Here’s Part II of the amazing Halley’s Comet commemorative coin case study.
It’s the ESSENCE of what being a COMPLETE marketer is all about. [Continue reading]
“Do You Come From Royal Blood, ? This has been one DYNAMITE appeal for Ancestry.com which takes in $1 billion a year in sales... according to its new owners, Blackstone Inc., the international private equity behemoth that now makes the "vampire … [Continue reading]
Some people balk at the slightly dated look of these Newsmax landers. … [Continue reading]
This entry is about a fantastic marketer - not the celebrity talk show host who took the opportunity to lampoon the marketer's survival seed bank short-form infomercial. While few recall this early 2010 episode, the company mocked before millions … [Continue reading]
I had an acquaintance named Ira when I lived in Tucson. He had a wry sense of humor, but swore this actually happened. Ira was traveling through Heathrow Airport during the era of The Troubles and was stopped by security after passing through … [Continue reading]
Talk about a jolting lead. This one is right up there with some of the best story selling ads ever to hit a mailbox. It had a long mailing track record. … [Continue reading]
In the mid-1980s, Gevalia was on the cusp of breaking into the North American market. The venerable Swedish brand, with a storied history, began running double-page spreads like this one alongside the pioneering launch of the subscription model … [Continue reading]
Here's another DPS (double page spread) from the once mighty Time-Life Books. Full expose coming soon on the downfall of this one-time direct response selling dynamo. … [Continue reading]
You don't run full-color double-page spreads in print unless an ad is bringing home the bacon. This one has been going strong since early 2024. … [Continue reading]
I vividly recall sitting in the cavernous conference room for the Glazer-Kenney-Insider Circle Summit at the Sheraton Park Central Hotel in Dallas in 2005. The big red banner on the wall of the conference room read: … [Continue reading]
Mere book on offer? No way. Here's a headline that dimensionalizes what would otherwise be a prosaic promo. And it was a hit on both sides of the Atlantic, starting with The Observer in December 1968 through the Chicago Tribune in June 1974. … [Continue reading]
Where are the fancy design elements in this package? The elaborate sidebars? The captivating photos? None to be found here. And this one hails from one of the world's most prestigious medical centers. … [Continue reading]
"Defiant Child?" is one of the all-time great ads with a compact, two-word headline — right up there with "Better Than Botox?" — and it’s also a keeper in the area of winning lead generation. While this ad lacked that level of gravitas, it … [Continue reading]
Here's a successful envelope package received multiple times from 2022 through 2024. The headline is commonplace in this market and is often attributed to Russian-born French bacteriologist and Nobel prize winner, Élie Metchnikoff … [Continue reading]
You wouldn't think there's enough readership in a general circulation newspaper nowadays for a fisherman's stream and lake map. And yet this insertion runs in 2025. Mind you, this is no ordinary map -- and that comes screaming through loud and … [Continue reading]
What could be more emasculating than wandering into a proper pub in the UK or Ireland and ordering a cup of tea? Well, if you're a teetotaler like me -- 6 years and counting -- you don't pay it much mind. But wearing a bright yellow "Drive on … [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]
When it comes to "Free + Shipping" direct response, you can't beat NewsMax. You know the drill. … [Continue reading]
Veteran marketing maven, Ray Schultz, relates this story on his TellAllMarketing Blog about John Stevenson and his renowned copywriter. … [Continue reading]
Hey I tried it already... And she laughed in my face! But seriously, it's important to pay attention not just to copy, products and offers... but to media. And it's not everyday you'd see a full page ad for a Nightingale-Conant product in … [Continue reading]
Bill Bonner is the undisputed heavyweight champ of enargia in copywriting. Enargia may not flow off the tip of the tongue, but this word of Greek origin for "vividness," has a great track record for selling, both in direct mail and in … [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 2024. … [Continue reading]
I have a big "mea culpa" for this entry. There's no envelope and no order form for this HOT high ticket offer. Or to be more precise, I think they can be located, but it'll take a minor archeological expedition to locate them in my archival … [Continue reading]
Here's your typical penny pitch for one of the industries du jour - lithium. And this package, like just about every direct mail package for penny stocks, is really a Trojan Horse. … [Continue reading]
I've run across clients on both sides of the Atlantic who have a fetish for what is proper. "This isn't a supper club!" I shot back at one. "We're here to sell." … [Continue reading]