Direct Mail Sales Letter Templates

I’m not sure how you found my blog…

…but I do know you wouldn’t be here if you weren’t either looking for information about writing stronger sales letters or information explaining how to get better results from the sales letters you are already using.

So to avoid wasting your time, below are a few critical elements to consider for creating winning sales copy. This isn’t complete. It’s just a strong foundation to work with.

Proof:

  1. Use credibility statements (x years in businesses, x served, x countries, etc)
  2. Use 3rd party credibility proof i.e. studies, testimonials, independent evidence, articles, etc. Testimonials or case studies should cite specific benefits provided by your product or service. Use full names if possible. Avoid superlatives
  3. Demonstrate performance or benefits or the problem your market is dealing with
  4. Offer an untouchable, superlative guarantee
  5. Explain your reasons i.e use ‘because’
  6. Expose common belief, action, desire, etc.
  7. Be contrarian
  8. Tell believable stories, before/after, slice-of-life, similar to your market’s beliefs
  9. Be candid

Pre-Approach:

  1. Verify you’re using the proper medium for your market before investing money
  2. Create targeted message – communicate to niche/vertical/’ideal’ client
  3. Verify if advertising expense is justified. If not, don’t advertise
  4. Verify beforehand this is a product or service people actually want
  5. Appeal to existing market, do not attempt to create a need or new market
  6. Avoid trying to create desires. Use desires they already have!
  7. Test everything: offers, headlines, layout, guarantees, pricing, etc

Format:

  1. Create non-ad layouts: advertorial/editorial layout, magalogs, etc
  2. Test AIDA formula
  3. Problem/agitate/solve format i.e. define the problem. Why has it not been solved (use emotions to paint a ‘painful’ picture). What WIIFM benefits are available that your reader doesn’t know about or has overlooked, or has been hidden from him? Paint an emotionally attractive ‘after’ picture of your reader benefiting from your solution exists? What’s the next step that should be taken to see this ‘after’ situation made a reality?
  4. Test different ad sizes and shapes to see which pulls best
  5. Use subheads to break up long messages and keep ’skimmers’ interested
  6. Positive language outsells negative language for most industries
  7. Be low key and helpful, not overtly pushy
  8. Use an us-against-them viewpoint
  9. Place border around ads
  10. Place dashes around official looking coupons
  11. Verify your contact information is present (so often forgotten)
  12. Use plain and sincere language
  13. Avoid clever or entertaining message simply for sake of being clever
  14. Seek sales, not applause
  15. Speak one-on-one, not to people as a group
  16. Talk about the prospect and to the prospect
  17. Be service oriented, altruistic
  18. Use curiosity where appropriate
  19. Use emotional not passive voice

Headlines:

  1. Test benefit-oriented headlines
  2. Test "hurt and rescue" headlines
  3. Test common ground headlines
  4. Open with what you are going to do to help get the promised benefits
  5. Test the offer directly in the headline and/or subhead
  6. Structure headlines and offers based on pre-existing needs, desires, fears, and wants
  7. Expose and relate to specific situations, feelings, problems, beliefs, fears, desires, etc they are now faced with
  8. Structure headline to match the media and the market. A common mistake is using an actual over-sized headline in direct mail to CEOs. A better approach is to structure as an actual one-to-one sales letter, with headline modified as the opening sentence. Not as a formal headline at top of page. Headline approach MUST vary according to market and medium being used.

Body Copy:

  1. Open message with a short word or phrase or a question to draw target market in. Not a questions they can mentally say "no" to. But something they agree with or don’t know the answer to.
  2. Relate to specific situations, feelings, problems, beliefs, fears, desires, etc they are now faced with
  3. Focus on overt benefits, not features
  4. Benefits/WIIFM – appeal to clients wants, needs, values, and interests
  5. Demonstrate how you will accomplish the promised benefits
  6. Paint emotional word pictures: before/after situations, negative circumstances they are now faced with, reaping benefits
  7. Demonstrate specifically how you have the solution to their problems
  8. Bullet points - innumerate if appropriate
  9. Place logos & company name at end of message, not at top (except web pages)
  10. Quantify claims, be specific not general
  11. Urgency
  12. USP - explain why your solution is the only realistic solution
  13. Complete sales message in every ad, i.e. mini-sales letter
  14. Use as much copy as needed to tell a complete story
  15. "Hook" in question & statement form [unusual, interesting, dramatic, humorous]
  16. Create celebrity, personality
  17. Keyed/traced
  18. Professionally designed, not amateurish looking
  19. Assure pictures help sell, not distract or turn off? Verify pictures outsell print in same space
  20. Be first. Preempt market.
  21. Avoid successive, multi-part ads
  22. Test different messages in different towns. Track which is most effective.
  23. Signature in blue ink on sales letters
  24. Replace unnecessary commas with ellipses or eliminate altogether. Commas cause people to stop reading.
  25. Remove excessive exclamation points. They look amateurish and turn people off.
  26. Verifiable track record
  27. Include newsworthy info
  28. Sprinkle your message with info they say ‘Gee, I didn’t know that’. Must be info that triggers a desire for your product/service.
  29. Use personable, charismatic approach i.e. identify the writer as a real live human being, refer to self
  30. Photo of communicator
  31. Reveal an Achilles’ Heal: a moment of weakness, a time when things turned out poorly, a rags-to-riches account, etc
  32. Reveal a damaging omission: a fault in your product or service, a market you’re not appropriate for, a use that is all wrong for your product or service, etc. (D.O. is not the same as an Achilles’ Heal)
  33. Direct response mechanism (800#, specific name literature offer, ext #, etc )
  34. Human-free method of getting info (fax-back, email, voice msg, etc)
  35. Lead generation marketing/magnet (report, cassette, video, fax, sample, etc)
  36. Increase frequency of communication, multi-step process
  37. use a ‘velvet cord’ to draw people closer
  38. Connect different thoughts with ‘bucket brigade’ words and phrases
  39. Resolve objections
  40. Use a false close to keep people off guard and from predicting your direction
  41. Spring message with direct calls to action and hints
  42. Close: summarize benefits, guarantees, bonuses, ask for the order
  43. Use a PS (postscript) to offer additional benefit, urgency, bonuses, incentives

Offers:

  1. Use multiple coupon offers instead of single coupons. Single coupons are not as effective
  2. Specific irresistible offer (widget)
  3. test 100% free offer
  4. test “puppy dog” free trials
  5. create custom “Widget” that no one else is offering (combine base product/service with own or complimentary ancillary product or service). Example, bicycle shop includes free tune-ups
  6. Appeal to pride by offering to customizing product with client’s name
  7. test ‘send no money’ trials or provide product with payment in arrears, like book clubs

Eliminate Objections:

  1. No time to pay attention - give a ‘reward’ for reviewing your pitch
  2. No interest in what you are selling - find a real problem to solve
  3. No belief in you/your product - credibility, common ground/affinity
  4. Viewed as commodity - offer unique promise
  5. Indecisive about acting - get commitment on lesser decision, something free

Bonuses:

  1. Offer initial segment of bonus item free. Remaining portions delivered when client buys “x”
  2. Offer “x” product or service free if client agrees to purchase “y”
  3. Offer incentives for action
  4. Change your competitor’s USP or offer into a free bonus item.

Guarantees:

  1. Prominent official looking guarantee certificate
  2. BTRF guarantee
  3. Extended guarantee

Desires:

  1. Recognition
  2. Health
  3. Comfort/relaxation
  4. Relief from pain, restrictions, limits, etc
  5. Revenge
  6. Self improvement
  7. Romance, love
  8. Power, money, success, career
  9. Personal belief systems/worship/psych
  10. Fear of loss
  11. Take away, limits

Lull Your Reader Into Submission From the Beginning:

  1. Request they refrain from disbelief while you show them your proof
  2. Test, ‘Here’s your free…’

Ok, those are some of the main elements of a long-form sales letter. The most critical are your headline, your proof, and the pre-sell approach you are using to reach your target market.

If you are struggling to create winning sales letters of your own, contact me for a free review of your marketing piece. You can reach me here on my direct marketing copywriter page.

However you got here, I hope you’re glad you found this page.

Take care.

Andre

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