I was just watching Louis Navallier's VSL for "How to Survive [and Even Thrive] In Socialist America..." And then this blast from the past, focusing on the Stock Market Downturn of 2002, with a young looking Louis N, crosses my path. He references … [Continue reading]
This was a successful lead generation ad from the late George Fontanills, founder of Optionetics. Fontanills led seminars across North America for his options trading products and subscription services. This was a solid, successful seminar ad … [Continue reading]
Street cred doesn't get any better than this in direct response selling. This case study may be from 1981 but the SELLING POWER of a proof element like this transcends time and markets... And I'll never grow tired of it. … [Continue reading]
Hide the warts or show the warts? Not every product or service begs the question. But for those promoters who aren't nameless, faceless service providers and product pitchers... It's a vital question that can have an impact on your bottom … [Continue reading]
Rodale was built on the back of direct response copywriting since the early days in the 1940s when J.I. Rodale advertised farming and gardening books in display advertising. … [Continue reading]
I know what you may be thinking, . How does anyone in his right mind (even an ad archivist) stumble on noteworthy ads from over a century ago? … [Continue reading]
Here's some of the finest advertising you'll find in the higher education for the masses arena... With the fine art of long form direct response. You can't help but walk away with a plethora of great ideas when you dig into the exciting … [Continue reading]
For my money, this phase of Gene Schwartz's career is close to his apex. I recently read (August 2023) that the landmark mail order book, How To Double Your Child's Grades In School, sold over 800,000 copies worldwide in multiple languages, but … [Continue reading]
It's hard to keep a good ad down. And this full page ad for Dr. Sears' "Re-Nourish" formula dominated the pages of print for two solid years from August of 2020 to September of 2022. Al Sears has spent decades and millions establishing himself … [Continue reading]
"Would you spend $5 to feel like a million?*" was a 1990's BREAKTHROUGH headline. The product? "MDR Fitness Tabs." The product was basically a rebranded vitamin with AM and PM formulas. And yet, this simple vitamin ad with the DYNAMITE … [Continue reading]
Here's the Fall 2023 package for a joint pain promo that's got it all. It has all the energy and sophistication of this landmark joint pain print ad... which ran be the thousands between 2009 and 2012. Obviously, you can tell a LOT more with 24 … [Continue reading]
This isn't so much a market as... a mindset, a mood and a zeitgeist. Bottom Line isn't selling a mere book -- they're selling FREEDOM, independence, mobility, vitality and as the French say, "joie de vivre." Remember the "ancestor" to this … [Continue reading]
This marketer excels at the risk free trial offer in health & beauty, here's their latest. Here's their winning weight loss offer arriving in a mailbox near you in early 2023. "Dear Lawrence, Do you try to cut down on carbs, but always … [Continue reading]
Australia only has a population of 25 million people. By comparison to the United States with 331 million, Brazil with 214 million and even the UK with 67 million people... It's a tiny country. But after having worked closely with several … [Continue reading]
Here's the latest mailbox hit for a crescendoing theme of today... right alongside lithium stocks. And copy doesn't get any harder hitting than that of this 50 years (and counting!) newsletter publisher. "The Insider Guide to Accelerated Wealth … [Continue reading]
Despite my hardheadedness when it comes to grasping the finer points of Eugene Schwartz's Breakthrough Advertising, I owe my understanding about the stages of market sophistication to good 'ol Gene. And one of these days, I'm gonna sit down and … [Continue reading]
Even on those days when I feel jaded about the state of direct response -- yes, I'm a hopeless nostalgist -- all I need to do is break open a classic magalog like this to buoy my spirits. And after this last week of packing up my ad archive and … [Continue reading]
I recall sitting up in the third row center (my preferred Broadway theater seating too!) during Gary Bencivenga's 2005 Retirement Seminar when I heard this life changing marketing quote: “We Are Not in the Newsletter Business… We Are in the … [Continue reading]
Joe Karbo’s Lazy Man’s Way To Riches is one of the GREAT self-publishing success stories. His ubiquitous print ads sold over two and a half MILLION copies of his book by 1980 and had insertions in everything from The Wall Street Journal to biz-op … [Continue reading]
Here's an ad with traction on both sides of the Atlantic in mid-2023. Joe Sugarman was the trailblazer for mass marketing breakthrough gadgets with nothing more than the power of his pen. I miss Joe and just realized it's exactly 20 years ago when … [Continue reading]
Barry Kaye was a four decade fixture in direct response advertising in the areas of insurance, taxation, wealth creation and seminar marketing. Here's a great piece of lead generation from the early 1980s that highlights Barry Kaye Associates' … [Continue reading]
This tabloid sized magalog was a mailbox winner a few seasons back for Bottom Line Inc's The Ultimate Women's Guide to Beating Disease and Living a Happy, Active Life. This is a now the publisher's perennial hit in the women's health market and in … [Continue reading]
Gene Schwartz secured his spot in the pantheon of direct response legends long ago. But today some question: Would Schwartz’s style of “giant claim” copy -- some would say crazy claims -- work in the light of day of 2025? … [Continue reading]
Here's a hearing aid insertion making the rounds in mid-2023. It's got that cloak and dagger feel in the headline. As with most advertising in this market, avoiding the embarrassment of wearing old school hearing aids takes front and center … [Continue reading]
I originally wrote this entry about Kevin Trudeau around 2015 when KT was heading for the slammer for eight years. So you'll understand what seems like an unusual headline today. When a promoter operates in DRTV and does anything in the make … [Continue reading]