DR Secrets of the Pros
By Ian French, President & Partner
Like any industry, the direct response (DR) business has its share of superstars – men and women whose work outperforms the competition and consistently drives huge response.
Some of these stellar performers ply their trade in one particular medium such as direct mail. Others happily harness whatever avenue is appropriate, including direct response television (DRTV), banner ads, advertorials or microsites.
What they all have in common is a subtle but profound understanding of human nature and how to leverage it to motivate action. And because they have been up close and personal with hundreds of campaigns, they have developed a kind of sixth sense about what works and what doesn’t.
Here are five tips from their bag of tricks.
1. What's in it for me?
The pros know people watch, read or listen to every marketing message with only one question in mind: what's in it for me?
Amateurs think consumers want to be entertained and stimulated by advertising. The pros know that while funky and fresh creative is a beautiful thing, what consumers really want to know is how you’re going to make their lives easier – or save them money, time and effort. That's why the pros always talk about benefits while amateurs talk about creative hooks, hunches and insights.
Let the amateurs use their advertising budgets to entertain the public. Your job is to convince consumers why they should buy your product or service. Take a tip from the pros: tell them.
2. Every letter is important
In your text ads, you have 25 characters for a headline and 35 for each description line, including spaces. That’s a grand total of 15-20 words to convince the searcher to click on your ad. Considering the paramount importance of search engine marketing (SEM) in modern marketing, these may be the 25 most important words you ever write.
Pros know the headline must tell the viewer “yes, this is what you are searching for!” That requires a short, simple and clear description of your product or service. Something like “travel insurance for seniors” is perfect.
The next two lines must explain why the customer needs to click your ad and not the one above or below it. To do this, you must present the most enticing and appealing reason for action in your arsenal. This is the time to appeal to everyone’s most basic desires. This is where benefits and offers can really shine. Some good examples might be “early bird specials”, “save 25%”, “lowest rates guaranteed” or “limited time offer”.
Amateurs think writing copy for text ads is a job for someone in the IT department. Pros know the unglamorous act of writing text ads takes skill, focus and commitment. They know that every word, syllable and letter is its own profit center. And they never stop testing copy in their relentless pursuit of improvement. You should do the same.
3. Tell more – sell more
The purpose of DR is to get someone to apply, buy or donate – NOW! Not five minutes, five hours or five days later, but NOW. That means your DRTV spot or direct mail letter needs to be a complete, stand-alone sales presentation.
Amateurs believe in making an impression; pros believe in closing the sale. That means giving the consumer quality information they need to make a purchasing decision. That means presenting as many features and benefits, answering as many questions and overcoming as many objections as possible in the allotted time. Don’t cheat yourself out of a sale by failing to communicate valuable information.
4. Focus groups kill
Focus groups are where great DR ideas go to die. Why? Because the average person will happily tell you what they like or don’t like about your letter, banner ad or TV spot – BUT, what they like has absolutely nothing to do with what makes them buy! In fact, because people don't like to be “sold”, in focus groups, they often respond negatively when an ad is extremely convincing. But in the privacy of their own home, they act completely differently.
Never confuse what people say they like with what makes them buy, apply or donate. Save your money, and skip the focus groups.
5. Longer is stronger!
Pros know that, with the exception of some online tactics, longer communications are almost always more effective and profitable than shorter communications.
Let the amateurs pontificate about short attention spans or how 10-second TV spots increase reach and frequency. The pros know your chances of convincing someone to buy increase exponentially when you have more time to present your argument. They also know that anyone who isn't willing to listen to your message for more than 15 seconds isn't going to buy your product or donate to your charity anyway.
More importantly, they know that virtually every test ever done proves longer communications deliver a better ROI than shorter ones.
There you have it. Five tips from the DR pros. Apply them and watch your response rates and profits soar!