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56. Use your letter to sell. Your letter is your sales person. It's job is to deliver a one-to-one sales pitch. It should aim for the gut or for the heart, not for the head. Use your brochure to relay factual or logical supporting information. 57. Make a personal connection. A letter should be personal, honest, easy-going, warm and friendly. It should sound like one friend writing to another, not like the guy selling slicer-dicers in the mall. 58. Make your message clear. The number one rule for any form of communication is to be crystal clear. Don't be cute. Don't try to impress. Don't preach, rant, or ramble. Try this: pick up your phone, call a friend, and explain in 30 seconds what you're selling. Then hang up and write down what you said. See how clear and straightforward you are? Why be any other way in your letter? 59. Be persuasive. A common mistake of writers without significant direct experience is that they forget what a direct mail package is supposed to do. You can't be ashamed to sell. Your letter must be powerfully persuasive. It must engage readers, hold their attention, create an overwhelming desire to buy, and initiate an immediate action. 60. Make sure your letter looks like a letter. There are lots of ways you can play with the design of a letter, adding pictures, big type, and eye catching design. I've done it. And so should you, for certain mailings. However, most letters work best when they look like a simple, personal message. Don't be afraid to just write a good, solid, plain-looking letter and mail it. It works. 61. Talk about your prospect's wants and needs. Your prospects don't care a jot or tittle about you or your company, which is why you shouldn't spend time in your letter beating your chest about your capabilities. Talk to your prospects about what they want and how that want can be filled with an immediate reply. 62. Use Dean's "Stop or Go Test." Circle references to you in red ink (words and phrases like "we," "us," "our," etc.) Then circle references to your customer in green ink ( "you" and "your"). If you see mostly red, stop. Your letter needs a rewrite. If it's mostly green, go with it. 63. Don't overdo the personalization. Using a person's name in the salutation is one thing. Using it every other sentence makes people feel like they're getting a slick sales pitch. People aren't impressed by your knowing their name. A few might even be annoyed that you use it so freely, like you actually know them. Be personal, but don't get too cozy with people you don't really know. 64. Follow a logical sales sequence. There are as many kinds of sales letter styles as there are writers, but I recommend this basic sequence for most letters.
65. If you use envelope teaser copy, make a thematic link to the envelope. Whatever idea you set up on your envelope should pay off at the beginning of your letter (not your brochure). The envelope and letter function together as the personal, selling part of your mailing, while the brochure and other pieces act as sales aids. You can ask a question on your envelope and answer it in the first line of your letter. You can restate the envelope teaser in different words as a letter headline. You can even repeat your envelope teaser word for word to link the letter and the envelope visually. 66. Design your letter so it looks easy to read. Everything should not only be short; it should look short, too. Most sentences should be no more than 20 words. No paragraph should be longer than 7 lines. Single sentence paragraphs are fine, here and there for emphasis. If necessary, break a paragraph in two, regardless of the subject matter. Single space paragraphs and double space between paragraphs. Use indents, subheads, bullet lists, a second color, 10 or 12-point serif type, and anything else that makes reading look easy and inviting. 67. Be direct and to the point. Despite the wonderful style some writers can create, most letters actually work best when they get to the point quickly and plainly. Just remember what you're selling. A stylish magazine is selling its style, so a playful letter is appropriate. But if you're selling a line of ball bearings, you're better off getting to the point. 68. Use the shortest letter possible to make a sale. Long copy works for reader-oriented or information rich products like books, magazines, and newsletter. However, these days, you could be mailing to business people (who don't have time for long letters), kids (who react to pictures more than words), or visually-oriented people, like designers (who don't like to read much at all). You might even be doing lead generation, where long copy is a killer. Consider your audience carefully and don't apply long copy rules blindly. 69. Use a friendly, conversational tone. Your letter should help you bond with your prospect. In real life you do this by being open, honest, friendly, and not too pushy. The same works in a letter. Your letter is a sales pitch, but more people will buy from you if they think of you as their friend. Use conversational writing: personal pronouns, contractions, incomplete sentences, loose grammar, and just plain talk. 70. Sound down-to-earth and believable. If you're selling a get-rich-quick scheme, you can get away with a "hucksterish" patter. Your audience wants to believe the unbelievable. However, most people respond best to a straight-arrow style. Don't put on an act, just write like you talk. 71. Use hotpoints to your advantage. Few people read letters start-to-finish. Most people skim. Some just scan. Hot points include the headline, salutation, first sentence, subheads, signature, and the P.S. These parts should tell a complete story by themselves |