Part 9

The 13-Element Marlon Sanders’ Modular Formula (CONTINUED)
Headline Examples Continued
(by Marlon Sanders)

There are several headline formulas that are classic in direct response advertising. For more information on these, refer to the book Tested Advertising Methods by John Caples. John Caples wrote several books. They are the Bible for anyone wanting to learn how to write direct response advertising copy.

How to…. Begin your headline with the words how to. For example, How to write potent online advertising copy that will practically force your customers to give you money!

That’s how I’d write a headline for entrepreneurs. If I wanted to sell the same product to larger corporations, I’d change the tone to something like this: How to write potent online advertising copy that gets you leads and orders every day.

If you’re in a pinch, use a how to headline. The formula is simple:

How to get X benefit

or

How to avoid X problem

Make certain your benefit statement is specific. For example, How to save money on your phone bill is not as powerful as How to save at least $36 a week on your phone bill just by dialing 4 extra numbers.

Are you working with your outsourced accounting services team the best way possible?  Find out here

A variation of the how to headline that also works well is the how I headline. For example, How I saved $36 on my phone bill last month. People love reading stories. This headline has the appeal of offering a specific benefit plus a story with human interest.

News + big benefit

Begin your headline with words such as announcing, introducing, new, now, at last. For example, At last, a proven way to use your camera to make money — even if you’ve never had a photography class and you take horrible Christmas pictures.

We live in a news-starved society. We have 24-hour news on the radio and TV. We have newspapers, newsletters and news magazines. When you offers news you capture attention. Then all you do is tie that news into a benefit of your product or service.

How, why, which, who else.

These words have also been proven as powerful words to begin headlines with. For example, How I make $1,000 a week in the stock market or Why men crack or Who else wants to make money writing at home? or Which of these mistakes do you make in marketing?

Write 50-100 headlines. This sounds like a lot, it goes fast once you get started.

Test your headlines with this quiz to make sure each one covers the major bases.

• Does the headline talk about your company, your products and what you want to sell or about your customers, their wants, their needs and what they want to buy?
• Does the headline create a vivid picture of an end result highly desired by your target market?
• Does the headline rely on curiosity alone? (Curiosity alone isn’t enough. Your headline should convey a clear benefit.)
• Does the headline use one or more proven words?
• Does the headline compel you to read more?

Test your headlines online. Run them as classified ads on America Online or in ezines. The ones that generate the most inquiries are the winners. You can also use banner ads to test headlines. Each banner has one headline on it. Then you can measure the click throughs and sales produced by each banner ad.

One company I used to test headlines on in the past was smartclicks.com but it seems their website is no longer functional. Another option would be http://www.advertwizard.com

You can purchase large amounts of banner impressions at a reasonable price. Then you divide those impressions among your 12 banner ads. Each banner has a different headline. You can tell which headline is best by which banner ad gets the most click throughs.

The 13-Element Marlon Sanders’ Modular Formula (CONTINUED in next blog post)

If you’re interested in learning more about Marlon Sanders and his products, visit:

https://www.salesletters.com/sales-letters/how-too-differentiate-your-product-or-service-using-an-attribute/

Part 31

How to Analyze Your Sales Letters To Find Out If They Have Sales Power
(by Marlon Sanders)

One of the easiest, fastest and simplest ways to learn marketing and find good ideas is to study the advertising of others. The following questions provide a template you can use to dissect sales letters and direct response ads in order to isolate the strong and weak points.

But most importantly, you can also use these questions to evaluate your own sales letters.

When you have finished creating your sales letter, you’ll also want to use this list as your final check sheet to make certain you haven’t omitted any important points. You want to make certain you hit all these buttons in your copy.

What is the appeal in the headline? What about the headline grabs your attention? Your headline must result a benefit or an end result the reader wants. Do NOT talk about you, who you are, what you’re selling. Talk to the customer about their problems and their wants.

News? Offer?

Big benefit? Story?

How to?

How does the letter hook the reader in and gain interest? What is the concept behind the first paragraph? Does it begin with a story? Does it ask a question? Does it bring up a problem the prospect wants to solve? The opening of your letter must grab readers and pull them into the copy.

What are the features and benefits? Label each on the ad or letter. Each feature must have an accompanying benefit.

What word pictures and images are created by the copy? Does the copy make you feel an emotion? If so, how is this emotion created? People buy based on emotion and feeling. Your copy needs to appeal to BOTH logic and emotion. Here are common emotions to look for and use.

Pride? Fear? Exclusivity? Guilt? Greed? Love? Romance? Other?

Are stories used? If so, how? Are quotations used? People love stories. A lot of successful sales letters are built around a story.

What is the thrust or idea behind the letter? Bargain?

Sale?

Special offer?

Building value? Reason to act now? Other?

Look again at the features and benefits. Do you believe you will acquire the benefits presented if you purchase the product or service? Why or why not? A sales letter must be believable.

Do you find the benefits compelling enough to spend your money for the product? Why or why not? Watch for letters that describe benefits in such a way that you HAVE to have them and feel you can’t live without them! You want your sales letters to make the benefits come alive for the reader. Good sales letters often paint a mental picture of the reader enjoying and benefiting from the product or service.

If a price reduction is offered, is a reason given? If so, is the reason believable? Do NOT just reduce your price. Give a reason for your reduced price. If you sell your product or service at a lower price than the competition, explain how and why you can do this. Otherwise, the prospect will assume you’re selling inferior quality.

Does the letter build credibility and trust? If so, how is this established? When you market online, you must build credibility.

Does the letter use testimonials? If so, do they focus on specific results or vague platitudes? Strong testimonials paint a picture of the end result – the problems solved by the product or the benefits gained.

If the letter uses bullets, do they arouse your curiosity? Do they summarize the results you get or the problems you solve by purchasing the product? Do you find them intriguing and compelling or boring and bland? In the case of information products, do they stimulate your curiosity to the point you feel you MUST know the information?

Does the copy offer a reward for taking action now? Your sales letters must give people strong reasons to act today. This is commonly done by offering free bonuses or a price discount for ordering before a deadline.

Does the letter or ad offer any other reason to take immediate action? Another common action-inducer is a limited supply or quantity or limited availability.

Analyze the logic of the letter. Does it flow and make sense? Put a bracket around the main logic themes or ideas of the letter.

Is the product or service offered supported by a money back guarantee? Do you feel the company will keep the result or weasel out through loopholes? Why or why not?

Strong sales letters usually have a very compelling and believable guarantee. Prospects should feel like your company is taking all the risk not them. They need to feel like they risk nothing by ordering and stand to lose a lot if they don’t.

Do you feel the company is offering you more than your money’s worth, less than your money’s worth or an even exchange? Successful sales letters often sell dollars of perceived value for dimes.

Does the copy have a formal or informal tone to it? Is the letter or ad closer to a boring business presentation or a stimulating fireside chat?

Other thoughts to consider

If your letter passes the above questions, then the problem is either your list or the match of your product to your list.

The single biggest element in the success or failure of any offer is the list it’s presented to. If your offer isn’t working, TRY A NEW LIST! Or develop a new source of prospects. Advertise in different places than you have been.

The other element to examine is the product you’re offering to your list. Send a survey with 12 possible products to your list. Let the members of the list tell you which product they most want to buy and at what price.

If you’re interested in learning more about Marlon Sanders and his products, visit:

https://www.salesletters.com/sales-letters/how-too-differentiate-your-product-or-service-using-an-attribute/

Part 11

The 13-Element Marlon Sanders’ Modular Formula (CONTINUED)
Headline Examples Continued
(by Marlon Sanders)

Here’s an extra $100 Grace — I’m making real money now! (A famous ad written when $100 was a lot of money)

How I raised myself from failure to success in selling

How to win friends and influence people

How to make money writing short paragraphs

Create your own web page in 60 minutes — or your money back

Why almost everybody is wrong about xxxx

Ohio entrepreneur reveals how to obtain appointments with executives — without making cold calls or risking rejection.

How (and why) collecting rare coins can be the most profitable spare time hobby you’ll ever have.

The most powerful case I can make for putting your products and services on the Web — Now.

Why should any man pay $375 for a suit?

Are men’s expensive suits now too expensive? Here’s what we’re doing to reduce costs in the upper price brackets

How (and why) collecting baseball cards can be the most profitable sports-based hobby you try out.

A better-than-risk-free invitation to join the premier baseball card collecting society in America — and receive a $118 free bonus just for agreeing to preview our selections of rookies, and superstar player cards.

(Note: This is a headline by Jay Abraham. In the resources appendix, you’ll find information about subscribing to his highly recommend Business Breakthroughs newsletter)

What everybody ought to know . . . About This Stock And Bond Business Some plain talk about a simple business that often sounds complicated (Reference: 100 Greatest Advertisements by Julian Watkins)

Special Offer For xxxx Preferred Customers

How You Can Attend The Already Sold Out xxxx Seminar At a Bargain-Basement Price — And Send Your Kids To A Fabulous Youth Boot Camp Free!

Discover How to Build A Million Dollar Dental Practice, Collect All Your Money And Keep 50% More!

Plus you benefit from 32 hours of continuing education credit, a $250.00 gift certificate, 3 books (including 17 Steps To Your Million Dollar Practice, 25 exhibitors, and entertainment by The Smothers Brothers and the immortal rock and roll band — The Kingsmen!

Note: The following headlines are from the book The Greatest Direct Mail Sales Letters Of All Time. by Richard S. Hodgson published by The Dartnell Corporation (312) 561-4000.

This volume is definitely worth investing in because it contains brilliant examples of how to write direct mail that works.

Yours for only $2 — The Best in Reading Pleasure for the Next Twelve Months

Now you can have your own personal computer

Introducing: The HP-65 — the first and only fully-programmable pocket calculator that you can use to solve extremely complex, lengthy or repetitive problems in seconds — anywhere…anytime!

Do your Panty Hose make you feel pretty? Do they fit perfectly and wear and wear?

Can you spot the five mistakes here that make you work more and enjoy your garden less?

How many of these common gardening mistakes are causing you to work harder than you really have to?

There are 9 reasons why you should mail the enclosed card to find out how you can replace your present telex equipment and enjoy greater speed, efficiency…and quiet! …and it won’t cost you one penny more than you are now paying!

How long has it been since you took a good, hard look at the tools your salesmen are using?

If you’re interested in learning more about Marlon Sanders and his products, visit:

https://www.salesletters.com/sales-letters/how-too-differentiate-your-product-or-service-using-an-attribute/

Part 32

Choice Resources
Marlon’s Choice Marketing Resources To Help You Write Advertising Copy And Build Your Business
(by Marlon Sanders)

If you’d like to learn more about direct response marketing, the following resources will help you. We have provided comments and reviews on each resource to help you select the ones that will benefit you the most.

While most of the books will not be on the shelves of your local bookstore, you can place a special order for them. Alternatively, you can go to Amazon.com on the web and order most of them there.
For newsletters and specialized marketing courses, we have given you phone numbers you can call to order the products.

Jump Start Your Brain

Doug Hall

Marketing is an idea business. This book shows you exactly how to tap into the part of your brain that ideas come from. Outstanding book!

The Greatest Direct Mail Sales Letters of All Time

Richard S. Hodgson

A treasure chest of the best sales letters ever written. Great for triggering ideas and showing you how to write compelling copy. A very wealthy person once said, do not create mediocrity when you can emulate genius. This book lets you study and analyze the best sales letters ever created.

Tested Advertising Methods

John Caples

Do you want to write a powerful sales letter for your web site that will bring in lots of orders? Then learn the secrets of direct response marketing from the greatest teacher ever! Best of all, once you learn how to write sales letters, you can get paid good money to write for clients.

This book and the other two which follow are essential (and inexpensive) reference books on direct response advertising. Here are several of my favorite chapters from Tested Advertising Methods…

Chapter. 2: The most important part of an advertisement

Gives you an in-depth understanding of how and why headlines are the most important part of ads.

Chapter 5: Twenty-nine formulas for writing headlines

Put selling power in your headlines with these formulas.

Chapter 9: How to write the first paragraph

You must grab the attention of your readers in your first paragraph. This chapter teaches step-by-step how to do it.

Chapter 13: Thirty-two ways to get more inquiries from your advertising

If you’re using your ads to generate leads, this chapter will help you boost your results.

How to Make Your Advertising Make Money

John Caples

Favorite chapters include…

Chapter 2: Twelve ways to find advertising ideas

Contains several brilliant ways to create advertising ideas.

Chapter 5: 303 words and phrases that sell

Punch up your copy with these powerful techniques.

Chapter 8: How to write headlines that make money

Contains 106 headlines that made money.

Chapter 9: How to use stories to sell products and services

People love stories. This chapter shows how to incorporate them into your ad copy.

Making Ads Pay.

John Caples

Favorite chapters…

Chapter 2: How I wrote my first advertisement

Fascinating story of how Caples wrote his first ad.

Chapter 13: Ten ways to make ads believable

Shows you how to dissolve skepticism.

Chapter 14: Six ways to prove it’s a bargain

Everyone likes bargains. This chapter shows how to sell the bargain aspect to your potential customers.

The Art of Readable Writing

Rudolf Flesch

Written by the man Time called the Mr. Fix-It of writing. Teaches you how to write the way you talk. If you have WRITING PHOBIA, read the books by Rudolf Flesch. He has written a number of them.

The Robert Collier Letter Book

Robert Collier

One of the all time great books on direct response marketing. It’s hard-to-locate but worth the effort. Gives you verbatim letters that sold millions and explains the psychology behind each. You’ll get a fast education in the art of selling through words. Try Amazon.com.

My Life in Advertising & Scientific Advertising

Claude Hopkins

Intriguing book by one of the founding fathers of direct response advertising. You’ll learn how to use specifics to make your point, how to explain the reason why, and why people buy results. It’s a fast read and only 10 bucks, so buy it!

Break-through Advertising

Eugene M. Schwartz

If you’re serious about learning to write sales letters and great advertising, then you need this book. It’s another hard-to-find but essential reference book. Gives you information you won’t find elsewhere.

Cash Copy

Dr. Jeffrey Lant

Helps you understand the basics of writing copy that gets results. Here are some favorite chapters:

Chapter 5: Transforming product and service features into benefits that get your prospects to buy. If you’re new at copywriting, you’ll appreciate the crystal clear way Lant explains the difference between features and benefits.

Chapter 7: Creating offers your prospects find irresistible — and get them to act NOW! Teaches you how to get your prospects to take action today.

How to Write A Good Advertisement

Victor O. Schwab

Shows you exactly how to write a profitable direct response ad or sales letter. Pay special attention to chapter 1 where Schwab presents 100 great headlines and why they were to profitable. Sells for 15 bucks but worth much more.

How to Get Rich In Mail Order

Melvin Powers

Mail-order millionaire Melvin Powers reveals his money making secrets. Discover how to create your own successful ads and ideas. Stimulating and thought provoking. I especially like chapter 7 How I created a best-seller using the copycat technique and chapter 10 Five of my most successful direct mail pieces that sold and are selling millions of dollars’ worth of books.

What’s In It For Me?

Robin Woods

If you’re struggling with the creating a Unique Selling Proposition for your product, this is the third book you should read…after Positioning and Marketing Warfare by Trout and Ries. This book may no longer be in print. See if you can obtain it through an inter-library loan.

Million Dollar Mailings

Dennis Hatch

Reprints the most powerful direct mail pieces from the last decade. Read, study and learn!

The 100 Greatest Advertisements — Who Wrote Them And What They Did

Julian Watkins

Good resource on the history of advertising in general. Corey Rudl’s Marketing Secrets Hot Tips List

Free ezine: Sign up at http://www.marketingtips.com

Shows you how to use a wide variety of marketing concepts to make more sales and profits in your business. Teaches you to juice up your profits using direct response marketing techniques. Essential resource.

The Online Marketing Letter

Jonathan Mizel (cyberwave.com)

Number one newsletter about how to make money online. Must buy. Books from http://www.activemarketplace.com Very insightful and helpful.

If you’re interested in learning more about Marlon Sanders and his products, visit:

https://www.salesletters.com/sales-letters/how-too-differentiate-your-product-or-service-using-an-attribute/

Part 25

How to Assemble The Elements Of The Formula In Different Sequences:
(by Marlon Sanders)

One of the differences in the formula I just presented and the one in the Web Site Order Taking Machine is that it uses the modular approach. You can take the steps or modules and combine them in different sequences.

Let me present to you the basic psychology involved.

At a core, gut level you can look at your marketing letter this way:

• Headline: Make a specific promise
• Hook: Elaborate on the promise using bullets
• Add steam: Stack benefit on top of benefit
• Proof: Prove you can provide the benefits
• Action: Give reasons to act today Here’s a little different approach:

Here’s a little different approach:

• Headline: Make a specific promise of an end result
• Hook: Open with bullet benefits
• Add steam: List more bullet benefits
• USP: Give your unique selling proposition
• Credibility: Give your personal credibility plus endorsements
• Testimonials: List some in the letter and provide a link to more
• Price: Give your price and summarize what buyer gets
• Don’t decide now: Tell’em to take little scruffy home for the weekend.
• Guarantee: If this is a front-end offer, make it very strong
• Bonuses: Bonus up the offer for acting before a deadline
• Snapper: Give price discount for acting before deadline
• Fast delivery: Offer fast digital delivery or express shipping
• Instructions: Tell how to order
  Notice I included fast delivery as a step. I did a survey on my website and found that many people online are scared of getting ripped off and never receiving a product. By offering one or two-day shipping, you alleviate this fear.
  You can use extra bonuses as a reason for ordering now or a price discount. Or, you can use both. I often use both.

Here’s another approach
Headline: Biggest hook you can think of

• Stacked head: List bullet benefits under the headline before the
• salutation (dear friend)
• Opening: Elaborate on headline then go into bullet points
• Testimonials: Present a few humdingers upfront
• Perceived value: Stack value on top of value
• USP: Tell why they should buy from you only
• Proof: Prove the claims you’ve made with one or more of the 4 forms of evidence
• Testimonials: Stack on more testimonials
• Price: Present your price. Use bargain appeal
• Guarantee: Give your guarantee
• Reason why: Tell why you’re offering such a strong guarantee. The reason is you’re so confident in the product. Remember, this is one of our forms of proof.
• Ever heard of online bookkeeping and how much it can save your business?
• Bonus up: Present multiple bonuses for acting before deadline
• Rationale: Tell why you’re offering such a great bargain. I usually say it’s
• because I know if they don’t order now, they never will.
• You can’t lose: Explain why they can’t lose. At worst, they get the free bonuses AND they get their money back.
• Scarcity: Explain why you have a limited supply of the product or you’re only selling so many at this price. Or you have a limited supply of the bonuses. Scarcity motivates people.
• Immediate Delivery: Alleviate fears of not getting product.
• Order info: Be specific. Step A. Step B. Step C. Be sure to offer secured ordering. This is a must.
  Notice how I put some testimonials at the beginning. If your target market is skeptical in nature, try this.
  What I’m showing you here is you can sequence together the different elements in the order you want. You can weave together different elements and make your letter your own unique psychological work of art. You can mix and match elements and see what works for you. I don’t include all elements or modules all the time. I include what feels right to me. It’s based on my feel for my target market and on how the marketing letter flows.
  In the big picture, the psychology is very simple. The modules are TOOLS that allow you to accomplish these big objectives. And what are those objectives?
• You have to hook the reader with your headline and opening
• You have to stack value on top of value on top of value
• You have to give a reason to buy from you vs. anybody else
• You have to create credibility
• You have to give you price
• You have to give compelling reasons to order today
• You have to present your ordering instructions
  The other elements I give you are tools for accomplishing these things. Scarcity and multiple bonuses are ways to create value and get people to order today. Offering immediate delivery is a way to get the order today by alleviating a big fear. Using bullets is a way to stack value and draw readers into a letter.
  In presenting the elements of this formula, I’m assuming you abide by laws. In the U.S. the Federal Trade Commission has laws about what you can and can’t say in many areas, not the least of which is in using scarcity. My understanding is that if you present a discounted price, you can sell it for that all the time. The law is even more specific than that.
  You can study that stuff for yourself. In the U.S. the FTC has laws about using testimonials and other things. You can read these at the FTC website: . Plus, you may have state laws too. If you live outside the U.S., chances are you have laws that govern what you can and can’t say and do in advertising. You should take a look at those too.

The most important things if you live in the U.S. (or sell to customers in the U.S.) are that you:

• Deliver your merchandise within 30 days.
• Make only claims you can prove
• Make claims that are indicative of what your average user accomplishes
• If your testimonials are not indicative of what the average user experiences, you need to spell this out.
• Be very wary of making specific income claims. Just because you have made a certain amount of money in an MLM (or whatever) doesn’t mean you can use the headline “Make 20 million in MLM.” The law basically says your income claims have to be indicative of the average user.
• If you make income claims, you fall under the state business opportunity laws, many of which are quite strict in the U.S.
  Now, I’m not an attorney and you need to seek your own legal advice. I’m giving you the guidelines as I understand them. In the big picture, avoid making deceptive and misleading claims. Use your common sense and you’ll likely be OK.
• “Key Points to Remember” Continued in following post….

If you’re interested in learning more about Marlon Sanders and his products, visit:
https://www.salesletters.com/sales-letters/how-too-differentiate-your-product-or-service-using-an-attribute/

Part 23

Part 20

Here are other points to help you build credibility

Give reasons why for price reductions or special offers. “Clearance sale” and “blowout sale” have no credibility. If you have a price reduction, explain why you’re able to sell the merchandise for less money.

Use specifics. People believe specifics. Say, for example, that you increased your profits 33.7% in 9 months as soon as you started selling xyz widget. That is far more powerful than saying, “Make more profits by selling xyz widgets.”

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Instead of saying, Save money by making your own wine at home, say, You can get all the $50 bottles of win you want for $9.53 each. Instead of a real estate agent saying, I can help you sell your home faster, he/she could say, My average listing sells 3 months faster than the average property in the Multiple Listing Service.

Avoid statements that stretch believability, even if they’re true. Show popularity and approval by experts. This is called social proof. People tend to believe premises accepted by a large number of others.

Give a phone number with a “live” answer. If you can’t have a live answer all the time, a professionally produced answering machine or voice mail message will boost credibility. A poor quality answering machine message can hurt your business.

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Step Six: Present Your Price and Make It A Bargain

Now that the bullets have psychologically conditioned your prospects –you’re ready to give your price. But you want to soften the blow. You do that by comparing your price and showing that it’s a bargain.

You can compare your price to what you used to sell your product for, what you plan to sell it for or what your competition sells it for. For example, if you’re offering a discount off what you normally sell the product for, that is a bargain. Be careful, there are laws that say you really do have to sell the product at the higher price to make this claim. Check out the FTC website for more details. I believe the URL is simple www.ftc.gov.

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I saw one marketer who used interesting wording. She said, This product has been offered for $X. Notice she didn’t say the product had sold at that price. She said the product had been offered at that price. I’m not sure if that wording has any legal implications. But it seems to me that if you indeed offered the product for sale at that price, whether or not you sold any doesn’t make a difference. You can still state that you offered the product for sale at that price.

Alternatively, you can point out how similar products sold by competitors go for a much higher price. And yours has even more (or better) features. Again, when you get into competitive advertising, the FTC has rules about that area. You can read what they have to say at: http://www.ftc.gov

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You can create a bargain appeal by showing the prospective customer how your price is only a fraction of the cost of NOT owning the product. You can remind him or her how much time, money, inconvenience, pain, hassle or trouble your product will save.

Even luxury purchases can be sold on a bargain appeal. For example, a friend may justify the purchase of a Mercedes (or other luxury car) to you by explaining how that it’s really a bargain when you take into account the resale value. If a car retains a great deal of its resale value, it can look like a bargain compared to a cheaper car that loses its value quickly.

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A luxury car purchase could further be justified by talking about the greater reliability, reduced time off the job due to breakdowns, better gas mileage and lower maintenance costs. These factors may or may not in reality justify the purchase of the car. But they certainly provide a logical justification for an emotional purchase, which is what you want to do.

When you watch infomercials on TV or talk to salespeople, listen to how they make their price seem like a giant bargain. And pay special attention when you “buy into” the reasoning. That’s when you’ve found an effective approach you can borrow.

Step Seven: Remove The Risk With A Guarantee Continued in the next blog post….

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If you’re interested in learning more about Marlon Sanders and his products, visit:
https://www.salesletters.com/sales-letters/how-too-differentiate-your-product-or-service-using-an-attribute/