THE DO'S AND DON'T'S OF PROFITABLE MAIL ORDER ADS

Regardless of how you look at it, the most important aspect of

any successful mail order business is its advertising. In fact,

mail order success is wholly dependent, and even predicated upon

good advertising.

First of all, you've got to have a dynamic, spectacular ad that

attracts the eye and grabs the interest of the people you're

trying to sell to. Thus, unless your ad really "jumps out" at the

reader, your sales won't live up to expectations, and your ad

money will be wasted.

The eye-catching appeal of your ad must start with the headline.

Use the headline to very quickly create a picture in the minds of

the reader--a vision of all their problems being solved, and

attainment of the kind of happiness they seek. If your headline

fails to catch the attention of your prospect, you cannot hope to

capture him with the remaining of the ad, because it will go

unread! So in writing your advertisement for just a little while,

so you must quickly interest him in your offer, show him how he

can get what he wants, and then cause him to send immediately for

your "solution" to his problems. Your copy must exude enthusiasm,

excitement, and a positive attitude. Don't be afraid to use a

hard-sell approach! Say what you feel and believe about your

offer. And use common, "everyday," but correct English.

Even so, you can and must remember to be honest. Don't exaggerate

or make claims you can't back up. Never make promises you cannot

or don't expect, to keep. To do so could get you in trouble with

the Federal Trade and Fair Practices people.

Stress the benefits of your product or service. Explain to your

reader how owning a copy of your book (for instance), or

receiving your services will make his life richer, happier, and

more abundant. Don't get involved in detailing all the money

you've spent developing the product or researching the

information you're selling, or you're selling, or your

credentials for offering it. Stress the "sizzle" and the value of

ownership.

It is important to involve th reader as often as possible through

the use of the word "you." Write your copy just as if you were

speaking to and attempting to sell just ONE person. Don't let

your ad sound as a speaker at a podium addressing a huge stadium

filled with people, but as if there were just one individual

"listening."

And don't try to be overly clever, brilliant or humerus in your

advertising. Keep your copy simple, to the point, and on target

toward selling your prospect the product or service because of

its benefits. In other words, keep it simple, but clear; at all

costs, you don't want to confuse the reader. Just tell him

exactly what he'll get for his money; the benefits he'll receive;

how to go about ordering it. You don't have to get too friendly.

In fact, becoming "folksy," and don't use slang expressions.

In writing an ad, think of yourself as a door-to-door

salesperson. You have to get the attention of the prospect

quickly, interest him in the product you're selling, create a

desire to enjoy its benefits, and you can then close the sale.

Copywriting, whether for a display ad, classified ad, sales

letter or brochure, is a learned skill. It is one anyone can

master with a bit of study, practice, and perhaps some

professional guidance.

Your first move, then, is to study your competition, recognize

how they are selling their wares. Practice rewriting their ads

from a different point of view or from a different sales angle.

Keep a file of ads you've clipped from different publications in

a file of ad writing ideas. But don't copy anyone else's work;

just use the ad material of others to stimulate your own

creativeness.

Some of the "unknown facts" about advertising--and ad writing in

particular--tell us that you cannot ask for more than $3 in a

short classified type ad. Generally speaking, a $5 item will take

at least a one-inch display ad. If you're trying to sell a $10

item, you'll need at least a quarter page--perhaps even a half

page of copy--and $15 to $20 items require a full page. If you

are selling a really big ticket item (costing $50 or more) you'll

need a four-page sales letter, a brochure, separate order coupon,

and return reply envelope.

If you're making offers via direct mail, best to get into the

postal system with it on Sunday, Monday or Tuesday, to be sure it

does not arrive on Monday, the first and busiest day of the week.

And again, unless you're promoting a big ticket item, the quality

or color of your paper won't have any great effect on the

response you'll get, but the quality of your PRINTING definitely

will, so bear this in mind when you place your printing order.

One final point to remember: The summer months when people are

most apt to be away on vacation are usually not good months for

direct mail. But they ARE good for opportunity and advertisements

in publications often found in vacation areas, and in motels and

hotels.

Again, it cannot be stresses too much or often: Success in mail

order does, indeed, depend upon advertising, and as with anything

else, quality pays off in the long run. Read this report again;

study it; let it sink in. Then apply the principles outlined in

it. They have worked for others, and THEY CAN WORK FOR YOU!

HOW TO MAKE BIG PROFITS IN MAIL ORDER STARTING FROM SCRATCH

A lot of people are going to tell you that there are "no more

secrets" to making the big profits in mail order. These same

people will laugh at you and call you a "fool" for wasting your

time chasing rainbows that don't exist.

Don't you believe or even listen to them! The opportunities for

wealth beyond your wildest dreams via the direct mail sales of a

product or service have never been greater!

If you have an idea, product, or service now is the time to

capitalize on it via mail order selling. You can definitely start

"on the kitchen table" and parlay it into millions of dollars.

Others have done it and continue making themselves a success. Now

it's your turn for a piece of the pie.

As with any other profitable business the procedure of making

"profits" by mail has its own set of rules. Learn these rules,

adhere to them, adjust them to your own circumstances, draw up a

"battle plan" and work, work. Persevere, be aware of other

people's marketing methods, continue up grading your own product

or service, and with determination you can become a millionaire

in your own right. Then YOU can look over your shoulder at those

who were laughing at you, and perhaps help them in some small

way!

Knowledge and the ability to use that knowledge are the basic

keys to success. You must identify the goal you want to attain,

understand what it takes to reach that goal, and then dedicate

yourself to getting there.

The path to the successful achievement of your goals through

direct mail fall into three distinct categories; (1) Market

Research and product selection, (2) The use of "targeted" mailing

lists, and (3) Customer Follow Up. If you can understand the

"hows and whys" of these rules then there's virtually no way you

can help but succeed in the field of mail order, even starting

from scratch.

Market Research has to do with the selection of the proper

product, identifying your "most likely" buyers, and getting your

product offer to these people. Product selection is the most

basic, and thus the most important first step.

Stop and think. Look around yourself. Listen to find out what the

"people" are clamoring most. In this day and age, much of the

noise in the air has to do with topics such as, "How can I find a

job?", "How can I put together a resume that will get me a job

when I spot an opening?" "Where are the best jobs to be found?"

With these thoughts in mind, the person who writes, publishes,

and gets and instructional manual or newsletter relative to these

questions to the people will sell as many as he can produce.

Thus, Step One is to "listen" to what the people want and then to

satisfy those wants. Do this by spending some time researching

the subject. Visit your local public library, interview a number

of people who have succeeded in satisfying their wants, conduct a

few "dry runs" for personal experience, and then write your

manual.

The "secret" to ultimate wealth is the capability of producing a

product that can be duplicated an unlimited number of times for

pennies and sold for dollars. A great many people get "bogged

down" within this "rule" because they don't understand "time and

motion" requirements. As an example, if you were to stage

seminars for the unemployed in your area to help them find and

land jobs, you would undoubtedly make a fortune very quickly.

But, you would be committed to a certain expenditure of time to

prepare and stage a seminar. Thus you would make a lot of money

for yourself, but at the same time you would sustain a loss of

time that could be spent enjoying your wealth by doing the things

you always wanted to do once you became rich. The only way around

this would be to train and hire other people to prepare and stage

the seminars, which would mean you would then be dividing your

profits.

In the end, the "only way" to succeed is to write something which

can be duplicated as often as necessary and sold virtually

forever. Look at it this way; you can spend a full month

organizing your material and writing a manual that costs $1 per

copy to produce in quantity. You sell it for $20 a copy, and over

a period of three years you sell three million copies. In

essence, that amounts to 60,000,000 for one month's work!!!

So writing something "the people want" is the only way to go.

But be careful. Make sure you've done your homework and that what

you write about is what the majority of the people "will stand in

line to buy". Listen to what the people want, and then give it to

them. This is the product selection part of your market research.

By listening to the cries for help, and catering to them, you

will not only have "discovered" the proper product, you will have

also "identified" your buyers. Do not try to interest the people

in something that does not specifically fulfill one of their

desires. Don't mistake a casual interest or complaint as "the

voice" of the masses. Spend some time "listening",

and then write to satisfy that need.

Once you've got your product ready for customers to buy, you

should spend some time creating the proper sales letter and

circular to use in presenting it to your potential customers.

Above all else, your sales materials must present an image of

professionalism and sell, sell, sell.

Use quality paper and printing in presenting your sales message.

Present what you have to say, not in a manner that tells the

prospect who you are, how well qualified you are to write on the

subject, or how much work you put into the project, but from a

stand point of how the customer is going to benefit from buying a

copy of your manual.

As an example; General Motors doesn't advertise cars by telling

you how they were designed and engineered, built by college

graduates or union workers, nor have you ever heard of someone

walking up to a car in a dealer's showroom, kicking the tire, and

exclaiming "Boy, this sure looks like a safe one!". In fact, new

cars are sold by the image of the prospective owners sitting in

the driver's seat and showing off by driving through his

neighborhood. "Just climb in there behind the wheel and see how

she feels to you. Go ahead and take it for a test drive. Drive it

home and see what your neighbors think..."

The benefits the prospective buyer is going to receive are the

starting point from which all "winning" sales letters are written

and circulars designed. It is the "secret" of getting people to

spend money on a product or service. Students form the

advertising classes at your college, freelance advertising agency

personnel,and believe it or not automobile dealership advertising

managers are the people to turn to for ideas and help.

Next, consider your follow up piece. This is a simple one page

listing of other "related" materials for your customers. Assuming

you've sold him a manual on how to land a job, your follow up

piece might list manuals on how to dress to project a winning

image, how to breeze through job interviews, and what to do after

the interview (perhaps an opportunity for your buyer to subscribe

to

quarterly newsletter listing job availabilities).

It's important that you have your follow up piece put together

and ready before you make your primary offer available to the

public. Then, when you start receiving orders simply enclose your

follow up listing of other materials available along with the

manual the customer has ordered. Thus you make one sale and as a

result you make further sales of related materials. These are the

kind of "back end" sales that will keep you in business and your

profits multiplying. Don't neglect the follow up piece.

Getting you offer to your most likely buyers is going to cost you

money, and here is where most direct mail beginners drop the

ball. Do not try to save money and send your offer out to just

any old list of names. Contact a reputable mailing list broker.

Visit your public library and ask the librarian for a copy of the

Standard Rate & Data Services Directory pertaining to mailing

list brokers. Find one in your area or one that looks appealing.

Tell the mailing list broker you contact about your offer and ask

for his help in choosing a mailing list that will be profitable

to you.

You'll probably have to rent a minimum of 5,000 names at a cost

ranging between $65 and &90 per thousands, but in the end you'll

save a lot of time and money because with a good offer and good

mailing list you can count on a tremendous response. For

instance, the one time rental of a good mailing list may cost you

$475 at 795 per thousand. However, a 20% response from such a

list on a &20 manual would mean $20,000 in your pocket.

To spend your time compiling names and addresses from incoming

mail order offers, or to rent and use a mailing list from any

source other than a reputable broker, is not only foolish but a

shortcut to the poor house! Identify your most likely buyers,

contact reputable mailing list broker, match your buyer profile

to his most responsive list, and you'll make money lots of money

every time. Anything less is just a exercise in futility!

There you have it. short and sweet. Cut and dried. The "easy way"

to the big profits in mail order starting from scratch. these are

the basics, the secrets to how other have done it, and how you

can do it too. Organize yourself, follow these guidelines, and

it'll be next to impossible for you not to succeed. Remember

though, your best product will be "how to information. Something

the people want to learn. Something you can research, write

about, produce for pennies, and then sell for dollars.

And don't forget, once you're ready to start taking orders, make

sure that you get your offer to the most likely buyers. Get out

of the mail order circle and out to the people who want to spend

money for your product.

It's easy, simple, and it can be very rewarding! Understand the

requirements, position yourself to succeed, and go after it! This

time next year you could be a millionaire!!!