Welcome to the DMA’s Creative Certification Course

Part Two

Creative Rules that Work for Print

Slides 124-186Thurs., Oct 18, 2012 ; 8:30am - 12:00pm

Presented by Alan Rosenspan &

Carol Worthington-Levy

The Outer EnvelopeIf this fails, everything inside the package is wasted…

The Outer Envelope

• First job is to gain the attention of the recipient

• First exposure to offer or main benefit

• Give them enough to get them interested…

• …but not enough to allow them to throw it away

• Stand out from other mail

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Choosing the right envelope• Paper stock can be important• Direct mail is a tactile medium

• Consider vellum, see-through, metallic, poly-bags, even paper bags

• Color can be important• Test kraft, yellow

• Test “stealth” envelopes• Especially to customers

1. State the main benefit2. State the offer

3. Tell them what’s inside4. Ask a provocative question

…but not one that can simply be answered “no!”5. Give them a test

6. Describe a situation...7. State a problem8. Flag your market

9. Use personalization in an unusual way10. Use F.U.D.

10 Proven Envelope Techniques

The LetterThe only form ofadvertising you will ever read or ever write that always starts with one word…

The Letter• This is, by far, the most important part of the

package.

• According to research done by Ogilvy & Mather, it will account for 65-75% of your response

• The first thing people actually read

• When should you include a letter?

The Most Successful Piece of Advertising in

Advertising History

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How should a letter look?

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7 Letter Techniques1. Use a Johnson box

2. Start with a killer opening...

Put news in it

Show ’em you Know ’em

Ask a provocative question

3. Use short words and simple language

4. Bring me to your offer

5. Give me a reason to respond now

6. Use the word “you”

7. Include a strong P.S.

Write the way people talk

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Write to just one person…

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Yale University Study

You Health Money Safety Save Love

The Single MostPersuasive Word inDirect Marketing?

New Discovery Results Proven Easy Guarantee

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The 12 Most Persuasive Words in the English Language

How to evaluate a letter

• Count the number of “you’s”

• Are you proud of it? Would you sign it?

• Would you respond to it?

• Read it out loud

• Read it to your significant other

• You’ll know…

The BrochureThe best place to visualize your benefits…

Building Better Brochures

“The letter sells, the brochure tells.”

Evelyn Woods should have been a direct marketer

“The 3-second solution”

The Role of the Brochure

• Provides detailed information

• Can include testimonials and clients lists

• Can be used as an involvement device• The “Striptease” effect

7 Ways to Improve Your Brochure1. Put your strongest benefit on the cover

2. Make your headlines benefit-oriented and specific

3. Make your photographs tell a story

4. Include a strong call to action, how to respond

5. Include a guarantee

6. Include a Q&A

7. Include a Q&A segue

Headlines are critically important

80% of people read them and nothing else They must include your main benefits They should not be “creative”

“Some copy writers write tricky headlines, puns,literary allusions and other obscurities. This is a sin.

Every headline should appeal to the reader’s selfinterest. It should promise the reader a benefit.”

--David Ogilvy

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Photography is almost always better than illustration

– but charts rule

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The most popular newspaper in the USA...

Art Direction, Design & Typography The goal of good direct marketing design should be to attract the

attention of the reader, and lead them through the package.

Ugly works; neatness may reject involvement

ALL CAPS ARE DIFFICULT TO READ BECAUSE THE EYE RECOGNIZES SHAPES - NOT INDIVIDUAL LETTERS

Type set in narrow columns is easier to read (50 characters ideal).

When a designer uses reversed out copy

it simply means they don’t have confidence that the big idea will carry the day

• Less than 10% readership and comprehension compared to black type on light background

The Reply DeviceWhere the rubbermeets the road

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The Reply Device• Why do you need one?

• Why can’t we just send people to the web?

• Tracking can be an issue

• Send to a micro-site only

• This should “stick out” like a sore thumb.

• 1st thing to personalize

• Include main benefits

• The “empty envelope” test

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BRE or BRC?What kinds of information do people regard as “private?”

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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How to improve your reply device

• Give people a “Yes” or “No” option• ….but don’t be too clever

• Consider an involvement device

• Give them a choice• …but keep options very simple

• Include 800, fax number, e-mail address• …but go for the phone call!

The Lift NoteEvery little bit helps

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The Lift Note• Can “lift” response an average of 10% over regular

response rate for that package.

• Write in a different voice than the letter

• “Whisper in their ear”

• Highlight the offer

• Consider a yellow sticky note

• On reply form

• On letter

The InvolvementDeviceWill another three seconds reallymake a difference?

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5 Proven Involvement Devices

1. Use a sticker – Yes/No or with an offer

2. Have them lift the sticker to review their special offer

3. Include a brief 3-question survey

4. Include multiple enclosures

5. Remember what Barnes & Nobles knows…

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What’s next?

Part 3: Digital Creative that Engages Customers Oct 18 (today), 12:30pm - 2:45pm

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Direct marketing creative requires a tenacious spirit — perseverance!

• “All the performances of human art, at which we look with praise or wonder, are instances of the resistless force of perseverance.”

— Samuel Johnson