Jul

30

Why Copywriters Gotta Put Up With Shit

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John Carlton recently wrote about TMZ and went into a little rant about dirty-laundy crap like that.

Upon reading it, I thought: “Gee, why is he getting irritated about it? Why does he even waste his time with stuff like that?”

Well, turns out I needed a reality check.

I avoided the media gossip, the scandals, the celebrities. I didn’t watch TV, barely listened to radio and seldomly read newspapers.

Now – that’s good if I’d be a monk trying to find inner peace, or a higher-state of being, living a hermits life in search for nirvana.

(And in fact – I’m known among my friends to be strangely disengaged and ignorant about TV shows, celebrities, hit songs and fashion trends).

But I’m not trying to be a monk. I want to get into advertising. And advertising happens in the midst of… Amy Winehouse being released from hospital (and I don’t even know who the hell she is!), Alicia Keys signing up to sing the next James Bond song and Miley Cyrus agreeing to be Hannah Montana for yet another season (hurray!).

I guess I was really naive to think that there’d be a way to really get into copywriting without being hip to what’s on people’s minds (and underestimating how much of the stuff that is on people’s minds is celebrity gossip).

John often writes about getting out there and making friends with all kinds of people, and living life to the fullest. Well, I always THOUGHT like I’m making friends with “all kinds of people” because most of my friends have kind of outlandish interests and hobbies and lifestyles.

But what I missed is that “all kinds of people” INCLUDES Mr. John Smith who get’s up five days a week, puts in his hours for The Man and sedates his mind with Entertainment Tonight and TMZ. The guy who’s getting a 46″ flatscreen TV to watch the superbowl. The guy who buys a new car so he can keep up with the Joneses. The guy who’s scared shit when “another deadly terrorist assault” is being predicted.

I had a childish idea that being a copywriter meant being able to understand people out of the ivory tower, kind of looking out of the window and observing the crowds.

But John put it this way: you gotta be a “culture spy”.

That means you gotta get in there. You gotta get your hands dirty. You gotta gather information in the field. You gotta know what it’s like to be in their shoes, and you can’t learn that from OBSERVING them walk in their shoes. You gotta walk a mile in their shoes. Then you know what it’s like. And then you can talk to them.

And if you’re not willing to put these shoes on, then don’t put a copywriter’s hat on your head either.

And all of this doesn’t mean that you have to drown yourself in meaningless noise. Or abandon the stuff that really resonates deeply with you, where you find joy and beauty and truth and wisdom. It just means that you gotta understand and experience where your prospects are at. So you can talk to them in a way that strikes a chord. So you can enter the conversation that’s already going on in the prospects mind.

Anyway – I wanna come to an end here. This was a major lesson for me. I gotta get out of my own little world and go for a swim in the mainstream regularly.

(And somehow, there’s an inkling of an clue that there’s an underlying attitude and mindset that also needs adjustment if I really want to get good at this…)

(And don’t forget to check out John’s post, there’s an interesting discussion going on about this).

Jul

18

The Wall Street Journal Letter “Two Young Men” by Martin Conroy

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Here you’ll find one of the classics. The famous WSJ letter by Martin Conroy that copywriters refer to as the “Two Young Men” letter. It has run for 28 years in a row to pull in new subscribers for WSJ, and that makes it one of the most successful sales letter ever.

So, I guess it’s worth studying.

Dear Reader:

On a beautiful late spring afternoon, twenty-five years ago, two young men graduated from the same college. They were very much alike, these two young men.

Both had been better than average students, both were personable and both – as young college graduates are – were filled with ambitious dreams for the future.

Recently, these men returned to their college for their 25th reunion.

They were still very much alike.

Both were happily married. Both had three children. And both, it turned out, had gone to work for the same Midwestern manufacturing company after graduation, and were still there.

But there was a difference. One of the men was manager of a small department of that company. The other was its president.

What Made The Difference

Have you ever wondered, as I have, what makes this kind of difference in people’s lives? It isn’t always a native intelligence or talent or dedication. It isn’t that one person wants success and the other doesn’t.

The difference lies in what each person knows and how he or she makes use of that knowledge.

And that is why I am writing to you and to people like you about The Wall Street Journal. For that is the whole purpose of The Journal: To give its readers knowledge – knowledge that they can use in business.

A Publication Unlike Any Other

You see, The Wall Street Journal is a unique publication. It’s the country’s only national business daily. Each business day, it is put together by the world’s largest staff for business-news experts.

Each business day, The Journal’s pages include a broad range of information of interest and significance to business-minded people, no matter where it comes from. Not just stocks and finance, but anything and everything in the whole, fast-moving world of business… The Wall Street Journal gives you all the business news you need – when you need it.

Knowledge Is Power

Right now, I am reading page on of The Journal. It combines all the important news of the day with in-depth feature reporting. Every phase of business news is covered, from articles on inflation, wholesale prices, car prices, tax incentives for industries to major developments in Washington, and elsewhere.

And there is page after page inside The Journal filled with fascinating and significant information that’s useful to you. A daily column on personal money management helps you become a smarter saver, better investor, wiser spender. There are weekly columns on small business, marketing, real estate, technology, regional developments. If you have never read The Wall Street Journal, you cannot imagine how useful it can be to you.

Much of the information that appears in The Journal appears nowhere else. The Journal is printed in numerous plants across the United States, so that you get it early each business day.

A $28 Subscription

Put our statements to the proof by subscribing for the next 13 weeks for just $28. This is the shortest subscription term we offer – and a perfect way to get acquainted with The Journal.

Or you may prefer to take advantage of a longer-term subscription for greater savings: an annual subscription at $107 saves you $20 off The Journal’s cover price. Our best buy – two years for $185 – saves you a full $69!

Simply fill out the endorsed order card and mail it in the postage-paid envelope provided. And here’s The Journal guarantee: Should The Journal not measure up to your expectations, you may cancel this trial arrangement at any point and receive a refund for the undelivered portion of your subscription.

If you feel as we do that this is a fair and reasonable proposition, then you will want to find out without delay if The Wall Street Journal can do for you what it is doing for millions of readers. So please mail the enclosed order card now, and we will start serving you immediately.

About those two college classmates, I mentioned at the beginning of this letter. They graduated from college together and together got started in the business world. So what made their lives in business different?

Knowledge. Useful knowledge. And its application.

An Investment In Success

I cannot promise you that success will be instantly yours if you start reading The Wall Street Journal. But I can guarantee that you will find The Journal always interesting, always reliable, and always useful.

Sincerely Yours,
Peter R. Kann
Executive Vice President/
Associate Publisher

PS: It’s important to note that The Journal’s subscription price may be tax-deductible.

And btw. – if you want to see the actual letter, you can head over to Andrew Cavanagh’s blog and download them there.

Jul

3

Unknown Copywriting Genius?

Filed Under CopyWriting | 5 Comments

Clayton Makepeace, Yanik Silver, John Carlton, Gary Halbert, Gary Bencivenga, Michel Fortin, Michael Masterson, Richard Armstrong, Daniel Levis, Bob Bly, David Dittman… if you have anything to do with copywriting, you probably know these names.

I just stumbled across another publication and can’t help but wonder whether there are not some great copywriting lessons to be learned from it: The Motley Fool.

Just read their headlines – and then read their articles.

Not that I can judge the quality of copy like a pro. But I know when something “hooks” me, makes me want to buy.

And even though I have never dugg into investing, after reading “The World’s Greatest Value” by Bill Mann, my appetite is wettened. I can imagine that for people who actually ARE into investing, this article might have quiet a strong attraction.

I’ll definitely check out their headlines and some of their writings.

Oh, and then look at the ads on many Motley Fool’s pages: “The NEXT Berkshire Hathaway”, “”Marvel Soars 888%”, “Will You be Able to Retire in Comfort?”, “The Next Home Run Stock” – each headline a quick eyecatcher followed then by compelling copy.

After reading those ads I WANT TO GET INTO INVESTING!

(don’t worry, I’m not gonna do it).

If they don’t have some top-notch copywriters writing for them, I’ll eat my hat.

Action Item: Check out their website and put their ads in your swipe file!

PS: And just look at some of these headlines:

A Shortcut to Losing Money

What’s Really Driving Oil Prices?

A Brief History of a Stupid Investor

The Best Investor You’ve Never Heard Of

The Market’s 10 Best Stocks Revealed

Big Winners for Small Investors

3 Winners You Don’t Know About

Stocks With Huge Potential

The Best Stocks for the Next 10 Years

The Top 10 Stocks You Might Actually Buy

If You Buy Only One Foreign Market

The Buying Opportunity You Won’t Want to Miss

Why Aren’t You Earning 50% Annual Returns?

Dividend Investors’ Dream Stocks

Tomorrow’s Monster Stocks

Prepare for a Gruesome Retirement

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