Those of us in marketing, advertising and business have one thing in common. One way or another, eventually we deal with the frailty of the human condition. This ad is a mini masterclass in it. … [Continue reading]
Here's a lesson or two in selling high end real estate... from David Ogilvy's son! (UPDATE: Mr. Ogilvy passed away on February 3, 2020 at 77 years old after a long and stellar career.) David Ogilvy, son of the famous advertising legend of the … [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 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]
Unlike the slew of newspaper supplement ads over the last 15 years, with indistinguishable, clone-like design and formatting... This resveratrol (vinotrol) ad was one of the rare print ad triumphs at a time when online display and direct mail were … [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]
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 is from July of 2023. Mind you, this is no ordinary map -- and that comes screaming through … [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]
Times and technology may change. But business development rarely shifts from its main axis of MORE offers... in front of MORE customers and prospects... MORE often. CDs or audio-cassettes... the choice is yours! … [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 is a textbook AREA exclusive, high ticket offer from back when GKIC was in the heat of promoting local chapters for sale. Essentially they were locally based "clones" of the Glazer-Kennedy Insider's Circle business. … [Continue reading]
Here are some hard won secrets for selling in the golf market... From one of the ablest marketers of our time. … [Continue reading]
You'll notice this April 1997 insertion in Ladies' Home Journal is little different than this version of the ad few months later in Better Homes and Gardens. It's not an exaggeration to say the writer's market straddles the line between business … [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]
Talk about copy that transcends the product for sale. Take a look at this one. This is how you sell a $199 coin by mail order. … [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 2023? … [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]
The average direct response guy or gal would say of this ad: "Where's the copy?" And old school admen would pull their hair out over the almost illegible reverse type. No matter. This advertiser absolutely NAILS the appeal. … [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]
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]