30 direct mail creative ideas

Direct Marketing guru, Herschell Gordon Lewis was the presenter in a recent webinar sponsored by Target Marketing. Lewis has authored 21 direct response books and is a columnist for a half dozen marketing magazines. He is one of the best-known direct response writers.

Lewis offered 30 ideas to improve your direct marketing. The first 15 were featured in the last issue of A.M. LetterLink. Here is the second half of his presentation.

1. Write the way people talk - In one to one marketing, contractions don’t hurt communications…they help.
2. Specifics out pull generalizations - A 20 year guarantee sounds better than lifetime.
3. Maximize the recipients image – Flattery is a powerful emotion in direct mail.
4. Replace “can” with “will” – Your copy will be more positive.
5. Match the rhetoric to your audience – Does your recipient wear trousers or pants?
6. DM copy should produce direct rhetoric – Generate emotions like guilt, greed or anger.
7. Add to your prospects stature – Exclusivity will trigger important emotions.
8. Don’t use passive copy – Active words get (receive is passive) better response.
9. Watch punctuation – Exclamations might stop the reader!!!
10. Transform a command into question – Will a question involve your reader and build rapport?
11. Avoid the rule of fives – Replace numbers divisible by five with prime numbers like 19 or 31. They’re 97% more believable.
12. Expand claritive words – Expanding the headline, “Save 10% Weekdays” to “Save 10% Mon.-Fri.” will improve response.
13. Practice word economy – Drop words or phrases that slow communication and add nothing to the message.
14. Cliché art is passé – Photos will out pull clip art.
15. Emotion wins over intellect – Benefits are emotional. They’ll beat a list of features every time.
16. Match response methods to offer – Response to highly emotional appeals can be damaged by a mail back response method. Use phone or online for more immediacy.
17. Tell‘em what to do – Request the obvious…call today, or ask for the order …send check or money order in postage paid envelope.
18. Clarify the commands – Repeat the offer, bold the call to action and don’t let other components interfere with the goal.
19. Design for an older audience – The over 50, age group now controls 77% of the nation’s financial holdings and makes up 35% of the population. They think young, but are changing physically. Never use type smaller than 10 point. Don’t reverse out long copy. Use models that are 10 years younger than the target audience.
20. Remember the envelopes purpose - The primary job of the outer envelope is to get the package opened. Tease the recipient, but don’t spill your guts on the outer.
21. Try a stamp – A live stamp on an envelope will out pull a postal indicia.
22. Stay in character – If the envelope looks official, then the letter and contents must carry the same look.
23. Keep first sentence short – “Wow”! Now that’s a short sentence that will get the readers attention. Paragraphs should be no longer than seven lines. Page two should always jump in the middle of a sentence.
24. Don’t sneak up on the reader – Fire the big gun right away. This is imperative for e-mail marketing.
25. Always include a P.S. – The P.S. is often read before the rest of the letter. It should reinforce one key selling motivator - an extra benefit that doesn’t require explanation.
26. Don’t be subtle – A subtle approach doesn’t work in direct marketing. Your copy must grab them and shake them.
27. Never apologize – A negative approach seldom works in direct mail.
28. Use a testimonial – It doesn’t need to be a celebrity. An endorsement by another company actually works better for B2B.
29. Offer Free shipping – This will out pull a price discount of greater value, almost every time.
30. Add personalization – Using the persons name will work in all formats of direct marketing.