"Invoice Enclosed"
cost PM a renewal

     Those of us who write direct mail do damn near anything to make sure our letters get opened. And usually we'll add "teaser" headlines that reveal the offer, a benefit, a promise or all three on the front side of the envelope. When the teaser hits the self-interest of the prospect or customer, the letters usually get opened. So when I picked up my mail the other day and saw a teaser that read, "Invoice Enclosed," I frowned. Then I noticed the piece came from "The Hearst Corporation Invoicing Bureau," and I frowned again. Maybe "scowled" would be a better word. Since I hadn't ordered anything from anyone, I opened the letter. Sure enough, an invoice--with a letter that read,, "Thank you for choosing to be part of our Continuous Service Program. As we recently notified you, your renewal to Popular Mechanics has been processed. Payment is now due. Please enclose your check with the invoice below." I've seen some misleading tricks to get a subscriber to renew, and this one is right in there. I didn't "choose" to be part of their "Continuous Service Program," a phony name if I ever heard one. They didn't "notify" me of anything. I never asked them to "process my renewal." Those are come-ons to make the subscriber feel guilty, and they'll probably work. But they're low class. And PM just lost me as a subscriber.

Writing a brochure?
Here's my best advice

     I must have written a dozen hotel and Sales brochures in my 18-year stay as marketing director of the former Del Webb's Sahara, Las Vegas. Maybe you're writing one as we speak. If so, my condolences. In case you're having trouble with the copy, here's my best advice. Before you start, imagine you're making a first trip to your own hotel. You'd have plenty of questions, right? Then answer them in the copy you prepare. And don't embellish your answers with fancy adjectives. Just stick to the facts. I'd also suggest some visual surprises--photos that back up the benefits and promises you make If you have a golf course, for example, maybe a photo that shows a golf ball at the moment it's crushed against the face of a driver. And when you choose models, make sure they relate to your target audience.

Ogilvy's
masterful
trifecta

     "I never tell one client that I cannot attend his sales convention because I have a previous engagement with another client; successful polygamy depends upon pretending to each spouse that she is the only pebble on your beach."

"You have only 30 seconds in a TV commercial. If you grab attention in the first frame with a visual surprise, you stand a better chance of holding the viewer. People screen out a lot of commercials because they open with something dull... When you advertise fire-extinguishers, open with the fire."

"Experience has taught me that advertisers get the best results when they pay their agency a flat fee. It is unrealistic to expect your agency to be impartial when its vested interest lies wholly in the direction of increasing your commissionable advertising."

     --A selection of quotes from the late American advertising master David Ogilvy, who died nine years ago this month.

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