Dynamic Copywriting

I just posted a new ebook I've been working on for small business owners and professionals who need to increase sales or attract new clients.

This new ebook is free and can be downloaded at How To Increase Your Sales With Non-Spam Email Marketing.

I've done a lot of work with lawyers and law firms, as well as "brick and mortor" small business owners, and have seen them spending an inordinate amount of money on useless advertising that produces disappointing results. In response, How To Increase Your Sales With Non-Spam Email Marketing was written to give them the tools of Permission Marketing, email marketing, information products, direct response advertising and direct response web sites.

I absolutely believe that almost all businesses can double their sales using these marketing tools.

So if you are a small business owner or professional who wants to attract more business, be sure to download your free copy. Using these methods, you really can double your sales - and I can prove it.

COPYRIGHT © 2008, Charles Brown
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Let's face the facts. Even if the president doesn't want to use the "R" word, we are already well into a tough economy. That means it is going to be harder for professionals like doctors, lawyers, consultants, accountants and others to attract new clients or get more business from their existing clients.

However there are a few steps professionals can take to still get business coming in the door, regardless of the economy:

1. Create "bait" information pieces like white papers, tip sheets or other booklets that provide valuable, free information for prospective clients.
   
   These bait pieces are soft sell devices like, "8 Ways to Save on Property Taxes," "5 Ways to Avoid Getting Sued," or "How to Keep Your Children Well This Winter."
   
   But a hard sell piece like, "10 Reasons Goode, Hailey and Knight Should Be Your Accounting Firm" is not a good bait piece.
   
   
2. Turn every advertisement into a direct response ad – even Yellow Page or directory ads.
   
   There are two types of advertisements, "awareness" ads and "direct response" ads. Awareness ads just tell prospects that you exist and if they have nothing better to do with their time, to give you a call.
   
   Direct response ads entice readers to take action, such as to call your office or visit your website in order to get your white paper or tip sheet. When you advertise this way, you can actually measure how effective the ad is and make changes along the way.
   
   
3. Build a list. When people respond to your direct respond ads, collect these "opt in" leads to build a list. This concept is called "Permission Marketing" (based on the book by that name written by Seth Godin). This list of people who have requested your free information may become your most valuable resource, so take good care of it.
   
   
4. Make your website a resource for people who are prospective and existing clients. Don't be afraid to give away free information, but create more white papers, tip sheets, checklists, frequently asked questions (FAQs), and case studies about some of your clients success stories.
   
   It may sound counter intuitive to give away free information, but you will find that it pays dividends. It gives visitors a reason to keep coming back to your site and it establishes your credibility as an expert in your field.
   

For those of us who sell our services and knowledge, a tough economy is a time to roll up our sleeves and work smarter. But if you do work smarter, use direct response advertising, build a list and create a website that your prospects view as a resource, you will be rewarded while your competitors tread water.

COPYRIGHT © 2008, Charles Brown

One of the greatest treasure troves full of knowledge on all things related to marketing, advertising and copywriting is David Ogilvy's book, "Ogilvy On Advertising." He is a legend in the field and was the creative genius behind more successful ad campaigns than anyone can keep track of. (And by the way, if you are in marketing, copywriting or advertising, and have never HEARD of David Ogilvy, you really should consider another line of work).

Okay, I know I get a little full of myself sometimes, so let's get down to what this article is all about.

Is Direct Response Advertising Right?

Let me quote from a section in his book called, "The lessons of direct response."

"For all their research, most advertisers never know for sure whether their advertisements sell. Too many other factors cloud the equation. But direct-response advertisers, who solicit orders by mail or telephone (and nowadays by the internet), know to the dollar how much each advertisement sells. So watch the kind of advertising they do. You will notice important differences between their technique and the techniques of general advertisers. For example:"

"General advertisers use 30 second commercials. But the direct response fraternity have learned that it is more profitable to use two-minute commercials. Who, do you suppose, is more likely to be right?"


"General advertisers broadcast their commercials in expensive prime time when the audience is at its peak. But direct response advertisers have learned that they make more sales late at night. Who do you suppose, is more likely to be right?"


"In their magazine advertisements, general advertisers use short copy, but the direct response people invariably use long copy. Who do you suppose is more likely to be right?"

Results vs Creativity For Creativity's Sake

There. It is one thing for me to proclaim the benefits of direct response techniques and how they allow a marketer to measure and test the effectiveness of their ads, websites and every element of their copy. But to hear it from David Ogilvy is like having the Word brought down from the mountain.


Ogilvy also believes that every copywriter should start his career by spending two years in direct response. I agree. Every day I see websites and ads that are creative masterpieces, but have little effectiveness in selling.


Common errors I see are: too much white space, headlines that appeal only to curiosity but not to the customer's "what's in it for me?" motivation, no call to action, and too much design and too little copy.

Ogilvy's Best Work

Ogilvy concludes his thoughts on imitating direct response, by saying:

Do I practice what I preach? Not always. I have created my share of fancy campaigns, but if you ask which of my advertisements have been the most successful, I will answer without hesitation, that it was the first ad I wrote for industrial development in Puerto Rico. It won no award for "creativity" but it persuaded scores of manufacturers to start factories in that poverty-stricken island.

Advertising, marketing creating business websites are not art forms. They are business strategies that are intended to bring in new clients, new business and make sales. Even David Ogilvy tells us that we forget that to our peril.

COPYRIGHT © 2008, Charles Brown

This is the year law firms, professionals and service providers finally start seeing real results for their marketing efforts. This will be the year that their advertising, direct mail and websites finally start bringing them the targeted new business and new clients they really want to work with.

How? Because I believe those people who market professional services will finally wake up to the fact that "Multi-Step Marketing" is far more effective than "One-Shot Marketing."

Why One-Shot Marketingwhite Isn't Working For Law Firms or Other Professionals

As a former lawyer myself, most of my attention is focused on marketing ideas for law firms, but what I am about to say is equally applicable to other professionals, service providers and even sellers of products if their expertise is part of the package that comes with their products (large B2B computer systems or software programs would be an example).

One-shot marketing is when you see an ad or visit a website that asks you to contact the company for more information.....and that's it. That simple (and often understated) request for a contact is the only call to action such an ad or website makes.

One-shot marketing gets one, and only one, chance to influence the prospect to act. And if that ad doesn't dramatically reach out and grab the reader's interest, it will be forgotten in 2 seconds.

Look at most of the ads in the Yellow Pages or in business news publications. Do any of them just reach out and grab you that way? Do any of them offer anything really different from their competitors' ads? Rarely.

Why Law Firms and Other Professionals Must Adopt Multi-Step Marketing

As the name suggests, "Multi-Step Marketing" takes advantage of multiple contacts with prospects. When you see an ad, a website or a direct mail piece that offers you a free DVD, CD, white paper, report or ebook on a topic that is currently a source of problems for you, that is the beginning of a multi-step marketing program.

When you request that free information because it sounds relevant to problems you need to solve or changes you want to make, you are "opting in" to the marketer's mailing or email list. This is called "permission marketing" because you are giving that company permission to contact you again. In so doing, you have identified yourself as a prospect with at least some level of interest in what that company does.

If the free information piece you receive from that company is well written and seems to offer a solution to your problem, you may decide to do business with them on the spot. In most cases, this information will help you form the opinion that this company is an expert in this area. It may also position that company as the front runner in your mind in case you ever decide to do business with someone in that field.

But you may not decide to act right now. It is what happens next that truly delivers the remarkable success for multi-step marketers. Over time, you will receive occasional follow up mailings and information. If you weren't ready to do business when you first received the information, your circumstances may change over time.

The long term effect of repeated contacts by the company (because you gave them permission to market to you) is that this company increases its positioning in your mind as THE experts in their field and as THE company you are most likely to do business with when and if you decide to act.

Multi-Step Marketing Helps Law Firms and Professionals Measure Their Marketing Results

Law firms and other professional services have a very difficult time measuring how effective (or not) their advertisements, websites or direct mail really is.

How do you know which calls were produced by your Yellow Page ad, the ad you put in the local newspaper, from your website or from other sources?

Multi-step marketing gives professionals an instant tool to determine how well an ad or website is doing. The number of requests for the white paper, DVD or other information product is the measurement of how effective your ad or website is.

You can even give the same product different titles so you can test whether one ad generates more inquiries than another.

Multi-step marketing eliminates the feeling that advertisers often have of stumbling around in the dark.

Will my "prediction" for 2007 come true? Well I intend to do my part to get the word out to law firms and others who need to hear about multi-step marketing. I'd also love to hear from you. What experiences and recommendations do you have?

COPYRIGHT © 2007, Charles Brown

Today’s post is about great moments in expensive, wasteful advertising.

I am looking through the November 6-12, 2006 issue of the Fort Worth Business Press for ads that actually give readers reasons to act. As you can imagine, these ads are hard to find.

American Express has a full page ad that does pretty well. It has three benefit statements that say:

“I get a cash rebate of up to 4% on American Express Travel.” I earn company-level award points on all our purchases.” And, “I save automatically with cash rebates from leading suppliers.”

Following these benefits is the headline which reads, “My company is mid-size, but I save big.”

And that’s all. The main feature of the ad is acres and acres of white space with a small blurb at the bottom a picture of the American Express ExtrAA Corporate Card and a Picture of a paper airplane made out of a $100 bill.

I give them credit for actually stating benefits. What a novel idea in big corporate advertising! But the white space? White space never sold anything. Never.

The next wasteful ad is for the law firm of Blaies & Hightower, L.L.P. The only positive thing I can say about this ad is that they only spent money on a half page.

Other than that, it shows three very serious-looking lawyers in expensive suits and six lines of copy that says nothing:

“When the stakes are high, you need more than legal knowledge. … You need the strongest commercial litigation and personal injury trial lawyers on your side. .. Attorneys who lead the courtroom with integrity and honor.”

The sad thing is, someone actually thought these were benefit statements.

Neither ad called for action on the part of a potential customer/client. They gave contact information and that’s all. But that is futile without giving the prospect a REASON to contact them.

Neither ad made a concrete offer. There were no promises of a benefit in exchange for an action from the prospect. The Blaies Camp; Hightower ad was exactly the same as every other law firm ad we’ve ever seen. For all I know, the same serious-looking lawyers appear on all of them. And you just have to love the line, “Attorneys who lead the courtroom with integrity and honor” as a masterpiece of copy that says nothing.

What both these ads need is an injection of direct response techniques. American Express can offer a free guide to corporate financial strategies that would show a corporate officer how to save money on all company expenditures, how to manage day-to-day cash flow and maximize the rebates they offer.

Blaies & Hightower could offer a report, a case study or a white paper on any one of the areas of law the practice. These could contain tips on how to avoid litigation, what new government regulations effect businesses or how to profit from recent trends in the law.

By offering free information products, neither firm would diminish the brand image they are striving for (and actually in my mind, they would stand out in a positive way). But not only that, these white papers, guides or booklets could generate leads and build a list of potential customers/clients for these firms.

The sad truth is both these ads were incredibly wasteful. White space sells nothing and copy that says nothing, sells nothing. Better luck next time guys.

COPYRIGHT © 2006, Charles Brown

Most businesses that use Yellow Page advertising fail to understand that these ads reach a very different audience than ads you see in newspapers or other media.

Other ads must first convince readers that they need a particular product or service before it can convince them to do business with a certain company.

In contrast, Yellow Page readers are already planning to buy. They only need a reason to buy from your business rather than the other guys. But you wouldn’t know this is a different audience by looking at most Yellow Page ads.

Look at the headlines you see splashed all over the books. Let’s say you are looking for an accounting firm to help you plan for and prepare your company’s taxes. The first ad you see says, “Smith and Johnson, Certified Public Accountants. We’ve been in business for 25 years.”

The next ad says, “Williams and Jones, Certified Public Accountants. We all went to Harvard,”

OK, it’s good to have 25 years experience and, all other things being equal, I’m fairly impressed that these guys went to a top university.

But suppose the third headline you read says, “7 Ways to Cut Your Payroll Taxes By 35%.”

Which of these three ads will you read and most likely call on?

Notice that the first two headlines were about the company, not the customer. The third headline gave the reader reasons (benefits) to do business with that firm. This ad focused on the customer’s concerns and questions.

You will never go wrong making the customer the “star” of your ad. Focus on what questions that person is asking when they read through your section of the Yellow Pages (and by the way, any other place you put your ad).

Here are some other headlines that give readers reasons to call you instead of the other guys:

”Important Information For Anyone Who Needs A New C.P.A. Firm”

”Warning! Read This Before You Hire Anyone Else To Prepare Your Taxes”

”10 Things You Must Know When Choosing An Accounting Firm”

The idea behind all these headlines is to stand out from the crowd by giving readers reasons (again, "reasons" is code for "benefits") to choose you. Think like your customers before you place your next ad. Imagine the confusion anyone feels when faced with many choices that all make the same claims.

If you give people reasons to choose you, they very often will.

COPYRIGHT © 2006, Charles Brown

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you already know how much I admire Dan Kennedy. He is a legend among freelance copywriters, and his books are snapped up as soon as they hit the bookstores.

He has recently written, No B.S. Direct Marketing: The Ultimate No Holds Barred Kick Butt Take No Prisoners Direct Marketing For Non-Direct Marketing Businesses. As the long subtitle suggests, this book is about how businesses that are not in traditional mail order or direct marketing businesses can still use direct marketing methods successfully.

What makes this book unique is that Dan has invited several of his clients from non-direct marketing businesses to write chapters in this book. There are chapters by owners of a tax preparation business, a chain of men’s clothing stores, a chiropractic practice, a restaurant and a dental practice.

Each of these professionals have incorporated Dan’s 10 “No B.S. Rules” very successfully. The 10 Rules are:

1. There Will Always Be an Offer or Offers
   
   
2. There Will Be A Reason To Respond Right Now
   
   
3. There Will Be Clear Instructions On How To Respond
   
   
4. There Will Be Tracking and Measurement
   
   
5. Whatever Brand Building Occurs Will Be a Happy By-Product, Not Bought
   
   
6. There Will Be Follow-Up
   
   
7. There Will Be Strong Sales Copy, Not Vague Hyperbole
   
   
8. In General, It Will Look Like “Mail-Order Advertising”
   
   
9. Results Rule, Period
   
   
10. You Will Be a Tough-Minded Disciplinarian and Keep Your Business on a Strict DIRECT Marketing Diet for at Least Six Months

I heartily recommend Dan’s latest book. Regardless of what business you are in, this is one book that WILL bring you outstanding results.

COPYRIGHT © 2006, Charles Brown

Yesterday I wrote about the differences between advertisements that made a concrete offer vs. those ads that simply attempt to enhance the advertiser’s brand or image. I referred to Zig Ziglar, who describes a salesperson who never attempts to close the deal as a “professional visitor” rather than a “professional salesperson.”

Unfortunately, much of the copy written by many copywriters falls into the “professional visitor” category.

An ad that makes no offer to the reader, makes no call to action, or no inducement to do something, is the written equivalent of a professional visitor. Such ads are simply a waste of lots and lots of money.

So how should a copywriter make an offer? An offer is a benefit tied to an action. The benefit is what you will give the client if they will take a specific action. The action required can be to buy something, but you can also set a lower threshold and simply require that they send in a coupon for a free information product or a free gift that relates in some way to the services you offer.

The problems with brand and image advertising are numerous. First, the most likely response to such an ad is for the reader to put it down and say, “Wow, if I ever need these guys, now I know where they are.” The only way the advertiser is going to get business from this person is if she someday needs that product or service and can some how remember who it was that put out the advertisement she saw months or years ago.

But image ads get even worse. Many of these advertisers imply some vague action to be done by the reader, such as, “contact us if you have any questions.” To this, the reader says, “OK if I ever have any questions, I’ll be sure to give you a call.”

An offer, on the other hand, promises a concrete benefit for a concrete act. “Fill in your email address and you will get a free ebook.” “Call our office and we will send a free booklet.” “Attend our free seminar and we will give you a free meal and teach you how to safely invest for retirement.”

The tragedy of brand and image advertising is that you can do both, make an offer and enhance your image. Look at some of the ads put out by the major financial or brokerage firms. I just recently saw an ad by Morgan Stanley that offered a free analysts’ report on the economic outlook for the next business cycle. Such an ad clearly heightened their image as knowledgeable investment advisors, while also offering a benefit (the free report) in exchange for the reader taking action (sending in the coupon requesting the report).

I can’t think of any business that couldn’t make a similar offer. Not only would such an ad enhance your business’ brand image, you would also gather leads of potential clients and build a database from which you could send out future mailings of interest to that group of people.

Remember, the most profitable advertisers are not “professional visitors,” even on paper. Always be a “professional salesperson” and you will see immediate and significant increases in your profitability.

How long would you keep a highly-paid salesperson on your payroll that never attempted to close any deal? Not for long, I would imagine.

So why do most of you keep running ad after ad that doesn’t attempt to close the deal? For many businesses, their advertising costs far more than any one salesperson. But they do not hold their advertising to the same level of accountability as their salespeople.

Look through your local Yellow Pages. Unless you live in a city that is an oasis of advertising enlightenment, you will hard pressed to find even 1% of the ads that actually make an offer. Same with your local newspaper…no offers. Magazines? No offers there either.

An offer is nothing more than a call to action. A reason for the reader to act now. An offer can be for an information kit, a free sample, a coupon, a buy-one-get-one-free deal, or anything else that prompts the reader to do anything but put the ad down and think, “Well if I ever need those people, now I know where to find them.”

The advertising field is divided into two camps. The Brand and Image Camp, and the Direct Response Camp. Personally, I tend to think of the Brand and Image people as the “We Have More Money Than Intelligence” Camp.

Why would anyone spend money on any ad that does not give the reader a reason to act right now?

Go back to the example of the salesperson who can’t bring himself to even try to close. Zig Zigler calls these people” professional visitors” rather than “professional salespeople.” Brand and Image ads are the “professional visitors” of advertising. They may win awards, but they don’t encourage people to take action.

Just making the switch from Brand and Image advertising to Direct Response advertising, will result in immediate and dramatic increases to your business’ profitability. I guarantee it.

freelance copywriter, ghost writer, white papers, copywriting tips

For many businesses, an annual ad in the Yellow Pages or one of its competitors, can be a huge investment. If the ad works well, it can bring a in steady stream of new customers all year long.

But what if your ad just doesn’t pull in as much business as you need? Worse, what if it doesn’t even break even for you? Many businesses depend on the Yellow Pages for most of their sales for the year, so the risk of an underperforming ad is something to be reckoned with.

Here are a few ideas that should help you maximize this investment and generate the highest possible return throughout the year.

1. Test your ad. How do you do this? In the months leading up to the deadline to place your Yellow Page ad, run several small or even classified ads in your local media. Test several headlines, run them against each other to see which one pulls the most. The winner gets to be your standard bearer all year long.
   
   
2. Use your ad to generate leads by offering a free booklet or some other form of free information. Not only will this pull in a better response than your competitors, it will also build a list of interested prospects for you to send out future mailings.
   
   
3. If you go the lead generation route, give your booklet an interesting title, like “31 Ways to Save Money on Car Repairs,” (for the auto repair shop). Or “19 Health Care Tips For Your Child” (for a pediatrician). Be sure this title is prominently displayed on your ad and make it the focus of your ad.
   
   
4. Instead of one large ad that reads like a laundry list of all the services you offer, experiment with several smaller ads offering a single service. Law firms especially put up really boring Yellow Page ads that do little more than list all the specialties they practice. Unless your ad is the biggest, with the brightest colors, and is in the first page of your category, you will have a hard time getting a decent return on your investment for such an ad. But narrowly-targeted smaller ads give you a much better way of catching the eye of a specific group of clients who need a specific service.
   
   
5. Piggy back on the narrowly-targeted smaller ads by offering more free information related to each specialty. Offering free booklets or newsletters positions you as an expert within your specialty.
   
   
6. Now here’s my soapbox.. I have called on too many expensive Yellow Page ads only to be met with incompetent or rude people on the other end of the phone. Train your employees how to answer the phone, to return calls promptly and to have intelligent answers once a caller actually responds to your ad.
   
   
7. Don’t just automatically run the same ad year after year. Your competitors aren’t going to just roll over and play dead. If you run a successful ad this year, you may just find a dozen imitators running very similar ads next year. Find ways to differentiate yourself from the rest of the pack. Don’t claim to be the biggest, the best or the most experienced. None of that matters to your potential clients. Don’t try to fight it out among the other big fist in the pond, find your own pond and be the only fish in it.
   
   
8. Write your ad to solve a really vexing problem your reader may be having. To use the law firm ads as an example again, if you specialize in juvenile criminal law, target your ad to the worried parent who has a child in trouble. Make your information piece about “what to do if your teenager is in trouble with the law.” People pick up the Yellow Pages because they have a problem. And they will call the ad that best demonstrates the ability to solve that problem.
   
   
9. Be a specialist. Specialists make more money than generalists. So, if you can, let your ad show your specialty. But a category is not a specialist. (Using lawyers again) if you specialize in white-collar criminal law, don’t just say you practice criminal law. If you specialize in personal injury involving a reckless commercial vehicle, don’t just say personal injury. If you specialize in contract negotiations, don’t just say you practice business law.
   
   
10. Your headline is the most important part of your ad. So don’t just run with the first thing that comes to mind. At the risk of repeating myself, test your headlines. Put your strongest benefit front and center in your headline. Address a problem in your headline. Make a promise in your headline. Headlines are too important to leave to chance. After all, do you want to live a whole year with a mistake?

Don't put up your ad blindly. Too many businesses put no thought into their ad, and then have to live with the results for an entire year.
freelance copywriter, writing web content, copywriting tips

COPYRIGHT(C)2006, Charles Brown. All rights reserved.

If you want to write better ads, marketing materials or web content, the best place to start is by studying the successful ads written by others. And I can think of no better place to start than the most famous ad in history.

In the mid 1920s, a recent Naval Academy graduate with a degree in electrical engineering was looking for work. The post-war military was downsizing and John Caples had been offered the option to forego his commission as an ensign in the Navy.

His first job was as an engineer, but he found it completely boring. Looking again, he landed a job as a copywriter with a mail order agency. One of his first assignments was to write an ad for a correspondence course offered by the U.S. School of Music.

John produced four pages of copy that began with the headline, “They Laughed When I Sat Down At The Piano – But When I Started To Play …”. Following this headline came a first person narrative by a man who impressed all his friends (and silenced his scoffers) at a party by his new-found ability to play the piano.

The ad became an instant success. Not only did it pull in record-breaking sales, the headline became part of the culture. Vaudeville comedians spoofed the ad with punchlines like, “…because someone stole my piano stool.” Other copywriters borrowed the formula, and spun it into countless imitations.

And even today, you will see imitations.

But what made 25 year old John Caples’ ad so successful? There are several factors:

• He used a story to sell his product. Stories are powerful. They help us to understand and believe in a way no other communication device can. When we hear a story, we feel a part of it and adopt the emotions of the character.
  
  
• The main character silences those who laughed at him. Who doesn’t want to put our critics in their place. The party scene in the ad shows this man as the center of attention because of his musical skills. Again, who doesn’t crave that kind of admiration from our friends?
  
  
• The ad offers self improvement. Not only does it show how to acquire the ability to play the piano, but it improves his social life as well. The benefits offered go far beyond mere musical instruction, they offer status.
  
  
• Social proof. Even though everyone realized this character was fictional, the ad still made learning to play the piano seem easy. This is the power of social proof, which demonstrates to us that if someone else can do it (even a fictional person) we can do it as well. You can learn more about how to use social proof to write persuasive copy at Freelance Copywriter Secrets: Social Proof-An Awesome Copywriting Tool.
  
  
• The ad is a two-step ad. This means the reader doesn’t have to make the decision to buy right away, he or she can send in a coupon and request information. 2-step ads lower the bar and require a smaller commitment. Check out a recent article on 2-step ads at Freelance Copywriter Secrets: Why 2-Step Ads Make More Sales.
  
  
• Best of all, the information offered is Free. There is power in that word. In a 2-step ad, the inquirer can be curious and get answers without paying a cent. But the seller benefits because the inquirer has “opted in” to receive follow up information (ie sales letters) to cement the sale at a later date.

No doubt you have either seen, or will see again, one of Caples many imitators. When a formula works this well, other copywriters inevitably make it their own.

COPYRIGHT © 2006, Charles Brown

We freelance copywriters are often an analytical bunch. Always trying to tinker with ad copy to see if it can be made better. This includes our own copy as well as the work of others.

For example, David Garfinkel, in his September 4, 2006 blog post at http://world-copywriting-institute.typepad.com/ provides an excellent analysis in the article, "An Expensive Ad that Almost Gets It.”

Before we look at what David says about this ad, let me set the stage: I firmly believe that elements of direct response can be successfully incorporated with so-called “image ads” that are designed to establish a dignified brand.

For example, brokerage firms like Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley do this all the time. You frequently see their ads offering booklets on their market forecasts and white papers on their analysis of the economy. Despite the heavy restrictions placed upon financial services marketing, these ads manage to do three things simultaneously:

1. convey dignity and a brand image,
   
   
2. present a strong sales message, and
   
   
3. generate leads for their salespeople.

Direct Response vs. “Advertising Art”

Regular readers of my blog may recall my story of a copywriting job I didn’t get. The client was a high profile interior design firm in Florida that catered to a very affluent clientele.

The ad agency that interviewed me had created a beautiful two-page spread depicting a home most of us can only drool over. It truly was an example of advertising art.

The trouble was the copy. It relied only on a single sentence that frankly said nothing at all. This sentence was presumably intended to arouse so much curiosity that people would flock to the client’s store or tie up the entire South Florida telephone system trying to call in. (no website address was mentioned on the ad).

When asked for my input, I suggested that the client create an information piece such as a booklet full of decorating ideas. My thinking was that such a booklet would not only have high, perceived value to the reader. It could also, in the process of offering numerous how-tips, generate additional sales for the client’s design services as well as specific items of furniture and wall decorations.

I then suggested the beautiful ad could feature the booklet as a free offer to anyone who called or stopped in. (Of course, they would have to provide their names and contact information in order to receive the booklet, thereby creating a list of prospective customers for the client).

Alas, the creative types felt my ideas would detract from the beauty of their layout and would smell too much of “salesmanship.” I didn’t get the assignment, the ad ran exactly as I had seen it, and appeared only one time in a very high-profile magazine.

Trying To Sell The Law Firm

Fast forward to the article in David Garfinkel’s blog. The ad shows a picture of Craig Newmark, the founder of the hugely successful craigslist.com. The ad’s headline, PEOPLE WHO MAKE GREAT COMPANY’S WORK, seems to offer insights into how people like Newmark create and grow successful companies.

Presumably, the ad seeks to attract clients to the law firm with an implied promise that the firm will help entrepreneurs become as successful as Craig Newmark.

Disappointingly, the ad offers zero benefits to the reader and breaks the headline’s implied promise. The ad concludes will the thundering dud of a sales message, “Perkins Cole: Legal counsel to great companies like craigslist.”

What if the firm had written a white paper on the legal needs of small, growing companies? What if the white paper fulfilled the promise of the ad’s headline by providing how-to information on how entrepreneurs can grow their companies with help from knowledgeable law firms? And what if this white paper was featured in the ad as available free to any reader who asked for it?

Why White Papers and Image Ads Go Together

White papers convey the dignity such a law firm is trying to project, but they are also valuable sales tools. They promise - and absolutely must deliver - valuable how-to information, or analysis helpful for readers’ decision making. They target certain types of readers who, because of their interest in this topic, identify themselves as potential clients.

Here are a few ideas that should help you create a marketing campaign based on both white papers and image ads:

• Begin with a clear idea of what decision you want your reader to make. This applies to both the ad and to the white paper. With the ad, you obviously want qualified readers to contact you, provide their address and/or their email address and telephone number. With the white paper, you want them to make a decision to contact you for an appointment. Not having this clear idea will cause major problems later if your work fails to lead the reader to a decision.
  
  
• Don’t forget to talk about benefits. Even with image advertising, benefits are essential. Yet image ads routinely shy away from talking about benefits. Too salesman like, I suppose.
  
  
• Make a promise and fulfill it. The headline of your ad, the ad’s copy, the free offer, the title of the white paper and every single word inside the white paper, should make a promise to either solve a problem for the reader or to help the reader realize a desired change. And after all that is done, deliver on that promise.
  
  
• Generate leads. I have written before on the value of 2-Step advertising, and why it delivers more sales than one-shot ads. Although my article, Freelance Copywriter Secrets: Why 2-Step Ads Make More Sales, is not specifically written about image advertising for professional service providers, you may still find it to be helpful on this subject. One of the primary reasons to use a direct response device is to generate a list of prospective clients, who “opt in” to receive your follow up emails and letters. With a list of such people, your marketing becomes a continual matter of re-contacting interested, qualified prospective clients.
  
  
• Create a series of white papers. Become known as the law firm, design company or professional services organization that has the right stuff. Within a law firm, for example, many lawyers have different specialties, each worthy of a multitude of white papers. Stuck for ideas on what to write about? Just look at what problems clients want to have solved for them. Each problem can result in a new white paper.

Image ads and white papers make the perfect marketing marriage. The more valuable information you give away, the more new business and new profits come back to you.

freelance copywriter, copywriting tips, freelance commercial writer

For decades, many researchers and freelance copywriters have demonstrated the same immutable fact: A two-step, or multi-step, advertising program produces many times more sales than ads that attempt to get people to buy from a single exposure to a marketing message.

What is a two-step program? When your ad promises a fee DVD, a free tape, a free booklet, a free report, a free ebook or free information of any kind, you are applying the two-step technique because you are attempting to make the sale on the back end rather than up front.

As I said, we now have decades of research proving that two-step ads bring in more sales. In one study, five million inquiries received by 165 firms were analyzed over a 12 year period. The study concluded that buyers are many times more likely to purchase if they have been exposed to two or more marketing messages.

This means that your ad is the first exposure. The free information you send out is the second. Subsequent mailings just increase the likelihood a person will buy even more.

But the benefit a marketer receives from a two-step program doesn’t stop there. Few companies can stay in business long if their customers make only a single purchase. The two-step process creates a database of qualified and interested potential and repeat buyers.

Smart marketers know that the money is in their customer lists. By recontacting these same people over time with new offers, new products, information about sales and special promotions, and even additional free information packages, their databases can generate considerable long-term profits and sales.

And best of all, since the largest expense was that very first ad, the cost per sale of all this new business keeps going down.

Contrast this to the marketer who puts up a single ad that attempts to make a sale from one exposure to her message. Yes, some sales will come in if the copy is well written, the right audience is precisely targeted and the stars are in perfect alignment.

But these marketers only get one bite at the apple. Either people buy right then or they don’t.

They don’t get the feeling of value your customers receive when they get your free information (which also creates a slight sense of obligation to you), they don’t get exposed to your offer multiple times, they don’t receive information about your other products, sales and special promotions.

And they probably don’t even remember that marketer’s name five seconds after they read her ad.

COPYRIGHT © 2006, Charles Brown

Just like you, I saw or heard approximately 15,000 advertising messages today. And even though I am a freelance copywriter who takes a professional interest in noticing ads more than the average person, barely the tiniest fraction of them made any impact on my consciousness at all.

We are all so bombarded with advertising that only a few very good or very bad ads penetrate our awareness. Most advertisers merely waste their money with ineffective messages that may be cute, or creative or even funny; but do little to improve the bottom line.

So here are a few of my suggestions for those advertisers who actually want to pull in more business with their ads.

1. Promote Free Offers. Get readers to respond to clearly promoted toll free telephone numbers or web sites to get free booklets, CDs, information kits or other free information products. Not only will this help you get a second chance to create a sale, it will also generate a list of interested potential buyers.
   
2. Focus on annoying problems your product solves and clearly show how it can take the pain away. It is a psychological truth that avoidance or escape from pain is a much more powerful motivator than promise of gain.
   
3. Make a clear and definite promise in every ad, that your product or service will bring about a desired change for your reader. Think about it, other than necessities, the only reason anyone buys anything is to experience a change. So make sure every ad promises a change.
   
4. Humor, creativity and curiosity are wonderful things that can enhance your ad as long as its message delivers a clear promise or focuses on relieving pain. But if you make them the focus of your ad, readers may remember it for the entertainment value you delivered, but may not be able to recall the name of your product or company.
   
5. Don’t be afraid to educate consumers. Show them how to be informed buyers of your type of product, how to choose the right product for their needs and how to avoid being ripped off. You can educate buyers with the free offer mentioned in step one and in so doing, you will heighten your professionalism and integrity in their eyes.
   
6. Don’t try to sell refrigerators to Eskimos. Yes, there is that one legendary salesman out there who can make such a sale, but you are much better off selling your products to people who want, need and can afford what you have to offer. Study your market, advertise in a media that reaches that market and carve out your niche.
   
7. Tell a dramatic story. I mean a story with before and after scenes. The “before scene” should depict someone who was in dire straits before you or your product; and the “after scene” should show that person living happily ever after. Use actual customer examples or create semi-fictional accounts of what you do for your customers.
   

Slicing through all the advertising clutter and "white noise" that bombard people on a daily basis is not easy, but it only takes a little effort, a little thought about what your potential buyers want and need, and you can easily see your advertising dollars reap dividends.

COPYRIGHT © 2006, Charles Brown