Double Your Profits

Double Your Profits in 12 Months or Less

177 Surprising Direct Response Secrets
That DOUBLE My Clients’ Profits In A Year
And QUADRUPLE Them In 36 Months!
By Clayton Makepeace

Copyright © 2007 by The Profit Center LLC

PO Box 750
Waynesville, NC 28786
1-800-827-0940 (U.S.)
1-828-456-9277 (Int'l)

First Printing: November, 2005

All rights reserved.

To claim a FREE subscription to

The Profit Center’s weekly e-newsletter,
THE TOTAL PACKAGE
point your browser to:
www.MakepeaceTotalPackage.Com

Double Your Profits

 3

Table Of Contents
Acknowledgements
Page 6
Introduction
Page 7
Chapter One:
Is Yours a Smart Company? Or a DUMB One?
Make this one simple change in how you think about your
company, and you’ll multiply your profits in record time!
Page 11
Chapter Two:
How Smart Companies Can DOUBLE Revenues
and Profits In 12 Months or Less
This “30 Percent Solution” has helped me quadruple sales
and profits for four companies and boost sales by up to
4,400% in one year!
Page 17
Chapter Three:
Direct Response ‘Rythmitic: The Third ‘R’
19 Numbers Every Direct Response marketer and Copy
writer MUST KNOW!
Page 33
Chapter Four:
How I Make My Clients Richer
8 ways business owners, marketing execs and copywriters
can produce bigger winners more often!
Page 51
Chapter Five:
Boost Your Internet Sales 1,000% In 90 Days or LESS
3 “Waking Nightmares” stalking Internet marketers
now ...The one missing ingredient that can easily multiply
the response to most web promotions today ...A revealing
one-second IQ test for web marketers ... And more!
Page 63
Chapter Six:
Maximum Internet Marketing
How I bagged $5 million in internet sales in 5 short
weeks!
Page 75

Clayton Makepeace
 4

Chapter Seven:
The Human Brain: An Owners Manual
My most savage productivity-killers -and the 4 mental
tricks that ramp up my productivity … help me explode
through creative logjams … and get bigger winners, more
often
Page 83
Chapter Eight:
Face Your Fears!
Your #1 obstacle to turning your dreams into reality –
and how to kick its fanny!
Page 95
Chapter Nine:
Grab Your Prospect By The Eyeballs
-Three powerful ways to write a killer headline for your ad
-Three easy ways to supercharge any head …
-Six-question “Litmus Test” for headlines you’re working
on now … Plus 30 Great Headline Idea-Starters
Page 103
Chapter Ten:
How To Create a Killer Ad
21 tips, tricks and tactics: key lessons learned from 34
years in the trenches.
Page 113
Chapter Eleven:
The Simple Secret That Turns Good Sales Copy Into Great
Copy ...
And great copy into a WINDFALL for direct response mar-
keters and copywriters.
Page 131
Chapter Twelve:
TURBOCHARGE Your Ads!
How business owners and marketing execs can make
good sales copy great and how "B" copywriters can be-
come "A" writers in 4 easy lessons!
Page 141
Chapter Thirteen:
Sidebar Madness
Why Sidebars Matter … Dumb Sidebars – Where Even
Seasoned Copywriters Go Wrong … 21 Smart Sidebars
That Invariably Increase Readership and Response … And
MORE!
Page 147

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Chapter Fourteen:
15 More Ways To Create Bigger Winners More Often
Great Stuff For Today’s Challenging Financial Markets
Page 157
Chapter Fifteen:
Direct Response Graphic Design 101
The 3 Types of Graphic Designers – And The ONLY One
You Ever Want to Hire plus ... How to Become A GREAT
Designer In 3 Easy Steps plus ... The 2 Simple Things A
Designer Must Do To Create Bigger Winners, More Often
plus 4 Graphics Secrets for Generating Maximum Atten-
tion-Getting Power plus ... 10 Design Strategies for Get-
ting Your Promotions READ and responded to And More!
Page 175
Chapter Sixteen:
Scary LEGAL Issues You NEED to Know About
3 Golden Rules for avoiding most legal nightmares ... 4
MORE secrets for KEEPING the millions you're going to
make as a savvy business owner, marketing exec or
copywriter ... And MORE!
Page 187
Chapter Seventeen:
Answers to Your Most Pressing Questions About Getting
Bigger Winners ...And More!
How to become a better marketer … Writing for the Inter-
net vs. direct mail … What to do when you have no testi-
monials … How new copywriters get gigs ... 5 ways to get
your envelopes opened … Long copy or short copy –
what’s best? … Do you have to be an American to make it
as a copywriter here? … Warm and fuzzy vs. hard-hitting
copy: Which is best? … Why I’m really doing this … And
(as they say), Much, MUCH MORE!
Page 203

About The Author Page 215

Direct Response Marketing Glossary

Page 223
Recommended Reading
Page 233

Clayton Makepeace
 6

Dedication…..
Here at The Profit Center™, you, my friend, are a certified
hero.

Small and home-based business folks like you are the

single most powerful engines of any growing economy.

Here in America, our 25 million small businesses –

companies with fewer than 500 employees -- generate
the vast majority of all new jobs … all new technical
innovations … and all economic growth in this country
each year. Far more than all the Fortune 500 companies
put together!

Every member of The Profit Center™ staff is honored to

be your partner in innovating powerful new ways to
attract new customers … in boosting sales to each
customer … in creating quantum growth for you… and in
multiplying your profits.

Every Profit Center™ product – from the ad writing and

marketing tools on this site and our FREE e-letters -- to
our EasyWriters Marketing Club™, books, courses,
teleseminars and live events – is painstakingly designed
to overdeliver for you: To bring you the greatest quantity
and quality of proven response boosting tips, tricks and
techniques available to you at any price.

Put simply, our success is measured by your success.

So please: Enjoy this book—and let us know how it helps

you. Just drop me a line at
Feedback@makepeacetotalpackage.com.

Yours for Bigger Winners, More Often,

Clayton Makepeace
Publisher & Editor, The Total Package tm
www.makepeacetotalpackage.com

Double Your Profits

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Introduction
Whether you are a business owner, a marketing pro,
a copywriter, or any other flavor of business builder, I
know for a fact that the ideas in this book can easily dou-
ble your sales revenues and profits by this time next year.
My name is Clayton Makepeace — and in many of my
34 years as a marketing consultant and direct response
copywriter, I have generated well over $100 million in
sales for my clients – all told, well over $1 billion so far ...
In the early 1980s, these idea helped Security Rare
Coin jump from 35 to 350 employees – and from
$3.5 million to well over $120 million in sales – in lit-
tle over a year ...
In the mid– to late 1980s, these ideas helped
Blanchard & Company quadruple its sales to over
$115 million, and then allowed the owner to cash out
for tens of millions of dollars ...
In the early 1990s, I used them to help Phillips
Publishing attract two million new, paying subscribers
in three years ...
Between 1999 and 2003, these secrets helped
Weiss Research quadruple the size of its customer file
and made Safe Money Report the largest publication
of its kind …
And right now, I’m using these strategies to multi-
ply revenues and profits for one of the internet’s
most successful marketers of income-boosting ser-
vices and for an up-and-coming marketer of nutri-
tional supplements.
Yes, the companies I’ve helped to exponential growth
have been direct response companies — companies that
conduct business through the mail, over the telephone or
on the Internet.
The way I see it, just about every company in Amer-
ica is — or should be — a direct response marketer.

Clayton Makepeace
 8

Why? Because to grow, every business in the world

— including yours — must:
1) Attract more customers and/or
2) Sell more things to existing customers.
It doesn’t really matter what kind of business you’re
growing. It may be a local dry cleaning establishment, a
restaurant or an automobile dealership ...
It could be a real estate business, a consulting com-
pany, a practice for a doctor, lawyer, accountant or other
professional … a publishing company … a B2B enterprise …
or even a charitable organization.
To grow, every organization in existence must attract
more customers and enlarge the stream of money flowing
from them to you.
And the simple truth is, direct response marketing is
by far the quickest, most effective way to attract more
customers and sell more things to them.
Direct response marketing is measurable marketing.
One hundred percent of the people who receive your sales
message will either say “yes” or “no”... and because those
responses are measurable, they give you enormous power
to grow your business.
You know the source of every customer and every
dollar that flows to you. You know precisely how much
money it costs you to create a new customer. And you
know exactly how many profit dollars each marketing dol-
lar you invest will bring you.
You also know which products, offers and sales ap-
proaches produce revenues and profits at the lowest cost
— and that nifty little feature also allows you to fine tune
your promotions — sharpening them until they are as cost-
efficient and as profitable as is humanly possible.
That is why I say I know these secrets can at least
double your profits. They have consistently done so for
every one of my clients — and are doing so every day.
Of course, it would be impossible to condense every-
Double Your Profits
 9

thing I’ve learned in more than three decades of business-

building into a single volume. That’s why, in June of 2005,
I began publishing THE TOTAL PACKAGE — my weekly e-
newsletter.
Every Monday, THE TOTAL PACKAGE delivers power-
ful, proven, business-building ideas to thousands of busi-
ness owners and marketing pros across America and
around the world. In fact, each of the chapters in this
book originally appeared in THE TOTAL PACKAGE.
So if you like what you see in this book and would
like to get these kinds of profit-doubling tips, tricks and
techniques every week from now on, why not join us?
Just point your browser to:
www.MakepeaceTotalPackage.Com
Oh — and did I mention that your subscription is
free?
So please — sit back and enjoy … unless I miss my
guess, this little book is about to help you create greater
growth than you ever thought possible.
Yours for Bigger Winners, More Often,
— CLAYTON MAKEPEACE

Clayton Makepeace
10

Double Your Profits

 11

-- Chapter One --

Is Yours a
Smart Company?
… Or a DUMB One?
Make this one simple change
in how you THINK about your company,
and you’ll multiply your profits
in record time!

In the 1980s, I agreed to help the owner of a small

company grow his business — and within three years, we
had more than 120,000 paying customers. Sales revenues
and profits quadrupled. And my client’s company had be-
come the largest in his industry.
Then one day, my client called to ask if I would help
him cash out – sell his company, take his profits and re-
tire.
And so, I created a 20-minute video and a compre-
hensive “company profile” to help attract prospective buy-
ers.
The buyers – who paid top-dollar, turned out to be a
team of three Rhodes Scholars with advanced business de-
grees from Oxford University.
… And they were drooling morons.
Within a week after the papers were signed, the
crackerjack marketing team we had built was placed under
an oppressive bureaucracy: An “Executive Committee”
made up of the new owners, their hand-picked CEO, the
CFO and the General Manager – none of whom knew one
blessed thing about marketing.

Clayton Makepeace
 12

Within days, we went from being obsessed with marketing

to being infatuated with something called “Corporate
Planning.”
Key marketers were sidetracked in day-long meetings
and sometimes, week-long out-of-the-office marathons.
Scores of crucial sales promotions were put on hold
while the marketing staff diddled themselves silly with
endless research and reporting tasks.
I, of course, went ballistic. I warned everyone who’d
listen (at the top of my lungs) that de-emphasizing
marketing would drive this company to bankruptcy.
That drew giggles all around.
“You’re overreacting,” said the new owners. “It’s
going to be just fine,” chanted the Executive Committee.
It wasn’t fine. Not by a long shot.
The flow of new customers faltered, then plunged.
Our active customer file began shrinking. Sales to existing
customers plummeted.
Finally, unable to make the new owners see the error
of their ways, I fired the client.
As I walked out of the office for the last time, I told
the CEO, “I finally understand what being a Rhodes
Scholar does for you. You would have to STUDY to be this
stupid.”
Then, I told him that his company would be belly-up
within six months. I was wrong. He filed for bankruptcy 90
days later.
Moral:
Smart Companies put marketing first.
OK, I admit it: I’m a marketing chauvinist. And it’s
not because I think we’re necessarily smarter and better
looking than everyone else. It’s because the only logical
place for marketing is out front – leading the charge for
your entire company.

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It drives me nuts when executives who know nothing

about sales and marketing mindlessly parrot phrases about
“putting the customer first” – and then relegate the only
people who actually talk to customers to an inferior posi-
tion in the company.
Before the Rhodes Scholars showed up, my client had
put sales and marketing first. And because the marketing
department’s job was to respond to customers’ desires and
concerns … it meant our customers were #1.
But the Rhodes Scholars and their preening
“Executive Committee” wanted to be first – the masters of
all they surveyed, at the pinnacle of the corporate pyra-
mid.
So, they put the marketing department in its place –
under their thumbs, no more important than janitorial ser-
vices – or any other department in the company.
And by doing so, they turned my client’s “Smart
Company” into a dumb one in one fell swoop.
In a Smart Company, the marketing department ex-
ists at the top of the corporate pyramid.
Armed with the freshest intelligence on the fears,
frustrations, desires and complaints of prospects and cus-
tomers, the marketing department directs …
The development of new products and the pro-
duction of existing ones ...
The scripting of the sales force or telephone cus-
tomer service reps ...
The creation of sales promotions and the layout of
the catalog and/or store ...
The shipment of products and the delivery of ser-
vices ...
The management of the customer service depart-
ment, and …
Every other activity in the chain of events that be-
gins with contacting a prospect or customer and that
culminates with the cha-ching of the cash register.
Clayton Makepeace
 14

In Dumb Companies, top execs fail to understand the

Dumb Companies supreme importance of sales and marketing -- or worse:
think the marketing
See it as a “necessary evil.”
department exists to
sell products. And their structure
Smart Companies shows it. Marketers are
know that the only
kept under tight rein --
reason to have a
product is to give the slaves to multiple layers
marketing depart- of bean-counters, bu-
ment a vehicle with reaucrats and other self-
which it can attract important gasbags who
new customers and have long forgotten
produce revenues
and profits.
where the money in
their paychecks comes from -- if they ever knew in the
first place.
Even worse: Dumb Companies make sure that mar-
keters – the only experts in the company capable of boost-
ing sales, revenues and profits -- are frozen into inaction.
Crucial sales campaigns are delayed by corporate proce-
dures requiring marketing-challenged morons at the top to
approve every move.
The CEO and top execs spend no more time or effort
on sales and marketing than they do monitoring human re-
sources, or any other department. Marketing is beneath
them – something the weirdoes down on the fourth floor
are responsible for.
In a Smart Company, every employee clearly under-
stands that his/her job exists for one reason and one rea-
son only: To help marketing sell more, more, more!
Accounting exists to ensure that sales and market-
ing have the financial resources it needs to attract
maximum numbers of new customers and to boost
sales revenues ...
Human Resources exists to ensure that the market-
ing department has the best talent available and that
supporting departments have what they need to help
sales and marketing be more successful.

Double Your Profits

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Information Technology – IT – exists to give the

marketing department the daily reports it needs to
monitor and analyze the effectiveness of its strate-
gies and tactics.
The Legal Department exists to help marketers cre-
ate promotions that are as effective as is humanly
possible within established ethical and legal bounda-
ries.
In a Smart Company, the business owner/CEO
occupies not one, but two positions:
1) Leading the charge with the Marketing Department
– setting goals ... monitoring key costs and response
rates ... helping them innovate new products and sales ap-
proaches ... breaking logjams ... and providing the quick
approvals needed to kick
winning sales campaigns
into overdrive.
2) Taking up the
rear – constantly driving
everyone down the line
to make supporting sales
and marketing efforts
their #1 priority.
BOTTOM LINE: My advice …
If you own or run a Dumb Company, changing how
you and your employees think about your business –
the simple act of redefining it as a marketing busi-
ness and ensuring that your corporate structure and
procedures make sales and marketing #1 – is the
first step to explosive growth.
If you’re a marketing exec with a Dumb Company
you’re never going to be as successful as your peers
at Smart Companies. If you can’t raise the company’s
IQ, pack your bags!
If you’re a marketing consultant or copywriter for a
Dumb Company, finding a better class of client will
send your income skyrocketing.
Clayton Makepeace
16

Double Your Profits

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-- Chapter Two --

How Smart Companies

Can TRIPLE
Revenues and Profits
In 12 Months or Less
This “30 Percent Solution”
has helped me more than triple sales and
profits for four companies and boost sales
by up to 4,400% in one year!

Once your marketing department is empowered to

lead the way, it is empowered to:
1) Attract more customers …
2) Sell more things to those customers, more often,
and …
3) Increase the amount of money each customer
spends on each purchase.
Do those three, simple things, and you can’t help but
grow. Do them well, and your growth can be explosive:
Boosting 5 key metrics by just 30 percent
instantly TRIPLES sales!
I create quantum growth for my clients by “keeping it
simple” – aiming for a reasonable, easily “doable” 30%
boost in each of five key metrics:
1. Increasing the number of new customer promo-
tions per year …
2. Increasing the size of each new customer acquisi-
tion promotion …
Clayton Makepeace
 18

3. Increasing the response rate to each of these mail-

ings …
4. Increasing the number of times each customer or-
ders per year, and …
5. Increasing the size of each of those orders.
How much of an increase in revenues will compound-
ing those five, 30% bumps give you?
Take a look …

Double Your Profits

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Current Goal Increase

New Customer Acquisi- 6 8 33%

tion Mailings Per Year

Average Mailing Size 1,000,000 1,300,000 30%

Total Customer Ac- 6,000,000 10,400,000 73%

quisition Pieces
Mailed:

Response Rate 1.0% 1.3% 30%

New Customers Per 60,000 135,200 125%

Year

New Customers Making 5.0% 6.5% 30%

2nd Purchase First 60
Days On-File

Average Net Sale $150 $195 30%

(Gross minus product
costs)

60-Day New Cus- $450,000 $1,713,660 281%

tomer Net Sales

Additional 12-Month 3 4 33%

Purchases Per New
Customer

Additional 12-Month $27,000,000 $105,456,000 291%

Revenues From New
Customers

Clayton Makepeace
 20

After employing this “30 percent solution” for just 12

months, my client will have generated more than twice as
many new customers …
His sales to those new customers in their first 60
days with him will jump 281% to more than $1.7 million …
PLUS, he’ll sell another $105-million-and-change to
them in their first year with him – a 291% increase!
The best part is, the first two of those little 30% im-
provements are pretty much slam dunks – things we can
do simply and quickly:
More New Customer Acquisition Promotions …
To attract new customers, one client did about six
major mailings to rented mailing lists each year. He’d typi-
cally wait three weeks after he received his first order from
a mailing to see which lists were working for him, then or-
der more names from those lists and a handful of new test
lists, prepare any package refinements he wanted to test,
then print and mail the next volley.
This process took about eight weeks minimum –
sometimes longer – and limited him to an average of six
major new customer acquisition mailings per year.
I figured that if we could just cut a couple of weeks
off of the time he spent preparing each mailing – mail
every six weeks instead of every eight – we could mail as
many as nine times per year. That’s a 50% increase that
could bring him 50% more new customers each year.
Here’s how we did it …
First, I took his daily response reports for the last
twelve months and figured out, on average, what percent
of his total return came in on each day of a typical cam-
paign.
I compared how these percentages varied from
month to month during the year for several years to allow
for seasonal factors. And I studied how they were affected
by package format – whether the promotion was a self-
mailer or an envelope package, for example.

Double Your Profits

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Then, I had those projectors added to his daily re-

sponse reports in a way that predict what his final return
on investment (ROI) will be for each list and each package
test panel mailed.
As you’d expect, these projections are wildly inaccu-
rate in the early days of each mailing.
Unexpectedly fast or slow mail delivery in major ur-
ban areas makes them completely unreliable. But by 14
days after the first order pours in, they prove to be amaz-
ingly accurate predictors of his final ROI.
… So now, instead of waiting three weeks to begin
planning his next mailing, he can get his next mailing
planned two weeks after the first response. That alone
adds one more new customer acquisition mailing each
year!
The next step was to examine every process involved
in planning and executing his mailings – shaving a day
from the creative process here, and another day from his
print and mailing cycle there, until we were confident that
we can get him up to 8 mailings per year, beginning imme-
diately.
BIGGER New Customer Promotions …
Like many mailers, my client tests a number of
rented mailing lists in each mailing of a hot control. When
a list brought him new customers at break-even or better,
he’d roll out to a bigger chunk of the list in each successive
mailing until he was using the entire file.
Fortunately, my client is an inveterate record keeper.
He has data on response rates, average sale and return on
investment on every list he’s tested.
It was a fairly simple matter to pick a handful of lists
that consistently outperform all others, designate them as
“A” lists, and then index them against every other list he’s
tested.
Then, once we have data on how well a package/”A”
list combination works, we can use that index number to

Clayton Makepeace
 22

predict how well every other list he’s ever tested will re-
spond to his new promotion package, and roll-out big time.
Result: He’s able to roll out much bigger with his
“known” lists almost immediately, adding millions of
names to his new customer acquisition mailings each year.
Plus, we found a way to broaden our mailing universe
simply by getting list brokers to work harder for us.
My client had pretty much been “faithful” to a single
mailing list broker for years. We instituted agreements
with multiple brokers, promising each an exclusive on each
new list they brought us.
Each of these lists becomes a test, entered on the
mail plan using a projector that reflects how similar lists
have performed with the promotion we’re using.
How to get a 30% lift in response
This one’s a little trickier. But it’s not un-doable. I
routinely see new promotion packages – and even head-
line, premium, offer and other tests on control packages –
bump response 20% to 30% and even more. Sometimes,
much more.
Let’s say you’re getting a 1% response rate. That
means 10 people in 1,000 are saying “yes” to your offer.
All you need to do is find three more buyers per 1,000
pieces mailed to get that 30% boost in response.
Piece of cake. The key here is to test aggressively in
each and every mailing, without allowing our tests to slow
the process.
For this new client’s first roll-out of a hot new control
package, for example, I tested two new headlines and four
offer variations. Next time, I’ll be testing our best head-
line/copy/offer combination in two, maybe three cheaper
formats.
I could write a 500-page course on copy techniques
that routinely boost response 30%, 50% and more. For
now though, suffice it to say, bumping this client’s re-
sponse by 30% is eminently doable.

Double Your Profits

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Heck. My first promotion for him beat his control by

300% – ten times more than our conservative 30% target!
“If you make money
on a customer acquisition mailing,
you’re fired!”
A few years back, a client hired a new marketing di-
rector and told her that she would be reporting to me! In
my first meeting with the new employee, the business
owner stuck his head into the room and told her, “Just do
whatever Clayton says. You report to him.” – and then
vanished.
It was a joke, of course, and I told her so. Everyone
in that company reports to the owner. I was just an out-
side guy. A consultant. But I did have a few pointers to
help her.
I told her, “Your Prime Objective is to produce as
many new customers as possible every month.
“Your goal is to do this at break-even. For every dol-
lar we put into the mail, we want one dollar back – AND a
new customer.
“If you make a profit in a promotion designed to at-
tract new customers – if you get $2.00, $1.50 or $1.01 for
each dollar you spend – that’s a bad thing. It means you
didn’t mail enough promotion pieces or bring in as many
new customers that month as you could have.
“And that means our sales to existing customers –
the engine that drives this company’s profits – will be less
than they could have been for years to come.”
I showed her how each new customer stayed with us
for an average of seven years and made subsequent pur-
chases that generated $500 in net profits every year.
That meant each new customer was worth $3,500 to
us – and every new customer we didn’t get would cost us
$3,500 in profits down the road.
“So,” I said, “as far as your boss is concerned, losing
money on a promotion now and then is forgivable. It just
Clayton Makepeace
 24

means you’re trying. Consistently breaking even will make

you a hero.
“But consistently making profits on new customer ac-
quisition promotions will probably get you fired.”
Right then and there, we established an aggressive
new customer acquisition strategy designed to break even
on each promotion …We test each new promotion package
against the existing control in a special panel consisting of
an nth-name selection (a geographically balanced portion)
of each of our “A” lists.
If the new package wins – if it produces a higher re-
turn on investment (ROI) than the control -- we:
1) Look at how every other list in our universe has
historically performed against those “A” lists and …
2) Use the new package’s return on investment with
our “A” lists to project what our ROI would be if we mailed
to each “B” list in our universe.
Then each month, we construct a mail plan that:
1) Includes roll-outs to every “A” list in our universe
– the lists we know we can mail at break-even or better …
2) Add significant test panels of every “B” list that
our history indicates will perform at break-even or better –
but not as well as our “A” lists …
3) Add as many test panels as possible of “B” lists
that we expect to produce a slight loss – and “C” lists
(previously untested lists projected to produce a 50% ROI)
until our mail plan projects a total return on investment of
100%.
Result: For every dollar we mail, we get one dollar
back – and a new customer.
Over the next three years, we quadrupled the num-
ber of paying customers on our file – and because we
broke even on our average new customer promotion, each
one of them cost us $0.

Double Your Profits

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At the end of 36 months, those customers were

handing us more than $80 million in sales and tens of mil-
lions in net profit each year.

When you want to grow really, REALLY fast …

At Blanchard & Company, I set out to lose money on
every new customer I generated.
Crazy, right? Yeah: Crazy like a fox!
First, I did my homework. I studied our active cus-
tomer file. I determined that each new customer made an
average of five purchases per year … that the average pur-
chase was $1,500 … and that the net profit on each of
those purchases was about $500.
Furthermore, I discovered that the average new cus-
tomer made one additional purchase in his first 60 days
with us, producing a $500 profit. And I figured out that if I
could spend just $200 of that to “buy” new customers, I
could bring in two or three times more new customers
each year.
I didn’t tell the owner that I was planning to “lose
money” on each new customer. I told him, “I just want an
extra 60 days to break even on each new customer. I just
want to change the bookkeeping entry a bit – add the
profit from second purchases in the customers’ first 60
days to the revenues generated by my new customer ac-
quisition mailings.”
I showed him how our Prime Directive had been to
mail our new customer acquisition promotions to as many
prospects as possible while breaking even. But the problem
was, some of the biggest prospect files out there just
wouldn’t come in at 100% of cost no matter what we did.
I showed him how that meant we were leaving thou-
sands of new customers – and millions of dollars in future
profits – on the table. And I demonstrated how, if we could
just mail down to, say, 85% to 90% of cost, we could add
millions more names per year to our mail plans … tens of

Clayton Makepeace
 26

thousands of new, paying customers to our house file …

and tens of millions to his bottom line.
Then, I suggested the client consider “cooking the
books” a little bit. Instead of insisting that his new cus-
tomer acquisition mailings break even ($1 in for every $1
they cost), I suggested that when we find huge files that
we can’t get to break even, we allocate part or all of that
first 60 days’ income to the new customer promotion.
It worked like gangbusters. The company, which had
been running a distant third in its industry, rocketed to #1
within a year.
In fact, this strategy has worked so well for me over
the years, I’m doing the same thing for a new client right
now!
Consider these numbers:
Right now, my client’s new customer acquisition mail-
ings cost him $560/M (list rental, postage, printing and let-
tershop): $56,000 to mail 100,000 pieces.
At break-even, that 100,000-piece mailing generates
1,000 new customers and $56,000 (gross revenue minus
product cost). He gets one dollar back for every dollar he
mails. At an ROI of 90%, he loses 10% of his mailing in-
vestment, or $5,600.
We know that 8% of his new customers make a sec-
ond purchase netting a profit of about $100 in their first
two months on board. So those 1,000 new customers will
make 80 purchases, netting my client an $8,000 profit in
their first 60 days with him.
Now, I’ve found a few huge mailing lists that we’ve
never been able to mail at break-even. There are millions
of potential customers on those files, but when we test
them, we only get 90% of our money back. So, if a simple
bookkeeping entry – allocating a portion of each new cus-
tomer’s first 60 days of profits – would open these other-
wise impenetrable lists to us – why not do it?

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Even at .8% response, he’ll pick up 8,000 new cus-

tomers for every million pieces mailed. So he has to wait
60 days to begin making money with them. So what?
We know that in the ten months after those first 60
days, his average customer will make four additional pur-
chases, netting $100 each. For every 8,000 new custom-
ers, that’s $3.2 million in additional profit this year.
Furthermore, we know that the average new cus-
tomer will continue making five purchases per year for
seven years. That means these 8,000 new customers will
hand us $28 million in net profit in their lifetimes.
And we’re not going to mail these marginal lists just
once – we’re going to mail them over and over again –
generating thousands of new customers each time our
control projects a 90% ROI on them.
For every one million names we mail three times a
year, we add 24,000 new customers – and $84 million in
future profits!
Seems silly to let a bookkeeping entry stand between
you and that kind of money – right?
Time to start optimizing lifetime value …
Now that we’ve got my client doing bigger new cus-
tomer promotions, more often, it’s time to kick things up
another notch – by bumping the number of times each
customer orders, and how much he spends with us each
time.
Until now, my client did what many direct response
marketers do: He simply mailed a couple of promotions to
his entire customer file each month. I call that “vertical”
marketing. No matter who you are, no matter what kind of
product you’ve purchased in the past, you get the same of-
fers as everyone else on his file.
Not a terrible approach, but we can do better by
combining vertical and horizontal marketing techniques.

Clayton Makepeace
 28

Horizontal marketing treats each group of customers

on your house file in ways that ensure optimum response
and maximum order size. Horizontal marketing asks …
“What kind of product has this customer demon-
strated a desire for before?” and then offers him an
add-on that addresses the same desire or concern.
And, “Where is the customer in his life cycle with
us?” – and then sends him promotions that are com-
patible.
And, “What’s going on in my customer’s personal
life?” – and then sends him promotions that are com-
patible.
So in addition to vertical promotions sent to the en-
tire file – my client’s customers receive horizontal promo-
tions:
A 60-day campaign for a President’s Circle promo-
tion designed to make a quick second sale to our new
customers in their first two months with us …
Upgrade mailings to buyers whose selection of
products has demonstrated a particular desire or con-
cern, offering a new add-on product that addresses
that same issue …
Personalized “renewal,” “re-order” and “we-want-
you-back” promotions at the appropriate times. …
Special discounted offers on the customer’s birth-
day, anniversary and other special times of the year.
Plus, for our vertical marketing, the entire file also
gets two major mailings each month:
1)One focusing on one of our hottest products …
2) And another kind-of catalog-like mailing that in-
vites customers to try anything in our product line at pre-
ferred prices.
Will this kind of comprehensive strategy – along with
harder-hitting sales copy – give us the 30% bump in re-
sponse, average sales, profits and customer lifetime value
we’re looking for?
Double Your Profits
 29

There’s not a doubt in my mind!

The final step
Once you’re generating thousands more new custom-
ers and thousands more dollars in profits from sales to
those customers, it’s time to turn an eye to minimizing
costs.
I put this step last for several reasons:
For one, each of my clients has an accountant or CFO
– someone whose job it is to monitor spending and over-
head.
For another, most marketing people are constantly
looking for ways to get it done faster and cheaper. And for
yet another, cutting costs can only get you so far.
As we’ve seen, a sharp marketing strategy and ex-
pert execution can quadruple profits. Cutting costs may
save you 5% here or 10% there. Nevertheless, every
penny you save on unnecessary expenses goes straight to
the bottom line. And over time, those pennies add up to
real impressive dollars.
Most of my clients offer premiums – free gifts – to at-
tract new customers. And most of those premiums tend to
be special reports, which are included in the “Welcome Kit”
new subscribers or first-time buyers receive.
A few years ago, for example, one client’s Welcome
Kit cost him $15 to deliver. Today, he delivers most of
them online – and the $15 per new subscriber he saved is
pure profit.
Adding a web-based marketing initiative can cut cost
per sale by an order of magnitude. Mailing a sales promo-
tion to your house file can cost anywhere from $400 to
$800 per thousand pieces mailed, for example. Sending
the same promotion via e-mail costs next to nothing.
You could blast the promotion to your customers
every day for a week or even a month – with a slightly dif-
ferent headline and opening copy each time – and actually
generate greater sales volume at a fraction of the cost.

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 30

Sometimes spending more saves you a bundle. For

high-ticket products, for example, I’ve found that person-
alized sales letters mailed to customers via First-Class Mail
often generate a lower cost per sale than mailing a non-
personalized promo via the cheaper Third -Class bulk mail.
When I’ve tested this, the personal touch and the
perceived urgency of personalized letters mailed First-
Class usually boosted response tremendously, thereby low-
ering our cost per sale.
With self-mailers especially, slightly altering format –
like adjusting your trim size one-eighth or one-quarter
inch, for example – can save a bundle on your printing
bills. And although it’s not always possible to do, ganging
jobs – combining several similar printing projects into one
large job – can shave big bucks too.
And finally, I strongly recommend that my clients es-
tablish programs in which employees are rewarded for
suggesting ways the company can save money.
Worth thinking about …
What can you do right now – today – to …
1. Increase the number of new customer acquisition
promotions you field each year?
2. Ramp up the size of each of those promotions?
3. Increase the number of prospects who say, “YES!”
to each of those promotions?
4. Boost – even incrementally – the number of addi-
tional times each customer orders per year?
5. Pump up the size of each of those orders?
6. Cut marketing and fulfillment costs without ad-
versely affecting the number of new customers you gener-
ate or sales volume to existing customers?
How could focusing on these six key numbers help
you, your employees and your marketing people triple
YOUR revenues and profits?

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 31

How could you tie employee compensation (raises,

bonuses, stock options, etc.) to how well key employees
meet your goals in improving each one?
Answer these questions and you’ll be well on your
way to at least tripling your sales and profits!

Clayton Makepeace
32

Double Your Profits

 33

-- Chapter Three --

Direct Response
Rithmatic:
The Third “R”
19 Numbers Every Direct Response Mar-
keter and Copywriter MUST KNOW

If I’ve proved anything in my three-plus decades in

direct response marketing, it’s this:
It ain’t brain surgery.
In fact, if a high school dropout like me can help
companies make millions – and make millions for myself in
the process – I figure just about anybody can do it!
It all pretty much boils down to using the “3 Rs” -
stuff you learned well before you graduated sixth grade:
Readin’ … Read the great books on direct market-
ing and copywriting I recommended in the back of
this book … read THE TOTAL PACKAGE, Bencivenga
Bullets and other great e-zines offered free by top
copywriters … learn the nuts and bolts -- how direct
response marketing works … how persuasion works …
and study what your competitors are doing with their
direct mail and Internet promotions right now.
Ritin’ … Whether you’re a business owner or mar-
keting pro who writes your own ads, or even if you
hire and supervise copywriters who do it for you and
especially if you’re a copywriter yourself -- it pays to
write every single day. Practice, practice, PRACTICE!

Clayton Makepeace
 34

‘Rithmatic … Yep, you heard right. To make it in

this industry, you gotta know your numbers. Nothing
fancy, mind you – just a little addition, subtraction,
multiplication and division will do the trick.
I figure it’s that we need to spend some time looking
at the Third “R:” Yep, the dreaded ‘Rithmatic – the numbers
that make this whole direct response marketing thing
work.
YUK! Right? S’Ok: I hate math too. But just take a
deep breath – I’ll try to make this as painless as possible.
For our purposes, we’ll focus on a direct mail promo-
tion sent to 250,000 prospects. Our goal is to turn as
many of those prospects as possible into new customers.
You guessed it: This is what direct response marketers
call a “Customer Acquisition Mailing.”
Our promotion offers a standard version of the prod-
uct for $99 and the deluxe version for $179. And for our
purposes, it requires that the customer pay cash – either
by charging his credit card or by sending us a check – also
known as a “Hard Offer.”
Here are some of the numbers direct response mar-
keters need to know … how each is used … and what they
mean to you …
1. Mail Cost: This is simply the total cost of sending
a promotion to prospects. It includes the cost of paper,
printing, mail list rental, postage and lettershopping
(inserting, collating, addressing, affixing postage, sorting
mail to US Postal Service requirements and delivering it to
the Post Office).
Postage, mail list rental, and lettershop don’t offer a
lot of room for quibbling – although the U.S. Post Office
will be happy to show you how you can get postage dis-
counts by presorting … and of course, you can always ar-
range swaps with other list owners and discounts from list
brokers to get your mail list costs down.
The big variable of course, is printing. Going with a
big, gaudy, all-singing, all-dancing 24-page, full color, tab-

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 35

loid-sized self-mailer (the biggest, fattest, funnest, happi-

est floozy in the whole direct response biker bar) will al-
most guarantee you’ll get your prospects’ attention. It will
also send your printing costs soaring.
… And while settling for a stark two-color #10 carrier
envelope containing an 8-page sales letter and order form
will save you a bundle, you’re just likely to get lost in the
mailbox, sending your response rates crashing.
So for our purposes, let’s take the middle path – with
a sensible, 24-page standard-size (8 ½ x 11) self-mailer –
and say this mailing to 250,000 prospects will cost us
$125,000.
(NOTE: When calculating mail cost, marketers al-
most never include the cost of copywriting and graphic de-
sign, as these costs will be spread out over many mail-
ings.)
2. Mail Quantity (QTY): This is simply the number
of copies of your sales promotion being mailed. If you’ve
been paying attention, you already know we’re talking
about a mailing being sent to 250,000 prospects.
3. Cost Per Thousand (CPM): To figure your CPM
on a mailing, just divide your Total Mail Cost by Mail Quan-
tity and multiply times 1,000:
Total Mail Cost: $125,000
Divided by Mail Quantity: 250,000
Equals a Cost Per Piece Mailed of: $0.50
Times 1,000
Equals a Cost Per Thousand of: $500
If a marketer is mailing a promotion that costs him
$500 per thousand pieces mailed, he just says his mail
cost is “$500/M.”
Mostly, marketers just use this number to gauge the
cost of a particular promotion package/list combination
against others.
Let’s say you test two promotions. The first is the

Clayton Makepeace
 36

dirt-cheap #10 carrier envelope with an 8-page sales letter

inside, and costs only $450/M to mail.
The second is a big, gaudy, full-color tabloid-sized
24-page self-mailer that costs $560/M (24.4% more) to
send to prospects.
If the cheaper package generates a better Return on
Investment (see below) than the more expensive one, for
example, a smart marketer might say, “Hmmm … I wonder
what would happen if we put the stronger headline and
sales message into the cheaper package format?”
Most of the packages I create cost my clients be-
tween $500 and $560 per thousand pieces they mail – but
a cheap postcard sent to cheap names could cost as little
as $320 per thousand in the e-zine.
4. Orders: This is just the number of prospects who
said “YES!” to your offer and paid for a product. Pretty
straightforward stuff, but vital to know in order to generate
other numbers used to manage direct mail campaigns.
In this case, we’ll say our promotion pulled 2,500 or-
ders.
5. Response Rate: Another easy one – Response
Rate is nothing more than Orders divided by Mail Quantity:
Orders: 2,500
Divided by Mail Quantity: 250,000
Equals a Response Rate of: .01 or 1%
Comparing response rates is a great way to identify
opportunities for beating a strong control and for boosting
response and mailing size (and therefore royalties) in fu-
ture promotions.
Let’s say a new promotion you’re testing for the first
time produces a slightly lower ROI in the mail than your
control. Many mailers would simply chalk it up to a failed
test and move on.
Not me! I ask to see the Response Rate and Average
Sale (see below) my mailing produced.

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 37

If the Response Rate is lower than the control, I fig-

ure that my headline and deck copy aren’t doing a good
enough job of grabbing the prospect’s attention and con-
verting that attention to readership. So, I go to work on
the headline and intro copy.
If the Average Sale is lower than the control, I go to
work on strengthening my two-year offer (if it’s a newslet-
ter promotion) or the larger purchase option if it’s a sup-
plement or other product.
And of course, if both are lower than the control, I
work on both. You’d be surprised how many times you can
turn losers into winners by doing that sort of thing!
6. Gross Revenues (GR): This is simply the total
monetary value of the products your promotion sells. For
our purposes, we’re going to say we generated $412,500
in total sales. Our Gross Revenues are $412,500.
Again – we don’t use this number much by itself. In-
stead, it is used to derive the more crucial numbers below
that directly affect our mailing plans.
7. Average Sale (AS or AUS): Remember how I
said that our promotion offers two choices? The prospect
can either buy the standard version of our product for $99
or the deluxe version for $179.
So some customers will only spend $99 for the
“Standard” version of our product, while others will spend
$179 to get the “Deluxe” version. (Or, if it’s a subscription
to a newsletter, some will pay $99 for one year and others
will pay $179 for two years.)
To calculate Average Sale, just divide Gross Reve-
nues by Total Orders:
Gross Revenues: $412,500
Divided by Total Orders: 2,500
Equals an Average Sale of: $165
This is an incredibly important number. For reasons
we already explored, it’s crucial to know how good a job
your promotion did in bumping prospects up to the higher
Clayton Makepeace
 38

order. And the best way to do this is to compare the Aver-

age Sale each promotion generates.
8. Fulfillment Cost (FC): Now, you spent $125,000
on your mailing and got $412,500 back – a profit of
$287,500, right?
Whoa – not so fast there, Sparky! There are costs
associated with accepting all those orders.
For starters, there’s a cost of, say, $5.00 per order
for return postage, credit card processing fees and inbound
telemarketing (the 800 service that takes orders for you).
And don’t forget: We have to actually fulfill those
2,500 orders. That’s going to cost money, too.
Now, let’s say it costs you $20 to manufacture and
ship the $99 standard model and $30 for the deluxe $179
model.
And since you loaded up the offer for your Deluxe
model, 2,062 of your 2,500 buyers (about 82.5%) went for
it while only 438 (17.5%) paid $99 for the Standard
model.
So …
The Number of Deluxe Buyers: 2,062
Times Fulfillment Cost per Deluxe Order: $30
Equals Fulfillment Cost for Deluxe Orders: $61,860
Tthe Number of Standard Buyers: 438
Times Fulfillment Cost Per Standard Order: $20
Equals Fulfillment Cost for Standard Orders: $8,670

Then you just add it all up …

Fulfillment Cost for Deluxe Orders: $61,860
Plus Fulfillment Cost for Standard Orders: $8,670
Plus Order-Taking Costs: $7,500
Equals a Total Fulfillment Cost of: $78,030

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Of course, this is just an example – and depending

on your product and offer, you may have other costs asso-
ciated with fulfilling your orders. If so, you add them in,
too.
Plus, some direct marketers choose to omit certain
costs from this calculation. In the newsletter publishing
industry for example, some publishers don’t include the
cost of publishing and mailing monthly issues to subscrib-
ers. They figure they’ll get enough early renewals to more
than cover that.
And really aggressive, growth-oriented publishers
don’t even include the cost of the free gifts (usually printed
reports) they send to new subscribers – pretty much for
the same reason.
By ignoring costs that are quickly offset in each new
subscriber’s first 30, 60 or 90 days onboard, newsletter
publishers show higher Net ROIs (see below) on their best
lists and are able to mail more names, therefore growing
their subscriber files faster.
10. Fulfillment Cost Per Order (FC/O): Simple –
this is just your Total Fulfillment Cost divided by Total Or-
ders …
Total Fulfillment Cost: $78,030
Divided by Total Orders: 2,500
Equals Fulfillment Cost Per Order of:
$31.12
Here’s another opportunity to turn a losing promotion
into a winner – or a winner into a bigger winner.
See, for many mailers, all that really matters is the
Net Return on Investment (see below). And there are only
four ways to increase Net ROI:
A. Cut mailing costs
B. Boost response rate
C. Boost average sale
D. Cut fulfillment costs

Clayton Makepeace
 40

We’ve pretty much covered “A,” “B,” and “C” above.

But cutting – not just ignoring, but actually cutting -- ful-
fillment costs can be an equally powerful tool.
Combining or eliminating premiums can often cut
costs without affecting response rates, for example. A
couple of months ago, I created a test panel for one of my
controls in which we offered two fewer free gifts with each
order … cut Fulfillment Costs Per Order by nearly $20 …
and response, average sale and Net ROI all INCREASED!
11. Net Revenue (NR): NOW it’s time to start
counting your profits – by subtracting your Mail Cost and
Fulfillment Cost from Gross Revenues:
Gross Revenues: $412,500
Minus Mail Cost: $125,000
Minus Fulfillment Cost: $78,030
Equals Net Revenue of: $209,470
This of course, is a very important number. If it’s
negative, you have a loser on your hands. Positive, and
you’re generating new customers at a profit.
And as we’re about to see, if you’re making too much
or losing too much on your new customer acquisition mail-
ings, you’re messing up.
12. Net Revenue Per Order (NR/O): Just divide
your Net Revenue by Total Orders:
Net Revenue: $209,470
Divided by Total Orders: 2,500
Equals Net Revenue Per Order of: $83.79
Frankly, I don’t use this number much. But it’s nice
to know, I guess.
13. Gross Return on Investment (GROI): If you
want to know how well your mailing did overall – without
coloring the number with fulfillment costs – you want to
know your Gross Return on Investment.
To find it, just divide Gross Revenues by Total Mailing

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Cost:
Gross Revenues: $412,500
Divided by Total Mailing Cost: $125,000
Equals Gross Return on Investment: 330%
14. Net Return on Investment (NROI): Divide
Net Revenues by Total Mailing Cost:
Net Revenues: $209,470
Divided by Total Mailing Cost: $125,000
Equals Net Return on Investment: 168%
This is the primary number I use when gauging the
effectiveness of my promotion and comparing it to other
packages mailed against mine and to other controls my cli-
ent has had.
It’s also the key to optimum growth for business
owners and marketing execs. When you’re mailing every
list you can get to come close to break-even and producing
a Net Return on Investment of 100%, you’re generating
max numbers of new customers for free. You’re getting all
your money back plus new customers.
When Net ROI is above 100%, you’re leaving cus-
tomers on the table – a crime that will come back to bite
you on the keester in coming years.
Why? Because every customer you could have got-
ten but didn’t get is worth hundreds, perhaps thousands of
dollars in additional sales each year.
On the other hand, when Net ROI is under 100%,
you either have to:
1) Boost response
2) Boost average sale
3) Cut mail costs
4) Cut your fulfillment costs to the bone
5) Eliminate marginal lists from your mail plan
(and shrink mailing size)

Clayton Makepeace
 42

– or all of the above.

15. Cost Per Order (C/O): Also known as “New
Customer Acquisition Cost” when used in mailings to non-
customers, this number wraps everything up.
Since we made Net Revenues of $209,407, our
“Mailing Loss” in the equation below is expressed as a
negative number. So is our Cost Per Order:
Mailing Loss: -$209,407
Divided by New Customers Generated: 2,500
Equals Cost Per Order: -$83.76
Again – ideally, your cost per order for new customer
acquisition mailings (mailings sent to non-customers)
should be $0. A negative cost per order (or a Net ROI)
over 100%) means you’re simply not mailing enough
names.
Adding less productive mailing lists to the mix will
bring your Cost Per Order up to $0 and your Net ROI down
to 100%.
Other Numbers You Need to Know
16. Creative Index: Creative indexing ranks the
relative selling power of the direct mail packages you test
and use.
Your Creative Index is derived by dividing the Net
ROI that your new test promotion generates by the Net
ROI being generated by your control – to the same lists in
the same mailing.
Or …
New test promo Net ROI: 200%
Divided by control package Net ROI: 100%
Equals a test promo Creative Index: 2 or 200%
You can also use creative indexing to gauge how
quickly response to your control package is declining rela-
tive to every other control you’ve ever had.
Or if you want to get really fancy, you can average
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the Net ROI of all new packages produced for any given
time – for example the last six or 12 months, or even
throughout your product’s history or even your entire com-
pany history.
Using an index number to compare the selling power
of each new package with your historical norms can give
you a clearer perspective on just how strong your new
control really is, and in some cases, give you a clearer pic-
ture of your chances for improvement.
17. List Index: Smart marketers know how every
list they mail typically performs when compared to every
other list they’ve tested – and they use something called
“List Indexing” to manage this information.
Each mailer I work with does this slightly differently –
here’s how one of my favorite clients does it.
First, the client identified the 20 mailing lists that
have worked best for him over the past five years, and
then figured out the Gross ROI this group of lists has pro-
duced for him on his average mailing.
Then, he figured out the average Gross ROI that
every other list he’s mailed has produced for him, and
used these numbers to create an index number for every
list.
Example:
Gross ROI for “A” Lists on an average mailing:
200%
Gross ROI for List “X” on an average mailing:
150%
Mail List “X” Index Number:
.875 or 87.5%
Gross ROI for List “Y” on an average mailing:
100%
Mail List “Y” Index Number:
.5 or 50%
Gross ROI for List “Z” on an average mailing:
50%
Clayton Makepeace
 44

Mail List “Z” Index Number:

.25 or 25%
Using these numbers, my client can now mail new
test promotions only to his “A” lists, thus cutting his risk of
loss on new sales copy.
If his “A” lists pull at their historical average – 200%
Gross ROI – he knows that the same promotion mailed to
... Mail List “X” is likely to generate a Gross ROI of
about 87.5% of that: About 175%.
… Mail List “Y” is likely to generate a Gross ROI of
about 50% of that: About 100%.
… Mail List “Z” is likely to generate a Gross ROI of
about 25% of that: About 50%.
In short, list indexing allows you to forecast how lists
you haven’t tested with a particular promotion package will
perform … enlarge the size of your rollouts more quickly …
mail to more prospects per year … generate more custom-
ers per year … and pocket greater profits each year.
18. Doubling Date: While list indexing can help you
do bigger mailings, knowing your Doubling Date can help
you do those bigger mailings more times each year.
A doubling date is simply the number of days after
you receive your first response that you will have received
50% of the money you can expect the mailing to generate.
By doubling the numbers you’ve achieved by your
doubling date, you can accurately predict what the final re-
sponse will be for each creative test panel and mail list test
panel in your mailing – WEEKS before you’ll have the ac-
tual, final numbers.
This allows you to begin planning each subsequent
mailing sooner, thus enabling you to execute more mail-
ings per year … bring in more new customers … etc.
To calculate a doubling date, I use a spreadsheet like this:

Double Your Profits

(The column with “…” is where Day 4-Day 59 would go):

Mail First Day Day Day Day

Date Response 1 2 3 … 60
Mailing #1

Gross Revenue 1/1/2004 1/7/2004 $1,356 $1,613 $1,870 … $0

Cumulative Gross $1,356 $2,969 $4,839 … $412,500

% of Total 0.33% 0.72% 1.17% … 100%

Mailing #2 3/15/2004 3/23/2004 …

Gross Revenue $1,423 $1,657 $1,891 … $0

Cumulative Gross $1,423 $3,080 $4,971 … $435,432

% of Total 0.33% 0.71% 1.14% … 100%

Mailing #3 4/30/2004 5/3/2004 …

Gross Revenue $1,238 $1,435 $1,632 … $0

Cumulative Gross $1,238 $2,673 $4,305 … $389,543

% of Total 0.32% 0.69% 1.11% 100%

AVERAGE % 0.32% 0.70% 1.14% 100%

Here’s how I use this sheet …

FIRST: To the right of the line labeled “Gross Reve-
nue” in the first column, I list the amount of money that
came in each day from Day 1 through Day 60.
SECOND: On the next line, marked “Cumulative
Revenue,” I add that day’s revenue to the cumulative
revenue from the day before to give me a new cumulative
revenue number.
THIRD: On the next line, labeled “% of Total,” I di-
vide each day’s cumulative revenue by the total revenue
the promotion had generated by Day 60 – this gives me
the percentage of total revenues that had been collected
as of that day.
FOURTH: I add the same information for every
 46

mailing the client has done in the last 12 months.

FIFTH: On the last line, I simply add up all the “%
of Total” entries above and divide by the number of mail-
ings listed. This gives me the client’s average “% of Total”
number for each day in his promotion cycle.
SIXTH: I simply look across the bottom line until I
find the day when “% of Total” is closest to 50%. That day
will be our doubling date until this sheet is updated six
months to a year from now.
IMPORTANT: 3 things …
Thing One: As you prepare this spreadsheet, pay
attention to how your doubling dates change at different
times of the year – particularly during major holidays like
Christmas/New Year’s, during tax time, and in the height
of the vacation season in July.
It’s a good idea to average these mailings separately,
as doubling dates will be farther out when the mail is slow
or when prospects are slow to read your promotion.
Thing Two: If you use a variety of formats, be sure
to average your mailings again by format. See, some
types of mailers have greater perceived value than others
and prospects hang onto them longer.
While plain vanilla #10 packages are often round-
filed immediately, self-mailers that look like magazines
(magalogs) often get tossed onto a coffee table or next to
the privy for later reference. When I first began using
magalogs in the 1980s, for example, Doubling Dates
jumped 33% -- from an average of 14 days to 21 days!
So after you’ve established an overall Doubling Date,
it’s a good idea to group your promotions by format type
and compare how the Doubling Dates vary.
Thing Three: If a major news event broke while
one or more of your promotions was in the mail, it may
have pushed your Doubling Date w-a-y out – or even killed
response altogether.
When folks are obsessed with a current event – the

Double Your Profits

 47

OJ Simpson Trial, 9/11, or the build-up and actual fighting

of the Iraq War, for example, they’re watching TV and NOT
reading their mail.
So take that into consideration, too. What to do
about it? In these days, when sensational news stories
seem to be breaking almost weekly, probably not much.
Just keep it in mind as you review your Doubling Dates.
19. Customer Lifetime Value: This is arguably the
single most important number in your company. It tells
you how much each new customer is worth to you – and
how much you can comfortably spend to generate one.
See, Smart Companies don’t do promotions to non-
customers to make sales. They do them to make customers.
And then they work their customer file (where you get by
far the highest Response Rates and Average Sale at the
lowest Cost Per Sale) like crazy.
To determine average customer value, you must first
define what an “active” customer is. Usually, I begin by
saying, “An active customer is someone who has made a
purchase in the last 12 months.”
Depending upon the type of product you sell – one-
sies and twosies … or subscription/membership offers … or
continuity/negative option offers … or combinations of all
of the above – you may want to define “active” in your
own way.
Once you know what an active customer is, it’s time
to look at the history of every customer on your file and
determine how long each one stayed “active.” This is
probably going to be too complex a task to do yourself; my
guess is you’ll have to get the IT guys involved.
Typically, they’ll tell you that your average customer
stayed active for some number of years after his or her
first purchase. In my industry, the number usually turns
out to be somewhere in the vicinity of six or seven years.
Next, you need to determine how much Net Revenue
your average active customer generates for you during his
lifetime. Again – this is a job for the IT guys, and the re-

Clayton Makepeace
 48

sulting number will be your Customer Lifetime Value.

You can also look at how much Net Revenue the av-
erage customer generates in each year of his life. This is a
crucial benchmark that lets you gauge how good a job
you’re doing at increasing Customer Lifetime Value during
your customers’ lifetime.
And you especially need to know how much your av-
erage new customer brings you in his or her first 30, 60
and 90 days on your file. This number is your “New To File
Net Revenues.” It’s important because if you want to put
the pedal to the metal – trigger maximum growth – you
may want to “borrow” part of this number to subsidize
your new customer acquisition mailings.
Wrinkles? You BET There Are Wrinkles!
Entire books have been written on the ‘Rithmatic of
Direct Response (yes, I’m writing one now) so it would be
foolish to attempt to put it all in a short chapter like this
one.
For example, if you’re doing soft offers (“bill me” pro-
motions in which you ship your product prior to receiving
payment) “Pay-Up Rates” are crucial.
The Gross and Net Revenue as well as the Gross and
Net ROI generated by the promotion are driven to a large
extent by the combination of the initial response rate PLUS
the number of customers who ultimately pay their bills.
Pay-Up Rates can be treacherous because each pro-
motion/list combination you mail may have markedly dif-
ferent pay-ups.
Then there are Lead Production/Multi-Step Cam-
paigns. The marketer’s first contact with a prospect is de-
signed to generate an inquiry or lead. Leads are then fol-
lowed up by mail, phone or in person. Again, a subject de-
manding its own book let alone a separate chapter.
And of course, there are hundreds, possibly thou-
sands of little wrinkles to how you use the numbers I’ve
talked about in this issue.

Double Your Profits

 49

But frankly, my accounting aptitude is toast. I’m go-

ing to go do something creative – maybe muss Wendy’s
hair a little bit.

Clayton Makepeace
 50

-- Chapter Four --

Double Your Profits

 51

How I Make
My Clients Richer
8 ways business owners,
marketing execs and copywriters
can produce bigger winners more often!

A lot has been said recently about the fact that I

make five to ten times more money than most copywriters
and even copywriting coaches.
The American Writers and Artists Institute is blasting
out thousands of letters bearing a headline announcing
that I make more than $1 million a year. The great direct
response guru Bob Bly tells his readers that I earn more
than any copywriter alive.
Frankly, I wince when people say stuff like that. For
one thing, who knows if it’s true? Unless every copywriter
in America submitted his or her tax returns for compari-
son, there’s no way to be sure.
What worries me most is that when some people
hear this, they figure I must be the most expensive copy-
writer out there. Baloney. The truth is, my fees are only a
measly eight to ten percent of what I earn for my clients.
That said, it is true that I do pretty well in the royalty
department. My best year so far was 2003 – nearly $3 mil-
lion. Next best? Nearly $2 million in 2002.
My best month? July of 2003: $650,000 in royalties.
In all, I’ve only had two years under $1 million in the last
ten, and in both of those years, I only missed it by an eye-
lash.
So what’s the deal here? Do I make up to 1,000%
more because I write ten times more direct response ads
and mail packages? Is it because I’m ten times smarter or
ten times the writer everyone else is?
Clayton Makepeace
 52

Absolutely, unequivocally NO on all counts!

But I do have a secret – a secret that will multiply
any good copywriter’s income and send his client’s profits
through the roof.
So if you’re a copywriter looking to make millions ...
Or if you’re a business owner or marketing exec look-
ing to help your copywriters earn you tens of millions,
even hundreds of millions more than they do now ...
Snag a cup of Starbucks and have a seat. This will
take a little while, but when we’re done, you’ll have the
keys to the kingdom.
I’m about to pull another one
of my famous disappearing acts.
Don’t get me wrong – I’m not welching on my prom-
ises to make you wealthier. And if you’re a client who has
already reserved some of my time between now and next
year, rest assured: You’ll get your copy.
But that’s probably going to be all the freelance copy-
writing I do until at least 2009.
Taking myself off of the freelance market is not un-
usual for me. I know: I’ve done it four times before.
The first time was in 1982, when I spent a year fo-
cused exclusively on Security Rare Coin in Minneapo-
lis (120,000 new customers; sales jumped from
$360,000 to $16 million a month in one year).
In 1983, I disappeared again, then showed up in
New Orleans, working exclusively with Blanchard &
Company (quadrupled sales to $120 million a year;
helped the owner sell the company for $45 million).
In 1992, I took myself off the market to focus ex-
clusively on Phillips Publishing (2 million new sub-
scribers for Health & Healing plus many more for
other letters).
And in 1999, I did it again to give my undivided at-
tention to Weiss Research (more than quadrupled
Double Your Profits
 53

subscriber files, made Safe Money Report the largest

$99 investment letter in the world, helped quadruple
profits on the house file).
Each time I vanished, former clients began to won-
der, “Why isn’t Clayton calling for a new assignment?”
Then, they noticed something funny on the data
cards they use to select mailing lists: A small competitor’s
customer file was suddenly growing like crazy – dou-
bling ... tripling ... quadrupling, or even more.
The marketing people got curious. They called a
meeting to examine the up-and-comer’s direct mail and try
to figure out why it’s working so well. And they put out
feelers to see who’s writing the copy, hoping to get on the
hot new writer’s schedule.
Each time the answer has been the same: “It’s no-
body new - just Clayton.”
Now, I’m about to go underground yet again. Here’s
why …
My best years ever began yesterday...
Early this year, a dear friend and former accomplice
of mine called to say “Hi.” My buddy and I worked together
on a variety of projects since the early 1980s – and he
now owns a successful company that handles the nuts-
and-bolts end of things for small-ish direct marketers: Pro-
motion and media planning, printing, mailing, response
analysis, IT, that kind of stuff.
Actually, my old pal was calling to say more than just
“Hi.” He wanted to know if I’d consider accepting a free-
lance assignment from one of his clients: A small direct re-
sponse company I’d never heard of. (Sorry -- confidential-
ity agreements prohibit me from disclosing proprietary in-
formation about clients I’m currently working with – in-
cluding in this case, the client’s name).
I declined, saying I was giving up the freelance writ-
ing racket. I was looking for one good client in whom I
could fully invest myself.

Clayton Makepeace
 54

Ideally, I was looking for a client who would benefit

from “THE TOTAL PACKAGE:” Not just copy, but everything
I have to offer -- consulting on corporate structure and
marketing procedures ... product development ... new cus-
tomer acquisition campaign strategies ... customer lifetime
value optimization ... and of course, copywriting, graphic
design, response analysis and roll-out strategy.
In short, a client who would give me the freedom to
take him to the moon, thus making us both millions.
My friend got excited: “This could be the guy!” he
said. “This guy is a dream client. He’s smart, honest, hard-
working, has a kick-butt product line. He’s already growing
his company by leaps and bounds, gives copywriters their
heads, and pays promptly. What more could you possibly
want?”
I dunno – Angelina Jolie in a compromising position?
I accepted one assignment on a trial basis – a “first
date” -- to see if there was chemistry between us, with
both parties agreeing that the goal was a long-term, in-
depth relationship.
Long story short:
The client was a dream to work with ...
The work went quickly ...
My copy beat his control by three to one ...
We drew up a long-term contract and got hitched ...
Before the ink dried on our new contract, I asked the
client and my friend to meet me in Atlanta for an intensive
weekend of review, brainstorming and strategy – three
days to rethink the client’s company, products and promo-
tions – and get us all ready for the explosive growth we
were about to create.

Double Your Profits

 55

When’s the last time a “copywriter”

did all this for you?
That Friday, Saturday and Sunday were the three
most intense days I have ever had. We put every aspect of
my client’s company under the microscope.
At the end of each day, I was completely spent. My
head hurt, my body ached, and I collapsed unconscious
into the bed.
I loved every minute of it.
Just a few of the high points ...
We gave our new client powerful tools to maximize
the lifetime value of each of his customers ...
We showed him how to attract tens of thousands of
additional new customers each year …
We showed him how to consistently create block-
buster products with fewer misfires ...
We showed him how to multiply the number of
sales he’ll make to new customers in their first 60
days with him ...
We ramped up the selling power of his existing pro-
motion packages with great new headlines and test
ideas ...
We helped him get more from his list brokers and
copywriters ...
We handed him a complete web strategy that will
bring him tens of thousands of new customers ...
ramp up sales among existing customers ... and even
lower the average age of his customers – all for less
than $10,000 in start-up fees.
We gave him a dozen hot new product ideas ...
And we gave him a 90-day plan for quadrupling his
new-to-file customers.

Clayton Makepeace
 56

My fee for all of this: $0

It was the best money I never earned.
My guess is that the tools, strategies, new products
and the new promotions we’ll be doing will more than dou-
ble the size of my client’s active customer file in the next
12 months.
I’m also predicting that beginning in September, each
new customer will spend an absolute minimum of five
times more money with him in their first 60 days on his
file.
And I’ll bet dollars to donuts that the combination of
these hot new products, more efficient marketing strate-
gies and more powerful sales copy will have him at $200
million in two years – a 1,000% increase -- and at $300
million in three.
Of course, the royalties my team will earn on all of
this will be well into the millions of dollars each and every
year – and still be about half the “tip” you give to a good
waiter: Only about 10% of his vastly increased net sales.
Any way you look at it,
that’s a LOT better than freelancing
-- BOTH for my client and for me!
Don’t get me wrong: Freelancing has been very good
to me. If you’re a freelancer, you accept assignments to
create direct response ads and mail packages for many dif-
ferent clients and for many different products. It’s a great
way to get started in this business.
But frankly, a lot about it really sucks.
First, there’s the whole “selling yourself” thing. You
have to bang the phone and pound the pavement to get
assignments. You have to spend valuable time scheduling
your writing time – and then juggling your schedule to ac-
commodate your clients.
Not fun. Worse than that, not productive. Nobody
pays you to do this stuff. They pay you to write. Period.

Double Your Profits

 57

Then, there’s the learning curve on each new job.

You have to spend days, even weeks of each new project
learning about the market ... learning about the client ...
wrapping your mind around the product.
Even if you write for the same client three, four or
more times a year, you still have to shift gears each time
you return to him.
And more often than not, you’ll have to learn about a
product you’ve never promoted before each time.
This, too, is dead time for copywriters. When we’re
not producing copy, we’re not earning money. When we’re
not earning money, we’re spending it.
Next, there’s the chemistry thing. Some clients
you’re going to love, and they’re going to love you back.
But sometimes, the chemistry is just all wrong. The client
doesn’t “get” you, or vice-versa. Or maybe you find your-
self working with a newbie who is intent on systematically
destroying your copy. Big bummer.
Finally, there’s the competition. It’s one thing to take
aim at a control and beat the living daylights out of it.
That’s good fun. But more often than not, the client throws
your package up against two or three new packages by
other, equally gifted writers.
No matter how well you do your job, there’s a signifi-
cant probability the theme or premium or offer you’ve
been assigned won’t resonate as well as those given to
your competitors. If so, you’re going to get creamed. No
royalties for you!
All that goes away when you choose to focus on a
single client. There’s no selling. No dead spots. No sched-
uling nightmares. No problems with chemistry; you had it
or you wouldn’t have the relationship. And you never have
to worry about the competition. You’re free to put 110% of
your energy into every project with no distractions whatso-
ever.

Clayton Makepeace
 58

Is it any wonder that copywriters who pursue these

kinds of relationships wind up with bigger winners, more
often, and greater income?
If you hire writers, here's how to get their best ...
I’ve spent a lot of time on both sides of this equation.
And if you’re a business owner or marketing exec who
hires writers, I feel your pain.
Copywriters can be a pain in the ass: Quirky, preen-
ing, self-willed, creative weirdos who require careful han-
dling to protect their fragile egos.
They’re almost never available when you need them
and hound you for assignments when you don’t. They con-
stantly stray from the themes they’ve been assigned ...
demand that you produce piles of costly new premiums ...
write way too long or way too short ... fail to substantiate
crucial facts they’ve presented in the copy ... buck like hell
against your compliance guidelines ... and pout like 3-
year-olds when you critique their “brilliant” first drafts.
And of course, to a copywriter, your deadline is im-
portant only because it indicates how many weeks late
your job is going to be. After all – you’re just one of their
clients. If you get mad, they’ll just move on.
On the other hand, you have copywriters you love.
And deepening your relationship with the best of the best
can only pay huge dividends for you.
So if you’re a business owner
or marketing exec, why not ...
1. Get closer to your best writers: Look for oppor-
tunities to meet face to face and bond with writers who
give you winners. Fly them in. Fly out to see them. Invite
them on the company picnic. Send them the company
newsletter. Have the prez send a balloon bouquet with
every new control.
A strong personal relationship transcends everything
– including money – in keeping your writers motivated.

Double Your Profits

 59

2. Think outside the box: It’s hard, I know; the

freelance copywriter model has been around so long, doing
things differently feels risky. And unless you’re the owner,
you may have to fight some internal battles to break the
mold.
But why not identify the one, two or even three writ-
ers who consistently produce winners for you and lock
them up?
Consider offering them incentives like retainer deals
or a small override on back-end sales made to the new
customers they produce for you. Sweeten the pot, and
you’ll get the best, more often than your competitors will.
And why not ask your superstar writers to mentor
and/or copy chief a junior writer on a few projects? You’ll
get more packages per year and maybe even a great new
writer!
3. Encourage your copywriters to give you
more: Challenge your writers to get more involved in the
marketing process. Offer rewards to writers who find ways
to improve your offer, premiums or guarantee.
4. Engage writers to write back-to-back pack-
ages for the same product: The one time a writer is
most immersed in your product is when he’s just finished
writing a promotion for it. A second package right away re-
quires no learning curve whatsoever – and he’s got tons of
ideas he couldn’t use in the package he just finished.
Try it: It works like a charm!
5. If a great writer makes an offer to focus ex-
clusively on your company’s products, jump on it!
Unorthodox? Yes. But aren’t all breakthrough ideas?
Remember: I’ve tried this kind of close copywriter/
client relationship four times. So far, I’m batting a thou-
sand.
Each time, the client’s sales exploded. Each time, I
made a mint. Any way you look at it, that’s a big win-win
for everybody.

Clayton Makepeace
 60

Why wouldn’t it work for you?

If you’re a copywriter, here’s my advice ...
1. Expand your skills. OK, so you’re a creative pro.
Maybe it’s time to immerse yourself in the science of direct
response. Take courses. Read books. Attend seminars. Do
whatever it takes to get a solid grasp of the nuts-and-bolts
side of the business.
Why? Because as you better understand the chal-
lenges your clients face, you’ll be able to create packages
that better fill their needs.
Few copywriters give much thought to anything but
the copy. You’ll be miles ahead if you also consider ...
What are your clients looking for? Maximum re-
sponse at break-even (produces the most new cus-
tomers)? Or maximum return on investment
(produces the greatest profit per piece mailed)?
How does your client track response and read re-
sults? Is there a way to help your clients get back out
into the mail faster, therefore doing more mailings
per year? Roll out with bigger numbers sooner, send-
ing annual mail quantities and your royalties into the
stratosphere?
Which kinds of test panels should you recommend
to give you a better chance of winning? What head-
line, guarantee, offer, response device and other test
ideas hasn’t the client thought of?
How does the cost of the format you’ve chosen for
your package affect your odds of winning? Should
you stick with something cheap – say a two-color re-
port-style piece? Or will a big, tabloid-sized piece
give you enough of a lift to more than offset the
added cost?
Go to school on web-based marketing. Get a grasp
on how to launch and promote an e-zine and a web-
site. Study the differences between writing for the
web and writing for print. Then, offer your services

Double Your Profits

 61

for web-based promotions as well as direct mail and

print.
Having a mastery of the “other side” of the business
can not only give you bigger winners more often; it also
makes you a more valuable contributor to your clients’
success.
2. Be more selective. Seek assignments from cli-
ents who have the resources to help you to big winners.
Avoid clients who drag their feet, demand scores of unnec-
essary drafts or insist on treating you as “just a copy-
writer.”
Covet clients who are eager to have you participate
in a wider range of marketing activities, and who welcome
ideas for sharpening their company and product position-
ing and their offers.
3. Seek long-term relationships. When you’ve
found a client you work well with and with whom you are
able to produce strong controls, start a conversation about
how you might improve your relationship with them.
Consider innovative compensation strategies that
work better for both of you, up to and including a multi-
year exclusive with that client.
Knowing the client’s company, market and products
inside-out will save you time on each job, enable you to
produce more jobs per year, and get bigger winners, more
often!

Clayton Makepeace
62

Double Your Profits

 63

-- Chapter Five --

Boost Your Internet

Sales 1,000%
In 90 Days or LESS
3 “Waking Nightmares”
stalking Internet marketers now ...
The one missing ingredient that can easily
multiply the response to most
Web promotions today ...
A revealing one-second IQ test for Web
marketers ... And more!

Internet gurus – especially the hypesters who want

to sell you a book on “How to Make a Gazillion Bucks by
Noon Tomorrow on The ‘Net” -- will tell you that the Web is
a godsend for anyone looking to get rich quick.
They shout about how hundreds of millions of people
browse the Web and read their e-mail every day – and that
thousands of them are dying to buy a product just like the
one you’re selling.
Well, there’s no doubt that the World Wide Web is
huge. According to the CIA World Factbook, 186 million
Americans -- roughly 63% of the U.S. population – now
have Web access.
Throw in the rest of the English-speaking world --
and millions more around the globe who are fluent in our
language – it’s a pretty good bet that well over 300 million
consumers and business people can read and respond to
your English-language sales messages.

Clayton Makepeace
 64

300 million prospects not enough for you? Ok ...

If you translate your e-mail blasts and websites into
Spanish, you’ll pick up about 100 million more pros-
pects in the U.S., Mexico, Central America, South
America and of course, Spain.
Add French, German, Russian and Portuguese sales
messages and you can talk to 116 million more fu-
ture customers.
And if you can figure out a way to make your sales
messages readable to Web nerds in China and India,
you’ll pick up another 136 million prospective cus-
tomers.
That’s about 650 million prospects in all -- and still,
the Web is just getting warmed up ...
2 Billion Web Users by 2010
Altogether, about ONE BILLION people on the planet
have Web access at this very moment: That’s one out of
every 6.5 human beings alive today.
In 2005, about 136 million new folks joined the Inter-
net community for the first time. That’s 248 new Web us-
ers every minute ... more than 15,000 per hour ... and
more than 372,000 per day, 365 days a year.
At that rate, the number of people on the Internet
will DOUBLE AGAIN – to about 2 billion users -- in the next
4 years!
And even that “2-billion-by-2010” number may prove
to be a gross misunderestimation (yes, I do know that’s
not a real word).
The wildest wild cards? China and India: Nearly half
of the world’s population lives in those two countries –
about 2.4 billion souls. And so far, only about 5% of those
folks have found their way to the ‘Net.
If you asked a roomful of 100 Chinese and Indian
folks, “How many of you use the Internet?” – well, my
guess is that almost nobody would understand a word you
said – because they all speak Chinese and ... uh ... Indian
Double Your Profits
 65

or something.
But even if you went the extra mile and asked them
in their native tongues, only about 5 of them would stand
and be counted.
Ask a roomful of 100 Americans the same question,
and 63 of them would jump to their feet. The way I figure
it, that’s only slightly less than would jump up if you’d
asked, “Who wants free beer?”
My point is; Internet use is 12 times greater per cap-
ita in the U.S. than in China and India. But that’s changing
– and FAST.
See, when it comes to economic growth, China and
India are punking us – big time.
Here in the good old U.S. of A., our economy is ex-
panding at the sedate, “civilized” rate of about 3.8% per
year. But India’s economy is growing nearly TWO TIMES
FASTER ... and China’s is exploding by double digits –
nearly THREE TIMES FASTER.
That means every day of the year, millions of Chinese
and Indians are packing their knapsacks ... leaving the
farm for the big city ... getting jobs ... opening bank ac-
counts ... becoming consumers ... and discovering the in-
comparable joys of something called “disposable income.”
And every day, millions of these new consumers are
using a part of their newfound disposable income to join
the Internet community.
The thing is, the combined population of China and
India is more than EIGHT TIMES LARGER than ours is –
so ...
When per-capita internet use in China and India
reaches just 25% of what it is in America, they’ll
have 380 MILLION users online – nearly half as many
surfers as exist in the entire world today.
When it hits 50%, they’ll have 945 MILLION con-
sumers online – almost equaling today’s entire Inter-
net community.

Clayton Makepeace
 66

And when they finally catch up with us – when

63% of the people in these countries finally join the
World Wide Web -- there will be a staggering 1.5 BIL-
LION of them on the ‘Net.
That’s nearly DOUBLE the number of internet users in
the entire world today!
So when folks tell you that the number of consumers
on the Web is huge and getting huger – and that any self-
respecting business owner, marketing exec and direct re-
sponse copywriter would be certifiably insane not to make
web-based marketing a big, BIG priority – they are NOT
blowing smoke up your skirt.
Especially since reaching those hundreds of millions
of prospective clients on the Web is unbelievably cheap ...
Just like direct mail
– but with no printing or postage costs!
Twenty years ago, if you had told me that one day,
I’d be able to reach all the prospective customers I wanted
to without paying a penny in printing, postage or letter
shop fees ... and without paying through the nose for print
space or TV and radio time ... I would have probably
smiled and backed away from you v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y.
I would have instantly pegged you as a raving luna-
tic. But I would have been wrong. Thanks to the Internet,
you actually can reach millions of prospects without spend-
ing a dime on any of those things – and that’s huge ...
When I write a direct mail package, I know my client
is going to have to cough up an average of $550 to mail it
to every 1,000 prospects in his universe. That’s $55,000
to send it to 100,000 potential customers ... and $550,000
to send it to 1 million prospective customers.
On the web, you can post a website that millions will
see for five hundred bucks – and then blast a million e-
mails to drive folks to your site for next to nothing!
So yeah – the Internet is huge and cheap, just like
the hypesters say it is.

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And yes, marketing products and services on the ‘Net

can make you a bundle. I know lots of Internet marketers
who make tens of millions – even a hundred million or
more – every year on their web promotions.
But there is just a little bit more to it than that ...
What Internet Hypesters Don’t Tell You
Wouldn’t it be great if the guys trying to sell you ri-
diculously expensive books, courses and seminars on
Internet Marketing were right?
I mean – how great would it be if all you had to do
was toss a site up on the ‘Net, send out a bunch of e-mails
for free or nearly free and then go goof off on the beach
while the Web filled your bank account to overflowing for
you?
Unfortunately it’s not quite that easy. Before you can
become the world’s next Internet mogul, you’d better get
used to dealing with the three waking nightmares that
plague more and more internet marketers every day ...
Nightmare #1 -- Delivery Disasters: Because di-
rect mail, print, and TV and radio advertising cost serious
money, marketers are extremely careful to send solicita-
tions ONLY to people who have demonstrated that they are
ready, willing and able to buy the product or service being
promoted.
Not so on the web: The fact that e-mail marketing is
cheap -- or, once you own your own blasting software and
hardware, in some cases even free -- has filled our e-mail
boxes with far more junk mail each day than the U.S.
Postal Service ever delivered in a week.
As a result, all the major Internet Service Providers
(ISPs) now screen your mail and block as much of the ob-
vious spam as they can. And if you’ve bought a new com-
puter or upgraded your software in the last few years, it’s
a good bet that your own machine is blocking even more.
Nevertheless, we all still get dozens of junk e-mails
every day – and at the same time, these automated spam
filters are often guilty of throwing out the mail we want
Clayton Makepeace
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along with the junk!

I, for example, sometimes have trouble getting an is-
sue of my weekly e-zine, THE TOTAL PACKAGE to people
who have asked to receive it – even after my issue has
passed our own spam-checking programs with flying col-
ors.
Heck, I’ve even had personal e-mails from good
friends blocked or re-directed to my junk e-mail folder!
Needless to say, if you’re marketing a product on the
Web, this kind of wildly erratic delivery can KILL the re-
sponse to your promotions.
Nightmare #2 – The Competitive Challenge: Re-
member when Amazon was the ONLY major bookseller
online? Google the word “books” now, and you’ll get 1.28
BILLION hits!
Remember when eBay was the only major on-line
auction? Google the word “auction” now, and you’ll get
81.3 million hits!
Remember when Yahoo was the only major search
engine? Type “search engine” into a search engine today
and you’ll get 354 million hits!
I remember when I could search for “Copywriting”
and see only a handful of hits. These days, I get 3.68 mil-
lion – and another 684 million for “marketing.”
Plus “weight loss” gets 70.3 million hits ... “hair loss”
gives you 30.8 million hits ... “erection:” 8.73 million
hits ... “real estate:” 325 million hits ... even “rutabaga”
gets 426,000 hits!
Sure – you can spend a fortune on search engine op-
timization and Pay-Per-Click advertising on Google and the
others – or maybe spend big bucks in other media to send
people to your site.
If you’re very good and very lucky, your prospective
customers might find you on, oh let’s say ... the first five
or ten pages that get served up.
The point is, the days when Internet marketing was
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cheap or even free are gone forever. The cost of getting

your site noticed is rising – and will only get costlier as the
number of websites on the ‘Net continue to explode in the
years ahead.
Nightmare #3 -- The Credibility Catastrophe: To
me, this is the biggie – the monster that, unless some
computer geek somewhere has a flash of inspiration and
SOON -- has the power to forever KILL the Internet as a
marketing tool.
See, all direct mail, print, TV and radio advertising in
this country is closely regulated by the Federal Trade Com-
mission as well as other government agencies. When they
catch someone lying, cheating, or stealing (or even
“misleading”), the regulators can shut them down in a
heartbeat.
Not so with the Internet. It doesn’t give a flying fig
what regulators or politicians say or do. If Washington
proclaims something they’re doing is illegal, they can just
pull up stakes and move to another country where the
laws are more lenient, or the officials more bribable, or
both.
And so, the Internet has become the sleaziest of all
the channels available to marketers – with armies of scam
artists filling your email box with fraudulent promotions
and other swindles.
Like the jerk whose e-mails look exactly like an offi-
cial communication from an eBay member, asking
you to “sign in” – provide your user name and pass-
word – to answer a question.
Once you do, he has full access to your account, ena-
bling him to re-route money due you to him!
Or like the creeps that put out official-looking
e-mails from Amazon.com telling you that your credit
card is no longer valid and asking you to “log in” and
give them a new one.
Fall for that one, and you can bet someone else will
be living the high life on your money in no time flat!

Clayton Makepeace
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And like the hordes of swindlers who fill your inbox

with unsolicited e-mails swearing that they can make
your bank account, your hair and your male member
grow while making your waistline shrink.
Listen to any of those swindlers, and you might as
well flush your paychecks down the toilet along with the
very, very expensive urine you’ll be producing!
No wonder more and more consumers believe only
about half of what they see on websites -- and nothing
that they read in their e-mail boxes!
Needless to say, this is NOT a good thing for honest
marketers.
BOTTOM LINE: With spam filters and other prob-
lems depressing e-mail delivery rates ... with skyrocketing
competition on the web lowering individual website traf-
fic ... and with rising skepticism among consumers ham-
mering readership rates, click-thru rates and conversion
rates ...
... the cost of making sales on the Web is rising and
many promotions – even ones that once brought big bucks
to marketers – are flagging.
In short ...
The Web is Growing UP;
It’s Time Web Marketers Did Too!
Frankly, most web marketers have been spoiled rot-
ten.
Sorry guys, but you know it’s true!
For more than a decade now, the fact that your me-
dium was brand-new and your prospects were wide-eyed
has allowed you to get rich without ever having to think
much about the strength or weakness of your web-based
sales copy. So, you’ve written the copy yourself – or
cheaped out by hiring neophytes to write for you.
And the fact is, the copy in 99% of the e-mails you
blast and 99% of the websites you build is so weak, it
would have long ago sent any direct response mail, TV or
Double Your Profits
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radio marketer into bankruptcy.

Now, with the Internet maturing and becoming more
competitive ... with the costs associated with driving pros-
pects to websites rising ... and with the average ‘Net con-
sumer growing older, wiser and more skeptical – amateur
night is over.
Suddenly, many web marketers are beginning to find
themselves in the same boat as their peers who use other
advertising media – desperately searching for ways to
boost response.
This simple fact of life
presents a truly dazzling opportunity
for every business owner, marketing exec
and copywriter reading this!
The other day, I was studying a series of landing
pages hosted by one of the nation’s most successful Inter-
net marketing companies.
Now this company has it all. It has hundreds of won-
derful employees who are experts in all the nuts and bolts
of Web marketing. One word from the Prez, and the com-
pany’s web division can conceive a new website before
10:00 AM ... have it written by lunch ... and have it de-
signed, programmed and making sales by quitting time.
In short, the owners have built a Ferrari of a com-
pany -- with all the high tech talent and infrastructure they
need to dominate their industry ...
But instead of paying for high-octane fuel – power-
fully compelling sales copy created by proven professionals
-- they’re pouring cheap kerosene into the gas tank!
Fact is, if they ever try sending their web sales copy
out via snail mail, they’ll be lucky to recoup 10% of the
money they spend on postage!
Nevertheless, on the low-cost Web, the company’s
lousy copy generates nearly $100 million a year in sales –
and they’re laughing all the way to the bank.
The fact that they’re getting rich doesn’t mean that
Clayton Makepeace
 72

they’re smart. To the contrary: It’s proof positive that ig-

norance truly is bliss.
Because if their copy didn’t suck, they’d be making
$1 billion a year instead of a lousy $100 million. And since
everything else is already in place, that 1,000% increase in
sales could happen in the twinkling of an eye.
Unfortunately though, the company’s copy will proba-
bly continue to suck – and the owners will continue leaving
90% of their sales on the table – because they just can’t
quite bring themselves to pay a top copywriter a commission
on the increased sales he or she could produce for them.
And so in hopes of helping any reluctant web market-
ers reading this to see the error of your ways, allow me to
offer this simple, one-second IQ test ...
What would YOU Rather Have?
100% of $100 Million?
... Or 90% of $1 BILLION?
If you said, “100% of $100 million,” you may as well
stop reading this now, go get your resume’ in order and
prepare to go to work for one of your competitors.
Because your company is about to get its head
handed to it on a not-so-silver platter
But if you instantly recognized that paying a top
copywriter 10% of sales and settling for 90% of the $1 bil-
lion that stronger copy could bring you is the smarter
move because it WOULD MAKE YOU NINE TIMES
RICHER ... then do this:
1. Go to the head of the class, and ...
2. Call one. NOW!
And if you’re a copywriter looking for a way to make
big bucks fast, do this ...
Spend a day surfing the web. Find a site that’s obvi-
ously making money, but the copy is stinking up the room.
Call ‘em up and tell them you’ll multiply their sales in 90
days or less – and all you want is 10% of what you pro-

Double Your Profits

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duce for them or better yet, 20% of the increase in net

revenues that you generate.

Clayton Makepeace
74

Double Your Profits

 75

-- Chapter Six --

Maximum
Internet Marketing:
How I Bagged $5 Million
In Internet Sales
In 5 Short Weeks
Even In Today's
Ultra-Crowded Web Marketplace!

It's not getting any easier -- is it?

If you've spent any time in the trenches of internet
marketing over the past few years, you know precisely
what I'm talking about: Those out-of-the-park grand slams
are fewer and farther between these days.
Once upon a time, you could just blast an offer
-almost any offer - to your customer file or even ice-cold
prospect names, then sit back and watch an avalanche of
orders come pouring in.
The money was amazing: When one of my clients e-
mailed a single note to his 35,000 customers back in the
mid-1990s, he raked in $12 million in less than a week.
Ah ... the GOOD old days!
Today, that client would kill to get those kinds of re-
sults. Like most internet marketers today, he's working
harder and profiting less. Much less.
Why is web marketing getting so much tougher?
It should be obvious: When web-based marketing
was new - and still relatively rare - just about every one of
Clayton Makepeace
 76

Take a lesson your prospects and customers read every word of every
from history ...
promotion you sent them.
The first print ad in
an American newspa- But these days, even e-mailed sales messages I want
per made its debut in
1704. The ad itself
to receive are lost among the scores of slimy junk mes-
was primitive by to- sages that slither into my inbox (while I wrote the above
day's standards, but sentence, e-mails from TWO different Viagra sellers
since it was a novelty,
arrived. No kidding!).
my guess is that
100% of the folks who And while all that junk is still finding its way through,
saw it, read it, and
many responded.
overly aggressive spam filters are not only blocking pro-
In the twinkling of motional e-mails I've asked to receive - they're even
an eye, every newspa- trashing non-commercial e-mails to and from my family,
per in the land was
friends and clients!
packed with ads, and
savvy publishers like That's just the tip of the iceberg: The entire internet
Ben Franklin even be-
gan creating maga-
is awash with ads. Try to get a report from Weather.Com,
zines and other publi- or check the stock market on Big Charts.com: Pop-ups and
cations for the express pop-unders galore!
purpose of selling ad-
vertising. "It's like deja vu'e -- all over again!"
Before long - pre-
dictably -- Americans -- Yogi Berra
were overwhelmed
with ads -- and read-
It was bound to happen. Since the dawn of time,
ership and response every new marketing innovation and medium to come
were plummeting. So down the pike has gone through the same response cycle:
a handful of alarmed
but savvy advertisers Phase #1 -- Advent: A small handful of innovative
went to work to find businesses and marketers discover a new advertising me-
ways to lift their ads
head and shoulders
dium or technique that proves to be far superior to tradi-
above the clutter, and tional methods - advertisers' return on investment (ROI)
GET THEM READ! skyrockets ...
• In 1880, John
Wannamaker hired Phase #2 -- Proliferation: Hundreds, then thou-
John E. Powers - as sands, then tens of thousands of businesses and marketers
far as I can tell, the
world's first profes-
discover the secret and begin using it -- ROI begins to
sional copywriter -- to flag ...
promote his store's
products. Phase #3 -- Saturation: The novelty wears off ...
continued … consumers, besieged by advertising messages begin tuning
out -- ROI begins to decline ...
Phase #4 -- Maturity: With its novelty spent and
ROI falling, the once-vastly-superior new medium or tech-

Double Your Profits

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nique eventually takes its place as an equal among many • In 1904, Albert
Lasker and John E.
in the advertiser's arsenal.
Kennedy overcame
Today, we are clearly in Phase Three of the internet reader apathy by in-
troducing the notion of
marketing explosion: The saturation phase. In just about advertising as
every industry and product area you can name, open "salesmanship in
rates, click-through rates, response rates - and most im- print."
• A few years later,
portantly, ROIs -- have peaked and are beginning to de-
Claude Hopkins intro-
cline. duced the notion that,
for maximum reader-
Here's how thinking about the internet in ship, every ad should
this new light recently made a favorite client $5 be filled with "reasons
why" prospects should
million richer in just 5 weeks ... buy the advertised
product.
Several months ago, one of my favorite clients asked • And for the last 100
me to create a web-based promotion for a new investment years, a long line of
advisory. The service would give daily mutual fund trading great advertising leg-
ends - Rosser Reeves,
advice to investors for the princely sum of about $1,000 John Caples, David
per year. Ogilvy and many oth-
ers -- have spent their
... So instead of beginning with a series of e-mails or entire lives searching
even a new web page (as my client requested), I promptly for new ways to cut
sat down and wrote a 24-page DIRECT MAIL package. through the clutter.
Today, web-based
It's not that I'm contrary by nature - I just had a bet- marketers are in the
ter idea ... same boat. The inter-
net is finally being
My client had been blasting several sales promotions recognized for what it
really has been all
for other products to his customers every weekday via e-
along: A medium simi-
mail, and had been doing it for years. And predictably, re- lar in many ways to
sponse to those promotions had crashed to less than one- TV, radio, print, direct
tenth of what he had been getting years earlier. mail and others.
The simple act of
My goal: To do everything possible to make this pro- thinking of the inter-
net in this new light -
motion the exception - to boost response rates and ROI by
and employing proven
an order of magnitude. marketing and sales
copy techniques in
My strategy: To establish the new $1,000 product in every web-based pro-
prospects' minds as being head and shoulders above every motion is absolutely
other product my client had ever offered them. To do that, essential to producing
bigger winners-more
I would demonstrate the uniqueness and superiority of this
often!
new product - and create emotional momentum for it -- by
making its introduction a gala event.

Clayton Makepeace
 78

My tactic: Use every medium available to me over a

5-week period - beginning with the cheapest avenues and
proceeding step-by-step to ever-costlier ones -- to sell the
maximum number of subscriptions possible with a positive
ROI.
That would require much more copy than the client
usually produced for an e-mail promotion - but it would be
worth it.
And beginning by writing long copy - copy containing
every benefit, every credibility element, every reason why
the prospect should buy the service -- would be the best
way to make sure that the strongest sales copy available
appeared in every contact with our prospects.
Once the long copy was finished, the rest would be
easy: I would simply excerpt it over and over again to cre-
ate my multi-step campaign ...
STEP #1 -- Pick the low-hanging fruit - cheap: A re-
spectable chunk of my client's customers love him to death
and will buy just about any product he recommends. For
these wonderful customers, I created an extremely low-
cost, multi-step e-mail campaign:
A series of short, daily blasts announcing the new
product and the reasons why the customer should jump on
board right away ... re-announcing the new product ...
asking them why we hadn't heard from them, etc.
Important point: The e-mail medium in itself is, in a
very real way, a big part of the message. By its very na-
ture - the fact that it is an instant communication -- the e-
mail medium screams "urgency!"
And it also raises key questions in your prospect's
mind:
"Why is this communication urgent?”
“Is it because you urgently need to sell me some-
thing?
"Or is it because I urgently need a piece of informa-
tion in order to bring value to my life?"

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If my prospects perceived that my e-mail messages

were just crass attempts to sell them something, my e-
mails might be instantly deleted. If on the other hand, my
e-mails were perceived as a timely and sincere offering to
help the recipient in some way, my sales message would
be far more likely to be read and responded to.
And so, for urgency and readership, I began each e-
mail with valuable information or advice relating to a late -
breaking piece of news from the investment world. The
subject line and opening copy of each blast was new each
day - as fresh as each day's headlines - and rewarded
prospects for reading my sales message.
Next, I made the connection between the breaking
news and the new investment service - and demonstrated
how the service could use this new event to generate huge
profits for the reader in the days ahead.
And finally, I inserted copy justifying my price and
asking for the order.
RESULT: A constant stream of $1,000 orders poured
in from these e-mails every day for five full weeks.
STEP #2 - Get fence-sitters to a "tipping point" web-
site: While a significant group of loyal customers could be
counted on to buy in response to a short e-mail, I rea-
soned that the short copy would leave at least 90% of my
prospects sitting on the fence. To sell them, I'd need
longer copy - more reasons to buy now - than could be
presented in a five or six-paragraph e-mail.
To tip these prospects off of their perch, I used about
half the long direct mail copy I had written about the prod-
uct (12 pages, of 12pt. type, single spaced), to create an
"Urgent Special Report" on-line: A small, cheap website.
And in week #2 of my campaign, I began sending e-mails
to the client's customers urging them to click a link in or-
der to read the free report immediately.
RESULT: Order volume increased dramatically as a
significant number of my client's customers responded to
the simple website.

Clayton Makepeace
 80

STEP #3 -- Exploit other low-cost or free media:

While my client's web-based products were extremely suc-
cessful, he also publishes and mails a monthly print news-
letter to some 120,000 active subscribers every month.
Taking my client's urgent recommendation to his cus-
tomers in print would position this new product in my pros-
pects' minds as being something special - not just another
run-of-the-mill product promoted exclusively on the inter-
net. So, I simply took the 12 pages of copy from the little
website I'd created ... wrote a new headline and opening
copy ... turned it into a printed special report ... and had it
inserted in the next issue of my client's print newsletter.
At the same time, I tasked the client's operators to
include a pitch for the product on all in-bound phone calls
from customers.
And I included an insert offering the free on-line re-
port in my client’s outbound welcome packages that new
subscribers received.
RESULT: Once again, sales spiked nicely.
STEP #4 -- Show up where they least expect you to:
Two weeks after the newsletter insert hit my prospects'
mail boxes, I hit them again - with the full 24-page direct
mail package I had initially created to promote the prod-
uct, formatted as a free special report or "thank-you" bo-
nus for loyal customers.
After years of receiving ONLY e-mail promotions for
these high-priced trading services, my prospect suddenly
realized that this must really be different - and therefore
better than - anything my client had recommended before.
Reasoning that anyone who hadn't bought probably
hadn't read past the headline and lead-in copy, I made
sure the first three pages were fresh. Beyond that, the
copy was pretty much unchanged.
RESULT: Money was positively rolling in.
STEP #5 - I get tenacious: Two weeks after the 24-
pager hit their mail boxes, we stuffed it into an envelope,

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added a one-page letter from my client asking, "Why have-

n't I heard from you?" and dropped it into the mail.
Again - the phone rang off the hook.
The final result: The combined effect of e-mail, the
website, the inserts in the print newsletter and two direct
mailings had a multiplying effect on response.
When the dust had settled, our multi-channel mar-
keting campaign had sold more than $5 million worth of
subscriptions to the new service in just five weeks - about
five times more than we would have sold through an e-
mail promotion alone!
Lessons learned ...
1. E-mail marketing and mini-websites are merely
two of the marketing channels available to you. Challenge
yourself to come up with other non-web based, low cost
ways to deliver your sales message. This will position your
product as being head and shoulders above all the others
your prospects have seen.
2. Picking the low-hanging fruit on a house file with
ultra-cheap e-mail campaigns first is a smart way to get
the ball rolling. But adding promotions in other media --
the newsletter inserts, direct mail packages, welcome
package inserts, inbound telemarketing scripts - can make
hundreds of sales that are normally lost with web-based
marketing alone.
3. Compelling "reason-why" sales copy at every step
of each campaign is absolutely essential for maximizing re-
sponse and minimizing cost per sale. It can send ROI soar-
ing at every step of your on-line marketing process. Using
anything less than the strongest sales copy that could pos-
sibly be written means you're leaving big bucks on the ta-
ble.

Clayton Makepeace
82

Double Your Profits

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-- Chapter Seven --

The Human Brain:

An Owner's Manual
My 4 Most Savage Productivity-Killers
Plus The Mental Tricks
That Ramp Up My Productivity
And Help Me Explode
Through Creative Roadblocks

Have you ever had one of those weeks that kind of

came with a theme attached?
Well, last week was BRAIN week for me.
On Monday, I had a long chat with the legendary
Gary Bencivenga -- one of the greatest copywriters
ever to draw a breath, and one of the sweetest guys
you will ever meet.
Gary and I spent two full hours on the phone discuss-
ing the techniques he's used throughout his career to
produce bigger winners, more often. And Gary set
the theme for my week with his inspired insights into
how he uses his subconscious BRAIN to solve prob-
lems for him. Awesome stuff.
NOTE: If you're not already getting BENCIVENGA
BULLETS — Gary's free e-zine — I strongly suggest that
you get your subscription now. It is packed with gems that
can't help but make you a better marketer!
On Wednesday, I met Bob Bly and several hun-
dred readers of THE TOTAL PACKAGE (my weekly e-
zine) on the phone for my Kick Your Copywriting
Business Into HYPERDRIVE tele-seminar. A major
theme of the conference was the mental and emo-

Clayton Makepeace
 84

tional intimidation new writers face when approach-

ing major mailers for assignments.
And on Friday, I spent an hour on the phone with
a friend who was suffering from one of the worst
cases of writers block I've ever seen. She was in
complete brain lock (my fault, as it turns out).
In each case, THE BRAIN seemed to be the topic of
discussion. So when I sat down to write this chapter, I fig-
ured, "Why fight it? Most of us have a brain — why not
write about how to help it work better for you?”
Now, I'm no psychologist, nor have I ever played one
on TV. But if your brain is getting in the way of your pro-
ductivity ... or even if you'd just like to find ways to help
your brain overcome your greatest productivity killers ...
I'm hoping what I've learned will help you ...
Productivity Killer #1:
Depression
Once upon a time, I got so down in the dumps that I
couldn't do a lick of work.
A client of mine suddenly began doing things to de-
stroy his own company — a company that I had quadru-
pled for him and felt a huge personal stake in. And, well, I
got depressed.
Suddenly, I had the attention span of a three-year-
old. I couldn't focus long enough to write a coherent sen-
tence — let alone rise to the challenges of work.
Next thing you know, I'm on a couch, pouring my
guts out to a brilliant, 86-year-old shrink — who, by the
way, should have probably seen another shrink about his
workaholism. Not only had he not been able to bring him-
self to retire at age 86 -- in addition to treating me and his
full schedule of patients, he was also Professor Emeritus of
Psychology at a major university.
Now, there are lots of flavors of psychology out
there. Dr. Samuelson was sold on something called the
"Cognitive-Behavioral" school — pioneered by Dr. Aaron
Beck and Dr. Albert Ellis, and popularized in the 700-plus
Double Your Profits
 85

page doorstop of a book entitled, "Feeling Good: The New

Mood Therapy" (And yes, he made me read every blessed
word -- the bastard!)
Right off the bat, Dr. Samuelson spotted my problem.
First, he explained that emotions — depression, in my case
-- do not spring up out of nowhere. Actually, they are just
a link in a longer chain:
LINK #1: An event: Something that happens in
your life. The vast majority of events are neither
good nor bad in the absolute sense. They are neutral.
LINK #2: Your Belief Filters: These are a set of
pre-existing beliefs you have about yourself and the
world around you through which information about
the event is transmitted.
LINK #3: A thought: Information about the event
passes through your belief filters, and then is kicked
up to your conscious brain as a recognizable thought.
But sometimes, they're not so recognizable. Some-
times they flash through your mind so fast, you don't
even realize you're having them.
LINK #4: An emotion: Or even a big, ugly, tan-
gled rat's nest of them — arise in response to the
thought. These, you definitely notice. You can't help
it. They can be pretty intense.
If you remember thinking the thought that triggered
them, you probably know where these feelings came
from. If not, they can seem to come out of nowhere.
LINK #5: An action: Or actually, a RE-action to
the emotion that was triggered by the thought that
was triggered by the subconscious belief filters
through which information of the event originally
passed.
Are we all on the same page, here?
Good. Well, anyhow, in my case, the chain went
something like this ...

Clayton Makepeace
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EVENT: My client, whom I had made richer than

Croesus, was suddenly and inexplicably ignoring my coun-
sel, listening to drooling morons and making decisions that
were so obviously self-destructive, his employees and I
were convinced that he was intentionally trying to kill his
own company.
MY BELIEF FILTERS: I came from nowhere. I don't
deserve all of this success. Someday, I'll be back where I
started — in poverty.
THOUGHT(s): I'm going to go broke. Everyone who
envies me now will be making fun of me. I'll be the laugh-
ing stock of the industry. I won't be able to get a job. I'll
lose my house, my car, my wife, and have to break my
daughter's heart by selling her beloved thoroughbred. I'll
probably wind up under a car somewhere drinking anti-
freeze to get my daily adult requirement of alcohol.
EMOTION: Depression.
ACTION: Every symptom I had. Sulking. Angry out-
bursts at work. Flare-ups with the wife. Over-reacting with
the kids. Revenge fantasies involving the client, 10 kero-
sene-soaked bamboo splints and a book of matches (well,
at least a big, fat lemon meringue pie in the face).
Plus, bizarre physical symptoms like sudden dizzi-
ness, digestive problems, and of course, complete brain
freeze. I found it impossible to write a word or think my
way through a work problem of any kind.
THE THERAPY: The good doctor helped me realize
that all the belief filters and thoughts that were triggering
my depression were — and I think this is the official, medi-
cal term for it — "NUTS."
Then, he helped me examine the belief filters that
were causing these completely invalid thoughts, and
change the ones that were responsible.
Finally, he showed me how to backtrack from any
emotion I was experiencing ... identify the thought behind
it ... figure out whether it was valid or nuts ... and if it was

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nuts, then identify and change the belief filter that trig-
gered it.
RESULT: No more depression. I thanked the shrink,
fired the client and moved on to far greater successes and
much, much greater riches.
If you sometimes find yourself feeling so bummed
out that you just can't focus, do yourself a favor: Get help.
Depression is more than just a "productivity killer" — it's a
mass-murderer of human beings. It destroys your energy
levels, devastates your immune system, and worse.
Reading “FEELING GOOD” and schmoozing with a
shrink for a few hours helped me enormously. I've used
these techniques to end depression quickly, diffuse stress
and ramp up my productivity levels for 16 years — highly
recommended.
Productivity Killer #2:
Creative Block
We've all been there. You're stuck for a creative idea.
Maybe a headline, a subhead, or a creative way to drive a
copy point home to your reader. But your creative muse is
AWOL.
What do you do? Me? I add up a long column of big
numbers — by hand.
Here's why — and how it works:
When I was in my twenties, I took an aptitude test
just for fun. The test explained that there are only two ba-
sic aptitudes:
1) The Creative Aptitude: This is the "right-brain"
part of you that is active when you're being the most child-
like — wild, free, playful, and, well creative.
The creative aptitude couldn't care less about order,
or rules, or details, or even what's true. Like a child, it's
just interested in having a good time.
In short, it's where great art, music, poetry, innova-
tions and inventions, most Congressional testimony, and
nearly everything politicians say comes from.
Clayton Makepeace
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2) The Accounting Aptitude: This is the "adult" —

the old-timey Methodist minister -- who lives on the left
side of your brain. It does not approve of play. It frowns
on frolic and is suspicious of anything that is not substanti-
ated six ways from sundown.
And it loves rules: Both making them and following
them to the letter.
The accounting aptitude is the voice in your head that
shouts down every creative idea you've ever had. It points
out the problems wrapped inside your creative solutions. It
is strict, self-disciplined, detail-oriented, and in some folks,
anal-retentive.
The test went on to explain that all of us have vary-
ing degrees of both aptitudes. Nobody is 100% creative or
100% accounting.
Most kids under the age of six tend to be way to the
right-hand side — the creative side -- of the aptitude scale.
So are abstract artists, most Hollywood actors and others
who have lost all touch with reality.
Really good bean counters, proofreaders, compliance
officers and most traffic cops I've encountered in my color-
ful career as a motorist tend to be most of the way to the
left-hand side. They live their lives on the "just the facts,
ma'am" accounting.
But most of us are somewhere in-between. A great
songwriter like Elton John or Paul McCartney, for example,
needs to write both words and music. The lyrics demand a
tremendous amount of creativity, but also enough detail
orientation to get the rhyme, rhythm and spelling halfway
right. The melodies and harmonies are partly creative and
partly directed by music theory -- rules which are surpris-
ingly, mathematical in nature.
Now here's the key: To function at peak efficiency,
we each need to exercise our creative aptitudes AND our
accounting aptitudes on a regular basis.
When one of these two aptitudes is not getting
enough exercise, it starts jumping around, raising its hand

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and interrupting everything we're trying to do with the

other one.
Example: You're trying to proofread your copy for ty-
pos — a task in which your meticulous, detail-oriented ac-
counting aptitude is fully involved — but you keep getting
distracted. Your brain keeps feeding you creative ways to
punch up the subheads. Before you know it, you're not
proofreading, you're editing!
The opposite happens when you've been working
creatively in your copy for some time: Your accounting ap-
titude gets jealous, jumps up and starts shouting, doing its
dead-level best to kill every germ of a creative idea you're
working with.
What's the solution?
Mix it up! In most cases, the copy projects you work
on require the healthy exercise of both aptitudes.
Research, organization, substantiation and documen-
tation are largely done on the left side of the brain.
Creating major themes, headlines and subheads, di-
mensionalizing benefits, and crafting the prose itself re-
quire a hefty dose of right-brain work.
So here’s what I do: I work on one type of task until
I'm exhausted, then turn to the other type.
The sales copy I delivered for a health newsletter last
week required me to spend four days reading five years of
back issues -- plus half-dozen premiums and scanning four
or five books. And while I was doing all that reading, I was
also meticulously pasting material I thought I might use
into the appropriate places in my outline.
Although the material was very well written and en-
tertaining, I was bored to tears after the first day. So the
next day, I turned to more creative tasks — headlines,
subheads, sidebar ideas and so forth. And the next day,
with my creative aptitude satisfied, I returned to studying
the client's material.

Clayton Makepeace
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What's that you say? You're creatively blocked and

you don't have any detail-oriented work to do?
Try this to humor the accountant inside you ...
Jot down a list of, say 20 or 30 four-digit and five-
digit numbers.
Add them up by hand.
Then divide by 7,329 and carry your answer out to
the 21st decimal place.
Then, multiply that by Pi: 3.14159265
Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, your accounting
aptitude will be satisfied, shut the heck up, and you'll be
able to return to the creative task at hand.
In rare instances when this fails, my next tactic is to
do some other detail-oriented task for an hour. You could
pay your bills, for example. Or work on the household
budget.
Don't have a detail-oriented task to do? Then disen-
gage entirely. Mow the lawn. Stack firewood. Work out. Hit
the local bookstore for an hour. Then try again.
Does it always work for me? Not always. On ex-
tremely rare occasions, the only solution is a good night's
sleep …
Productivity Killer #3:
"Unsolvable" Problems
Again — I'm no shrink. But I have read a lot about
how our brains work. And it turns out, you actually have
four brains.
1) A reptilian brain that controls autonomic systems
— breathing, heartbeat, digestion, your immune system,
hormone production, organ functions, etc. ...
2) A conscious left brain for detail-oriented tasks ...
3) A conscious right brain for creative tasks, and ...
4) A subconscious brain for storing stuff.

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Both halves of your conscious brain — right and left -

- are at work only when you're awake. They're responsible
for perceiving the world around you, acquiring input and
for thinking.
Your subconscious brain is for remembering. It's kind
of like a hard drive in a computer. Each day, it stores
every piece of new sensory input that passed through your
conscious mind -- everything you saw, read, heard,
smelled, touched, thought about and experienced.
When you snooze at night, your conscious mind
conks out and the flow of new information ebbs. That gives
your subconscious mind time to sort through all these new
files and make connections between them and older files it
has stored away over the years.
Your subconscious makes these connections by com-
paring new information with the stuff already in its files in
a kind of "This-is-like-that" way. If you struggled with a
problem during the day, for example, your subconscious
says, "This problem is a lot like another problem we solved
(or saw someone else solve) years ago."
Then, your subconscious creates a connection that
your conscious brain can use to access the solution. When
you are awake, all of these new connections are available
to your conscious mind to draw from.
So how do you solve unsolvable problems? You sleep
through them!
Thomas Edison was famous for taking naps. Visitors
would often come to his offices in hopes of seeing the
great man in action — only to find the old codger sawing
logs on a couch in his office.
But he wasn't really sleeping. He was getting his con-
scious mind out of the way so his subconscious could solve
a problem for him. And many times when he awoke, he'd
have the solution.
Last week when I talked with Gary Bencivenga, he
told me that he writes great copy in his sleep.

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When Gary finds himself struggling with something

during the day, he sets it aside and moves on to some-
thing else. Then, just before he turns in for the evening, he
reads or thinks in detail about the "unsolvable problem" —
and more often than not, his subconscious mind solves it
for him by morning.
And although Gary and I had never discussed this be-
fore, I have done precisely the same thing for the past two
decades or so.
Sometimes, I print an entire chunk of sales copy and
take it to bed with me, and read it thoroughly just before
turning out the light. Then, I continue thinking about the
problem as I drift off to sleep. More often than not, the so-
lution arrives with my first waking thoughts in the morn-
ing.
Try it — you'll be amazed.
Productivity Killer #4:
Negative Mental Images
Last week, my copywriter friend was a basket case —
and it was my fault. She had submitted a draft she was
proud of, expecting me to be thrilled and impressed and
for the client to be blown away by it.
And although most of the copy was excellent, she
had failed to clearly establish her main theme or to carry it
through the copy (no clarity of vision) ... her tone wasn't
quite right in spots ... and the organization left a lot to be
desired.
I sent her a nice memo, giving her my suggestions
for sharpening the copy. I was complementary of the
"good" parts, but firm: The copy still had a ways to go be-
fore we could show it to the client. And I did my best to be
encouraging and to motivate her to put in this last bit of
effort to really make it shine.
I was, as it turns out, a miserable failure.
A couple of days later, I called to see how her next
draft was coming along. "Terrible. I'm completely blocked.
I just can't get going."
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I spotted her problem immediately. I've been where

she was a thousand times ...
As she was writing her first draft, she was excited
about the project. She was playing with mental images of
how the client and I would be awed by her tremendous
creativity, consummate skill and her ability to deliver
grand-slam copy on a tight deadline.
She envisioned the copy sailing through the produc-
tion process ... being mailed ... and producing heretofore
unimagined response rates. She imagined her new control
becoming the talk of the industry ... held up as the ulti-
mate example of what direct response copy should be.
Who knows? Maybe even an award — would a ticker-tape
parade in her honor be too much to ask?
But when I burst her bubble, she suddenly had a very
different set of mental images to deal with.
Now as she returned to the work, she was feeling as
though she had let me down. She was embarrassed ... dis-
appointed ... perhaps even a little resentful at my luke-
warm response to her copy. She was nearly obsessed with
the fear that the client would go ballistic over the blown
deadline.
And because (like most of us), she has a belief filter
that says, "I don't deserve my success. I'm a fraud; And
someday, the world is going to find out what a phony I
am" — these thoughts blew the lid off of a Pandora's Box
of negative emotions within her.
As bad as all of that was, she now had a new set of
mental images to deal with: Of presenting her next draft
and getting another lukewarm response and another blown
deadline.
No wonder she wasn't having fun anymore. No won-
der she found it impossible to focus on ways to strengthen
the copy!
The good news is, an hour and a half later, I had
helped her discard most of her negative feelings about the
job ... given her a whole new positive set of mental images

Clayton Makepeace
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to work with ... and she happily went back to work, pro-
ducing what I'm sure will be a draft that will knock every-
one's socks off.
THE MORAL OF THE STORY: As you work, never
take your eyes off the prize. Visualize success at every
step of the process. See it, then achieve it.
Regale yourself with fantasies of how you'll feel when
your client calls to rave about your first draft. Imagine the
client calling to say that your copy blew the doors off of his
control ... that he's dropping three million pieces next
month ... he's Fed-Exing your $90,000 royalty to you ...
that he'd like three more packages from you right away —
and that if you'll just say "yes," he'll rush another fat ad-
vance check to you right away.
Picture how it will feel to find that money in your
mailbox ... proudly showing it to your astonished and de-
lighted significant other ... and chuckle to yourself at the
bank teller's amazement when she sees the amount on the
deposit slip.
Paint a vivid picture of what you'll do with the
money: The freedom from debt and worry ... the rich
leather, fine, clockwork engineering and breathtaking ac-
celeration in the new Porsche you'll buy ... the luxurious
vacation you'll treat yourself to.
This should help…

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-- Chapter Eight --

Face Your Fears!

Your #1 obstacle to turning dreams
into reality, and how to kick its fanny …

I love people who have the audacity to dream big

dreams — and who have the courage to actually follow
those dreams through to fruition.
And recently I fell in love 200 times – while speaking
at the American Writers & Artists Institute’s (AWAI) Boot
Camp in Delray Beach, Florida.
Attending a direct marketing conference was a big
first for me. For one thing, I don’t “do” conferences. I at-
tended my first — and last — marketing conference in
1975 ... that was 30 long years ago, and I hated every
minute of it. It was a cattle call:
Hundreds of hungry writers, artists, list brokers,
printers, and other vendors desperately mobbing anything
that resembled a potential client.
And since acting like a teenage girl chasing rock stars
through hotel lobbies isn’t my idea of fun, I never did it
again.
But I’m impressed — no, that’s wrong — I’m utterly
BLOWN AWAY by the whole AWAI Boot Camp experience.
AWAI’s Michael Masterson, Paul Hollingshead, Katie Yeakle,
Denise Ford and their staff are some of the greatest folks
on Earth. They made The Redhead and me — and every-
one else there — feel right at home.
The organization was flawless. The programming was
inspired. The speakers were brilliant. And every one of the
attendees proved to be of the kind I admire most: Every-
day folks taking action to turn their dreams of freedom and
wealth into reality.
Clayton Makepeace
 96

If you were there, I know you’re nodding your head

right now. And frankly, if you weren’t — and if you really
are serious about sharpening your copywriting or copy-
chiefing skills — you blew it.
For every business owner, marketing exec or copy-
writer in America looking for ways to produce more effec-
tive ad copy, the annual AWAI Marketing Boot Camp is
simply a “must attend” event. I strongly recommend that
you begin making plans now to be there next year.
I’m going — NO MATTER WHAT!
Just saying “yes” to AWAI
scared the bejeezus out of me.
If going to an industry conference was a big deal for
me, actually speaking at one was a life-changing experi-
ence.
This will probably sound strange to you — but ever
since I was a kid, I have suffered from a raging case of
stage fright. Just standing in front of 20 or 30 people got
my knees quaking. Once, my hands shook so violently, I
couldn’t even read my notes.
And so I turned down every speaking invitation of-
fered to me in the last 34 years. Instead, I spent 99% of
my time alone in darkened rooms, cranking out reams of
direct mail, print, TV, radio and Internet promotions.
My aversion to public speaking has cost me a LOT
over the years. Once, the prestigious Economic Club of
New York — the august body to which J.F.K. delivered his
famous “tax-cuts-INCREASE-tax-revenues” speech — in-
vited me to address their members.
They told my secretary they’d spring for First-Class
airfare and accommodations, steer my family and I around
Manhattan in a stretch limo and even let us use their heli-
copter for sight-seeing — if I would only consent to speak-
ing.

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My stage fright was so severe, I didn’t even return

the call — and missed out on what would have surely been
one of the greatest experiences of my life.
But the folks at The American Writers & Artists Insti-
tute have been so unbelievably gracious to me over the
past few months only a jerk would have declined their invi-
tation to speak.
So there I was; saying “yes” to AWAI ... agreeing to
face my fear ... and risking the possibility of sucking BIG
time.
Evidently, I didn’t suck.
So, at 11:15 AM that Friday morning, I spoke about
direct marketing in public for the first time ever.
I presented the copywriting outline I’ve used to cre-
ate some of the most successful financial newsletter pro-
motions of all time. These promotions have consistently
brought my clients as many as ten or fifteen times more
new subscribers than the competition gets in a year, and
have repeatedly quadrupled their customer files (not to
mention my personal income!) in record time.
I figured this stuff should be pretty handy for any
copywriter to know. All I wanted was to:
1) Not suck on-stage, and …
2) Enjoy the experience enough to not dread doing it
again.
So when my buddy Bob Bly introduced me, I bravely
checked my fly, clipped the mic onto my shirt, treated my-
self to a quick mental snapshot of the audience in their un-
derwear (especially the cute blonde in the third row in the
imaginary Victoria’s Secret get-up), and began talking.
I thought I did OK. I didn’t choke up, nobody fell
asleep and the material I presented was real.
The Redhead (my wife Wendy), bless her heart, says
I was hands down, the best speaker at the entire confer-
ence ... in fact, the best speaker there ever was on any

Clayton Makepeace
 98

subject in the whole universe since the Big Bang, period

(aren’t wives great?).
The folks who work for me — the TOTAL PACKAGE
staff, the Response Ink staff and my new copy cubs —
were complimentary too. No surprise there, either: After
all, I am the boss.
And of course, the AWAI folks said I did great.
They’re just too nice not to.
But the rest of the attendees blew me away. They
lined up — scores at a time — to tell me that my ramblings
really helped them. Only one person — a nice lady from
Belize — offered some criticism: “Stand up straighter” she
said, “Slumping screws up your internal organs.” “Thanks,
Mom,” I said.
Copywriter of the Year
Around 5:00, Sandy Franks presented AWAI’s first-
ever award for the “Copywriter of the Year.” Want to guess
who won? Me, that’s who!
They put my name on a plaque that’ll hang in their
offices forever and awarded me a cool etched-glass trophy
for my bookcase PLUS a silver money clip from Tiffany &
Co.!
Now, I don’t want to brag, but the other guys who
were nominated are among the greatest copywriters ever.
Some are also my buddies. And so to them, I say with the
deepest sincerity...
... NANNY NANNY BOO-BOO!
When the comely and brilliant Sandy Franks handed
me that trophy, I felt like spiking it, strutting around like a
Banty Rooster and breaking into an end-zone dance!
... But while I was doing all of that on the inside, I
didn’t let on. I just told the crowd that if a high school
dropout like me can make millions writing copy and be
honored like this, you can too. And I said that somewhere
in the crowd, there were several future “Copywriters of the
Year” and urged them to stick with it.

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It truly was a humbling experience. You see, despite

what you may read elsewhere, there is no such thing as
“The World’s Greatest Copywriter.” Anyone who tells you
different — who claims that he or she is the greatest — is
just ... well, writing copy.
I’ve seen lots of great copywriters flop. Heck. I’ve
done it myself! And just a few weeks ago, I saw a no-name
in-house writer beat the daylights out of copy written by
one of the most famous guys (and one of the most shame-
less self-promoters) in the biz.
So thanks again, AWAI, for the honor. I’m thrilled to
accept — whether I deserve it or not. And to all my peers
who voted for me, bless your little pea-pickin’ hearts!
Is fear holding YOU back?
This whole AWAI Boot Camp experience taught me
one of the most valuable lessons I will ever learn. Facing
my fear freed me from it!
Whether you’re a business owner, a marketing exec,
a copywriter or an artist, I’m willing to bet dollars to
donuts that fear has steered you into some of the dumbest
and costliest decisions of your life — and AWAY from deci-
sions that could have proven to be huge breakthroughs for
you.
Fear is what keeps us where we feel safe — and what
dooms us to mediocrity. It keeps us from trying bold new
things: Things that break the rules ... things that have the
potential to create breakthroughs and make us legends,
not to mention, richer than Midas.
A dear friend of mine —Carline Anglade-Cole — is one
of my former copy cubs who now earns well into six figures
every year spinning out hot new controls for major clients.
In addition to being a great writer, Carline is one of
the most fearless people I’ve ever met. Her lack of fear
has enabled her to put her talent on the line ... fight for
her copy ... and become an “A”-list writer in record time.
But not all of us are like Carline. Most of us struggle
with self-doubt, intimidation and outright fear. But that
Clayton Makepeace
 100

moment when we finally set those fears aside can lead to

tremendous breakthroughs ...
Carolyn faced her fear
– and now, she’s ON HER WAY!
Carolyn — an attractive, very intelligent lady in my
Boot Camp Peer Review Group — is an excellent case in
point. She works in a particular type of financial services
company and is disgusted with the way her industry ex-
ploits, and in some cases, even rips off everyday Joes like
you and me.
Carolyn’s dream is to publish and then write hot sales
copy for a book that will expose these abuses, help con-
sumers get a fair shake, and save them a not-so-small for-
tune. But that would mean she’d have to quit her job and
gamble that profits from book sales will be substantial
enough make up for her lost salary.
Just yesterday, she wrote to tell me that — thanks to
the encouragement she got at the AWAI Boot Camp – she
went straight home, quit her job and is now pursuing her
dream FULL-TIME!
You know what? I think she’s going to make it!
Andrew faced his fear – and I HIRED him!
After my speech, dozens of nice folks lined up to say
“HI!” thank me for my weekly e-zine, THE TOTAL PACK-
AGE, and to say kind things about my presentation. I was
humbled that some waited 20 minutes or more to chat.
As I met each person, I couldn’t help but notice that
the fellow at the very end of the line was literally quaking
in his shoes. He looked as terrified as a guy who was about
to be led before a firing squad!
When he finally reached the head of the line, he in-
troduced himself: “I’m Andrew,” he said in a shaky British
accent, “and I want you to mentor me.” And he shoved a
big envelope with writing samples into my hand.
Now, this happens to me a lot. I get scores of e-mails
each week from writers asking me to mentor, copy-chief,
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critique, or coach them – but my time is severely limited,

so in most cases, I have no choice but to kindly decline
and urge them to continue reading THE TOTAL PACKAGE to
find the help they need.
But a couple of days later, I had time to look at An-
drew’s writing samples — and within an hour, I’d fired off
an e-mail offering him a “first-date” assignment for one of
my clients.
Now, because he too faced his fear, Andrew is on his
way: If he works hard in the next few weeks, he has a shot
at a long-term contract worth five, or even six figures —
and a fast start towards the copywriter’s life he dreams
about!
... So what are YOU afraid of?
Maybe your worst fear is that someone might tell
you your copy stinks — destroying your dream before
it has the chance to really take flight. And so you de-
cide to put off those phone calls to prospective clients
for yet another day.
Maybe you have some great copy or marketing
ideas — but you’re afraid to see where they’ll lead
you, or you're fearful of presenting them to a client
and having him or her think you’re some kind of a
kook.
Maybe you’re paralyzed by the fear that your new
copy will “fail in the mail” and make you look and feel
like a loser. So you second- and third-guess every
decision you’ve made — and weaken your copy with
each succeeding draft.
Or, perhaps you’re too intimidated to fight for your
copy when a client starts messing with it — so you
just stand by impotently and let some fool gut it.
My advice: It’s OK to feel fearful. We all do from
time to time. When fear raises its ugly head, acknowledge
it. Say, “This scares me” — and then do it anyway!

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-- Chapter Nine --

Grab your prospect

by the eyeballs!
Three Powerful Ways
To Write A Killer Headline ...
And Supercharge Your Head ...
Plus A Six-Question “Litmus Test”
For Headlines You’re Working On Now...
And 30 Great Headline Idea-Starters!

Please excuse the champagne, confetti and funny

hats.
We’re celebrating here: I just got the news from a
client -- and my new promotion just kicked the living day-
lights out of his control!
No, I can’t say who the client is, what the product is,
or even what industry he’s in. But just feast your eyes on
these numbers:
The old control from another writer is pulling in 3.9
new customers per thousand pieces mailed and, after ful-
fillment, is losing $260/M – a net return on investment
(ROI) of just 52.9%.
My new package is pulling in 9.8 new customers and
$430 in profits per thousand pieces mailed – a net return
on investment of 169%.
In terms of ROI, my package beat the control by
more than three to one.
Can you see why we’re drinking in the middle of the
day ... on a WORK DAY?
But wait – it gets better …

Clayton Makepeace
 104

There are two versions of my new package – and the

only difference between them is the headline:
My second headline is pulling in 13.9 orders
and an $800 net profit per thousand pieces
mailed – a net return on investment of 227%!
That’s a 58-percentage-point difference: A
34% lift above my original headline.
Yippee -- have another glass of champagne!
That lift will make all the difference in the world for
my client: If he mailed 12 million copies of this direct mail
package in the next year (a conservative estimate) at
these response levels, the second headline would put
49,200 more new customers in his file than the first
one ...
... and 4.4 MILLION more dollars of clear profit into
his pocket!
That’s the stuff that industry-leading companies are
made of!
The moral of the story ...
Your headline is #1.
Don’t get me wrong: Every part of your sales mes-
sage is important. Your opening is crucial. Your presenta-
tion of product benefits ... of proof and credibility ele-
ments ... of the offer and premiums ... of your guaran-
tee ... and of your closing, “ask-for-the-sale” copy are all
critical.
But of all the things you do to produce a sale, nothing
equals your headline when it comes to pushing response
through the roof.
In my 34 years in this business, I’ve often seen great
new headlines produce 25%, 35%, even 45% lifts in re-
sponse and ROI.
And of course, I’ve seen them add months – even a
year or more – to the lifespan of an aging control.
Why are heads so important? Two reasons:
Double Your Profits
 105

FIRST, your headline is the demurely raised eye-

brow ... the whisper in the ear ... the tap on the shoul-
der ... or the shrieking air raid siren (remember those?)
that at the moment of impact, make it impossible for your
prospect to look at anyone but you – or more precisely,
anyone’s ad but yours.
SECOND, your headline is the gateway to your sales
copy. More than that: It’s the sales copy that persuades
your prospect to read your sales copy.
In short, great headlines have only two functions: 1)
To grab your reader’s attention, and 2) To convert that at-
tention to readership of your sales message.
When you study the most effective headlines ever
written, you can’t help but notice that each one accom-
plishes these twin tasks by offering the reader a BRIBE: A
compelling practical and/or emotional benefit in exchange
for reading your sales message.
Whether explicit or implicit, shouted or whispered,
the best heads you’ll ever read – or write – will be a pro-
posed transaction: “Read this,” they say, “and this very
specific, very wonderful thing will happen for you.”
The World’s 3 Most Powerful
Headline Techniques
There is no “right way” to write a killer head. In fact
there are as many headline techniques as there are copy-
writers, products and services, benefits and consumer
emotions to be addressed.
Let’s take a look at three of the most powerful head-
line techniques ever – approaches that have produced
huge winners for John Caples, Gary Bencivenga, Jim Rutz,
Bob Hutchinson, Arthur Johnson – and yes, for me, too ...
1. PURE BENEFIT HEADLINES present only the pri-
mary practical benefit offered by the product.
Some examples ...

Clayton Makepeace
 106

Who else wants a whiter wash

— with no hard work?

*****
Great new discovery kills kitchen odors
quick —makes indoor air “country-fresh”

*****

Super Spy Lets You See Through

Walls, Fences, and Locked Doors

*****
“Who Else Wants to Get At Least
TWO TIMES RICHER
In This Bear Market?”

*****

“What’s Wrong With Getting Richer QUICKER?”

*****

NOTE: Once upon a time, pure benefit headlines were

all the rage. They were a huge leap forward from the days
when most ads had no headline, or simply touted a prod-
uct feature.
But today, in our over-advertised-to society, our
prospects are being offered identical benefits by dozens,
scores, or hundreds of competing advertisers.
Unless the benefit you’re offering is truly unique – or
presented in a very unique and intriguing way - you’ll
probably need to do more than just present or imply a
benefit to win.
Here’s how John Carlton turned a benefit lead into
something absolutely unique and made his ad a must-
read:

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 107

Amazing Secret Discovered By One-Legged Golfer

Adds 50 Yards to Your Drives, Eliminates Hooks and
Slices
... and Can Slash Up to 10 Strokes
From Your Game Almost Overnight

*****

2. PURE EMOTION HEADS directly address the

emotional need, frustration or fear that the product’s pri-
mary benefit addresses – only hinting at the practical
benefit.
Examples ...
Lies, Lies, Lies
Why we investors are fed up
with everyone lying to us!
But getting RICH is the best revenge!!

*****

Tell The “Health Police” To Take A Flying Leap –

And Return To Life’s GUILTIEST PLEASURES!

*****

You can laugh at money worries —

if you follow this simple plan

*****
NOTE: Pure emotion leads have always worked very
well for me. But ONLY when they are followed immediately
with a strong presentation of the benefits you’re promising
the prospect in return for reading your copy and
(ultimately) buying your product.
3. COMBINED BENEFIT/EMOTION HEADS present
the product’s chief benefit and either imply or state the
emotional pay-off for the reader.
For example ...

Clayton Makepeace
 108

They laughed when I sat down at the piano,

but when I started to play ...

*****
Laugh All The Way To The Gas Pump!
How rising gas prices can make you up to 307%
richer in 2005

*****
To men who want to
Quit Work some day

*****
FORBIDDEN CURES!
Remarkable Cures CENSORED
By Knife-Happy Surgeons
and Greedy Drug Companies:

Medically Proven Remedies That Heal

Without Drugs or Surgery!

*****
The Amazing Face-Lift-In-a-Jar Used by Hollywood
Stars Who Don’t Want Plastic Surgery

*****
Join millions who are saying…
“Thanks For NOTHING, Wall Street —
I’d Rather Do It MYSELF!”

*****
10 Ways To Grow MUCH RICHER
Without Touching A SINGLE STOCK

*****
To me, these kinds of combined benefit/emotion
leads are the best of all worlds, and have given me some
of the biggest winners of my career.

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 109

Four Easy Ways To Supercharge Any Headline

Regardless of whether your headline is pure benefit,
pure emotion, or a combination of the two, there are doz-
ens of ways to give it greater selling power.
1. Present a proposition: Great propositions make
a statement that the reader already believes and tantalize
him with the implications of that statement.
For example ...
For every illness, there is a country
where it simply doesn’t exist ...

*****
A Healthier BRAIN
Is the Best Doctor Your BODY Will Ever Have!

*****
Introducing the single greatest health breakthrough
of our generation.

*****
As soon as you realize that
Wall Street is wrong, wrong, WRONG...

You’ll get rich, rich, RICH!

*****
2. Propose a transaction: Transaction leads add
credibility to your headline benefit by disclosing that you’re
asking something from the reader in turn for the promised
benefit.

For example ...

Read This Now ...

Or Kiss Your Money GOODBYE!

*****
If you’ve got 20 minutes a month, I guarantee

Clayton Makepeace
 110

to work a financial miracle in your life!

*****

Give me 90 days and I’ll help you

disease-proof your body
and add many good years to your life!

*****
3. Use specificity to create credibility: Include
specific facts that make your headline instantly credible, or
connect it to a current news event for credibility.

For example ...

1,384 “ENRONS” Are Now

Racing Towards BANKRUPTCY

*****
Shameless Two-Faced S.O.B.s!

*****
While urging YOU to buy their shares,
MICROSOFT executives are quietly dumping
BILLIONS of dollars-worth of their company’s stock!

*****
Has Greenspan Lost His Mind?

*****
4. Get the prospect’s natural curiosity working
for you: Intrigue and curiosity heads tease the benefit or
begin the conversation by telling a fascinating story.

For example ...

How I Made a Fortune With a ‘Fool Idea’

*****
How a Bald-Headed Barber Helped Save My Hair

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 111

*****
How Doctors Stay Well
While Treating Sick People All Day

*****
“Weiss Better Shut the F@!# Up
or Get a BODYGUARD.”

*****
The Great Vitamin Hoax

*****
Are you and your doctor making these
common mistakes with your health?

*****
How can these concepts help give YOU
bigger winners, more often?
Why not try this: Print this chapter and sit down with
a headline you’re working on now. Then, ask yourself
these six questions:
1. Does your headline offer the reader a reward for
reading your sales copy?
2. What specifics could you add to make your head-
line more intriguing and believable?
3. Does your headline trigger a strong, actionable
emotion the reader already has about the subject at hand?
4. Does your headline present a proposition that will
instantly get your prospect nodding his or her head?
5. Could your headline benefit from the inclusion of a
proposed transaction?
6. Could you add an element of intrigue to drive the
prospect into your opening copy?
Spend 15 minutes on it and I’ll bet you’ll come up
with something great!

Clayton Makepeace
112

Double Your Profits

 113

-- Chapter Ten --

How to Create
a Killer Ad
21 Tips, Tricks and Tactics:
Key Lessons Learned
from 34 Years in the Trenches
(No “Rules,” Though – I Hate Rules!)

Sometimes, I get flummoxed.

Like a few years back -- when the president of Phil-
lips Publishing asked me to answer questions his group
publishers and marketing managers had about copy-
writing.
It was in the early 1990s, and Phillips’ president was
the legendary Bob King – a truly great man, and one of the
sharpest marketing minds I have ever known.
As I remember, the first question his people asked
me was, “How do you know the difference between good
sales copy and bad copy?”
Hence, my flummoxation: These were executives
with degrees in marketing from major universities -- mar-
keting hot shots who hired copywriters every single day ...
critiqued our copy and dictated changes to us -- and the
one thing they wanted to know was ...
“How can I spot powerful
sales copy when I see it?”
My mind reeled. I was so caught off-guard, I just
blurted out the first thing that went through my mind:
“You don’t know it,” I said, “You feel it.”

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 114

I explained that consumers almost never buy things

because it is logical to do so – and that the vast majority
of purchases made in this country are made because they
satisfy an emotional need.
So to be great, sales copy must connect with the
prospect’s most powerful resident emotions – whether
positive or negative – and demonstrate how reading the
copy and buying the product will fulfill or assuage those
desires or fears.
That’s why, I explained, instead of merely thinking
through the writing, editing and review process, I feel my
way through – making sure that the “tingle factor” intensi-
fies with every passing paragraph until I literally can’t wait
to order.
I explained how every sales message is like a chain
designed to meet the reader at the point of his need ...
and then lead him, step by step, link by link, to the order
form.
I showed them how the chain is only as strong as its
weakest link: How the minute you lose the “tingle factor,”
the reader gets bored, you lose him ...and the chain
breaks. How if something you say feels unbelievable to
him ...the chain breaks. And how if you confuse him by
losing your clarity of vision ...the chain breaks.
I also pointed out that, even if you make sure that
every link in the chain is unbreakable, your copy is also
only as strong as its strongest link. The more compelling
each section is, the greater your response and average or-
der will be. And here, once again, feeling my way through
lets me strengthen even the strongest sections of my copy.
I thought it was a pretty good answer. I still do. In
fact, if you haven’t had the experience of reading your
copy aloud, sensing how each passage feels to you, sens-
ing how it’s likely to feel to the prospect, I highly recom-
mend it.

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 115

But as I watched the young guns faces, I could tell

that I had raised more questions than I answered for
them. They needed something more tangible from me.
They needed a checklist – a handful of nitty-gritty,
nuts-and-bolts tactics to look for.
And so, in a belated attempt to improve on my dec-
ade-old answer, allow me to offer 21 ways to spot strong
copy – and to help make the ads, direct mail packages and
Internet promotions you’re working on bigger winners for
you.
THESE ARE NOT RULES. I hate rules. But they’re
great “non-rules” – guidelines that have paid off for me
time and time again in my 34 years in the direct response
trenches – and that I’m confident will strengthen your ad
copy as well ...
Non-Rule #1:
BE somebody!
We tend to be skeptical, even suspicious of informa-
tion given us by a corporation. We welcome – indeed, we
seek out -- advice from qualified guides and advocates
who have our best interests at heart. And we welcome ad-
vice from someone who has solved a problem that we’re
struggling with.
Putting a friendly and/or highly qualified human face
on copy – and speaking in that person’s voice -- will ramp
up the impact of your sales messages by an order of mag-
nitude.
Non-Rule #2:
Address your prospect directly.
Here, you actually get two maxims for the price of
one:
A) Talk to your reader: Instead of talking about
how “we” age ... how “we” encounter various health prob-
lems, talk to the reader about her life ... her future ... and
most importantly, her feelings.

Clayton Makepeace
 116

Use the word “YOU” as often as is humanly possible

throughout your text. Remember: Your prospect really
couldn’t give a flip about you, your company, your product
or anything else. The prospect is interested in the pros-
pect!
B) Talk about the reader: Yes, it’s true that x mil-
lion Americans have heart attacks each year. But saying it
that way, you’re not talking about her; you’re talking
about x million other folks.
Find ways to personalize these kinds of statistics: “As
an American over age 40, your chances are one in x of
having a heart attack this year.” Wow. Now, you’ve got my
attention!
Non-Rule #3:
Be personal.
I often begin by closing my eyes and imagining that
I’m talking to a friend about the subject at hand. How
would I begin the conversation? What would I say? What
would he say? What would I say back?
I would not refer to myself in the plural: “We want to
help you ...” I’d say, “Here – let me help you ...”
Non-Rule #4:
Identify with your prospect.
Gary Bencivenga did this beautifully with his “Why we
investors are fed up ...” deck in his all-time classic “Lies,
Lies, Lies!” package. Instantly, in the prospect’s mind, the
person addressing him was transformed from a salesman
into “a regular guy” -- someone just like him.
Tell the reader what you have in common. Let him
know that you empathize: You’ve been there. Reveal a
non-fatal weakness or a petty frustration that the two of
you might share. Anything that puts you on the reader’s
level will endear him to you and engender trust between
you.

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 117

Non-Rule #5:
Put a face on the enemy.
Why has the reader failed to solve this problem or
fulfill this desire? Were all the other products he’s tried in-
effective? Were the “experts” who gave him advice wrong?
Is someone intentionally using him?
This is a rich emotional vein – so mine it! But instead
of droning on about how unfair banks are, personalize it.
Talk about how greedy bankers do this or that to the
reader. Or about how callous drug company execs trick his
doctor into prescribing costly and dangerous things that of-
ten don’t work.
Non-Rule #6:
Prove every point.
Never ask your reader to accept any claim at face
value. Always include proof elements that suspend his dis-
belief with every claim. Some of the best credibility devices
include:
1) Study data from respected sources
2) Expert testimonials
3) User testimonials
4) Statements that support your point from a major
periodical – The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, etc.
Non-Rule #7:
Don’t fear the occasional obvious overstatement.
No, I’m not suggesting that you should exaggerate
when describing what your product does. But I often use
an obvious over-the-top phrase to demonstrate how in-
tensely my client feels about a particular point.
Once in a health promotion, for example, I wrote,
“Some surgeons are so greedy, they’ll gladly cut a hole
right through you – just to get to your wallet!”
Was it true? Who knows? No, I didn’t have a story
about a surgeon who had literally cut through a patient to

Clayton Makepeace
 118

reach his wallet in my substantiation files. I did know,

however, that many of my readers have had hysterecto-
mies, mastectomies and other surgical procedures that
were later determined to be unnecessary – and that line of
copy got every one of them emotionally involved and on
my side.
Non-Rule #8:
Speak colloquially.
I try to speak to my prospects as they’re used to be-
ing spoken to. Yes, that means I often dangle my partici-
ples and other parts (of speech). So what? I’m trying to
communicate here – not trying to pass an English exam.
To mock the sticklers who were constantly correcting
his prepared speeches, Winston Churchill once declared, “A
dangling participle is something up with which I will not
put.”
Pretty much says it all...
Non-Rule #9:
All jargon is NOT evil!
Many coaches say you should avoid technical terms
and industry jargon altogether. Baloney.
The selective use of jargon comes in handy lots of
times when I’m writing -- like ...
A) When the jargon’s meaning is familiar to the
reader – especially investors and medical patients -- I’m
respecting his intelligence; speaking a language he under-
stands and is comfortable with.
B) When the jargon is being spoken – sparingly – by
an expert, it demonstrates the expert’s, well ... expertise.
We expect doctors to be proficient in the use of medical
jargon and brokers to use investment terminology. If the
term is obscure though, I’ll include a quick explanation and
then move on.
Non-Rule #10:
Figures of speech are wonderful!
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 119

Early on, I was told to avoid clichés, sayings, analo-

gies, aphorisms, proverbs, adages and so on.
But why? If you had a face-to-face conversation with
your prospect, wouldn’t you hear tons of these figures of
speech?
Doesn’t the use of these favorite sayings instantly
say, “Hey – I’m not a salesman; I’m just like you!”?
Don’t they get your prospect smiling? And don’t most
of them instantly communicate something that it would
otherwise take us a sentence or more?
If a picture is worth a thousand words, a good figure
of speech should be worth at least one hundred. So go
ahead: Experiment!
If a figure of speech helps you communicate faster or
drive a point home harder – and if you’re absolutely sure
that its meaning will be instantly grasped by your prospect
– go for it!
Of course, writing copy that’s just one cliché after an-
other might be a slippery slope. Your client may even say
that your promo is a basket case. That would be a close
shave! You might end up feeling as dumb as a bag of ham-
mers.
But on the other hand, choosing the right spots to
communicate quickly with an idiom could turn out to be
your bread and butter. Who knows? Maybe you’ll wind up
richer than Midas!
Rule #11:
Put the 75 most powerful words and phrases
in the English language to work for you.
Use these freely (no charge) when crafting headlines,
subheads, and throughout your copy:
Amazing
Astonishing
Astounding
Announcing
Appalling
Clayton Makepeace
 120

At Last
Bargain
Bonus
Breakthrough
Charter
Comfortable
Discount
Discover
Discovery
Easy
Effortless
Exclusive
Fearless
First Time Ever
Forever
Free
Gift
Guaranteed
How to...
How I ...
Hurry
Immediate
Improved
Your Profits
Inevitable
Instantly
Intense
Introducing
It’s here
Just Arrived
Last Chance
Limited
Locked-In
Miracle
Money
Never Before
Nothing To Lose
New
Now
Opportunity

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 121

Painless
Premium
Prestigious
Priority
Promise
Proven
Quick
Revolutionary
Right Away
Rush
Sale
Save
Savings
Scandalous
Secret
Send No Money
Sensation
Simple
Special
Shocking
Steal
Surprising
The Truth About...
Today
Unique
Valuable
Why
Win
Windfall
Yes
And of course, the all-time award-winner ...
YOU!
Another thing: Some words and phrases are wimps.
The limp-wristed, namby-pambies of the writing universe.
“Can” ... “could” ... “should” ... “might” ... “may” ... “ought
to” ... “seeks to” ... “has the potential to” ... “In my opin-
ion” ... and all the rest of these sissies should be banned
from your copy whenever possible.

Clayton Makepeace
 122

Tell your prospect what your product will do. If the

legal beagle or compliance officer complains, make a
phone call and haggle.
Example:
YOU WRITE: “These investments are guaranteed to
soar when interest rates rise.”
COMPLIANCE VERSION: “These investments could
possibly have the potential to soar when interest rates rise
– maybe.”
COMPROMISE: “These investments have the power
to soar when interest rates rise.”
Non-Rule #12:
Squint.
Squinting makes the individual letters and words in-
decipherable and I’m left with just the pattern the para-
graphs make on the page.
As I study the page, I’m asking myself, “At first
glance, does this feel easy-to-read and inviting? Or is it
covered with long, dense paragraphs that will only discour-
age my reader?”
Then I ...
Jump in and break long paragraphs into shorter
ones – even one-line paragraphs when I can ...
Identify spots where the thing is crying out for a
break – a sidebar or indented paragraph, for example
– and then work them in ...
Look for opportunities to turn a long block of copy
into a string of pearls (like these).
I look for a series of benefits, steps in a procedure or
other copy points that I can precede with bullets, numbers,
letters, etc.
You can present horrifying alternatives ...

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 123

Ages your body: Fluoride has been shown to

damage your chromosomes and block the enzymes needed
to repair your DNA.
Poisons your brain: Laboratory subjects given
tiny doses of fluoride for a year showed an increased in-
take of aluminum in the brain, and the formation of beta
amyloidal deposits which are characteristic of Alzheimer’s
disease. Five Chinese studies have documented a lowering
of IQ in children exposed to fluoride!
... Or, billboard benefits, as with these fascina-
tions from a recent promotion for Your Money
Report:
The #1 Secret of Landlords Who Get RICH: Doing
this one thing can mean the difference between fat
profits and a devastating loss! Page xx
Flipping For A Fortune? WATCH OUT! Ingenious
strategy lets you make a bundle without ever owning
a single property. BUT, it could also get you sued –
or worse! Essential advice: Page xx
Beware of These “Landlord Landmines!” 3 easy
ways to sidestep costly landlord/tenant traps.
Page xx
... Or, create a label. This series, “7 Guilty Se-
crets Drug Companies Do NOT Want You To Know”
was also touted on the cover of the piece as a reason
to read the piece:
FACT #1: Drug Companies Kill Tens of Thou-
sands Each Year: Many of today’s most-often prescribed
medications are not only useless, but extremely dangerous
– crippling and killing as many Americans each year as
died in the 18 years of the Vietnam war.
FACT #2: They Do It Knowingly -- For Money:
The ultra-rich U.S. drug industry – the single most profit-
able businesses in America – is guilty of using bogus re-
search, distorted reporting, and bald-faced lies to push
deadly and ineffective drugs onto unsuspecting doctors
and patients.
Clayton Makepeace
 124

Non-Rule #13:
Go for precision and power.
A lot of experts say you should use short words.
Write as if the prospect is an eighth-grader.
Some anal-retentive rule addicts have even gone so
far as to instruct students to add up all the letters in each
paragraph and divide by the number of words, and make
sure that the average word is no more than five letters
long!
Utter nonsense!
Here’s what I do ...
If a long word means precisely the same thing and
carries the same emotional coloring as a shorter
word, I’ll go with the shorter word.
I can’t stand to read or even talk to people who use
longer words when shorter ones will do just fine: Who says
“facilitate” when all they mean is “help” or “ease” ...
“compensate” when they mean “pay” ... “Individual” when
they mean a “guy” or a “gal” or “person” ... or “sufficient”
when they mean “enough!”
Nine times out of ten, I’ve found that people who
write or talk like that are trying to hide something. Like
massive insecurities. Or the fact that they have no idea
what they’re talking about.
To quote William Zinsser’s advice in his classic, On
Writing Well:
“Beware, then, of the long word that is no better than
the short word: ‘numerous’ (many), ‘facilitate’ (ease),
‘individual’ (man or woman), ‘remainder’ (rest),
‘initial’ (first), ‘implement’ (do), ‘sufficient’ (enough),
‘attempt’ (try), ‘referred to as’ (called), and hundreds
more.”
But if a longer word — or even an entire phrase —
more precisely conveys my meaning or more effec-
tively invokes the emotion I’m going for, then the
longer word it is!

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Non-Rule #14:
Short sentences rule!
This is a particular weakness of mine – I tend to
string too many thoughts together ... use hyphens and el-
lipses and other devices to connect them; and only wind
up turning sentences into entire paragraphs in which the
prospect eventually gets lost or has to read it twice.
(Damn – did it again!)
I don’t worry too much about it on my first drafts.
That’s when I’m just trying to get everything out on paper.
I try to fix my run-ons when I’m editing, later on.
As I edit my copy, I try to keep this advice in mind
from the classic book on writing, The Elements of Style:
“Vigorous writing is concise. A sentence should con-
tain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary
sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have
no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts.
“This requires not that the writer make all his sen-
tences short, or that he avoid all detail and treat his sub-
jects only in outline, but that every word tell.”
Non-Rule #15:
Count commas.
I view commas as warning flags in my copy. Sure –
they could be there for a good reason: Like showing the
proofreader that I do, in fact, know a thing or two about
proper punctuation.
But often times, commas are a big red flag that tells
me that I’ve got a run-on on my hands. Or even worse,
they scream, “HEY, BOZO! You wrote this sentence UP-
SIDE DOWN!”
Consider ...
“With only the finest of intentions, Clayton wrote his
example.”

Clayton Makepeace
 126

That comma in the above sentence is a dead give-

away that something’s out of kilter. Wouldn’t it read faster
if I merely said ...
“Clayton wrote his example with only the finest of in-
tentions.”

Non-Rule #16:
Use connecting words
at the beginning of paragraphs.
In addition to communicating, every paragraph of
great copy should also make a sale: It should “sell” the
prospect on the idea of reading the next paragraph.
Early on, I learned that using conjunctions and other
connecting words at the beginning paragraphs was a sim-
ple way to keep the momentum going: “And” ... “Plus” ...
“But” ... “Furthermore” ... “Moreover” ... “What’s more” ...
“And there’s more:” ... “Even worse,” for example.
Hint: I like “and” better than “but.” “And” is positive.
“But” is negative. I look for “buts” and try to replace them
with “ands” wherever I can.
Non-Rule #17:
Look for shortcuts to keep the momentum going.
I make liberal use of contractions. After all - it’s how
people talk! In fact, the only time I write “does not” in-
stead of “doesn’t” is when the “not” is crucial to my mean-
ing. And if it’s really crucial, I’ll add emphasis to it with an
underline, italicizing it, capitalizing it, and in some cases,
all of the above.
Non-Rule #18:
Be specific.
Every generality in your text is a landmine. That will
kill you.
Instead of merely saying “you’ll save time,” tell your
prospect precisely how much time he’ll save.

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Don’t say, “Buy now and save!” Say, “You SAVE $99
by calling within the next 10 minutes!”
I actually read through each draft looking for excuses
to add specifics to fully dimensionalize every problem and
every promise.

Non-Rule #19:
Consider the question.
Some folks think that asking the prospect a question
– either in a headline or elsewhere in your copy is a mis-
take. “After all,” they say, “Declarative sentences are
strong; questions are weak. And besides, how do you
really know how the prospect will answer?”
But sometimes questions aren’t weak. Sometimes,
they’re hypothetical – and make a very strong declarative
statement. A headline I wrote for Louis Navallier – a head
that mailed successfully for more than a year -- once
asked ...
What’s wrong with getting richer QUICKER?
The copy went on to say:
I’ve made money slow, and I’ve made money
fast. Believe me: Fast is better!
That head wasn’t a really question. It was a cry of
defiance from impatient investors who were sick and tired
of being told to cool their jets.
In the pre-head of a recent direct mail piece for Your
Money Report, I wrote ...
Suspicious of corporate CEOs who lie about
their earnings?
Fed up with stockbrokers who tout lousy stocks
– and get rich even when you don’t?
Impatiently waiting for the profits Wall Street
promises you – but never delivers?

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It’s time for you to join millions of your fellow

Americans who grew rich when they finally said ...
“Thanks for nothing, Wall Street –
I’d Rather Do It MYSELF!”
Used properly, questions can often be used to dem-
onstrate that you already know and empathize with the
answer. And they can also be a great way to demonstrate
the horrifying alternative -- as I did in this P.S. for an in-
vestment newsletter ...
“P.S. What if I’m right? What if I really can help you
avoid losses and even profit when tech stocks tumble?
How will you feel, licking your wounds and knowing that if
you had just said, ‘YES,’ to this generous offer, you could
have made a killing?”
“Please – for your sake – let me hear from you today.
If I can’t help you, my service costs you nothing. If I can,
you’ll be laughing all the way to the bank.”
Non-Rule #20:
When in doubt, cut it out.
After I’ve completed a draft, I often realize that my
best lead is buried a few paragraphs down in the copy.
Moving or deleting the first few paragraphs — or even the
first page — would get us off to a much faster start.
Another weakness of mine: Excessive repetition. I
tend to over-write key paragraphs, or write a key para-
graph several different ways. Second drafts are the perfect
time to spot this needless repetition and condense several
graphs into one, short, punchy one.
Non-Rule #21:
Break the rules!
Never let the fact that a particular technique is
frowned upon prevent you from using it.
Follow every road that opens up before you as you
write. Explore every unbeaten path. Don’t let that left-
brained party-pooper who lives inside you kill what could
be a great idea before you’ve had time to fully develop it.
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Even if you later decide that it doesn’t work, you’ve

learned something. And if it does work, you’ve made a
breakthrough.
Breakthroughs are what make you rich.

Clayton Makepeace
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-- Chapter Eleven --

The Simple Secret

That Turns Good Copy
Into GREAT Copy
(…And Great Copy Into A WINDFALL
For Business Owners
and Marketing People)

"There are certain prime human emotions with

which the thoughts of all of us are occupied a goodly
part of the time. Tune in on them, and you have your
reader's attention. Tie it up to the thing you have to
offer, and you are sure of his interest."
— Robert Collier
The Robert Collier Letter Book

In the 34-plus years since I created my first little

piece of direct response sales copy, I've written considera-
bly more than a thousand direct response ads, television
spots and mail pieces.
Nearly all of them were direct response promotions
that produced an easily measurable and almost immediate
result. And over the years, as I studied those results, my
approach to strategizing and creating sales promotions be-
gan to evolve.
Today, my work process is very different than it was
in those early years. My first thought is no longer about
the product benefits or even the product's Unique Selling
Proposition. Nor do I begin each project by thinking about
all the rational "reasons why" my prospect should buy.
Please don't get me wrong: It's not that I've dis-
carded any of these techniques. They still have prominent
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places in every promotion I create. But something else has

risen to the top of my "to-do" list when creating a promo-
tion — and that change has produced the closest thing to
sales miracles I have ever witnessed.
Dinosaurs still roamed the earth when I started my
writing career. Back in the early 1970s, there were no
computerized mailing lists, no toll-free order hotlines, no
affordable fax machines, no FedEx or other overnight de-
livery services — and no personal mentors or coaches for
aspiring copywriters.
Thankfully, I had The Giants to instruct me. I read,
re-read and re-re-read the wonderful guides left for me by
those who had come before — particularly, Claude Hop-
kins' Scientific Advertising, Rosser Reeves' Reality in Ad-
vertising and John Caples' Tested Advertising Methods.
Thanks to these Giants, I "knew" every ad was sup-
posed to begin by identifying the benefits my product of-
fered to prospects — the ways in which it made their lives
easier, richer, and more rewarding.
I knew I should use the most powerful of these bene-
fits to craft a compelling USP ... establish it right up
front ... and turn it into a mantra throughout my copy.
And I understood the importance of fully developing
every "Reason Why" my prospects should buy.
But there was a problem: My only assignments were
from fund-raising organizations — groups that had no
product to sell and offered little if any direct benefit to the
donor!
Giving them money wouldn't relieve your rheuma-
tism, banish bad breath, give you whiter teeth or make
you attractive to the opposite sex. Nor would it help you
avoid a disaster in the health or wealth departments, or
even save you time in the laundry room.
In, fact the only tangible, personal result of forking
over a ten-buck contribution was that you'd wind up $10
poorer!

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Sure — there were vague benefits in the selfless act

of giving away money to a worthy cause — like feeling
good about the good you were doing. But even at that
early age, I suspected that writing an appeal letter or TV
spot saying, "Give me money — it'll make you feel good"
— wouldn't exactly set the world on fire.
Here again, fate stepped in for me ...
What could possibly be BETTER
than leading with a tangible benefit?
From the age of 16, I had held down a part-time job
in a printing plant as a folding machine operator. But this
wasn't just any printing plant: Its forte was printing and
mailing appeal letters for a national fund-raising organiza-
tion.
And since I worked alone on the night shift, I had
plenty of time to read every one of those 8-page appeal
letters.
They amazed me. At the time, I had no way of know-
ing the letters were being written by Richard Viguerie,
Steve Winchell and Jerry Huntsinger — the "Powers, Ken-
nedy and Reeves" of the direct mail fundraising industry.
But I did know that they worked: They convinced
people to donate tens of millions of dollars each year to
the organization.
Pouring over those appeal letters while my folding
machine thunked away all night long was a real eye-
opener. Whether by instinct or trial and error, these gen-
iuses had figured out that to get a donor to write a check
for a good cause, they needed to go beyond the intellect —
beyond rational, "reason-why" copy and beyond a snappy
USP.
In short, they needed to stimulate powerful emotions
about the subject at hand — emotions that their prospects
already had gurgling around inside them.
And to do that, they had to begin at a different place:
Not with the product, as my reading of the Giants' books

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had led me to do, but with a clear understanding of the

prospect's state of mind and how he already felt about the
subject at hand!
Armed with this understanding, Viguerie, Winchell
and Huntsinger began every appeal ("sales") letter with a
headline and opening that instantly activated their pros-
pect's emotions and made it impossible for him to look
away: A shot to the gut ... a kick to the groin or a right
hook to the Adam's apple.
And once the copywriters had the prospect's resident
emotions working for them, all they had to do was to keep
those emotions on their side until the prospect had become
as passionate about the cause as the writer was — and the
check had been written and mailed.
As I studied their letters, I realized something else:
Viguerie, Winchell and Huntsinger were not stupid men.
They were brilliant. They could have chosen the "easy"
way — to get rich selling widgets that gave them dozens of
tangible benefits to offer their prospects.
But these geniuses had intentionally chosen to spe-
cialize in the fund-raising field instead! Why?
Could it be that they knew something I didn't?
Could it be that they understood that the "curse" of
having no benefits to sell, no "reason-why" copy to create
and no USP to shout from the rooftops ... could really be a
blessing in disguise?
Could it be that they believed starting with the pros-
pect instead of the product — setting out to first identify
and then activate the strongest emotions the prospect al-
ready has — might be a better way to go?
“And if so,” I asked myself, "what if you could do
both at the same time?"
Instead of beginning with the product and merely
trusting the prospect to respond positively to its bene-
fits ...

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What if I began by thinking about the prospect and

how he must feel about the subject at hand — and then
carefully crafted every part of my sales message to get
those resident emotions working for me?
What if I began by selecting themes that connected
most powerfully with those emotions? What if I added a
kind of "emotional overlay" to every headline, every open-
ing, every credibility device, every product benefit, every
offer and every call to action?
Wouldn't the response be substantially better?
"Hmmmm ...!"
These angels on my shoulders
put millions in my pocket
A decade after I left that printing plant, the 30-
something version of myself sat down at a typewriter in a
musty basement bedroom in Minneapolis ...
My mission: To write a promotion that would sell rare
Morgan silver dollars to subscribers of The Money Advocate
investment newsletter.
The Money Advocate was published by a coin com-
pany, Security Coin & Bullion. And until I came along, they
were doing just fine, using rational, left-brain, reason-why,
benefit-oriented copy and a pretty good USP to sell about
$360,000 worth of rare coins per month.
So there I sat, staring at a blank page, wondering
how to begin. As was their custom by this time, the ghosts
of Kennedy, Hopkins and the rest of the classic advertising
choir were perched on my left shoulder — as close as they
could get to the left side of my brain — chanting,
"benefit ... Benefit ... BENEFIT!"
They wanted me to begin logically — by headlining
and then focusing on the benefits of investing in rare coins.
Meanwhile, on my right shoulder, Viguerie, Winchell
and Huntsinger were doing their dead-level best to out -
shout them, telling the right side of the brain to begin with
the feelings my prospect most likely felt relative to my
Clayton Makepeace
 136

product: “Lead with emotion ... Emotion ... EMOTION!"

they chanted.
So I sat there, turning that old Morgan Silver dollar
over and over in my hand. What is it, really," I asked.
Where did it come from? Where has it been? What does it
symbolize?
Suddenly, I was reminded of the movie Somewhere
In Time — in which Christopher Reeve was magically
transported through time after seeing the date on a coin. I
thought ...
"This isn't a coin, it's a TIME MACHINE!"
"If these coins could talk ..." I wrote, "what wonder-
ful stories would they tell?"
"They would speak of a time gone by. Of the hardy
prospectors who mined their silver. Of smoky saloons,
honky-tonk pianos, raucous poker games and painted la-
dies.
"They would speak of freedom. Independence. Honor.
The code of the West.
"The Morgan silver dollar was there with Wyatt Earp
and Doc Holliday at the gunfight in the O.K. Corral. And it
was on the poker table when Wild Bill Hickock drew his
"dead man's hand" and succumbed to an assassin's bullet.
"They only look like beautiful and potentially profit-
able 'rare coin' investments. And while they are, they are
also more: Each is a touchstone with our colorful, uniquely
all-American history that you can hold in the palm of your
hand."
Then, just to keep my left-shouldered, left-brained
"benefit" angels quiet (and to give my prospects' spouses a
plausible reason why their significant others had suc-
cumbed), I included plenty of "reasons why" buying those
coins was the smartest thing they could do. After all —
they were great investments!
That copy, a two-page flyer, mailed on January 1.
Thirty days later, it had brought in $3.6 million in sales —

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TEN TIMES MORE than my client's purely rational, logic-

based, greed-driven approach had ever generated in a sin-
gle month.
And that was just the beginning. Within one year, my
new approach had my client selling $16 million worth of
rare coins each month, making him the single largest rare
coin dealer in America — by far.
Flash forward ten more years ...
The 40-something version of myself sat down at his
computer on the top floor of my four-story beach house on
the Gulf of Mexico ...
I had just completed my second promotion for Health
& Healing. The first had been gangbusters, generating
eight times the response of any health package Phillips
Publishing had ever mailed.
Now, it was time to write my headline (yes, I do it
backwards) — a way to "grab prospects by the eyeballs"
and compel them to open and read my sales copy.
Just to humor the benefit boys, I tapped out the
word, "CURES." After all — that was what my copy was
packed with and promised more of.
My left-brain angels — Kennedy et. al. — beamed tri-
umphantly.
But what kind of cures were these? Which strong
emotion do these kinds of drug-free, surgery-free reme-
dies trigger in my prospects?
"Well," I thought, "The medical industry doesn't want
us to know about these alternatives, and even tries to si-
lence people who recommend them.
"So they're ... let's see ... 'prohibited?' No ...
'banned?' No ... 'censored?' Not quite ... 'forbidden?' No ...
wait a minute ...
“YES! That's it! That's my headline!”
“FORBIDDEN CURES!"

Clayton Makepeace
 138

I loved the word "forbidden." It felt like a mischie-

vous schoolboy trying something "naughty" for the first
time.
It also made me feel resentment towards the self-
appointed, supposedly superior, paternalistic establishment
that believes it's a better judge of what's right for me than
I do. It made me feel bound and determined to not just
break, but shatter their stupid prohibitions!
And of course, the angels on my right shoulder — the
"emotion" boys — loved it, too.
When it mailed, the package beat my control so
handily that Phillips' mail quantities reached six million
pieces in each 60-day mail cycle. The royalties were so
good, I took the rest of the year off and played on the
beach.
From genius to dunce
in the wink of an eye
Adding the right shoulder/right brain/emotionally
driven copy techniques practiced by the great fund-
raising copy writers to the more left shoulder/left
brain/benefit/reason-why/USP approach to copy es-
poused by the world's greatest advertising copywriters
was quite simply, the single greatest breakthrough of
my career.
It was making me richer and more in-demand as
a copywriter. And, being young and cocky, I was abso-
lutely convinced that, like Kennedy, Hopkins, Reeves
and the rest, I had something new ... something bet-
ter than anyone had ever thought of before.
But I traded my newfound "genius" status for a
dunce at the minute I began re-examining — and
really studied — the ads that Kennedy, Lasker, Hopkins
and the other Giants had created during their life-
times.
These guys may not have said much in their
books about the importance of connecting with pros-

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pects' resident emotions — but they sure did it an aw-

ful lot!
In fact, whether by intent, instinct, or as the
natural byproduct of their obsession with selling bene-
fits, they did it all the time!
And as I read their words with new eyes, I even
found this, from ad legend David Ogilvy:
"Researchers have not yet found a way to quan-
tify the effectiveness of emotion, but I have come to
believe that commercials with a large content of
nostalgia, charm, and even sentimentality can be
enormously effective."
I felt like an idiot. It had been right there in front of
me all along — but I had been too obsessed with the nuts
and bolts of meticulously identifying product benefits, writ-
ing "reason-why" copy and shouting my USP to even no-
tice!
Had I simply emulated what the Giants did — instead
of just studying what they said — I would have been miles
ahead of the game!
Not only hadn't I invented the technique of identify-
ing and then mobilizing my prospects' emotions to create
greater attention, readership and response ...
... it had taken me years to figure out what the Gi-
ants had been trying to tell me all along!
Maybe I would have caught on sooner, if, early on,
someone had shaken me by the shoulders, slapped me a
couple of times and said ...
"People act on their emotions far more often
than they do on their intellect alone.
"People buy for emotional reasons far more of-
ten than for merely rational ones.
"If you want people to act on your copy and buy
your product, first determine how your prospect is
likely feeling right now.

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"Then, use your benefits as bridges to activate

the emotions that will compel him to buy!"
Couldn't have said it better myself!
That's when my work process changed forever.
Put Dominant Emotion Marketing
to Work for You NOW!
Instead of beginning like I once had and as many
copywriters still do — by identifying product benefits —
wouldn't it make more sense to put the prospect and his
most compelling emotions FIRST?
Wouldn't it be better, for example, to ...
1. Begin by figuring out what the prospect's resident
emotions are regarding the things the product ad-
dresses ...
2. Figure out which of those resident emotions are
the strongest, most compelling, most "dominant" in
his or her life …
3. Identify the benefits my product offers that will
most effectively enhance his strongest positive emo-
tions and/or resolve his negative ones ...
4. Address those benefits in ways that keep the pros-
pect's most dominant emotions working with me —
and never against me ...
5. And as you review and edit your sales copy,
wouldn't it make sense to keep making this kind of
emotional connection at every opportunity?

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-- Chapter Twelve --

TURBOCHARGE Your
Ads!
How Business Owners & Marketing Execs
Can Make Good Sales Copy Great
And How "B" Copywriters
Can Become "A" Writers
In Four, Easy Lessons

This is going to be a short chapter –It’s shorter be-

cause I’m exhausted. And I’m exhausted because I could-
n’t sleep last night.
Just before I turned in for the evening, I got an e-
mail from Adam, asking “What can a ‘B’ writer do to be-
come an ‘A’ writer?”
Immediately, my brain went into overdrive. I tossed,
turned, counted sheep, tried to clear my mind – but the
question kept pestering me. Finally, I surrendered, uttered
an expletive, climbed out of bed and trudged down to my
office.
The answer of course, is obvious: Produce bigger
winners, more often.
But how, precisely do you do that?
Specifically, what do “A” writers do that those “B”
writers don’t?
And if you’re a business owner or marketing exec,
how can you know great copy when you see it? How can
you get “B” writers to give you “A” copy?
My answer to Adam – and to you: Just make sure
each project accomplishes four crucial things:

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Connect with the reader's dominant resident

emotion regarding the subject at hand:
Think about it for a moment, and I’m sure you’ll
agree: The vast majority of the money that flows through
consumers’ hands each year is spent to meet their emo-
tional needs – NOT merely to satisfy their intellectually
justifiable needs for physical survival.
We can physically survive if we have air, water, a few
calories of very basic raw food, and just enough shelter to
keep us from freezing to death in winter. Air and water can
be had for free. The food and shelter sufficient for survival
can be had for pennies a day.
Pretty much every other dollar, pound, or euro that
flows through our hands is spent to address emotional
needs in our lives: The craving for comfort and security ...
personal status and ego gratification ... love and sex ...
recreation and adventure ... and much more.
The sales of products and services that address these
cravings are what really drive our national economies.
So if 99% of our purchase decisions are REALLY
made to address an emotional need -- and not intellectu-
ally justifiable as essential for survival -- doesn't it make
sense to appeal directly to those emotions when attempt-
ing to sell a product?
"B" writers tend to focus on selling benefits and on
logical, "reason-why" copy only. By doing so, they're at-
tempting to justify the purchase and price of the product
solely by appealing to the intellect.
That's like coming to the gunfight but leaving 99% of
your bullets in the glove compartment!
Instead of simply reciting benefits and reasons why
the prospect should buy, "A" writers recognize, validate,
and directly address powerful emotions the prospect al-
ready has about those benefits (or the lack of them).
This "dominant emotion" approach works especially
well in mature or skeptical markets -- when the writer rec-

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ognizes and validates negative feelings the prospect has

about a particular type of product -- and then demon-
strates why this product is different, and therefore better.
The prospect’s dominant emotions should be ad-
dressed throughout the copy at every level -- from selec-
tion of the overriding theme and the crafting of the head-
line to the selection of sidebar themes, subheads, and
every word selection you make.
Don’t Sell; SEDUCE!
Two guys walk into a bar. The first is a bookish, me-
ticulous, accountant type who just read a book on “How to
Pick Up Women.” Spying a winsome lass, he approaches
her and states his “Unique Selling Proposition: “I’m going
to rock your world like nobody else ever has.”
That done, he begins ticking off all the benefits she’ll
derive from having sex with him: She will be thrilled and
satisfied. He shows her testimonials from 23 other women
he’s been intimate with, each one saying that they were
satisfied. And he tells the young lady that if she’ll go back
to his apartment right away, he’ll do the same for her.
The second guy, spotting another lady, takes a radi-
cally different approach. He captures her attention with a
friendly, admiring glance. He offers her a drink. He vali-
dates her with a compliment. He puts her at ease with an
amusing, intriguing or self-effacing remark.
He gets her nodding her head, speaking to her of
things she is passionate about and that he suspects she’ll
agree with. He asks her to dance. He takes his time – and
when the time is right, he drops a flirtatious comment or
two.
Finally, he invites her to his apartment to see his art
collection – or on some other pretense.
Which of our two heroes do YOU think has the best
chance of closing the sale?
If you said, “The guy who had a USP and benefit-
oriented sales copy,” you, my friend, have read too many
books about direct response copywriting.
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 144

Top-notch writers understand that salesmanship is

the art of seduction – and that five careful steps must be
taken before the affair with the prospect is consummated
and marketing bliss is achieved:
A. You must convince your prospects to give you
their attention – with a headline that speaks to their
desires, frustrations or fears.
B. You must convince them to read your message –
by offering to bring value to their lives if they’ll just
lend you an ear for a few minutes.
C. You must convince them that your product or ser-
vice will meet their needs, and therefore fulfill their
desires or assuage their frustrations or fears.
D. You must convince your prospects that your price
is fair (or better yet, a bargain) – by making a com-
parison that demonstrates the value you’re offering
in a compelling way.
E. You must convince your prospects to take action
now to purchase the product – by showing them how
easy it is to order.
Do these five things consistently – and compellingly –
in each sales promotion and your response will soar.
Sharpen Your Clarity of Vision
This is a big one for me. Too often, “B” writers fall in
love with their subjects. Instead of staying focused -- es-
tablishing a powerful overriding theme and then bringing
each piece of copy back to it -- they get sidetracked and
wind up going off in all directions at once.
The result is a long-winded jumble of copy that feels
diffused and only confuses the reader.
Last week, a major publisher asked me to critique one
of these hodgepodges for him.
My crit:
“The main theme is strong and should resonate well
with your prospects.

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“The prose itself is well-written. The writer does an

excellent job of demonstrating the benefits the product will
bring to the reader’s life. And he connects well with action-
able emotions the prospect has about the subject at hand.
“But the writer has fallen in love with his subject –
and the sound of his own voice. And so all the good stuff in
here is hidden away under reams of extraneous, unneces-
sary material.
“Instead of bringing all the copy back to his major
theme, the writer allowed himself to be drawn off into
scores of unrelated things. As a result, you got 28 friggin’
tabloid-sized pages of – what is that – 11 point type?! I
started reading this without my spectacles and got a head-
ache for my trouble.
“In a word, this piece is overwritten. This is Michelan-
gelo’s David traveling incognito – disguised as a block of
granite. There’s a masterpiece in here somewhere, but it’s
buried under tons of rubble.
“I’d cut six to eight pages of extraneous text that
fails to connect with the main theme ... bump the size of
the running text up to 12 or 13 point Times Roman ... and
bring it in at 20 to 24 pages -- MAX.”
Sage advice. I suggest you take it!

Clayton Makepeace
 147

-- Chapter Thirteen --

Sidebar MADNESS
Why Sidebars Matter ...
Dumb Sidebars Where Even Seasoned
Copywriters Go Wrong …
21 Smart Sidebars
That Invariably Increase Readership
And Response …And MORE!

I didn’t create the first-ever magalog. That dubious

honor – so far as I can tell – goes to Jim Rutz and Ed Elli-
ott.
I’ve tried to forgive them. Really, I have.
Before they invented this dynamo of the direct re-
sponse marketing world in the 80s, “long copy” meant a
16-page sales letter: One w-i-d-e column of text, set in a
nice, fat, space-eating Courier type.
But Mr. Rutz and Mr. Elliott changed that forever.
Their 24-page magalog -- packed with dense, columned
12-point type -- doubled and in some cases tripled or even
quadrupled the amount of copy the rest of us had to write
just to keep up.
And even worse, it meant we had to begin thinking
about more than just writing a coherent sales letter and
letting the designer worry about making it look like the
Rutz/Elliott grand slam.
It meant we also had to create sidebars and stick
them on every spread. Why? Because that’s what “Rutliott”
did. And their “magalog” -- as Gary Bencivenga later chris-
tened it – kicked the living daylights out of every other
kind of direct mail package out there.

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So essentially, the magalog made us work three

times harder to produce three times more copy ... and
then made us work even harder by confusing the entire
process of organizing our sales pieces – forcing us to de-
cide what goes in the running copy and what belonged in
our sidebars.
It was worth it.
This is where I find room to forgive and forget – and
why I still count Jim and Ed as buddies – even heroes.
Because even though their ingenious invention of the
magalog made my work three or four times more difficult,
it also drove response rates off the scale ... sent the size of
each mailing skyrocketing ... and has made me a whole
boatload of royalty money over the years.
Why did – and do – magalogs and tabloids (their big-
ger, fatter, happier offspring) work so much better than
anything that came before?
Well for one thing, it’s because in the information
publishing industry at least, copy sells; and longer copy
generally sells better.
For another, it’s because magalogs appear to have
more value than a sales letter. I remember doubling dates
(the date at which half of the total revenues your promo-
tion will eventually generate) jumping by a full week when
we first started using magalogs. Because they looked like
magazines – things that people are used to paying for -
they found it nearly impossible to throw them away until
they had read them.
Plus, magalogs were much more than just a change
in format. They also demanded a change from product-
centric sales copy to value added copy. They turned our
“sales letters” into advertorials – sales copy that bribed the
prospect to read it by delivering value in the form of infor-
mation the prospect could use.
For still another, magalogs got us out of the enve-
lope. Because they’re self-mailers, they removed a barrier
between the prospect and our sales message and gave us
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at least four times more room for copy and images de-
signed to grab his attention and convert that attention to
readership.
And for another – and to get back to the theme of
this chapter -- it’s because well-conceived and well-crafted
sidebars in these things boosted both readership and re-
sponse.
Why sidebars are crucial
See, there are pretty much only two kinds of animals
in the reading world: 1) Casual Scanners, and 2) Inveter-
ate Readers.
Hand a magalog to a dozen people, and you’ll see
what I mean. Some number of them – the Inveterate
Readers -- will meticulously read the headline, deck and
each page of the running copy, perhaps pausing occasion-
ally to read a sidebar here or there, until they have fin-
ished the entire piece.
The rest – the Scanners among us -- will quickly flip
through, reading only the heads and subheads and looking
at the pictures, and only bothering with the fine print if
something much larger catches their eye.
Another thing about scanners: They do not necessar-
ily do their scanning from front to back. Hand a magalog to
a dozen scanners, and at least half of them (more if
they’re mostly right-handed) will scan the piece from back
to front!
For most right-handed folks, it’s easiest to hold
books, magazines, magalogs in the left hand and turn
pages with the right hand. But magalogs are floppy –
printed on light stock – so they kind of droop towards the
floor when you try to hold them one-handed and look at
the front cover.
So it’s easiest to let them flop against your left arm –
the arm that’s holding them. That leaves you looking at
the back cover first – and as likely as not, doing your scan-
ning bassackwards.

Clayton Makepeace
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Anyway – back to the sidebar thing: Before the in-

vention of magalogs and their sidebars, we rarely gave
scanners much that would draw their eyes into our sales
letters. The advent of the magalog with its sidebars turned
a generation of scanners into readers. And because only
readers respond, they dramatically increased our chances
of making the sale.
My point – and I do have one -- is ...
Great sidebars turn scanners into readers –
AND responders.
Notice I said “great sidebars” do that. Unfortunately,
a lot of the sidebars I see in magalogs and tabloids today
are not great. They look like what they are: Afterthoughts
– or worse, “left-overs” from an earlier draft of the running
copy dropped into a box to fill space.
There’s a better way: Instead of sleepwalking
through your sidebars, try writing your running text first.
Then read each paragraph, thinking, “What kind of sidebar
could I use to drive this point home in the most powerful
manner possible?”
Do that, and suddenly, every sidebar becomes more
focused ... and therefore, focuses your entire sales mes-
sage.
Then, do this: After you’ve written each sidebar, ask
yourself, “How can I make sure it’s not a dead end? What
can I do to help this sidebar drive the reader back into the
running text, or even better yet, to my response device?”
Most of the magalogs and tabloids I see today
(including those written by yours truly) would probably pull
10% to 30% better if the writer had followed this advice.
21 Kinds of Sidebars
And How to Use Each One
Let’s think about the kinds of sidebars that give you
the best chances of turning scanners into readers, and how
they can help you get bigger winners, more often ...

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Readership Sidebars are designed to sell the

prospect on reading your text, and generally fall into
one of three categories ...
1. Tables of Contents: Listings of the valuable in-
formation that is revealed inside the promotion piece enlist
the prospect’s self-interest. These can be full-pagers
(usually on page 2 of a magalog or tabloid) or they can be
a smaller box on the front cover, or they can consume the
entire back cover. The items listed in these tables of con-
tents are generally written as fascinations.
2. Pull-quotes: These boxes are typically about one-
quarter page in length and put an intriguing proposition ...
a compelling benefit ... or an emotional touchstone with
the reader up in lights. I often include a photo of the er-
satz author speaking to the reader for added attention-
getting power and impact.
3. Teasers and Page-turners: Inserted at the bot-
tom of a right-hand page, these little gems “sell” the
reader on turning the page by hinting at the valuable infor-
mation contained on the next spread. They can be a simple
statement or a mini table of contents.
Biography Sidebars are really a kind of
“credibility device” used to eliminate any doubt that
the titular author of your sales copy knows what he’s
talking about. They attempt to lift your expert – and
therefore your sales message – head and shoulders
above the competition, and often take the form of a...
4. Curriculum Vitae: A true biography of the expert
– his education, accomplishments, awards, books he’s au-
thored, major publications who turn to him for insights and
advice, industry groups that beg him for pearls of wisdom
at their conventions, and so on.
5. Case History: A narrative of an experience the
expert has had that demonstrates his wisdom, experience,
commitment to his readers and/or his prestige in his in-
dustry.

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 152

Proof Element Sidebars are used to present

facts, figures, charts, tables and other evidence that
prove the absolute truth of surprising statements in
your text. These proof elements can relate to your
premise, your premium or your product. I tend to use
them in three ways ...
6. To document the enormity of the problem: In
a health package where I’m trying to evoke concern over
heart disease for example, I might include a sidebar to
present a chart showing how many Americans will suffer a
heart attack this year – and credit the American Heart As-
sociation for the data.
In a financial package, I might use this kind of side-
bar to document a claim in the running copy that 80% of
all mutual funds don’t keep up with the S&P 500 – and
credit The Wall Street Journal. Or I might use a table list-
ing the advisor’s most profitable trades. Or, maybe a line
chart showing soaring global demand for oil and plummet-
ing supplies – again, crediting an authoritative source.
7. To document the enormity of the opportunity:
In promotions for the financial markets, for example,
“opportunity” sidebars might show how similar stocks have
soared in the past, suggesting that the expert’s idea to
purchase a particular type of stock is likely to produce the
same result in the future.
8. To Demonstrate the wisdom of the client’s
approach: This kind of sidebar might be a chart or graph
comparing the profits the expert has earned to another in-
dicator – the S&P 500, for example. Or, it might compare
the blood pressure of people who take a particular supple-
ment with those who don’t.
NOTE: In each of these examples and in many others
in this article, citing an outside source that is respected by
your reader helps make these kinds of sidebars work twice
as hard for you.
Benefit Sidebars are really just like ads within my
ad. Each of these draws out one of the most compel-
ling benefits that the product or premium offers.
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More importantly, each is presented in a way that connects

with the prospect’s dominant resident emotions about:
9. Avoiding or resolving a problem: With this ap-
proach, I’d typically put my prospect’s feelings about the
subject at hand into words ... validate how he feels ... em-
pathize with him ... and then show him how my premium
or product will resolve those dominant resident emotions.
10. Easing a fear: These kinds of sidebars tend to
appear around the middle of my sales message – after I’ve
done everything I can to bring every personal fear, con-
cern or frustration he has about the subject at hand bub-
bling to the surface. Once I’ve done that, I use these “fear
relief” sidebars to show him how my premium or product
will free him from those negative emotions and leave him
feeling confident, positive and excited.
11. Fulfilling a strong, long-held personal de-
sire: If my main up-front theme is a positive one – fo-
cused on one or more benefits that will bring tremendous
value to my prospect’s life, I use these “fulfillment” side-
bars to prove that my premium or product will, indeed de-
liver the promised benefit.
NOTE: In these types of sidebars, adding a testimo-
nial or even a whole passel of them can help remove all
doubt that you’re going to deliver the goods. So can a ref-
erence to your iron-clad guarantee.
Credibility Sidebars are invaluable tools for con-
vincing your prospect that your expert’s view (no
matter how radical) is valued by other experts and
that your premium and/or product will produce the
promised benefit.
12. Customer testimonials: These can take the
form of straight testimonials, or narrative testimonials, and
can appear singly to add impact to each spread or be
clumped together in big sidebars. I like to do both.
13. Expert testimonials: Praise from peers and
other experts whose names are known -- or whose titles
are impressive and/or connect them with respected institu-

Clayton Makepeace
 154

tions – establish the authority and credibility of your expert

and hence, everything he’s saying in your copy.
14. Media mentions and appearances: These
demonstrate that your client is important enough to have
been noticed, quoted, or invited to appear on major media
outlets. At best, they’ll say something about your client
that reads like an endorsement, but the simple fact that
your client regularly appears on CNBC or Nightline or is
quoted in The Wall Street Journal makes him someone
worth listening to.
Sales-Closing Sidebars generally appear in the
final third of the sales message, and are designed to
remove the final roadblocks between the prospect
and your response device. I use seven of these kinds
of sidebars in just about every promotion I write ...
15. Pull-Quotes: To allow the author to look the
prospect in the eye and deliver a compelling benefit or hor-
rifying alternative and ask for the sale.
16. Premium Ads: To ramp up the perceived value
of the free gifts the prospect will receive. Usually, these
ads are a series of bulleted fascinations – a “string of
pearls” dimensionalizing the most valuable information
each premium will give him – and more importantly, the
value that information will bring to his life ... and how he
will feel about all of the above.
17. Product Ads: To fully dimensionalize the value
the product will bring to the prospect’s life. These are typi-
cally written in much the same way as my premium ads.
18. Value Sidebars: To demonstrate how mind-
blowingly cheap the product is relative to other things the
prospect buys – designed to make not ordering feel like
the dumbest thing he could possibly do.
19. Risk Relief Sidebars: “Risk relief” is just a
fancy-schmancy way of saying “your guarantee.” But I
make my guarantees go beyond simply saying, “If you
hate it, I’ll refund your money.” I use my guarantees to re-
iterate the benefits I’m promising ... to have my expert

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sign a contract with the prospect, guaranteeing that he’ll

deliver on his promise ... and to demonstrate the author’s
“money-where-his-mouth-is,” unwavering confidence that
the product will perform as advertised.
20. Contact Devices: Actually, these should appear
in the header or footer on every spread and contain a toll-
free number the prospect can call to order. I also like to
break them out in sidebars to drive my prospect to my re-
sponse device page or to his telephone.
21. Action Devices: Often imbedded in other side-
bars, sometimes stand-alones, they urge the prospect to
order now – either by calling a Toll-Free number or turning
to the order form page.
Lots to think about!
Here’s your assignment: Grab a pile of magalogs and
tabloids and plop down on the sofa. Look at each sidebar
and ask yourself, “Why did the writer include this? What
kind of sidebar is it? What does it accomplish? Does it fo-
cus his main theme or serve to diffuse it?”
And more importantly, read the running copy and ask
yourself, “what other kinds of proof element, credibility
and other sidebars could have done a better job of making
the sale?”
By the time you’re done, you’ll be twice the writer
you are now. Come to think of it, I’m going to do it myself!

Clayton Makepeace
156

Double Your Profits

 157

-- Chapter Fourteen --

15 More Ways To Create

Bigger Winners,
More Often,
In Today’s Challenging
Markets

Not too long ago, the American Writers and Artists

Institute asked me to write about how business owners,
marketing executives and copywriters can boost response
in a market that is maturing – and especially when re-
sponse to promotions is dwindling.
In my article, I pointed out that …
1. Prospects in every market naturally grow more
skeptical over the years, and response inevitably declines.
2. Blaming our prospects … waiting for the market to
“come around” … or letting losers who declare an entire in-
dustry D.O.A. is patently ridiculous.
When copy stops working, it’s OUR fault: The mar-
keting people and copywriters who produced the losing
promotion. Our prospects have changed; we haven’t
caught up. Our challenge is to get back into step with them
– and the quicker, the better.
3. This kind of challenging environment presents
copywriters, marketing execs and business owners with
one of the greatest opportunities ever. Finding ways to get
your promotions read and responded to will make you a
legend – not to mention, rich.

Clayton Makepeace
 158

Next time someone tells you

the market for your product is dead,
take steps: Big ones; very fast!
Pardon my French – but when someone says stuff
like that to me, I have to repress a sudden, almost-
irrepressible urge to yell “BULLSHIT!” – while leaping
across the desk to slap the living daylights out of them.
So far at least, I’ve been able to resist – and simply
mark them in my mind as hopeless losers … unimaginative
slugs … and blood-sucking leeches who have attached
themselves to the direct response industry’s ample bum.
And oh, by the way -- speaking of the French -- did
you know that the French have instituted their own color
code for terror alerts? Here’s what the colors mean:
Blue: Appease them; maybe they’ll go away
Red: Surrender!
Orange: COLLABORATE!!!
Anyone who tells you any industry is dying is already
on red. They’ve surrendered. The only way they could be
more dangerous is if they started going door to door, tell-
ing your customers never to buy another financial newslet-
ter again.
My policy is to get as far away from this kind of
mumbo jumbo as I can, as fast I can.
The fact is …
1. Challenge equals opportunity: Challenges are
nothing more than opportunities traveling incognito –
sometimes, disguised in a big, red fright wig. The bigger
the challenge, the scarier the wig, the greater the opportu-
nity.
2. No guts, no glory: Focus on the fright wig, and
you’ve already lost the battle. Quitters never win. Winners
never quit. When the going gets tough … well, you get the
idea.

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3. Exceptional times require exceptional meas-

ures: Doing the same things in the same way and expect-
ing different results is insanity. When what’s working stops
working, do something else. Innovate!
Mark my words: In the next few months, you and
your competitors are going to be talking about a company
whose most recent promotion has reinvented your entire
industry’s approach to marketing your products … whose
copy is blowing the doors off the competition … who is
growing his company by leaps and bounds … and who is
making himself richer than Croesus in the process.
Whoever that person is, I’m willing to bet dollars to
donuts that it’ll be someone who begins by asking one,
very simple, very obvious question …
“Why aren’t our customers buying like they used to?”
After all …
You have a great product that brings value to your
customer’s life.
Your prospect would love nothing more than to
have you bring more value to his life.
And your prospect has proven time and again that
he’s perfectly willing to pay you handsomely for
bringing value to his life.
… But although your prospect desperately wants the
benefits you’re offering him, he isn’t buying!
Why? One major reason could be that not as many
prospects are reading your sales copy. Maybe folks who do
read your promotions still respond fairly well: You can tell
if the average unit of sale on most promotions is still very
close to where it was a few years ago.
If that’s the case, there’s a good chance that your
lower response rates are coming from the fact that too
many of your promotions are being turned, unread, into
instant bird-cage liners.
In The Golden Thread, we considered one way to get
your prospect past the outer envelope of your component
Clayton Makepeace
 160

package or the front cover of your self-mailer. Here’s an-

other …
Switch Sides.
You think you’ve got problems? Try writing a suc-
cessful promotion in the overcrowded alternative health
newsletter market!
Back in the ’90s, publishers were mailing as many as
90 million promotion pieces per year to promote a single
health newsletter. Heck. You could almost mail the phone
book and get a great response!
But as time marched on, the alternative health mar-
ket became more crowded. Benefit claims grew more and
more unbelievable. Many of the “amazing” remedies touted
in these promotions produced disappointing results … sub-
scribers grew skeptical (there’s that word again!) … began
tuning out … and response rates plummeted.
In the last couple of years, few health newsletter
publishers have had a single promotion they could mail at
break-even outside of their own house files.
Sound familiar? It should: It’s eerily similar to what’s
going on in the financial marketplace today!
Then, along came Arthur Johnson, copywriter extra-
ordinaire. Instead of creating a “me-too” promotion that
touted the latest, greatest miracle cure – instead of emu-
lating failure – Arthur jumped out of the box.
Arthur could have approached his prospect in one of
three ways:
Option #1: He could have simply ignored the
reader’s skepticism and frustration – just as most other
writers were doing – and are still doing …
Option #2: He could have attacked readers’ disbelief
head-on, relying on his considerable persuasive powers to
win them over – a technique other writers had also tried
repeatedly without success …
Option #3: He could have tried something com-
pletely different.
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 161

Johnson chose Option #3. And his approach was in-

genious in its simplicity.
He had his editor switch sides – step away from the
crowd of experts who were pushing the latest health wis-
dom, and join ranks with the millions of skeptical, even
cynical consumers who’d had enough of health advice that
didn’t work.
In a flash of brilliance, Arthur acknowledged and vali-
dated his prospect’s skepticism -- and turned it to his ad-
vantage – with this headline:

Had Enough?
Enough turkey burgers and sprouts?
Enough forcing gallons of water down your
throat?
Enough exercising until you can barely breathe?
BEFORE YOU GIVE UP EVERYTHING
just because “everyone” says it’s healthy...
SEE INSIDE FOR THE REAL HEALTH FACTS
AND ENJOY A HEALTHY LIFE
*****

Marketing ju-jitsu: You gotta love it!

About the same time, my dear friend and frequent
co-conspirator Carline Anglade-Cole had a similar idea: In-
stead of trumpeting some new miracle cure like everyone
else was – instead of emulating failure – why not switch
sides?
Why not acknowledge and validate her prospects’
skepticism and demonstrate that her expert – and there-
fore her product -- was credible?
Here’s her simple, inspired head and lead for Dr.
Julian Whitaker’s Vision Essentials …

The New Vision Supplement Scam:

Why Lutein and Bilberry Don't work

Clayton Makepeace
 162

These supplements are part of a cruel vision hoax

that is robbing you of healthy eyes.
But don't let it happen to you.
Here's what you MUST KNOW NOW to protect your-
self!
*****
Can you see the genius in this approach? Are you be-
ginning to see how it could work for you in today’s financial
markets?
Our investment advisory prospects are skeptical,
even cynical ...
With the investment establishment: Their stocks
crashed with brokerage “BUY” ratings flying high.
They tried to buy value stocks, only to find that their
P/E ratings were as phony as a three-dollar bill. They
sought safety in numbers with mutual funds, only to
find that fund managers were favoring big institutions
and treating the little guy like a chump.
Each time the prospect lost money, the establishment
got richer. To them, Wall Street is anything but a
level playing field. It’s a rigged game – set up to
fleece them.
With investment newsletters: Each of our prospects
has said “YES” to many investment advisory sub-
scriptions in the past. Many of these newsletters
failed to save them from crashing stock prices in
2000-2003. And despite their big promises of sure
wealth in the years since, many have failed to make
them richer.
Again – the investment advisors and their publishers
made money, but in many cases, your prospect did
not.
About their own ability to make money: After their
personal experience of the last five years, our pros-
pects must be feeling like they’re cursed. They lost a
bundle in the first three years of this new century,

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and the investments they’ve held since have either

gone nowhere or lost them money.
Think about these three facts long enough, combined
with the Arthur/Carline concept of having the editor
“switch sides” and I’ll bet you come up with dozens of
ways to get your prospect’s dominant emotion – skepti-
cism – working for you, not against you.
Here’s how I adapted this concept for a recent in-
house promotion for a new investment advisory …
Walk a mile in your
prospect’s shoes …
*****
Enough is ENOUGH!
Why we investors are FED UP
with old-fashioned mutual funds that ...
Nickel and dime you nearly to death with sky-high
entry fees, exit fees and more …
Demand that you invest only in things that might
go up but almost never in things you’re sure will go
down…
Force you to lose money – with rules that make
trading too costly – or even impossible …
And that still leave you with pitiable gains -- or
even miserable losses -- at the end of every year
It’s time to leave antiquated mutual funds be-
hind – with the strategy that produced ...
80% annualized gains in 2004 and 83% in 2005
(so far), using the hottest new investments in
America:
EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS!

Clayton Makepeace
 Marvin’s Harvest of Skepticism and Misery

Just think about the ringer that one of your into an index fund. And after six long
years, his gain is precisely … ZERO. The
typical prospects—we’ll call him Marvin—has
Dow, Nasdaq and S&P 500 are still at
been put through in the last six years …
levels they first hit way back in 1999!
In 1999 – the peak of the stock market ex-
Marvin’s assessment of his own investing IQ
plosion – Marvin was rolling in dough. He’d al-
dropped – tick for tick – with every decline in
ready made a fortune in stocks, and the
the stock market. So did his trust in both Wall
NASDAQ was jumping by as much as 86% per
Street and Main Street. Slowly, Marvin real-
year. Even better: His individual stocks were
ized what his wife already knew: He hadn’t
soaring 100% … 200% … 300% ...and more.
been a genius in the ‘90s – just lucky.
The dollars in Marv’s brokerage account were
Since 2001, the news has only left Marvin
multiplying faster than rabbits in a Viagra fac-
more frustrated. He has seen TEN rallies in
tory. He felt like a genius. Even his wife
the last five years -- and each time, perpetu-
thought he might be. He had mastered the
ally bullish experts told him, “This is the start
stock market. He had it all figured out. It
of something BIG... Each time, of course, the
would be clear sailing from here on!
rally vaporized and turned into a decline.
Marvin’s dreams were filled with images of an
And in each of those ten declines, the
early retirement … the yacht … the Caribbean
stopped-clock bears – analysts who had accu-
condo … luxury and pleasure as far as his eye
rately predicted at least 30 of the last 5 de-
could see -- with more than enough money
clines -- screamed, “This is the beginning of
socked away to secure a lavish new lifestyle for
the END!” — just before prices began rising
the rest of his life.
again.
Then in 2000, cruel reality intervened. The
The real pisser is that all these terrible things
stock market bubble burst: First the Nasdaq,
happened to Marvin while he was doing eve-
then the blue chips, then the Nasdaq -- again.
rything Wall Street and the day’s most
Marvin’s stocks plummeted – along with his
vaunted advisors told him to do:
confidence in the markets and in his own in-
vesting skills. He bought and held just like Peter Lynch
told him to. He got creamed.
Nevertheless, believing (as nearly all the ex-
perts assured him) that this was only a tempo- He bought value stocks at low prices rela-
rary “lull,” – and that “buy-and-hold” investors tive to earnings – just like Warren Buffet
make the most money over time -- Marvin held does. He discovered that the earnings part
on, waiting for the end of the “correction” … was a fabrication – cooked up by a bunch of
corrupt CEOs and criminal accountants.
In 2001, all hell broke lose. 9/11. Rumors of
war, then the reality of war in Afghanistan. An- He diversified – just like everyone says he
thrax in the mail. Respected brokerages caught should. And found out that it only spread his
cheating clients. Revered corporations caught loss among more stocks and diluted his prof-
lying about their earnings. News that the econ- its.
omy was slowing … earnings were shrinking …
Think old Marvy baby has noticed any of this?
and unemployment was soaring.
Think it has anything to do with the fact that
Some of Marvin’s stocks – Enron, WorldCom, your promotion goes straight to the kitty litter
Global Crossing and others – were now worth- box?
less. Others had fallen 50% … 75% … up to
Why not let me help you get through to
90% in value.
Marvin …
But Marvin was smart. Not all of his money
In this promotion,
was in those pathetic losers. He diversified! my client is no longer just another
Back in 1999, he put a big chunk of money
 165

publisher trying to sell a product. By validating how his

readers already feel, he becomes one of them … commis-
erates with them … and then shows them a better way.
Credibility is King.
Just three years ago, I could pretty much count on
each of my new investment advisory promotions to pro-
duce a Return On Investment (ROI) – gross revenues di-
vided by total mail cost -- of at least 250% in its first test
to my client’s 200,000 best rented names. Frequently, our
initial ROI was as high as 350% or even 450%.
A single promotion generating these kinds of ROIs
would produce mailings of 10 million, 12 million, up to 18
million pieces per year – and royalties for me of nearly $1
million per year. Not bad for a month’s work!
In those golden days of yesteryear, I didn’t have to
think much about the product. So long as my opening
theme and main premium were killers, I could pretty much
count on a million-dollar paycheck. Two or three like that a
year, and you’re rubbing shoulders with quarterbacks and
rock stars.
But the days of sleepwalking through your copy are
long gone. You can no longer take anything for granted.
Even if you win the readership battle, it’s crucial to go the
extra mile in every section of your copy.
And since skepticism is rampant among our pros-
pects, PROVING that your product will deliver the benefits
you promise is everything.
Here are six ways to ramp up the credibility of every
promotion you mail – ideas that will help you close more
sales in every promotion:
Make your track record work its butt off for
you. In today’s tougher markets, the old technique of
merely presenting a table showing your client’s best
investment recommendations is the lazy man’s way
to poverty.
Put your back into it! Pick the advisor’s seven or eight
best trades. Then, create a sidebar for each spread that
Clayton Makepeace
 166

tells the story of one trade in a riveting way.

Make it read as if you’re taking the prospect along on
a great adventure. Help him “see” the advisor as he spot-
ted the opportunity … as he recommended it to his readers
… as Wall Street experts scoffed at him … as he begged,
pleaded and cajoled his subscribers to buy the investment
anyway.
Help the reader vicariously experience the news
events that begin driving the value of the investment sky-
ward. And make them feel what the advisor’s subscribers
felt when as he excitedly issued the signal to “Take Profits
NOW!”
Finally, show how it only took xx months and how by
doing those kinds of trades over and over again, you can’t
help but become rich.
Make your testimonials sweat bullets. Anyone
who mails a financial promotion without testimonials
in these skeptical times is practically begging for a
spanking.
That said, how you use your testimonials is crucial.
Here’s how I do it:
First, I edit each testimonial for clarity. The legal
beagles tell me this is kosher, so long as you make
absolutely sure that you do NOT change its meaning
in any way.
Second, I write a headline for each testimonial,
capturing the most compelling portion of its message.
If the headline is a direct quote from the testimonial,
I put quotation marks on it. If not, I don’t.
Third, I put a face on each testimonial – or at the
very least, on my strongest ones. If the testimonial-
giver didn’t provide a useable photo, I pick an appro-
priate one from a stock photo service. (The ambu-
lance-chasers tell me this is OK, too, although they
may limit you to using only the customer’s first
name, city and state in the attribution. Check to be
sure.)

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Finally, I make sure that every spread has several

of these one-testimonial sidebars. That way, every-
where the prospect looks, he sees someone who’s
just like him – only richer and happier – because they
followed the advisor’s guidance.
Turn your most powerful testimonials into
headlines, subheads and success stories. Re-
cently, I used a testimonial as my main head. In its
first outing, it beat another writer’s control by 13 to 1
(profit per name mailed). Not only that, it beat my
alternate head by nearly 50%. Worth a try? Abso-
lutely!
Also: Pick your best testimonials and try using them
as subheads in running text, and as headlines on sidebars.
And be sure to try going beyond simply reciting what
the customer said. Turn some of your best testimonials
into narratives. Call the people who provided the strongest
ones and interview them. Get all the juicy details.
Then, tell his story as if it were a case study -- like
Money Magazine does. Did he buy something cool with all
the money he made? Get a photo of the customer and his
spouse standing proudly next to it.
Try including four or more stories like this on every
spread.
Try making a customer the author of your package.
Crazy idea – right? So crazy, it just might work!
Why not let a delighted customer tell your potential
customers all the reasons why they’d be nuts not to
give this advisory a fair try?
Take the sales copy OUT of the voice of the person
who’ll benefit from the sale and put it into the voice
of a customer/advocate: Abracadabra -- you’ve got
credibility out the wazoo!
Consider a celebrity endorsement. Again – why
not? If you can get a celeb to sign a lift letter or side-
bar for, say 5% of the gross (roughly $30/M on a
break-even mailing) – and that endorsement gives
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you a 30% lift – it could be the breakthrough you’re

looking for.
Re-think your guarantee. If skepticism is the prob-
lem, credibility devices are the solution. And your
guarantee is one of the most important credibility de-
vices in your copy.
Stop thinking about the guarantee as a simple “risk-
reliever,” designed to push borderline prospects into calling
your toll-free number. Instead, think about your guarantee
as proof of how certain the advisor is that he’ll make your
prospect filthy, stinking rich.
My favorite guarantees tend to come in two flavors.
The “Contract.” This type of guarantee is de-
signed to create a professional “business relationship”
between the advisor and the prospect in which the
advisor repeats all the wonderful things he’s going to
do for the prospect, and then says something like …
“If I fail in any way to deliver on these promises at
any time – even on the last day of your subscription – eve-
rything I’ve sent you in the meantime is FREE. I’ll cheer-
fully refund every penny you paid and insist that you keep
everything completely without cost or obligation.”
The “Personal” Promise. This approach is de-
signed to create a strong emotional bond between
the advisor and the prospect. It’s a personal-looking
letter to the prospect from the advisor.
It acknowledges and validates how the prospect is
feeling about his financial/investment situation now.
It demonstrates how the advisor’s mission in life is to
help the reader assuage those fears, soothe those frustra-
tions, and to fulfill those desires.
And the advisor gives the prospect his personal word
of honor that XX months from today, one of two things will
be true: He’ll either be considerably richer, or none of this
will have cost him a red cent.
Pull a PR Coup: Why stop at billboarding what

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customers say about your client and his product?

Ramp up the credibility of everything your client
promises to deliver with ...
Press references: Have The Wall Street Journal,
Barron’s, Forbes, Fortune or other major investment
publications run articles by your editor? Do they call
him for his take on current investment develop-
ments? Have they mentioned his name?
Yes? Shout it from the rooftops in your sales copy.
No? Why haven’t they? Urge your clients to consider
mounting a public relations campaign for each editor in
their stable – and to hire a monitoring service to capture
all the articles that result.
Public appearances: Is your editor in demand at
exclusive investment industry conferences? Has he
appeared on CNBC, CNNfn, MSNBC or the Fox News
Business Block? Has he been a guest – frequent or
otherwise on Wall $treet Week or another popular fi-
nancial program? If so, put these facts up in lights!
Books authored: Being an author – especially a
best-selling one – makes financial advisors instantly
credible. If your editor is an author, do more than
just mention the names of his masterpieces. Show
them! Did some famous names give him great re-
views? Use them!
Give Your Editor a Kick-Butt Biography: Right
up front, include a half-page or full-page sidebar that
demonstrates why your editor is better than all the
rest – why he really will deliver all the benefits your
sales copy is about to promise.
Show how he was born into wealth and was given the
secret to staying rich. Or if he was born poor, describe his
ravenous hunger for success -- and how he made it his
mission in life to discover the key to the financial markets.
Show how his education and early work experience
shaped his approach – and flaunt his early accomplish-
ments like there’s no tomorrow.

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Tell a story of how he seized on a recent opportunity

and helped his clients to eye-popping profits.
Tell how his approach has been seized upon by some
of the world’s largest and richest institutions – and how
they pay him a king’s ransom for his insights and recom-
mendations.
Present his PR credentials – all the major media out-
lets that rely on him for his pearls of wisdom on the day’s
hottest investment trends.
Mention that this genius has just put the finishing
touches on his greatest work ever and is making the un-
precedented offer to send it to like-minded investors FREE.
Pull out all the stops!
Rethink your format: What message is the look
of your promo sending to skeptical prospects? Is it
similar in size, shape, color and layout to hundreds of
promotions he has already rejected?
Or does it have a look that sets it apart and screams,
“This is something you’ve never seen before!”
Call your client’s print buyer. Ask to see interesting
new shapes and sizes of both envelope packages and self-
mailers that can be produced as cost-effectively as the
promotions they’re using now.
Then, work with the graphic artist who’s designing
your package to make sure you take advantage of the new
format to position your message and your product as being
unique in your prospect’s mind.
Present a solution that’s compatible with your pros-
pect’s most dominant resident emotion: Congratulate
your reader for being skeptical. Show him how suck-
ers never get an even break. Demonstrate how
healthy skepticism is a sign of intelligence – the only
prudent way to invest today.
Then, link your premium, your presentation of the
editor’s track record, your description of the editor’s ap-
proach and his product, your guarantee, the positive ac-

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ceptance statement on your order form – and everything

else in your copy to this singular fact.
Finally, make sure that the solution you present in
your premium truly is unique: Something that the prospect
hasn’t tried and that’s just so crazy, it just might work –
and show him how it does work, consistently, for thou-
sands of the editor’s eternally grateful followers, and how
it will make the reader richer as well.
Go beyond mere money: Think about all the re-
wards that convince ordinary folks to invest today.
Paint vivid word pictures of how it feels to be finan-
cially secure and independent … to be a hero by having the
resources to help kids and grandkids get a great start in
life … the satisfaction of getting revenge on brokers and
others who have abused him in the past … the prestige
that success brings … the respect and admiration of a
spouse and peers … the unlimited opportunities that
money will afford him.
Think about the things that your prospect fears and is
frustrated with as well. The advent of the Internet and the
proliferation of investment magazines and newsletters has
him befuddled; you’ll sort it out for him. Investing takes
time; you’ll save him time. Having money on the line gives
him gas and bad dreams; you’ll help him stop smelling up
the place and get a good night’s sleep.
Drive your client bonkers: Publishers tend to be
set in their ways. Each one has tested everything
over the years. For the most part, each has gotten
different results from those tests, and has arrived at
platitudes that are in direct conflict with what other
publishers have found.
Each publisher has enshrined these truisms as rules:
“The way we do things” – never to be challenged – let
alone violated. And each publisher believes that his rules
are superior to his competitors’.
It cracks me up when a client who hasn’t had a con-
trol he could mail outside of his own house file for years

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begins reciting his “rules” for a successful package to me

(Fortunately, it’s usually on the phone, so they never
know.)
So what do you do when everything your clients
“know” about successful promotions isn’t working?
You get impertinent on their asses. Be as obnoxious
as possible. Challenge everything – the price, the guaran-
tee, the offer, the order form – everything.
Here’s something I’ve been thinking about lately, for
example …
What if the solution isn’t raising response rates at all?
What if our prospects are so jaded that nothing we
can do would get more of them to sign up?
What if the folks who are still subscribing to invest-
ment newsletters are so hard core, they’d buy no matter
what we charged them?
What if, instead of sleepwalking through the pricing
of our products, we did something radical – and tested
prices that are significantly higher than they currently are?
It’s simple arithmetic. Your package is pulling in 80%
of cost. That means you need a 25% lift to get to break-
even, do bigger mailings and bring in bigger numbers of
new subscribers.
So why not test a price that’s 25% higher?
If you say, “We’ve tested it before, and it didn’t
work,” I’m coming over this desk at you.
When did you test it? Back when everyone was buy-
ing everything? Or more recently, when only never-say-die
investors are?
How did you test it? Did you just have your artist slug
the new price into the order form? Or did you start from
scratch, making sure that your offer made the price feel
like the bargain of the century?
Bottom line: If everything you “know” about direct
response isn’t working, it’s time to throw out the rulebook.

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Orthodoxy isn’t the solution; it’s the problem. They put

people in padded cells for doing the same thing repeatedly
and expecting different results.
Get creative. Innovate.

Clayton Makepeace
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-- Chapter Fifteen --

Direct Response Graphic

Design 101
The Three Types Of Graphic Designers and
The ONLY One You Ever Want to Hire...
How to Become A GREAT Designer In 3
Easy Steps ...
The 2 Simple Things A Designer Must Do
To Create Bigger Winners, More Often
...And More!

This chapter will make everybody money – including

you!
If you’re a business owner, marketing pro, or copy-
writer, good graphic design is absolutely essential to pro-
ducing peak response to your sales promotions. I’ve seen
poor design cut sales by half or even more. Conversely,
I’ve seen stronger graphic design bump response by 20%
or even more.
If you’re a designer, reading this may be the most
important fifteen minutes of your career. Because I’m go-
ing to tell you what’s what. If you can follow some simple
guidelines, you’ll be booked solid. I’ll probably be the first
in line to hire you!
First, a quick disclaimer ...
I am NOT “anti-artiste!”
Please forgive me if anything I’m about to say of-
fends you. Despite what you may think, I really like most
of the graphics people I’ve worked with.
I helped put two kids through art school.

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Some of my best friends – Ed Elliott, Rob Davis, Larry

Owen and Brian Wilson, for example – are designers.
I even gave my blessing when my daughter married
an artist.
But we’ve got to talk. Because sometimes, you guys
drive me nuts. Much of what I see in first draft art – and a
LOT of what I see on the Internet and in the mail – is abys-
mal.
And the fact is, if I get one more graphics draft with
the same old blunders in it, my head’s going to explode.
So please – have a seat … you’re about to get your
advanced degree – from The Makepeace School of Art and
Design …
Which Kind of Designer Are You?
I’ve worked with three kinds of designers in my ca-
reer:
Art School Grads: Most art school grads are very
nice people. They tend to be idealistic, laid-back creative
types who smoke funny cigarettes, and who became artists
because they wanted to make the world a prettier place.
Later, reality intervened and they became graphic design-
ers because they preferred eating to starving.
But art school graduates – bless their hearts – have a
handicap: They went to art school.
If they had attended business school, they’d know
that their job is to help produce maximum response. But
they didn’t. And their art school professors have convinced
them that their job is to make your promotion “pleasing to
the eye.”
Don’t get me wrong – there’s nothing wrong with a
good-looking promotion. But when aesthetics get in the
way of the sales copy, you’ve got a disaster on your hands.
Technicians: Folks who got into this racket because
they like playing with computers and learned how to use
InDesign, PageMaker or Quark.

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Problem is, few have spent any time at all studying

or even thinking about graphic design – or how the layout
of a promotion affects its attention-getting power, read-
ability or effectiveness.
Great Designers: Designers who know their job is
to help sell a product ... who avoid the blunders that de-
stroy attention and readership ... and who have mastered
a few simple tricks that boost the response of every pro-
motion they design.
Great designers are near and dear to my heart. Guys
and gals who know their stuff can boost response, make
business owners richer, get marketing pros the big raises
and perks, boost copywriter royalties and keep their own
schedules packed with lucrative assignments.
How to Become A GREAT Designer
In 3 Easy Steps …
Step #1: Get with the program. Despite what you
may have been led to believe, we are not in the business
of spending a fortune to mail acres of white space or pretty
pictures to art-starved consumers.
Our mission is to make a sale.
So when you tell me I have to cut sales copy so you
can have your massive margins, vast areas of empty
“white space” and ponderous, meaningless photographs,
you’re just asking for trouble. It ain’t gonna happen.
Step #2: Get over yourself. This isn’t about art.
It’s about business. Specifically, it’s about selling a product
or service.
Art is subjective. Graphic design for direct response is
scientific. Certain techniques have been proven over many
years to be more effective at generating attention, reader-
ship and response than others.
Great designers have taken the time to learn what
works and why. That allows them to avoid things that are
counterproductive ... and to use techniques that have been
proven to boost response.

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The first lesson that great designers have learned is

that design does NOT sell products. Copy sells the product.
Great design helps the copy do its job. Bad design gets in
the way of the sale.
We only have a limited amount of space in each pro-
motion. Every element that gets through to final draft dis-
places something that didn’t.
Every unnecessary graphic element you add means
crucial sales copy has to be smaller, shorter – or worse,
cut altogether.
That means we sell less product.
That means I make less money for the client and
even worse, less money for me. And that makes me
cranky.
Step #3: Recognize that your design only has to
accomplish two simple but essential tasks.
Your first job is to help the copy grab the prospect’s
attention. Do this one thing well – and yes, that usually
means big, “ugly” headline and deck type – and you’re
60% of the way there.
Your second job is to convert that attention to read-
ership and to help keep the prospect reading until he or-
ders. Do this well, and you’ll create bigger winners, more
often. Clients will beat a path to your door. So will I.
Graphic Design Primer
Let’s begin by taking a quick look at the essentials ...
Types of Type
Type styles: There are two basic kinds of type used
in direct response promotions: Serif and Sans-serif. A serif
type has little flourishes on each letter, while sans-serif
types does not.

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Size: The size of type is denominated in points. Body

text in most newspapers is 9 point. There is no limit to
how large type can be. I’ve often used 120 point type for
headlines on large tabloid mailers, for example.

Weight: Type is available in various weights – from

light to regular, to bold, to extra bold, to semi-bold.

Kerning: The horizontal distance between letters and

words is called “kerning.”

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Leading: The vertical space between lines of text is

called “leading.” Extra space between paragraphs is called
“secondary leading.” When you increase the leading, you
increase the space between lines of text. This paragraph is
leaded normally.

Special treatment: For added emphasis, text can be

reversed – such as when white or a light-colored text ap-
pears in a black or darker-colored background. Or it can be
run in italics, or underlined.
4 Secrets for Generating Maximum
Attention-Getting Power
1. Size Matters: The purpose of a headline or sub-
head is to seize the reader’s attention. Larger and bolder
heads generally seize attention better than smaller, lighter
ones.
You’ll notice that many of my sales pieces use Impact
typeface for heads and subheads. They give my headlines
heft and height, yet are condensed, so I can get more let-
ters on each line.
2. Dazzle ’Em With Color: The judicious use of
color can add big impact to your headlines and other at-
tention-getting copy.
Entire libraries of books have been written on color
psychology. In a nutshell, most say that cold colors – blues
and pastels, for example – tend to relax us. Hotter colors –
highly saturated oranges, reds and earth tones – warm us
up.
Since we copywriters work our fingers to the bone
trying to get our prospects excited about ordering, it would
make sense to default to warmer colors.
Ironically, though, PMS 286 – “junk mail blue” – usu-

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ally works well, too. And some of my biggest winners in

both the financial and health industries have used a good
strong green as a main second color.
Boardroom is famous for successfully using what
some refer to as “Gestapo Colors” – Black, red and yellow
– for extremely high impact self-mailers.
And many years ago, I remember a financial mailer
that drew the eye with International Distress Orange head-
lines and purple text. It mailed for years.
In my opinion, the strength of a color – not its hue –
is the key. Strong colors grab attention far better than
weak ones do.
3. Look Him In The Eye: Since we were kids, we’ve
been taught to look at people who are talking to us. And,
we’ve been taught that people who do not look us in the
eye are not to be trusted.
Including a photo of a person talking to the reader –
and putting the headline in that person’s voice – is a pow-
erful way to seize prospects’ attention.
4. Less Is More: Too many graphic devices on the
outer cover of self-mailers or on envelopes only confuse
the eye. When everything is emphasized, nothing stands
out.
Create a focal point – the main headline – and drive
the reader’s eye to it.
10 Rules for Generating
Maximum Readability
1. This is not an eye test. Many of your prospects
are older and have fading eyesight. Requiring that they
fetch their spectacles before they can read your pitch is a
big mistake.
As a rule, body copy should never be smaller than
12pt. – and the body text in some of my most successful
promotions has been presented in 14pt. type.
2. Readability Rules. You’ll probably notice that in
the “Type Style” section above, the second, sans-serif
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paragraph is slightly easier to read on your computer

monitor than the first one.
That’s because the dot pattern on many computer
monitors makes it difficult to see the detail in serif type.
That’s why I use Verdana– a sans-serif type -in this book.
In print, however, readership studies show that serif
type is far more readable. That’s why body copy in most
newspapers and magazines is presented in Times or some-
thing close to it.
Also, in my direct mail promotions, you’ll notice that I
often invert my type selection in sidebars to create con-
trast between them and the running text: Sans-serif heads
and serif body copy in the running text … serif heads and
sans-serif body copy in sidebars.
3. Put it in black and white. The human eye likes
contrast. The lower the contrast between your text and
your background, the lower your readership will be.
Black ink on white paper provides the greatest con-
trast. Each step you take away from black on white –
lighter type or darker backgrounds, for example – cuts
readership.
I use this fact to emphasize and promote readership
of my running text. In most of my promotions, the running
text is black-on-white. In sidebars, I add a light buff, blue
or green background, keeping the body text in black.
4. Eyepath is crucial. The human eye is easily con-
fused. You never want your prospect to wonder where to
look for the next piece of text, or to be distracted in the
middle of your cogent selling argument.
Photographs and other illustrations embedded in
running text distract and confuse the eye.
Full-page sidebars on right-hand pages create a
visual barrier and can discourage the reader from
turning the page.
Subheads should never be broken between col-
umns. And when near the bottom of a column, they

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should always have at least three lines of text be-

neath them.
Subheads should be broken into coherent phrases:

I want to kiss her

BUT she won’t let me
- NOT -
I want to kiss her BUT
she won’t let me

5. Keep lines of text short and manageable.

When a string of small letters and words – say 12pt. or
14pt. body copy – runs too long, the eye gets fatigued and
the brain loses its place. Excessive line length kills reader-
ship.
That’s why God invented columns. Columnating text
allows the eye and brain to sort out a few words quickly
and then move to the next line. I find that columns con-
taining about 40 characters and spaces are optimal.
6. Make each paragraph visually inviting. Long
paragraphs look intimidating and discourage readership. I
try to keep paragraphs as short as possible – even if I
have to break them in places that drives grammarians and
proofreaders bonkers.
Sprinkling an ample number of one—and two—line
paragraphs on a page makes the entire page feel more in-
viting.
7. Justified text is unjustifiable. Justified text –
where both the left- and the right-hand margin of each
paragraph is even – destroys readership.
This paragraph is justified. Note the uneven spaces
between the words. People justify paragraphs to eliminate
unnecessary hyphens – but it also interrupts the flow of
coherent thoughts in the text.
Ragged right – RULES!

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8. Widows and orphans should be treated with

care. In my opinion, a widow – a single word on the last
line of a paragraph – is usually a good thing. It adds a
smidgen of white space, making the page look less intimi-
dating. I’d move heaven and earth to avoid ending a para-
graph with a hyphenated word fragment on a line by itself.
That just looks sloppy.
Orphans – the single line of a new paragraph at the
bottom of the column – should be avoided. It breaks a
thought before it can take hold in the prospect’s mind.
9. Never end a page with a period. Plan each
page and 2-page spread so the last paragraph of running
text is broken and continues on the next page. That way,
the reader is more likely to turn the page and keep read-
ing.
Also, at the end of the text, insert a page-turner: A
small “Please turn ...” flush right.
10. Include contact information on ever spread.
Add a header or footer on each spread that presents the
client’s toll-free telephone number and/or directs the
reader to the page where the response device can be
found.
In my business, some 80% of our orders usually ar-
rive by phone. So typically, I’ll use a footer on each spread
that simply says, “For More Information, Call TOLL-FREE
1-800-XXX-XXXX.”
How to use photos
and other graphic elements
Illustrations should never be used simply to “break
up the text” or make the page look less challenging.
That said, however, illustrations do serve four valid
purposes in sales promotions:
1. To seize the prospect’s attention and to con-
vert that attention to readership – as when you include
the ersatz author’s photograph with a headline ...
2. To establish credibility – as when using charts,
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graphs, tables or photos of a source (a big-name maga-

zine, for example) to prove a point ... or to make a testi-
monial believable by including a photo of the customer ...
3. To drive important sales points home – as
with “before/after” photos, “process photos” showing how
the product works, etc. ...
4. To present the product and/or premium in a
way that enhances its perceived value.
Interesting note: Several years ago, a major pub-
lisher hired a research firm to determine which kinds of il-
lustrations are most effective at seizing readers’ attention.
Male readers were most attracted to photos of:
1. Anything with an engine in it – cars, boats,
planes, helicopters.
2. Women.
Female readers were most attracted to photos of:
1. Children.
2. Other women.
In both sexes, the use of a storyboard – a series of photo-
graphs or illustrations telling a story – seized attention far
better than a single photo alone.
Master these rules
And then break them - carefully!
As I write this, I can almost feel creative minds spin-
ning. “Are huge headlines always best?” “Are strong colors
really the only colors I should ever use?”
Of course not. In the financial arena, for example, it’s
sometimes important to make a promotion “feel” like a se-
rious report. In those cases, credibility trumps raw atten-
tion-getting power, and a more subtle headline typeface
and color selection are called for.
But these are great rules of thumb, and many, if not
most, of the promotions I see out there every day would
be working better if the designer had followed them.

Clayton Makepeace
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Having said that, I know you artists are free souls.

You hate rules. So you’ll probably be tempted to break as
many of these rules as you can, as quickly as you can.
But whenever you’re tempted to break with conven-
tion, remember: This is about SELLING!
You’ll do yourself – and the rest of us – a huge favor
if you ask yourself how your rule-breaking will affect the
attention-getting power, readership and effectiveness of
the promotion
“Will it get my page more attention, or less?”
“Will it make the promotion feel more credible, or
less?
“Will it make each page look more inviting, or more
formidable?”
“Will it make the page easier to read, or more diffi-
cult?”
Well, those are the basics. There are more graphic
techniques, but that’s for another time.

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-- Chapter Sixteen --

Scary LEGAL Issues You

NEED to Know About
3 Golden Rules
for avoiding most legal nightmares …
And 4 MORE secrets for
KEEPING the money you make

One year before 9/11 — almost to the day — I was

cooling my heels on the 86th floor of Manhattan's World
Trade Center, waiting to be grilled by a team of govern-
ment investigators and wondering how IN THE HELL I'd
ever wound up there.
I flashed back to the moment, two years earlier,
when a FedEx truck had rolled up to my office and dis-
gorged an innocent-looking box. Inside the box, I found a
bunch of investment newsletters written by a guy I'd never
heard of — and a letter from my agent asking me to "take
a look."
As I read the first issue, I felt like somebody had just
poured ice water down the front of my shorts. What the
editor was saying shocked me ... chilled me — and ulti-
mately, electrified me!
This guy was saying truly outrageous things about
President Clinton's past and making extreme, negative
predictions about the future of the economy and the stock
market.
In short, his audacious, uniquely powerful message
was in stark contrast to the Pollyanna pabulum I was see-
ing from other financial publishers.

Clayton Makepeace
 188

The fact that I disagreed with most of the editor's

views was immaterial to me at the time. If ad agencies and
copywriters only worked with clients and media whose
opinions we agreed with, there wouldn't BE any ad agen-
cies or copywriters!
To me, the editor was simply ...
1. A U.S. citizen, expressing his (admittedly outra-
geous) opinions, and ...
2. An American businessman, attempting to attract
new customers.
Now I feel it's only fair to remind you: I did NOT
graduate Harvard Law School — or any other attorney as-
sembly line for that matter.
... But I am a proud graduate of McKinley Elementary
School in Tremonton, Utah. And when Mr. Walden tested
my sixth-grade class on the U.S. Bill of Rights and Consti-
tution back in 1962, I passed with flying colors (OK — so
maybe it was just a "C+").
I distinctly remember those dusty documents saying
— and I'm quoting from memory here ...
"We the people say it is O.K. to speak your mind and
make money."
So until they change the Constitution, I’m going with
that.
Besides: It seemed clear that, crazy or not, the editor
passionately believed what he was saying. Plus, I knew
that thousands of investors did share his views. And his
copious use of facts, figures and quotes from well-
respected outside sources helped make his views seem at
least plausible to thousands more.
Finally, I did the math: This guy's unique (and
uniquely entertaining) views ... plus powerful sales copy ...
equaled huge promotional potential for him — AND huge
royalties for me.
So I called my agent and asked if the publisher was
reputable. Did he deliver what he promised? I was assured
Double Your Profits
 189

that he was and he did. The prospective client worked with

several other reputable copywriters, printers, and mail list
companies — and as far as my agent could tell, was on the
up-and-up.
Anyways, I accepted the job ...
I wrote a promotion or two for the guy ... they
mailed well ... he paid me promptly ... and I banked some
VERY healthy royalties. It was immediately clear that this
client was probably going to be a $1 million-a-year cash
cow for me.
It wasn't long, though, until word got 'round that I
had written the client's control. Suddenly, people I re-
spected were calling, positively mortified that I was work-
ing with this guy.
According to them, the editor was a convicted felon
on the lam from federal authorities. And not only that, his
partners were as crooked as a dog's hind leg, too.
"He's not delivering the newsletters you're selling,"
they said, "nor is he paying refunds to dissatisfied sub-
scribers. And what's more, the track record he gave you is
a complete fabrication."
You could have knocked me over with a feather.
I'd worked with scores of clients in my nearly three
decades in the direct response biz. Until then, only ONE of
them had proven to be a skunk — and even he gave me
the straight poop on his investment track record and paid
refunds promptly.
He delivered products to his customers too — as it
turned out, much poorer quality products than I had been
led to believe (hence the "skunk" part) — but at least he
delivered something! (When I learned the skunk was
cheating his customers, I resigned the account. Within a
year, I heard he'd been nailed for his sins, had set up
housekeeping with a cellmate named Bubba at a federal
correctional facility, and would be getting his mail there for
the next decade or so.)

Clayton Makepeace
 190

Now, as I digested the horrifying news about this

new client, I suddenly felt ... well, dirty, somehow — like I
needed to take a long, hot shower and scrub my entire
body with #40 grit sandpaper.
My Momma raised me better than to be party to a
scam. If she had ever caught me hanging out with such
unsavory characters, she would have said, "Birds of a
feather flock together," — and proceeded to give me the
thrashing of my life.
So, thanks to Mom, I didn't even have to think about
what to do next. I promptly bailed — and by doing so,
walked away from the millions I would have surely made
with the client.
Then, one fine August day in 2000, my phone rang
again. This time it was a nice lady from the Commodity Fu-
tures Trading Commission (CFTC) — the federal agency
charged with the responsibility of skewering anyone who
breaks the law while selling futures or futures options.
The nice lady politely asked me if I would be so kind
as to ...
1. Send her every communication I'd ever had with
the client ...
2. Send her everything I had ever written for the cli-
ent ...
3. "Visit" her in New York to tell her everything I
knew about the client.
Again — I am NOT a lawyer — but I do know one
thing: When an investigator at a government agency
"invites" you to pay him or her a visit, it's not really an in-
vitation. It is an order.
One way or another, you are going to talk to them.
Your only choice is whether the record shows you did so
voluntarily or only after some guy with a badge and a gun
shoved a subpoena into your face.
And so, I was nice right back at her. "Sure," I said,
and we settled on a date.

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 191

Then, I speed dialed a famous New York lawyer who

specializes in such things and asked him to walk me
through what I was positive would be more of a "grilling"
than a "visit."
Don't shoot ME; I'm just the copywriter!
And so there I was that September day in 2000, in a
windowless room at the World Trade Center, awaiting my
turn on the CFTC's spit.
Long story short, it went OK.
I swore to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing
but the truth, so help me, Buddha. I told them everything
I knew about the client (not much, as it turned out) and
they let me go sans handcuffs. I haven't heard a peep
from the CFTC, or any other regulator for that matter, in
the five years since.
Besides the thirty-thousand smackers my lawyer and
travel expenses cost me — and the month of writer's block
and lost productivity I suffered while waiting to give my
deposition — there were no permanent scars.
And frankly, I had re-learned a valuable lesson: Un-
compromising personal ethics, plus a working knowledge
of the legalities involved with marketing and strict adher-
ence to those laws — and, of course, the phone number of
a great attorney — are absolutely essential to succeed
over the long haul in any business today — especially this
one.
99.99% of all direct marketers
are honest, good people
When someone suggests that direct response mar-
keting is a sleazy business, I have to resist the urge to slap
'em. In fact, the only reason I don't brain these cynics is
that I, for one, find physical abuse of the mentally retarded
morally reprehensible.
The God's-Honest Truth is, the vast majority of the
companies in this industry — and certainly every client I
have ever had a long-term relationship with — provide

Clayton Makepeace
 192

quality products at fair prices and in doing so, bring tre-

mendous value to their customers' lives.
Yes, there are some bad apples:
Insurance sharks that push children's burial insur-
ance policies to guilt-ridden parents and whole-life
policies to addled seniors ...
Bankers who sell "low-interest" credit cards that
whack you for up to 30% the second you're even one
day late paying ANY bill ...
Drug company fat cats who send lavish mailers to
doctors touting stuff they know will kill thousands,
just to make a quick buck (Thalidomide, Tambocor,
Fen-Phen & Redux and Vioxx) ...
"Natural" quacks who claim their non-prescription
remedies will make you skinny, erase your bald spot
and make your wilting willy snap to attention ...
Congressional candidates and other politicians who
fill your mailbox with fundraising appeals promising
you the world if you'll only donate and vote — but
never deliver (Why can't you ever find an FTC cop
when you REALLY need one???) ...
Every one of these scam artists should be rounded
up ... liberally doused with Chanel No. 5 ... shoved into a
very small cell with a very large, very lonely Bubba ... and
have the door locked behind him.
And it should be done NOW — before he sullies the
reputation of honest direct response companies any fur-
ther, and certainly before he has the chance to reproduce!
But the fact is, these kinds of shameless swindlers
represent only a tiny minority of the massive direct mar-
keting community. And to those of us in the biz, it's easy
to avoid them.
Anyone with an IQ as large as my shoe size (I wear
size 11 — and according to the psychiatric textbooks, an
IQ of 11 is about one-fifth of what you need to be officially

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 193

classified a "Moron" and well within the official "Idiot"

range) — can see them coming.
Their slick silk suits, greasy hair, implausible prom-
ises, shoddy products, outrageous prices and Congres-
sional imprimaturs are a dead give-away.
Beyond avoiding these obvious scoundrels, I also fol-
low three "Golden Rules" when working with clients ...
Golden Rule #1
Lie down with dogs and you'll get up with fleas:
Never agree to partner with or promote products sold
by people you know to be less than honest.
Golden Rule #2
Never promote products you suspect
could be defective or dangerous:
Avoid things you wouldn't want your mom or dad,
your significant other, or your kids or grandkids paying for
and using. (Attention, Merck and Pfizer execs!)
Golden Rule #3
Never, ever lie:
Say only what you are convinced is true — and have
substantiation to back it up.
More legal stuff you need to know
It would be wonderful if avoiding legal entanglements
was as easy as following my 3 simple "Golden Rules." Un-
fortunately, in today's highly regulated, lawsuit-crazy
world, it is not.
So here's some more great advice designed to help
save you a bundle and, hopefully, keep you out of hot wa-
ter ...
1. Memorize everything you see at
http://www.ftc.gov/ — the U.S. Federal Trade Commis-
sion's (FTC) home on the World Wide Web.

Clayton Makepeace
 194

The FTC is the arm of the U.S. government that sets

the rules for all advertising, marketing and sales conducted
in this country. In my experience anyway, they're a pretty
decent and reasonable bunch of guys and gals. They just
want everybody — consumers and businesses alike — to
get a fair shake.
They know that for the U.S. economy to be success-
ful, consumers need to have a level of confidence in the
advertising and marketing messages we send to them.
And, the FTC also knows that it's important to protect
consumers from ALMOST all of the scammers and scoun-
drels named above (I'll let you guess the only kind of swin-
dler on the above list that even the FTC leaves alone! Hint:
They're headquartered in Washington D.C.).
And on balance, they also know that advertisers and
marketers need to employ animated sales copy (they seem
more concerned with content than tone) to produce effec-
tive sales campaigns.
For the most part, the FTC wants to make sure that
you follow my 3 "Golden Rules" above. If you do, you'll be
miles ahead of the game — but you will NOT be home free.
There are other little wrinkles you need to be aware
of — like the thing some folks call the "reasonable person"
rule — and it goes beyond merely insisting that you tell the
truth.
In a nutshell, it says that nothing in your sales mes-
sage should — whether by omission of key facts or by the
presentation of supposed product benefits — deceive, mis-
lead or leave a reasonable prospect with a false impres-
sion.
In FTC parlance, ads that mislead are "deceptive" and
in the FTC's own words, certain elements undergird all de-
ception cases ...
"First, there must be a representation, omission or
practice that is likely to mislead the consumer.
"Practices that have been found misleading or decep-
tive in specific cases include false oral or written represen-
Double Your Profits
 195

tations, misleading price claims, sales of hazardous or sys-

tematically defective products or services without adequate
disclosure, failure to disclose information regarding pyra-
mid sales, use of bait and switch techniques, failure to per-
form promised services, and failure to meet warranty obli-
gations.
"Second, we examine the practice from the perspec-
tive of a consumer acting reasonably in the circumstances.
If the representation or practice affects or is directed pri-
marily to a particular group, the Commission examines
reasonableness from the perspective of that group.
"Third, the representation, omission, or practice must
be a "material" one. The basic question is whether the act
or practice is likely to affect the consumer's conduct or de-
cision with regard to a product or service.
"If so, the practice is material, and consumer injury is
likely, because consumers are likely to have chosen differ-
ently, but for the deception. In many instances, material-
ity, and hence injury, can be presumed from the nature of
the practice. In other instances, evidence of materiality
may be necessary."
— http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/policystmt/ad-decept.htm
In Plain English, I'm pretty sure that means as a
business owner, marketing exec or copywriter, you are re-
quired to do more than simply tell the objective truth. You
must also avoid giving your prospect a false impression
about your product by omitting or failing to mention a key
fact about it.
Unless you have a secret desire to spend a few years
honeymooning with Bubba, I strongly recommend that you
spend a few hours at:
—http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/guides/guides.htm
That's where the FTC keeps its "Plain English" guides
for advertisers and marketers. I suggest you commit them
to memory.
I also recommend that my clients have sales copy re-
viewed by an attorney who is steeped in FTC regulations
Clayton Makepeace
 196

and who stays current with the actions being taken against
other marketers.
2. If another regulatory agency has jurisdiction
over the clients you serve or the products you sell,
study their regulations carefully!
While the FTC watches advertisers and marketers in
nearly every industry, some types of businesses are also
governed by their own sets of regulators.
If you or your client is selling stocks, mutual funds
and other kinds of securities investments, for example,
you'll need to understand the ground rules set out by the
Securities & Exchange Commission (http://www.sec.gov/)
as well as the National Association of Securities Dealers
(http://www.nasd.com/).
If you're involved in the selling of commodity futures
or futures options, you need to study the Commodity Fu-
tures Trading Commission's site at:
http://www.cftc.gov/cftc/cftchome.htm.
And, if you sell nutritional supplements, you should
study http://www.fda.gov/ for guidance in preparing your
advertising and marketing materials.
If you don't know which agency regulates the indus-
try you're working with, you can check out the list at the
U.S. government's web portal:
http://firstgov.gov/Agencies/Federal/All_Agencies/
index.shtml
3. Keep your legal antennae tuned! It would be
nice if the laws and regulations governing the advertising
and marketing of products and services were black and
white and carved in stone. Unfortunately, they are not —
so it is absolutely crucial to make sure an attorney reviews
sales copy before it is mailed and keeps you on top of both
current and possible future shifts in the legal landscape.
Many years ago, for example, the SEC hauled a guy
named Chris Lowe up on charges. He wasn't selling regu-
lated securities — just publishing a monthly investment

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advisory newsletter. Each month, he merely offered his

opinion as to what the stock market would do next, and
made a few recommendations.
The way Chris saw it, sharing his opinions and rec-
ommendations was protected speech under the First
Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
And so, Chris happily, even blissfully ignored the
SEC's prohibitions against using testimonials, his track re-
cord, and other credibility devices when promoting his
newsletter.
Then, in a startling display of brilliant business judg-
ment, Chris hired me to write a promotion package for
him. I did, and then sent him my invoice for, as I remem-
ber, around $10,000.
The check bounced. Then, it bounced again. And
again. So I got Chris on the line and said, "Golly gee,
Chris, what the heck's going on here?" — or words to that
effect.
Seems the SEC had not appreciated being ignored ...
had promptly shut down Chris' little publishing opera-
tion ... hauled him up on charges ... seized his bank ac-
count — and left me holding the bag for ten grand plus
about $3,000 in bounced check charges. My first and only
promotion for Chris Lowe never went very far: It didn't
even make it into graphics — let alone into the mail!
Chris, on the other hand, did go far — all the way to
the Supreme Court. I once paid an SEC attorney $300 an
hour to help me understand what happened next. Accord-
ing to him, the learned arguments went something like
this:
CHRIS: "You can't do this to me — I'm operating
under the First Amendment here."
SEC: "Are not."
CHRIS: "Am too!"
SEC: "Are not!"
SUPREME COURT: "IS TOO!"
Clayton Makepeace
 198

SEC: "Damn!"
And so, ever since the famous "Lowe Decision," mar-
keters of investment and financial information products
have been pretty much free to operate under the far more
liberal FTC guidelines ("Don't lie, cheat, steal or mislead")
instead of worrying about the SEC's prohibition on the use
of testimonials, track record and other crucial selling tools.
Nevertheless, the SEC or CFTC still take a run at a fi-
nancial publisher every few years, trying to expand their
jurisdiction and powers. So if you're writing for financial
publishers, it's important to pay attention. The rules could
change.
Something similar happened with the FDA not too
long ago. While allowing big drug companies to get away
with murder — literally — the agency had taken to kicking
down doors at the offices of doctors who prescribed sup-
plements.
In the case of one doctor — a Harvard-educated M.D.
named Jonathon Wright — FDA enforcers reportedly held
nurses and patients at gunpoint while they confiscated his
supply of vitamin B12, his medical files and computers, ef-
fectively putting him out of business.
http://www.sumeria.net/health/raids.html
And so in 1995, FDA regulators found themselves at
the center of Congressional Hearings on FDA abuses, held
by Congressman John Dingel (R-TX). The FDA boys got
spanked pretty good and behaved themselves for a while.
But like the SEC, the agency has not abandoned the quest
to expand its power.
Most recently for example, the FDA endorsed some-
thing called the Codex Alimentarius (Latin for "nutrition
code") established by the World Health Organization
(WHO).
Should CODEX become the law of the land in the
U.S., all the rules about marketing supplements would
change radically:

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It would be illegal to sell a vitamin, mineral, herb,

or other nutritional product to help consumers avoid
future health problems ...
It would be a crime to sell supplements that exceed
potency (dosage) levels set by WHO ...
It would be against the law to market any new die-
tary supplement before it has passed through the
CODEX approval process.
So again — keep your ear to the ground: The rules
for marketing supplement products are constantly
changing — and when they do, you do NOT want to
be the last one to know!
4. Why experiment on animals when there are so
many LAWYERS?! While following the 3 Golden Rules ...
getting a grasp on pertinent regulations ... insisting on a
legal review of sales copy ... and staying on top of any
changes ... are crucial, you're still not home free.
Problem is, according to the American Bar Associa-
tion, there are now more than ONE MILLION lawyers in the
U.S. alone — about one for every 218 adults in America
(http://www.lawlead.org/statestatistics.htm).
It only feels like most of them are in Congress or
working for regulatory agencies. In fact, far more work in
the private sector — and of these, hundreds of thousands
are just praying you'll screw up.
According to the American Tort Reform Association,
lawyers wrangle about one-quarter of a trillion dollars out
of the legal system every single year. And according to the
U.S. House of Representatives, lawyers — not their clients
— get 33% of that.
That's ... let's see ... carry the "1" ... a whopping $81
BILLION per year: Enough to send a check for $81,180 to
each and every lawyer in the country!
The fact is, anyone can sue you at any time and for
any reason. And even if you win, the suit is going to cost
you tens of thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands of
dollars.
Clayton Makepeace
 200

Business owners can buy insurance for this kind of thing

— and most probably should. If you're a copywriter or a
marketing consultant, consider adding the following to
your contracts:
A. A clause that says your client takes full responsi-
bility for determining the accuracy, legality and regulatory
compliance of all statements in the copy before it is
used ...
B. A "Hold Harmless" clause that says if your client is
sued for any reason, he can't turn around and sue YOU,
and ...
C. An "Indemnification" clause that says if YOU are
named as a party in any regulatory or legal action against
your client, he will reimburse you for any legal fees or
awards assessed against you.
Pretty scary stuff ...
but absolutely CRUCIAL to your success!
As you can see, it's one thing to make big money as
a business owner, marketing exec or copywriter. HOLDING
ON to the money you make is another matter entirely!
So follow the 3 Golden Rules ... follow your regula-
tory guidelines ... get a lawyer's help when appropriate ...
and CYA with contract provisions that protect you when
the worst happens ... and you have a good shot at both
getting rich and staying that way.
P.S. This is Clayton's lawyer speaking! It's im-
portant that you know that Mr. Makepeace is NOT an attor-
ney — just a smart-assed marketing guy who's heard too
many lawyer jokes — like:
Q: "What's the difference between seeing a dead
skunk in the middle of the road and a dead lawyer?"
A: "There are skid marks in front of the skunk."
And ...
Q: "Why don't sharks eat lawyers?"
A: "Professional courtesy."

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Since Mr. Makepeace is a legal ignoramus, it is essential

that you DISREGARD anything in the above article that
smacks of legal advice — except of course, that you should
hire a lawyer — preferably ME — right away.
P.P.S. Wait! This is Clayton speaking — and I've
got some better ones!
Q: What's the difference between God and an attor-
ney?
A: God doesn't think he's an attorney.
Q: You're stranded on a desert island with Adolf Hit-
ler, Attila the Hun, and a lawyer — you have a gun
with only two bullets, what do you do?
A: Shoot the lawyer twice.
Q: What do lawyers use for birth control?
A: Their personalities.
Q: What do you have when a lawyer is buried up to
his neck in sand?
A: Not enough sand.
Q: What's wrong with lawyer jokes?
A: Lawyers don't think they're funny, and nobody
else thinks they're jokes!

Clayton Makepeace
202

Double Your Profits

 203

-- Chapter Seventeen --

Answers to My Reader’s
Most Pressing Questions
About Getting Bigger
Winners, More Often
How to become a better marketer …
Writing ads for the Internet vs. direct mail …
What to do when you have no testimonials …
5 ways to get your envelopes opened and read …
… and More

I had a plan … We’d kind of schlep quietly onto the

Internet. Publish my free weekly e-zine, THE TOTAL PACK-
AGE for five, maybe six weeks before we invited anyone to
sign up.
Kind of work out the technical kinks with only a few
close and very forgiving friends watching.
The first issue of THE TOTAL PACKAGE went out with
absolutely no promotion whatsoever. I just sent the link to
about 30 friends in my personal address book.
The same day, an e-mail poured in, from Hans -- a
nice guy I’d never met -- asking me to do an issue on how
copywriters can make more money.
Then another e-mail arrived from a nice guy named
Bob, wanting to know how to get his sales letters opened
and read.
At 6:15 PM, Cathy wrote to ask how a new copywriter
can find gigs. At 6:26, Kathy with a “K” fired off an e-mail

Clayton Makepeace
 204

saying “thanks” for the e-letter. Then, a blizzard of e-mails

began arriving from people I’ve never met and who defi-
nitely are NOT in my personal address book.
So, I call Cousin IT (our IT guy), and ask, “How many
subscribers do we have?”
“More than a thousand,” says IT. “In 17 countries.”
“Holey Moley – and I didn’t have time to clean up the
place!”
The e-mails poured in from all over the world…
Answers to my reader’s most-asked questions
I make it my policy to answer each e-mail we re-
ceived, and still receive, personally. So the folks below al-
ready have my answers. I’m hoping they can help you too.

*****
Q: “How do I immerse myself in the science of direct
response? Where do I find courses? What books would you
recommend? How do I find out about seminars?”

--S.S.
A: Congrats -- expanding your skills is the
quickest way to multiply your income!
I'd suggest you jump on Amazon.com and
buy ...
1. Successful Direct Marketing Methods by Bob
Stone
2. Complete Idiot's Guide to Direct Marketing by
Bob Bly
I'd also suggest that you Google Jay Abraham,
Marlon Sanders and Dan Kennedy. They all have
great books and courses on direct marketing tech-
niques.

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-- CLAYTON
*****
Q: “I'm enjoying the hell out of your e-mails... keep-
em coming buddy!”
“I'd love to know how you transition smoothly into
the close.
“As a salesman I enjoyed a high closing rate (I as-
sumed the close) and the presentation was so heavy with
benefits that the customer would just come right out and
say: “So how do we get started?” Or, “Do I write you a
check now or at delivery?”
“Sometimes they'd even say, “You've got to go see
my brother or sister” -- or whoever. Hell -- one time, a
customer not only gave me 27 referrals ... she even made
all the appointments for me!”
“I'd love to know how to transfer that into my copy.”
-- P.B.

A: Sure, I can write about that -- it's easy in my

business.
I just spend the first half of the package selling
a great free gift, then say something like, "How to
Get Your FREE Copy of XXX".
Then, I tell 'em it's free for anyone who accepts
a risk-free trial of the newsletter, or buys the book.
Then, I sell the heck out of the main product, justify
my price, relieve their risk and ask for the order.
Or, if I lead with the product instead of the pre-
mium, I just insert a price justification section.
They've seen all my benefits and are thinking,
"Wow! This is great! I bet it costs a fortune!" So I
make the value of my product the superstar.
"Normally, you'd expect to pay a gazillion bucks for
something this cool. But I don't want you to pay that
much. So for a limited time ..." yadayadayada.

Clayton Makepeace
 206

-- CLAYTON
*****
Q: “Do you feel that the same headline works as well
in direct mail and on the Internet?”
--S.M.

A: People are driven by the same fears and de-

sires when standing at their mailboxes as when sift-
ing through their e-mail or browsing the web.
However, the media are very different.
The negligible cost of posting an ad on the
Internet or blasting an e-mail promotion has at-
tracted a lot of unsavory characters to the web.
Some make all kinds of ridiculous and irresponsible
claims. Others are nothing more than rip-off artists.
As a result, I believe that prospects are far
more skeptical of promises made in on-line sales
copy than they are of benefits promised in direct
mail, television, radio, or print. And so, I try to ad-
dress this skepticism very aggressively when writing
for the ’net.
The Internet also gives you the opportunity to
respond instantly to current events – a huge advan-
tage when writing for the financial markets, for ex-
ample.
Say Greenspan shocks investors by raising in-
terest rates a half-point (instead of a quarter).
There’s no way I would go with a general benefit-
oriented lead in an e-mail blast when I had that kind
of fresh meat to work with!
Conversely, in direct mail, you have a much lar-
ger tableau to work with. A 24-page special report or
tabloid-sized self-mailer gives you a LOT more real
estate to present your headline and proof elements

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than you get on a web page or in the subject line of

an e-mail blast.
So in most cases, my headlines and decks for
direct mail are often quite different from what I do
on the web.
And of course, direct mail pieces tend to be
longer copy and have a longer shelf life in your pros-
pect’s home than web-based campaigns do, so re-
sponse differentials driven by the added copy, credi-
bility elements and so on can be significant.
All said, I’ll consider the results of headline
tests done on the Internet, but I never assume that
the results will be replicated in the mail – and vice-
versa. The only way to know for sure how one head-
line will work in a given medium is to test it in that
medium.
Hope this helps …
-- CLAYTON
*****
Q: “I'm a novice copywriter (living in England). I
have written some e-blasts for Apple Computers Inc. and
have compiled a spec direct mail sales letter and some cri-
tiques of other weak sales letters (but not sent them to
anyone). “
“I have two related questions for you...”
(1) When you want to get a first assignment from a
project manager/creative director, do you have to make an
appointment and see the project manager in person, or
can you conduct the transaction over the phone, in the
mail or by e-mail?
(2) What is the best way to approach a manager/
creative director the first time? By phone or with a letter
(followed up by a phone call)?
“Your newsletter is inspiring!”
-- E.B.

Clayton Makepeace
 208

A: Great to hear from you all the way from jolly

old England!
Hope these answers will help …
1. 99% of the time, everything you need to do
can be handled long-distance. No need to do the
face-to-face thing. E-mail, phone, mail, and Fed Ex
pretty much do it all.
Project managers don't care what you look like
-- only that you can write kick-butt copy. However at
some point in the relationship, it wouldn't hurt to
find an excuse to get eyeball to eyeball with them.
Kind of helps smooth out the work process over the
long haul.
2. I'd start with an e-mail. Project managers
spend too much time in meetings, and you're likely
to wind up as just another message in his voice mail.
I'd fire off an e-mail introducing myself, and
letting him/her know that I’m sending some sam-
ples. And I’d say that if I don't hear from him first,
you'll give him a ring in a few days.
Then, I'd make sure my samples were on his
desk the next day and cool my heels for two to three
days. If he doesn't call, I’d ring him up.
If the manager is out, I’d leave a message, then
fire off an e-mail saying I’d like to discuss my sam-
ples with him and ask when would be the best time
to call – try to set an appointment.
I hope this helps …
-- CLAYTON
*****
Q: “One of the biggest limitations facing the promo-
tion process of new products (particularly in the sales let-
ter), is a lack of testimonials. How do you overcome this?”
-- S.H.

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A: I'd get a bunch of samples of the product

and pass them out to everyone I know, everyone my
client knows and everyone his employees know.
Send them to friends around the country (so
your testimonial attributions are well-distributed
geographically). Ask them to read it, use it -- what-
ever -- for a few weeks and then tell you what they
think.
If you don't hear from them in a couple of
weeks, call and get their testimonial over the phone
(be sure to document the time of the call and date
for substantiation). Or, write the testimonial your-
self accurately reflecting their views, of course – and
ask them to sign it.
Also: Ask for photos of the folks who are kind
enough to help you, and use them along with their
testimonials in your promotion.
It takes a little time, but if you get the ball roll-
ing at the beginning of the writing process, you
should have some great testimonials well before the
drop date.
Thanks for writing!
-- CLAYTON
*****
Q: “I’m a blooming copywriter in need of some water
and fertilizer.”
“I get the meat and potatoes of writing a good sales
letter ... but what about the envelope or packaging of it?”
“What are some ways to put the “junk mail radar”
out of commission long enough to open?”
“Do I create a completely new teaser headline to in-
clude on the envelope?”
-- D.
A: If you're looking for "fertilizer" you've defi-
nitely come to the right place!

Clayton Makepeace
 210

The five most common strategies for getting en-

velopes opened are …
1. Offer something free inside.
2. Address a dominant emotion that the reader
has about the subject at hand -- a fear that you as-
suage or a desire that you fulfill.
3. Directly address your product's most power-
ful unique benefit (your U.S.P.).
4. Key on a hot topic currently in the news and
connect your lead benefit with that.
5. Make the envelope look like something the
prospect would open normally: A bill, a letter from a
friend, etc.
Since the "Attention/Conversion to Readership
Sale" is by far the most important component in
every promotion you'll ever write, I'll be writing tons
of stuff on this subject in coming issues.
So stay tuned!
-- CLAYTON
*****
I got a bunch of e-mails asking how long I think sales
copy should be.
Here are two …

Q: “Just subscribed to your Total Package material

and it looks great!”
“Could you please possibly cover something on 'long
copy versus short copy' sometime in the future?”
“As you are aware this has always been a bone of
contention in marketing circles, and it would be great to
have your thoughts on whether long/short copy is best or
whether it doesn't make any real difference.”
“Thanks.”
-- M.C., England
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 211

A: Short answer: LONG COPY!

I've never seen short copy win in a heads-up
test.
In the early 80s, I tested an 8-page letter
against a 16 pager. 16 pager won.
So I tested the 16 pager against a 24 pager. 24
pager won.
So I tested the 24 pager against a 32 pager. 32
pager won.
I tried to test a 40 pager, but it wouldn't fit in
the envelope!
Just this year, I've tested several #10 envelope
packages with 8-page sales letters against 8.5" X
11" self-mailers with 24 pages of text. The long copy
beat the short copy by 50% to 70% each time.
Now, granted -- my frame of reference is in my
own business: The marketing of books and newslet-
ters on health, finance and investment, as well as
nutritional supplements. And with an average sale
around $150-$170, my clients have plenty of margin
to work with.
The cost that goes along with longer copy plays
a big role in this debate. If your margin is smaller,
you may have no choice but to go with shorter copy.
And if your market is best reached with print ads, TV
or radio, you're also limited.
My philosophy: Write until you run out of bene-
fits. Then go back and make your copy as tight as a
drum. Then let the sales message TELL YOU how
long or short it wants to be!
So long as you're speaking to the prospect's self
interest ... so long as you're deftly stroking his domi-
nant emotions about the subject at hand ... and so
long as the copy is clear, concise, even fun to read,
he's going to stay with you.

Clayton Makepeace
 212

And of course, if he's sold before you finish, he

knows where to find the order form.
-- CLAYTON
*****
Q: “Do you normally believe in the long copy theory
that longer copy brings in more customers or the brief
copy theory?”
-- J.W.
A: I'm a long-winded, long-copy guy. I write
until I run out of benefits and reasons why my pros-
pect should buy.
Usually, for information products (books and
newsletters on finance, investment and health), that
takes me 30 to 50 pages of single-spaced 12 pt.
type. Then, for direct mail, I cut it down to fit a 24-
page special report or magalog, or if I'm lucky, a 24-
page tabloid-sized piece.
For the 'net, I've never done a promotion longer
than 12 pages -- so far. But you can bet your bottom
dollar I'll be testing longer copy soon!
When the medium forces me to "write to fit" --
print, TV and radio -- I of course, comply. This often
turns out to be more difficult for me than writing
longer copy. Choosing which benefits to keep and
which to cut is not a Sophie's choice I'm comfortable
with.
Can I imagine a situation in which short copy
would work better?
Yeah. If your product meets a need no other
product does ... if the proof is a dead cinch ... then a
few lines of text in a print ad, a 15-second spot or on
a postcard might do the trick.
In almost every project I've done, though, long
copy wins every time. Fact is, copy sells. And in my
experience, long copy sells better.
-- CLAYTON
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 213

*****
Q: “When promoting to people who don’t know you,
would you grab them by the short and curlies and "get
their attention" by using a loud in-your-face headline?”
“Or would you do a softer, warmer initial approach
introducing our company and services -- and then do a few
follow ups prior to hitting them in between the eyes with
what we are offering?”
-- A.P.
A: I can't tell you how many times I've had that
debate. Fact is, softer and warmer just doesn't cut it
with me.
Today and every day, your prospect receives
some 650 advertising impressions. To get yours
read, you need to lift it head and shoulders above
the others.
That means standing up and boldly addressing
his/her fears and desires -- and how your product/
service addresses those dominant emotions. And it
means doing this in a way that both seizes the pros-
pect's attention and then converts that attention to
readership.
Nine times out of ten, the "softer, warm initial
approach introducing our company and services"
with follow-ups is a waste of time and money.
Marketers who prefer the warm, soft approach
tend to be folks who are uncomfortable with selling
and who rarely buy anything as the result of a direct
response promotion – if ever.
Being an enthusiastic, unapologetic advocate
for your company and product is professional -- losing
money on your promotions is not.

Good luck!
-- Clayton

Clayton Makepeace
214

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About Clayton Makepeace ...

“MASTER CLOSER IN PRINT!”
“I will pay Clayton Makepeace the
highest compliment anyone can say about
a copywriter. He is a Master Closer in Print.
“And you needn’t take my word for
this. Just get a hold of one of his masterful
sales pieces and see for yourself.
“Notice how he immediately grabs the attention of his
prospects with a riveting headline they cannot ignore.
“Observe how he quickly seduces them into reading
further.
“See how well he has researched and understands his
prospects’ deepest yearnings, greatest fears, common as-
sumptions, even the very vernacular they speak, so he
seems like one of them, a kindred spirit, and not a slick
salesman reaching for their wallet.
“Then watch how he thoroughly raises and answers
every objection his prospects are likely to voice, until there
is nothing left to do but buy.
“And then stand back and see how this master deftly
closes the sale with a flourish, building a powerful sense of
urgency and presenting a risk-free offer virtually impossi-
ble to resist.
“Notice these things and then realize this: Most super
salespeople in other fields can perform their selling mas-
tery on only one prospect at a time.
“But Clayton, with his written words, can work his
closing magic simultaneously on ten thousand people a
day, or a million. That’s why he is in such demand and al-
ways will be until the day he lays down his pen.”
— GARY BENCIVENGA
Million-Dollar Copywriter
Editor, Bencivenga Bullets

Clayton Makepeace
 216

“WHEN CLAYTON TALKS,

YOU SHOULD LISTEN!”
“Clayton Makepeace is more than just a great copy-
writer. He is a world-class marketing consultant ... a gifted
business advisor ... and one of the best strategic thinkers I
have ever known.
“In 1998, Clayton came to me with an idea for a new
newsletter, then wrote several direct mail packages that
quickly sold 40,000 subscriptions.
“Next, Clayton came to my office, turned things up-
side down and created a kick-butt marketing machine that
enabled us to keep strong packages in the mail for all of
our newsletter products.
“Then, he created promotions that quadrupled the
active subscriber base to Safe Money Report over a three-
year period — and made Safe Money Report the largest
$99 newsletter in the industry, with 105,000 paid subscrib-
ers.
“Finally, Clayton helped us brainstorm new products
for sale to our subscribers and contributed multi-step cam-
paigns that generated as much as $5 million in sales in as
little as six weeks.
“Most recently, Clayton spent 17 days in my offices
creating a system for pumping e-campaigns out the door,
then wrote a web-based sales campaign for Safe Money
Report that generated a 13 times greater response than
previous efforts.
“When Clayton Makepeace talks, I listen. I’d advise
you to do the same.”
MARTIN D. WEISS, PH.D.
Chairman, The Weiss Group
Publisher, Safe Money Report

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 217

“POWERFUL”
“Clayton is famous for the selling power of his copy.
But his marketing ideas have proven to be every bit as
powerful for many of his clients.
“At several junctures in the growth of ‘The Money
Show,’ Clayton provided key strategies and copy that
helped us take our enterprise to the next level.
“His ideas for adding sponsors – and his strategies
for attracting the big names – have resulted in a BIG im-
provement in our revenues and bottom line, and have
helped make ‘The Money Show’ the world’s #1 forum for
active investors.”
– KIM GITHLER
President, “The Money Show”

“A SURE-FIRE KEY TO SUCCESS!”

“If there was ever such a thing as a born marketer,
Clayton Makepeace is it. He is, without a doubt, the most
talented direct marketer I have ever met — and I have
worked with many of the best. I can say without exaggera-
tion that I have never failed to see him triple the revenues
of any company he has ever worked for.
“Anyone who has found a way to benefit from Mr.
Makepeace’s efforts, or tap his knowledge, has discovered
a sure-fire key to success.”
— BRIEN LUNDIN
Editor and Publisher, Gold Newsletter
President, New Orleans
Investment Conference

“ELITE, A+ COPYWRITER!”
“Clayton Makepeace is one of the world’s elite copy-
writers ... there are only a few in the select group that
Boardroom classifies as the ‘A+ writers’ ... and Clayton has
been in that group for a very long time.
Clayton Makepeace
 218

“He has the distinction of writing the first magalog

that became a control for us which was one of our biggest
breakthroughs ... and it was the first in a long line of
breakthroughs and blockbuster controls that has helped
Boardroom be the leader in the markets we cover.”
— BRIAN KURTZ
Executive Vice President,
Boardroom Inc.

“AWESOME!”
“Clayton’s awesome. Most have forgotten the days
when Clayton’s copy powered Blanchard & Co from a pip-
squeak to a giant among the gold dealers. Clayton’s copy
sold hundreds of millions of dollars worth of gold at huge
mark-ups.
“More recently, I’ve seen him take on a financial
newsletter with circulation of about 25,000 and single-
handedly build it to 115,000 in a couple of years. And then
maintain circ at that level even when the market went
against the newsletter.
“His copy was so good, sometimes I would just shake
my head in wonder: It seemed unreal that anybody could
write so well.”
— DAN ROSENTHAL
Entrepreneur, Publisher,
Million-Dollar Copywriter

“BEST IN THE BUSINESS”

“Words such as ‘good’ or ‘great’ don't come close to
describing Clayton Makepeace.
“Clayton, a 34-year direct-response veteran, has
written multi-million-dollar controls for Boardroom, Phillips,
Rodale, Weiss Research, and many other top direct mar-
keting firms.

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“Bob Bly says, ‘Clayton makes more money than any-

body I know in copywriting. And he's one of the fastest
writers around.’
— WILL NEWMAN
Copywriting Coach
American Writers and Artists Institute

“THE REAL DEAL”

"There are tons of promoters teaching 'how to make
a million dollars in marketing and copywriting' online
whose only successes are selling programs on how to
make a million dollars in marketing and copywriting; they
have never sold anything else.
“Clayton, on the other hand, is the real deal, having
proven himself the master at selling dozens of products
and services through his powerful copy and marketing
strategies, from investment newsletters to vitamins.
“Let me tell you the truth: Clayton’s copy is so effec-
tive, his clients pay him more money than any other copy-
writer I know of (well over a million dollars a year). He is,
without a doubt, one of the top three copywriters (maybe
THE top copywriter) in the world."
— BOB BLY
Best-Selling Author,
The Copywriter's Handbook

TOUGH TO BEAT!
“If a client asked me to write a package and said that
I would be going up against Clayton Makepeace, I’d e-mail
them saying I’m on a canoe expedition in the upper Ama-
zon.”
— JIM RUTZ
Million-Dollar Copywriter

Clayton Makepeace
 220

90 MILLION PIECES MAILED!

“Clayton Makepeace not only created one of the most
successful promotional packages for Phillips Publishing, he
helped us launch an entire health company!
“His promotional launch package for Health & Healing
mailed 90 million pieces over three years and generated
hundreds of thousands of new subscribers. He was also our
‘go-to’ man when we needed to hit the ground running
with several other launches in the health as well as the in-
vestment companies.”
— TOM PHILLIPS
President and Chairman
Phillips International Inc.

“TOPS!”
“The best-in-the-business copywriter — with income
of well into seven figures per year – is Clayton Makepeace.
What makes him tops? Quite simply, he has sold more
product than any other copywriter alive today.”
– The Golden Thread
“CLAYTON’S TECHNIQUES EARNED ME
MILLIONS OF DOLLARS!”
“Clayton Makepeace is more than just a great copy-
writer. He’s the originator of response-boosting techniques
that are used by many of the top pros.
“I had the great fortune of apprenticing with Clayton
early in my career, and the lessons he taught me have
earned me millions of dollars.”
— PARRIS A. LAMPROPOULOS
Million-Dollar Copywriter
“CLAYTON COULD SELL ICE TO AN ESKIMO!”
“I consider Clayton Makepeace one of the modern
masters of direct marketing.

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“Every time I talk to him, it’s like gold — I learn so

much that’s helped me become a top copywriter. He’s so
good he could sell ice to an Eskimo!”
— KENT KOMAE
Million-Dollar Copywriter
“A TRUE MARKETING GENIUS!”
“When I read my copy and say ‘this sounds like
something Clayton would write’ — I know I have a winner!
“Clayton Makepeace is my copy hero. I’ve seen his
copy triple and even quadruple response. I had the privi-
lege of being his copy cub and he encouraged me to give
freelancing a shot. So when I sit by my pool or treat my
family to luxurious vacations and great gifts, I honestly say
in my heart, ‘Thanks Clayton!’”
— CARLINE ANGLADE-COLE
Million-Dollar Copywriter
“A REAL MARKETING GURU!”
“I’ve worked closely with Clayton Makepeace on doz-
ens of copywriting projects over a decade. He is, quite
simply, the hardest-working, most creative, certainly most
productive copywriter I have ever met.
“What I enjoy the most about Clayton is that he is a
natural writer, who somehow takes a child-like joy in writ-
ing clearly and with panache. After more than 30 years in
this business, Clayton will still call you up and read por-
tions of his latest promotion, excited as all get-out with the
persuasive power of ordinary words.
“No, there are very few real gurus in this business ...
people who really know what they’re doing ... but Clayton
is one of them, someone to whom any marketing profes-
sional worth his or her salt should listen.”
— ROBERT HUTCHINSON
Million-Dollar Copywriter

Clayton Makepeace
 222

“TENS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS

IN PROFITS!”
“Clayton’s direct mail packages have generated tens
of millions of dollars in sales and profits for a variety of cli-
ents.
“I’ve had the privilege of working with Clayton on a
dozen or so projects over the last three years and I’ve
been repeatedly astonished by his unique ability to gener-
ate big ideas virtually on-demand.
“And when you combine that with the clear, compel-
ling, and persuasive sales copy he writes, you’ve got a re-
cipe that generates successful sales letter after successful
sales letter.
“If you sell or market products of any kind, you owe
it to yourself and your business to listen to what Clayton
has to say. You’ll be wiser — and wealthier — for the ex-
perience.”
— BRAD PETERSEN
Six-Figure Copywriter

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Direct Marketing
Glossary
ACTION DEVICES: Copy planted throughout a direct mail
package that urges the reader to respond immediately —
typically by calling a toll-free telephone number or com-
pleting and returning the response device (order form).

ACTIVES: 1) Members or subscribers who have not yet

expired. 2) Customers who have made purchases within a
given time frame. In many companies, active customers
are defined as customers who have made a purchase in
the preceding 12 months.

ACQUISITION COST: The cost associated with generat-

ing a new customer. Example: If we spend $500 to mail
1000 pieces and get a 1% return that’s 10 customers—
our Acquisition Cost is $50 per customer.

ATTRITION: A reduction in response to a promotion or

mail list due to repeated use.

AVERAGE UNIT OF SALE: also, Average Sale (AS) Total

revenue divided by the number of orders generated by a
promotion. Also abbreviated as “AUS,” this number is of-
ten used by marketers to gauge the effectiveness of copy
in selling prospects on placing larger orders.

BACK-END: The sale of additional products after a new

customer has made his first purchase.

BANGTAIL ENVELOPE: An envelope with an extended

flap or extra flap containing the response device.

BILL ENCLOSURE: Promotional material enclosed with a

bill, an invoice or a statement.

Clayton Makepeace
 224

BINGO CARD: Reply card inserted in a publication. Used

by readers to request literature from companies whose
products and services are either advertised or mentioned
in editorial columns.

BOUNCE BACK: A flyer or other promotional material de-

signed for insertion into a package in which products are
delivered.

BRC: Business Reply Card.

BRE: Business Reply Envelope.

BREAK-EVEN: The amount of revenue a promotion must

generate in order to offset marketing costs. In some
cases, direct marketers may also include fulfillment costs
in the break-even calculation.

BURST: A graphic device often used next to photographs

of products or premiums, containing value or offer state-
ments: “A $39 Value, FREE!”

CELL(S): A portion of a promotion used for testing pur-

poses. When testing several headlines for example, each
headline is mailed to a set number of names. These
names are referred to as a cell.

CODING: A series of letters and or numbers printed on re-

sponse devices that tell the marketer which list and/or
creative test cell generated each order.

COPY: The sales message used by direct response mar-

keters to compel prospects to purchase their products and
services.

COST PER INQUIRY (C.P.I): Total cost of a lead produc-

tion promotion divided by the number of leads or inquiries
generated.

COST PER ORDER (C.P.O): Total cost of promotion di-

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vided by the number of orders generated.

COST PER THOUSAND (C.P.M): 1)Total cost of a promo-

tion divided by how many thousands of impressions were
made. A mailing costing $100,000 that mails to 200,000
prospects has a CPM of $500/M ($500 per thousand). 2)
CPM is also applied to components of total promotion cost,
such as mail list rental, printing costs, postage costs, etc.

CROSS-SELLING: Selling a promotion across the board to

other demographic lists within the house.

CUSTOMER RECORD: A computerized record of a cus-

tomer’s name, address, telephone number, credit card
numbers, buying history, etc.

DATABASE: A collection of customer records containing

vital information about each customer or prospect.

DATABASE MARKETING: Also known as House File Mar-

keting. Promotions that are sent to existing customers.

DE-DUPE: A process by which duplicate names are re-

moved from a mail list prior to mailing. De-duping is also
called a “merge-purge,” as names from all lists to be used
are merged into one large file and then the duplicates are
purged in order to cut postage costs.

DEMOGRAPHIC: The characteristics of human popula-

tions and population segments that contain key facts such
as age, education, income and sex in order to identify con-
sumer markets.

DIRECT MARKETING: Promotions that target a specific

audience based upon demographic and/or psychographic
traits.

DIRECT RESPONSE MARKETING: Promotions that solicit

an immediate, measurable response from recipients.

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DOUBLING DATE: The date at which a marketer typically

has received half of the total revenue a promotion will pro-
duce. Doubling dates are used to predict the final result of
each list and creative test cell in a mailing, thus enabling
marketers to plan subsequent promotions more quickly.

DUMMY NAME: A name inserted into a mailing list that

enables marketers to track how the list is being used.
Marketers will typically plant dummy or “seed” names on
their own customer files to ensure that list renters are us-
ing the file in accordance with list rental agreements. Mar-
keters will also plant dummy names on competitors’ files in
order to monitor how competitors are promoting to their
customers as well as the promotions sent to the file by
other list renters.

EXCHANGE: An agreement between mailers to exchange

an equal quantity of mailing list names.

EXPIRE: A customer or subscriber who is no longer active.

FULFILLMENT: The delivery of the product or service to

the customer.

GEOGRAPHIC: Selection or division of a mail list or other

advertising medium along geographic lines. Geographic
selects may be by state, county, metro area, city or zip
code.

GUARANTEE: Typically a promise to refund a customer’s

money if he or she is less than satisfied.

HOUSE FILE: A mailing list containing records of all active

customers, expired customers and inquirers.

INBOUND TELEMARKETING: The process of handling in-

coming calls from customers or prospects.

INQUIRER: A prospect who has requested more informa-

tion about a product or service.

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INSERT: Promotional piece placed in an outgoing package

or invoice.

INSTALLMENT BUYER: A person who has ordered goods

or services, but pays for them in periodic installments.

INTEGRATED MARKETING: A combination of two or

more forms of marketing used to sell a product or service
(e.g. a direct mail campaign combined with a series of
television commercials).

KEY CODE (KEY): Group of letters and/or numbers, col-

ors, or other markings, used to measure the specific effec-
tiveness of media, lists, advertisements, offers, etc.

LETTERSHOP/MAILHOUSE: Company which performs

the mechanical details involved with mailing including ad-
dressing, imprinting, collating, inserting materials into en-
velopes, etc.

LIFETIME VALUE: The total revenue a customer will gen-

erate for a company. May be expressed as total gross
revenue or total net revenue.

LIFT LETTER: Usually a smaller note or letter inserted

along with the main sales letter as a way of emphasizing a
particular sales point.

LIST SELECTS: Processes of segregating smaller groups

within a list. Typical list selects might be by sex, geo-
graphic selects, or other selects based upon the amount
customers have spent, largest purchase, etc.

MAIL DATE: The date a mailing is delivered to the post of-

fice for processing.

MAIL ORDER BUYER: Someone who orders and pays for

a product through the mail.

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 228

MAIL PREFERENCE SCHEME (MPS): A service where

consumers can request to have their names taken off or
added to lists.

MARGIN: The gross profit on sales derived by subtracting

the cost of goods sold from gross revenue.

MATTE FINISH: Dull paper finish without gloss.

MERGE-PURGE: See “De-Dupe.”

NEGATIVE OPTION: A buying plan in which a club mem-

ber or customer agrees to accept and pay for products or
services announced in advance at regular intervals. The
customers can stop the company shipping the products
only if they notify them, within a reasonable time after an-
nouncement, not to ship the merchandise.

NESTING: Placing one enclosure within another before in-

serting them into a mailing envelope.

NET NAME ARRANGEMENT: An agreement where the list

owner agrees to accept adjusted payment for less than the
total names shipped to the list user. (e.g. pay for total
names mailed after duplicates are eliminated).

NEW CUSTOMER ACQUISITION: Promotions designed

to attract new customers.

NIXIE: Undeliverable names on a mailing list.

NTH NAME: Method of selecting names from a larger file

to create a smaller but geographically similar file. If a
large file has 100,000 names and a mailer wants to test
only 20,000 of them, the list would be sorted by zip code
and every fifth name would be selected for testing.

OFFER: All of the factors included in the proposition being

made to a prospect or customer — including price, quan-
tity, length of subscription or membership, discounts, free

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gifts, guarantees, etc.

OUTBOUND TELEMARKETING: Calls that are placed by a

marketer, as opposed to inbound telemarketing where the
customer calls in first.

PACKAGE: A direct mail promotion piece. Can refer to an

envelope containing several components or a self-mailer.

PACKAGE INSERT: Any promotional piece included in a

mailed offer. It may be for different products from the
same company, or for products and services from other
companies.

PACKAGE TEST: A test of one or more elements of a

promotion piece against another.

PERSONALIZATION: The use of the prospect’s name, ad-

dress or other information in the text of a promotion.

PIGGY-BACK: An offer that hitches a free ride with an-

other offer.

POLY-BAG/POLY-WRAP/PLASTIC WRAP: See through

plastic bag used instead of an envelope for mailing.

POP-UP: A web page that pops up on top of the page a

prospect is viewing.

POP-UNDER: A web page that appears beneath the page

a prospect is viewing and become visible when that page is
closed.

POSITIVE ACCEPTANCE STATEMENT: A recitation of

the product’s most compelling benefits, often used at the
beginning of response device copy.

PREMIUM: A free item offered to a potential buyer.

PROSPECT: A potential buyer for a product or service who

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has yet to make a purchase.

PSYCHOGRAPHICS: While demographics describe objec-

tive facts about customers such as age, educational level,
marital status, etc., psychographics describe preferences,
interests, hobbies, and buying patterns.

PURGE: The process of removing duplicates and other un-

wanted names and addresses from a list or lists.

RECENCY: The latest recorded information about a com-

pany or customer on a customer list, in relation to pur-
chasing or other recorded activity.

RENEWAL: A subscription that has been renewed prior to

it expiring or within six months after that date.

RESPONSE RATE: Number of responses received as a

percentage of the total number of advertising impressions
or pieces mailed.

RETURN ON INVESTMENT (ROI): Total net profit of a

promotion divided by the cost of the promotion. An ROI of
100% indicates that the mailer broke even.

RFA: Acronym for Recency, Frequency and Amount. RFA

codes are used to select small groups of buyers on a larger
file. A marketer may choose, for example to mail only to
customers who have bought within the last 90 days
(Recency), have bought three times in the last year
(Frequency) and who have spent a certain amount of
money with the company or on each sale (Amount).

ROLLOUT: After testing a campaign, to continue it. Roll-

outs are typically larger than the test mailing and include
promotion to larger list segments or entire list universes.

ROYALTIES: A fee generally paid to give incentives to

copywriters, based on number of direct mail packages
mailed. Typical royalties vary between $10/M and $50/M.

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SEED: A name inserted deliberately into a list to monitor

list usage. See also “dummy”

SELF-MAILER: Any promotion that is mailed without a

carrier envelope.

SPLIT TEST: Representative samples from the same list,

used for package tests, or to test homogeneity of the list.

STATEMENT STUFFER: Printed piece inserted in an enve-

lope carrying a customer's statement of account.

STEP UP: Special premiums used to get a mail order

buyer to increase his unit of purchase.

TELEMARKETING: Using telecommunications in sales and

marketing efforts.

TEST PANEL: A term used to identify each of the parts or

samples in a split test.

TILL FORBID: An order by a customer which is to con-

tinue until the customer advises you to stop. Till forbid can
also be abbreviated to "TF”

UNIVERSE: Total number of those who might be able to

be included in a mailing list; all of whom fit a single set of
specifications.

WHITE MAIL: A response to a promotion, complaint,

comment or other mail that does not contain a key code
and therefore the test panel is not known.

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Recommended Reading
1. Successful Direct Marketing Methods
– Bob Stone

2. Reality in Advertising
– Rosser Reeves

3. Tested Advertising Methods

– John Caples

4. Ogilvy on Advertising
– David Ogilvy

5. Confessions of an Advertising Man

– David Ogilvy

6. The Copywriter’s Handbook

– Robert W. Bly

7. My Life in Advertising
and Scientific Advertising
– Claude Hopkins

Clayton Makepeace