Hi Dave,

y'know - once upon a yesteryear I earned an honest quid or three in the much-reviled business of Direct Marketing, including a stint as being the GM for JWT in Oz.

During probably the best part of 20 years a few things sank into my dense skull, and stayed with me all my working life.  Not really surprisingly other posters have identified several of these - but no-one has done it comprehensively.

The rules of engagement are few;

1) Make a promise in the headline and then justify that headline in the copy. Those intrigued or interested by the headline will want to learn more.

2) Do not be afraid of long copy PROVIDED the copy is interesting, informative  and/or entertaining.  People must be rewarded in some way when they get your message - above all it must be relevant.

3) A more general rule of thumb is as follows.  The first contact will get the cream - i.e those who are immediately interested in the proposition, second and third mailings establish a presence - and provided 1) & 2) are done, will help build the business.  From then on, if the message remains exactly the same, it is a negative spiral as irritation kicks in.

Finally and maybe a few more should take note of the quote made by W. C. Fields "If at first you don't succeed, then try, try again. Then give up - there's no sense in being  a dam' fool about it".

Some of the more persistent posters and PM abusers should learn these lessons.

Cheers,

Norm

Ad-books for fun and education

http://www.lulu.com/Normlaure0

 

Hello Dave!

This one is for MARY!

I NEED MONEY!!!

If you were so quick to reach into your purse for Dave I thought I would give it a shot.

I'll get my people to contact your people - lol

 

Hi Dave,

Unlike Mary, my first reaction was 'sorry Charley' till I saw that you had posted it.  Then I thought 'if he's in trouble then I may as well just quit now'  LOL

When I saw Mary's 'misleading title' I thought 'OMG what in the world did she do??'.  When I saw the title "I resign' I went to the thread and found out it was an April Fool's joke, so that was OK too (considering the source lol).

Norman has a good list of rules there!  I was also taught that way.  Thanks for posting them so succinctly.

Unfortunately, many people don't have the guidance they need to be able to avoid the SPAM pitfalls.  They join a safelist; they see how most of the subject lines are written; they copy the method.  Mary has a good thread in her forum about 'imitation vs flattery' (I don't have the exact title, but you get the drift and can find it).

It's a fact of life; I don't see it ending any time soon.

Hi Dave!  :-)

Awesome post my friend!  It seems as is SPAM is quite the popular forum subject here @ Adland today......

I think you have hit on a subject that is not taught enough.  I think that before a "newbie" is allowed to start marketing in any company....there should be some sort of course they are required to take in order to get certified or something BEFORE they are legally allowed to market.

SPAM.....whether in your mailbox outside your house......a forum post......or in your email inbox.....in short.....is POINT BLANK a very blatant - unwanted ad.  Which basically conveys one universal message.........

Hi Norman, Great information and I am keeping a note of it. For Nick and Lorraine, I was only ready to reach for the checkbook because I saw David's name as the owner of the thread. No Nick, I can't send money to you. I just retired a second time and am going to live on half my income. You are on your own!!! The forum Lorraine mentioned is "Imitation may not be flattery". Most of you have visited once but more posts continue so do come back. http://community.adlandpro.com/forums/thread/662264.aspx Be aware that Administrative policy is that if you are a member of Adlandpro you have given consent to have e-mails sent to you in your personal mail here inside Adlandpro. That is probably acceptable in theory but when it comes from an unknown person, no relationship established, etc., I consider it rude. The purpose of the above mentioned forum is to point out that just because one person does it, doesn't make it a desireable business activity to win friends and influence people. Norman, the quote you gave from W. C. Fields is often quoted but the last part is left off. Thanks for quoting all of it. We have to be prepared for a back fire if we get into others raw nerve territory. "I have one nerve and you are on it"---a favorite quote of mine but don't know the author.