2 schools of advertising:
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Brand awareness (most people think this is marketing) - Billboards, 30 second TV commercials, print ads, witty jingles, cute slogans
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Direct response - Like "infomercials", you must respond directly to the ad to take advantage of what is offered. You call a specific number set up for tracking.
With direct response, you know how much the ads are making i.e. which sales tactics work.
Wrtiting a sales pitch that prompts action now, not later. A direct response copywriter is a salesperson in print that gets 3%-7% commission on top of the $5,000 base pay to write the copy.
It started a long time ago with "mail order catalogues". Businesses place ads inside them, which are then mailed to 100,000 people, who send their orders via mail.
2% conversion rate is enough for a campaign to be successful.
"Beat the control"
Control is the best performing ad, and the goal is to alter the copy until the new ad becomes the control.
Emotionally compelling primary promise + delivery mechanism = Intellectually interesting appeal (big idea)
Intellectually interesting appeal (big idea) = How doest the primary promise work with the delivery mechanism
Delivery mechanism = gimmick, hook Makes the common seem novel
| Delivery mechanism | Promise |
|---|---|
| 4 hour work-week | Escape 9-5 |
| Muscle confusion | P90X workout |
| Astronaut's nutrient | Vitamin D supplement |
| Secret currency | Gold investing newsletter |
| Batman gun | 1,435% gain |
| Secret "$50 Marijuana stock blueprint…" | Turn a single $50 into a massive fortune |
| "Dark trades" the anonymous trades behind every major stock move | Collect $80k in a matter of days |
| "Wiretapping" America's richest investors | Turn $2,000 into $10 million |
| Mysterious "Fingerprints of God" confirmed inside human cells | Prevent diseases like Alzheimer's and diabetes |
| Gold skimming | Get paid for every ounce of gold pulled from the ground |
| New "Gene Hacking" technology ends all disease | Get in on a ground-breaking IPO investment |
| FDA anomaly "God Key" | Get in on a stock that could go to 35,000% by January 12 |
Bank 1,435% (or more) on Law Enforcement's new "BATMAN GUN" The only truly non-lethal tool for police, military and security forces that's about to put tasers out of business