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The great mystery of the Sales Letter PostScript©
Tony Attwood 2006. The
extracts from sales letters that are reprinted here must not be re-used in any
form without permission of the copyright owner. In a sales letter the only thing that is
more important than the PS is the headline. The headline grabs attention, and makes
the reader think, yes I want to read this. So
the reader starts reading – but what then? Most people who get attracted by the
headline then read the opening line or so of the direct mail piece, and then
start skipping as they feel the urge to get to the end and find out what all
this is about. Of course if you tell
them what it is all about in the opening sentence (that is, by saying to them
THIS IS MY PRODUCT – BUY IT NOW) then they will have a good reason to stop
reading at that point. But let’s
assume you don’t do that. But where this sort of error is avoided
and the letter really is of interest to the reader, the reader will start
skipping, typically reading the first few words of each paragraph. As a result of this, the context and
substance of the letter gradually gets more and more lost, and eventually the
reader thinks, “what on earth is all this about?” So the reader skips to the end, and
perhaps finds a PS. If not,
the reader gives up, and all is lost, but if there is a PS the reader will quite
likely read it. The three types of PS
Now there are three types of PS a)
the PS that repeats what was said before – as
in “Don’t forget, we have limited stock so order now!!!”
This really doesn’t do or say much and is unlikely to stimulate a
re-reading. b)
the PS that just gives a phone number – as
in, “If you would like to know any more about this work, please do not
hesitate to call me on 01536 399 000”. Yes
well, if I was excited I would be looking for the phone number on the headed
paper anyway, so not much new here. c)
the PS that throws you back into the letter. This final type of PS is the big
challenge, and there are many ways of meeting this challenge.
One is the PS that reads: PS: Of course it is just possible
there is another reason why you haven’t asked for our free inspection copy of
this book. If you don’t feel
inclined to request a copy today could I ask you to let me know why? That is an interesting challenge because if you have just flipped
through to that point you might just think – “why didn’t I ask for
this?” Or you might feel
inclined to say “I’ll tell them what I think of them…” but then have to
go back and remind yourself what it is all about. Here’s a different one: PS:
And then there is another hidden extra.
People who go on courses tend to come back refreshed and willing to share
their knowledge with others. They
are enthused and pass their enthusiasm to those around them.
That way everyone benefits. This PS gives an extra reason – but an extra reason for what?
It sounds good and exciting, but to fully appreciate it, you have to know
what was being talked about – so you go back and read again. A completely different approach comes with stressing a bonus... PS: All copies of the report come
with a free CD which you can copy into any word processor and so change it as
you wish. It also includes a
complete set of policies for you to slot in your own business’ name and then
use as your own. What is happening here is that extra benefits that look good are being
added without quite telling us what the product was – you need to go back and
find that. In fact this last example
is one that had a dramatic effect on a mailing.
Two versions of the promotion were produced, one with the PS and one
without, and each mailed to 250 test addresses out of a total list of 25,000.
The one without the PS got zero sales, the one with the PS got 2%.
This was enough to warrant a complete run of the 25000 strong mailing
list and generated a profit of over £20000 – a profit that would have been
lost had version A been used. The
PS that makes no sense
Finally we come to the more enigmatic PS’s.
I have wondered from time to time whether I actually invented this notion
myself – the PS that really has very little to do with the entire piece, but
which makes the reader really take notice, simply because it makes so little
sense. I don’t recall seeing
others before I came on the scene – maybe this is my contribution to
literature. One of my earliest attempts was… PS:
And you know, she never did. Not only did sales go up, but a lot of people enquired as to what on
earth I was talking about. This led on to PS: No horsemen will call I actually meant this as a spoof on the day time TV adverts in which the
elderly viewer is assured that no salesman will call.
But my readership took this as something to do with the four horsemen of
the apocalypse. The joke ran
for nearly a year and got sillier as it went, as in this example... PS:
You can read more about life at the Toppled Bollard at www.toppled.info
You can buy mailing lists on line at www.hamilton-house.com
You can get blown about on a windy day at the end of Southend Pier, and
you can talk about how to get higher response rates in direct mail by calling us
on 01536 399 000. No
horseman will call. In the end I got fed up with it.
Then regular recipients of the Hamilton House sales letter started to
write in and complain that I had dropped the horsemen and not given any
explanation. What it is worth remembering is that this is direct mail we are talking
about – junk mail that you throw in the bin – and people are writing to me
about the detail of my PS. Makes
you think. Tony Attwood PS: I don’t suggest that
you go charging into bizarre PS’s especially if you are writing dead straight
sales letters – but if there is a little joke somewhere in what you write, the
PS can add to the fun. Otherwise,
I would suggest you write a PS which is in category c) – it throws you back
in. Doesn’t it? |