1. How to be "the best you can be" - and what is guerrilla marketing?. What's the difference between being fairly successful - and being a huge success? What I learned from some of the world's best marketers. How I find ideas. With an analysis of two brilliant property marketing ideas I saw recently - one being a perfect example of guerrilla marketing
2. A common mistake, a lesson about aiming at the right people - and a pregnant idea. See a big reasons why a lot of corporate advertising is plain wrong. A very good creative idea. A good visual. The right number of words. Good design. But one fatal flaw which means it won't really work. Plus (believe it or not) an analysis of a witty shop sign aimed at mothers and about to be mothers.
3. Two examples. One infuriating. The other brilliant - with some remarks about slogans. First a very personal example from the U.S. of how many large firms do things that cost millions, destroy their images and make you and me hopping mad. Then an example of a very well-designed, well-timed poster for Subway. And news of Al's boisterous dog Basil.
4. Why I don't think Claude Hopkins wrote this Goodyear ad. Plus another demo of his uncanny ability. One ad I analyse here breaks one of Hopkins’ most cherished rules. But did he really write it? There is only one reason why he might have. Another ad - for Hudson cars – exploits a psychological truth that is always relevant: fear of loss. I dissect it in great detail and ask a question about today's car advertising.
5. More priceless lessons from Claude Hopkins. Many people tell you to study Hopkins’ books. I think I am one of the few who actually analyse his ads. He wrote for quite a few car brands. He had a different approach for each. And he also wrote ads to sell his agency. Learn more from the master – and see why his work is still so highly relevant today.
Aaah Claude, ‘Tell Your Full Story’ he always said. Yet I’ve noticed Jay Abraham run a series: 50 shades of Jay although what he’s offering is incredibly vast – and each e-mail tells a complete selling story in it’s own right.
Maybe rather than Claude vs. Jay we should say ‘series are bad, anthologies are ok?’
It always makes me think when two successful marketers do two completely opposing things.
Another example someone else already mentioned is Bill Jayme. Gary Halbert might say he does ‘very good B pile mail’.
Any thoughts Drayton?
I don’t agree with Gary and said why on one of my books. If you look at Denny Hatch’s Million$ Mailings you’ll see most have envelope messages. Gary was one of a kind – to say the least of it!
If each email does a complete selling job, that fits in with Claude’s advice.
I have a view about these sweeping assertions; “the golden rule is there is no golden rule” – G. B. Shaw.
Bill Jayme, who was a friend, appealed to a very special market: sophisticated people.
I heard that Bill Jayme’s rationale was that ‘A Pile’ Mail, Halbert style pissed people off once they realised they’d been tricked and I see how that’d happen.
Given Denny Hatch’s book deals in stats, not opinions (I’ve not read it yet, in fact I’ve only recently come across Denny). In fact, I’m ALMOST ready to let this Gary vs Bill thing go but I think there’s one more thing to be said for the Halbert side…
I’m talking of course about the magic sealed envelope (his words).
Inside his envelopes there was often a second envelope with something written on it like ‘DO NOT OPEN THIS ENVELOPE UNTIL YOU HAVE READ THE LETTER’ or ‘HERE IS THE INFORMATION REFERRED TO IN THE LETTER’. He would often write a ‘cover letter’ for the sales pitch and hide the real sales pitch, along with any brochures etc in the 2nd envelope.
Like I said earlier, I’ve never read who’s mailing what but I’m frankly shocked that there’s virtually no a pile mail in there. If there’s one thing I do know from personal experience is that its very, very easy to impersonate Halbert.
Badly.
Anyway, If you follow the link and look at point 1h John Carlton explains it better than I can.
http://www.thegaryhalbertletter.com/newsletters/2007/october%202007%2020clicks/20ClicksUpdate9-07.pdf
The A versus B is (in my opinion) less critical than other elements John mentioned. First.the use of tried elements like personalisation and gimmicks such as the penny, first used by Reader’s Digest in the later ’50s. Second, the extraordinary beguiling charm of Gary’s writing.