1. Direct Marketing
Association
Creative
Master class
October 3, 2011
Herschell Gordon Lewis
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2. Sorry, you won’t hear them
during this diatribe:
• Paradigm • At the end of the
• Proactive day
• Win-win • Core competency
• Game plan • Think outside the
• 24/7 box
• Fast track • Knowledge-based
• Customer-centric • On the same page
Trends for the 21st
century:
1. Increasing informality
2. Increasingly emphatic
persuasion
3. Inclusion of validation
4. Promise of fast action
The Internet is primarily
responsible for all four trends.
They apply to both e-mail and
Website copy and have bled
over to all media.
NOTE: The dynamics of e-mail
and Web site differ because
email arrives unannounced and
Website copy usually is the
result of a search mechanism.
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3. The edge direct has over
other mass media is the
edge action has over
branding.
That means:
Recall is a weak
substitute for a
transactional response.
A “Daily Deal” has to pay off fast.
Look at this one. Click and get…
This. Click
on Ft.
Lauderdale
and get…
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4. This. Enter email address and get…
This. Click on “Continue” and get…
This, a repeat. Re-enter email
address and get…
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5. This, proof that IT people aren’t
salespeople. “Subscribe” and get…
This, a “Huh?” that would have anyone
deleting. OK, re-enter email and one more click:
It’s a perfect test of patience.
Typical reaction: “Goodbye forever.”
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6. Example of recall –
Ten minutes after listing, test
subjects were asked to recall
these automobile names:
Tiger
Presto
Xecrovtu
Holiday
Sunlight
No surprise…
By a huge margin, the
one most recalled was:
Xecrovtu
Adjustments in
marketing for “difficult
times” :
1. Acknowledge tough times
2. Emphasize sincerity and
rapport
3. Wallow in statesmanship –
“You don’t have to give up
your lifestyle.”
4. Specify apparent proof
5. Imperative, not declarative
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7. If you take nothing else
away from this session,
remember this:
Imperative
outpulls
declarative.
Careful –
The amount of
perceived
imperative alters
receptivity:
Front of postcard
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8. Combination of “official”
notice and threatening tone
“Let’s”
leads convivially…
“You should”
shows authority…
“You must”
can generate
resentment…
all for the same directive.
Prospective buyers
always will
interpret an
unclear statement
in a way that’s
most beneficial to
themselves.
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9. That is why The
Clarity
Commandment is
more significant
now than ever
before in
marketing history.
The Clarity Commandment:
When you choose words and
phrases for
force-communication, clarity
is paramount.
Don’t let any other
component of the
communications mix
interfere with it.
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