of black, text over artwork or running in odd directions, and huge blocks of copy in unbroken lines that span an entire page.

In other words, treat the copy as a visual element instead of thoughts and ideas you want to communicate clearly. Who reads all that stuff anyway?

Make your phone number really, really small. Nothing is more gaudy than a big phone number. I mean puleeeeze. It just screams, “Call me now!” And nothing is more off-putting to judges than appearing too eager to conduct business.

So if you can’t talk the client out of eliminating the phone number altogether, set it in small type, buried in the three lines of copy hidden in light gray text waaay down at the bottom of your artwork … er, advertisement.

Use a coupon with an unusual shape. Actually, there is something more gaudy than a big phone number: a conspicuous coupon! Will the shame never end? A square coupon with a dashed border is so old fogy. I mean, it draws attention to your ad, highlights the essence of your offer, and shouts, “Cut me out and send me in!” Again, way too eager.

If you have to include a coupon, try some odd shapes. If you’re selling dog food, shape it like a bone. If you’re selling clothes, shape it like a pair of pants. If you’re selling a drug to treat impotence, shape it like … well, maybe that’s not a good idea.

And by the way, one big advantage of winning pointy plastic awards is that your office will always be neat and tidy … unlike those know-it-all direct response types who are often buried under piles of coupons and order forms from paying customers. Bunch of slobs!

Yes, I know. You’ve probably never heard of him because he’s not as well-known as some Madison Avenue ad executives, but he had a powerful impact on the industry.

He was born in Oklahoma, migrated to Texas, and worked his way up to become head of the Tracy-Locke agency in Dallas, one of the country’s most successful agencies. And he did it by focusing on his clients’ growth rather than on producing clever ads.

He was also an innovator in the area of consumer research long before it became fashionable. And he always looked for the “big idea” to craft sales messages that would trigger consumer response on a gut level.

For me, Hite represents the ideal ad man: smart, down-to-earth, plain-spoken, and enthusiastic, with an indomitable can-do attitude and a laser-like focus on profits. Here’s what he had to say about the craft and business of advertising. Not everything here is about direct marketing, but there is plenty to learn from his wise words.

“Advertising is salesmanship mass produced. No one would bother to use advertising if he could talk to all his prospects face-to-face. But he can’t.”

“Advertising moves people toward goods; merchandising moves goods toward people.”

“If an ad campaign is built around a weak idea—or as is so often the case, no idea at all—I don’t give a damn how good the execution is, it’s going to fail.”

“If you have a good selling idea, your secretary can write your ad for you.”

“Is advertising moral? It is part and parcel of the American free enterprise system… I challenge anybody to show any economic system that has done as much for so many in so short a time.”

“It is not the purpose of the ad or commercial to make the reader or listener say, ‘My what a clever ad.’ It is the purpose of advertising to make the reader say, ‘I believe I’ll buy one when I’m shopping tomorrow.’”

“It takes good clients to make a good advertising agency. Regardless of how much talent an ad agency may have, it is ineffective without good products and services to advertise.”

“Next to Christianity, advertising is the greatest force in the world. And I say that without sacrilege or disrespect. Advertising makes people discontented. It makes them want things they don’t have. Without discontent, there is no progress, no achievement.”

“No agency is better than its account executives.”

“The agency’s account executive should be able to step into the sales manager’s shoes if the sales manager drops dead today.”

“The headline is the most important element of an ad. It must offer a promise to the reader of a believable benefit. And it must be phrased in a way to give it memory value.”

“The ultimate test of a finished account executive is his ability to write a sound marketing plan.”

“There is more money wasted in advertising by underspending than by overspending. Years ago someone said that under spending in advertising is like buying a ticket halfway to Europe. You’ve spent your money but you never get there.”

“There is no such thing as national advertising. All advertising is local and personal. It’s one man or woman reading one newspaper in the kitchen or watching TV in the den.”

“To establish a favorable and well-defined brand personality with the consumer the advertiser must be consistent. You can’t use a comic approach today and a scientist in a white jacket tomorrow without diffusing and damaging your brand personality.”

“To Mrs. Mufoosky, the commercials may seem as long as a whore’s dream. But to the new advertiser who has spent 100 Gs for his first network commercial—he gets a new understanding of a split second. It’s the fastest half minute of his lifetime.”

“There’s no secret formula for advertising success, other than to learn everything you can about the product. Most products have some unique characteristic, and the really great advertising comes right out of the product and says something about the product that no one else can say. Or at least no one else is saying.”

That last quote demonstrates my entire approach to creating direct response ads. Great advertising really does come right out of the product.