Lots of brands in the book publishing world have seen meteoric rises only to fade out with time.
Here are a few that come to mind.
Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus
Chicken Soup for the Soul
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
To be sure, these flagship books which spun off a parade of products, seminars, and coaching and consulting programs are still around but their heydays have since passed.
But this brand keeps trudging on.
What is it? [Continue reading]
Ogilvy's copy laden corporate advertising from the halcyon days STILL has staying power today. David Ogilvy's brother-in-law, Rosser Reeves, may be remembered as the father of REASON WHY advertising, but every Fortune 500 ad that came out of … [Continue reading]
The eye supplements category may not be as prominent as blood sugar, digestion or joint pain but, it's a bustling market with an endless supply of prospects looking for an edge with dietary supplementation. This visually impressive magalog for … [Continue reading]
Audio-Forum ran this campaign for TWENTY solid years, starting in 1977. The great Don Hauptman was the genius behind it. ¿See that inverted exclamation point at the beginning of the headline? Quoting Rodney Dangerfield... ¡That little … [Continue reading]
Here's a breakthrough ad that's had over 4,000 insertions since August of 2020. The supplements market in newspaper print is a mere shell of what it was in mid-2019 because of the collapse in newsstand sales. Only the strongest advertisers have … [Continue reading]
Emails started hitting my inbox for swipes as the price of oil has begun to surge heading into mid-2021. This one from five years ago was a BIG mailbox hit. It's certainly one of the most memorable one-word headlines in direct mail … [Continue reading]
You've got a paying subscriber to a newsletter or a membership site. Now what? Here's a short and sweet 4-page promo to paying subscribers, offering them a one year subscription extension when they respond for a $179 manual. And if "Yes, … [Continue reading]
“A gifted product is mightier than a gifted pen.” Gary "the Great" Bencivenga laid this zinger on the direct response world in 2004 in his Bullets and expanded on it in his Retirement Seminar, a year later. (I'm looking at the quarter ounce … [Continue reading]
You may recall the “H-Bomb on Paper” response booster, . It was the secret weapon for many "in the know" print advertisers for what seemed like eons. (By the way, I swiped this concept many times, including for a postcard campaign during … [Continue reading]
Here's a red blooded trading pitch (from a few administrations ago) that's a hodgepodge of several successful direct response headlines, sub-heads and product names, including the redoubtable "Little Black Book." You'll notice there's a good deal … [Continue reading]
When you've got a direct mail package that's killing it in the mail, it makes sense to give it a roll in print. Of course, this ad from the mid-2000s wouldn't be a likely newspaper insertion in 2021. … [Continue reading]
What a great lead with a WIDE fishing net... ready to pull in almost any reader. You can certainly see the influence of Paul Michael's amazingly evergreen, “How You Can Make a Killing in Coins” in this direct mail package. Few writers can … [Continue reading]
Winning wealth creation packages never get old! And when it comes to Napoleon Hill, there's always the next generation poised to discover yesteryear's treasure trove. You've gotta love the envelope teaser copy. • How a strong SEX DRIVE could … [Continue reading]
Marketers in countless industries are captivated by and rely on direct response. The great thing about direct response is once you've think you've "seen it all"... something NEW will come along and grab your attention. Ditto for the boredom … [Continue reading]
If there's one thing you can learn from copy in the coins and currency market, it's how to tap into nostalgia and the collector's spirit. Here's a current 2021 offer for 1776–1976 Eisenhower Bicentennial Dollar 20-Coin Rolls. GovMint.com is one … [Continue reading]
In many ways, things were simpler in the marketing world 25 years ago. One of the highlights of that simpler era was the JPDK marketing model -- the Jeff Paul-Dan Kennedy model. What was the JPDK model? … [Continue reading]
Welcome to the heart of self-help! If you want to know more about evergreen products (and pitches) that sell... you've come to the right place. This is as evergreen as it gets. … [Continue reading]
There's no shortage of trading pitches either online or in direct mail. But this one boasts a BIG idea that makes it memorable, years after it successfully mailed. The headline is ingenious. Why? Because this clever copywriter has already … [Continue reading]
Here's a 2021 spin on a mature market familiar to all of us in direct response -- the copywriting game. With the draconian public health restrictions (at last!) beginning to recede (at least in many parts of the States) it's time to get back to in … [Continue reading]
This is without a doubt one of the GREAT food membership newsletters that rides along with members' quarterly product shipments. And it hails from one of the greatest advertising copywriters ever to pick up a pen. … [Continue reading]
Here's a seminar marketing classic from Dan Kennedy and company from the halcyon days of the info summits. What can you learn from this package? Building a BIG, familiar, over-arching THEME that ties everything together... and makes for one FUN … [Continue reading]
For educational advertising and home study marketing that SELLS -- this company is the gold standard. … [Continue reading]
This ad for an unusual supplement product... ear drops... continues its niche success in 2021. The product is one that most prospects in the hearing market are unaware of -- drops that can help with hearing. This early stage of market … [Continue reading]
What can I say? I'm as partial to British English as I am to alliteration... so maths it is. You could just as easily call this Direct Response Vs. Everything Else. Math Magic was classic winning direct response advertising. … [Continue reading]
Ah, Las Vegas... only marketing conferences and children's chess tournaments ever bring me there these days. But I vividly remember wandering around the bustling Electronic Retail Association conference at the Wynn in 2011. Matthew Lesko, the … [Continue reading]