The Golden Thread – The Week in Review
February 10–16, 2008

Welcome to The Golden Thread Online, your free e-letter from American Writers & Artists Inc. Every Saturday, you will receive this recap of all the strategies, insights and opportunities we send to you and your fellow AWAIers each week. Whether it’s a message from a fellow writer about how he landed a new client … a technique from a Master copywriter for writing a control … an insight into how to succeed in a new market … news of a brand new writing job or business opportunity for you … you’ll find it here in this easy-to-access and always available “Week in Review.”

In This Issue:

• Words of Copywriting Wisdom: “The Best Ads”
  David Ogilvy shares his theory about the best ads.
• Who is Elmer Wheeler … and how can he boost your response rate?
  AWAI staff writer John Wood highlights Elmer Wheeler, one of the pioneers of persuasive writing. Using Wheeler’s tested selling techniques can boost response and transform your copywriting career.
• ATTN: Romance Writers … Here’s a Great Connection For You
  A publishing connection for romance writers.
• How to Get Hired by One of the Country’s Top Financial Publishers
  Mike Palmer, who heads up the writing team at Stansberry & Associates, Agora’s largest and most successful publishing franchise, reveals the qualities he looks for when hiring copywriters.
• Quick Tip: Digging Out the Deeper Benefits
  Freelance copywriter Malcolm Smith explains the importance of identifying your product’s deeper benefits that really push your prospect’s emotional hot buttons.

Words of Copywriting Wisdom: “The Best Ads” from David Ogilvy

“I have a theory that the best ads come from personal experience. Some of the good ones I have done have really come out of the real experience of my life, and somehow this has come over as true and valid and persuasive.”

Who is Elmer Wheeler … and how can he boost your response rate? by John Wood, AWAI Staff Copywriter

“Don’t sell the steak, sell the sizzle.”

That just might be the most famous piece of sales advice ever. And as a copywriter, knowing the real meaning behind those words can transform your writing – and your career.

I often wondered who came up with such a great line. Until about a week ago, I still didn’t know …

I was reading Joe Vitale’s latest book, Buying Trances. In it, he mentions Elmer Wheeler as its originator.

Who’s “Elmer Wheeler”?

Born in 1904, Mr. Wheeler was well known as one of the pioneers of persuasion.

In Buying Trances, Joe tells the story of how Texaco was looking to sell more oil to their customers. Too many people, without giving it a second thought, said “no” when a service station attendant asked “Check your oil today?”

Wheeler suggested replacing the question with “Is your oil at the proper level today, sir?”

Now asking something like “Is your oil at the proper level today, sir?” would seem to be just common sense. A line so simple you’d think most gas station owners would naturally come up with it – but few did.

Which is why Texaco paid Wheeler $5,000 for those nine words … a small fortune in the depression-riddled 1930s.

They got their money’s worth and more. In one week, Texaco attendants got under 250,000 more hoods.

Another Wheeler sales triumph came when he was asked by the president of Barbasol to help them sell more shaving cream.

The first slogan they tried was “How Would You Like to Save Six Minutes Shaving?”

Wheeler instructed their salespeople to then say “Use Barbasol. Just spread it on. Shave it off. Nothing else required!”

When they tested it, they found it increased sales by 102%.

A light bulb went off in Wheeler’s head, and he changed the slogan to “How would you like to slash your shaving time in half?”

That adjustment increased sales by another 300%.

Over the years, Wheeler tested 105,000 selling statements for 5,000 products. He eliminated 100,000 of them.

He summed up the philosophy behind what he called “Tested Selling” by saying …

“Don’t think so much about what you want to say as about what the prospect wants to hear– then the response you will get will more often be the one you are aiming for.”

Great advice.

In his book Testing Sentences That Sell, Wheeler laid out his five “Wheelerpoints:”

• Wheelerpoint #1. “Don’t sell the steak – sell the sizzle.”It’s one of the first things a new copywriter learns. Sell benefits and deeper benefits. Your prospect could care less about the product.
• Wheelerpoint #2. “Don’t write – telegraph!” Back in Wheeler’s day, telegraphs were a popular way for people to send messages. But you were charged by the word, so, to keep the price down, you had to choose your words wisely. By saying “Don’t write – telegraph,” Wheeler meant “Make every word count.” He often said that your first 10 words are more important than the next 10,000, and you have only 10 short seconds to catch your prospect’s attention.
• Wheelerpoint #3. “Say it with flowers.” This simply means that it’s not enough to make a statement to your prospect, you have to prove it. In other words, say “I love you,” and then prove it by sending flowers. (Of course, you have to be sincere and do it convincingly.)
• Wheelerpoint #4. “Don’t ask if – ask which.” Meaning, always give your prospect a choice between something and something … never between something and nothing. For Abraham and Straus, Wheeler worked out a way for their soda fountains to sell more eggs. Instead of asking “Would you like an egg with that?” the clerk would ask “One egg or two eggs?” while holding an egg in each hand. The result? It induced seven out of 10 customers to add at least one egg to their order.

I’d like to add my two cents to this one …

I’m continually surprised by how many waiters and waitresses don’t use this gentle sales technique. Most ask if you’ll be having wine with dinner. Few say “Will you be having white wine or red wine with dinner tonight?”

And, one more example from Wheeler for this point:

He noticed that when a customer at the soda fountain requested a cola and was asked whether they wanted “small” or “large,” most chose “small.’ He wondered what would happen if the clerk, instead, just said “Large one?” When they put it to the test, they found that seven out of 10 people said “Yes.” This simple idea could have a dramatic impact on a fast food restaurant’s bottom line. If they sell 500 drinks a day and the difference between a small and a large is 50 cents, converting 70% of their drink orders to large translates into an additional $175 per day. Over a year, that’s an increase of $63,875!

• Wheelerpoint #5. “Watch your bark!” This one came out of Wheeler’s love of dogs – and how much you can tell about how a dog feels by the way they wag their tails and the sound of their barks. So by saying “Watch your bark!” Wheeler’s reminding us that it’s not just what you say, but how you say it. For copywriters, that means keeping the tone of your copy conversational and engaging.

I’ve printed out these five Wheelerpoints and taped them up next to my computer. They’re as meaningful for all of us in the “persuasion business” today as they were when Elmer came up with them 60+ years ago.

Wheeler wrote many books during his life. They are hard to find, however you can access his Testing Sentences That Sell, free of charge, online at: http://www.stoneruniversity.com/TestedSentences/index.html

[Ed. Note: Have you come across any good books that your fellow copywriters might not know about? If so, we’d like to hear what they are and why you think they’re valuable. Send us a note.]

ATTN: Romance Writers … Here’s a Great Connection For You by Helen Buttery, New Product Development

I received the note below from AWAI Board Member and Acquisition Editor, Marilyn Campbell. Consider this my Valentine’s Day “gift” to you … an inside track with one of the romance industry’s best-known imprint.

[Ed. Note: If you aren’t yet a romance writer … but would like to be … here’s the very best way to get started – AWAI’s Writing for Love and Money. And, for this week only, we’ll pick up the cost of shipping the program right to your doorstep.]

How to Get Hired by One of the Country’s Top Financial Publishers by Katie Yeakle

Last week, I let you in on what Bob Bly looks for when he hires a freelance copywriter.

Today, I’ll give you another perspective. This time from Mike Palmer … the man who heads up the writing team at Stansberry & Associates, Agora’s largest and most successful publishing franchise.

If your goal is to write financial copy, you can do no better than to know what’s happening at S&A.

Mike’s developed a system for finding and training writers that’s fast becoming the standard for creating world-class, in-house copy teams.

Qualities Mike looks for in new hires:

• An obvious hard worker. (Did they work in college? Do they do more than most at their current job?)
• Someone motivated by money.
• Someone who has had at least one “crappy” job … so they’ll appreciate how great the writer’s life is.
• Someone who is passionate about ideas … movies … books.

And this one is key …

• Someone who is a buyer.

Think about that. Are you a buyer? Do you get swept up in a great sales pitch … even if you know you’re being sold? Mike believes that this is a critical impulse successful direct-response writers need to have to be able to relate to their prospects. It gives you an edge … an excitement about the product that can’t be faked.

I know lots of great copywriters. And most of them are also great buyers. (If you meet Paul Hollingshead at Bootcamp, ask him about the $3,000 massage chairs he had to have from Sharper Image!)

Once Mike finds this hard-working, motivated-by-money, happy-to-be-a-writer buyer who is passionate about ideas, movies and books …

… he puts them into a training program that starts with …

• Taking AWAI’s Basic and Masters Copywriting programs.
• A 6-month reading list of advertising classics that include Caples, Hopkins, Ogilvy, and (his personal favorite) Breakthrough Advertising by Gene Schwartz. Stephen King’s On Writing is on the list too.

Plus, he has them do two more things that I urge you to start doing today (if you aren’t doing them already) …

• Write an ad or a bullet every day. (Don’t even question this. Just do it. If you don’t have a product to write for, write ads and/or bullets for the copywriting program … for one of your favorite products … for your own self-marketing materials.)
• Break down the architecture of a control on a regular basis. Spread the letter out and, next to each section, write what’s going on from a copy standpoint. Did the writer make a promise, introduce a new benefit, offer proof … ? (Mike points out that not only will you get great insights into the flow and rhythm of successful letters, you’ll actually end up with “templates” you can use for your own letters.)

One more thing …

Mike asked me to let you know that he’s looking to add several new copywriters to his team. These are full-time staff positions … meaning you have to be willing to work in S&A’s Baltimore office for a few years. It’s a dream opportunity.

If you’re interested, send him a note at MPalmer@stansberryresearch.com. Be persuasive!

Quick Tip: Digging Out the Deeper Benefits by Malcolm Smith, Freelance Copywriter

Understanding features vs. benefits is one of the first – and most important – lessons many copywriters learn. Features tell, but benefits sell.

But separating your product’s features from its benefits is just the first step. And that first step is where the average copywriter often stops. To put your copy over the top, you have to identify the benefits that really push your prospect’s emotional hot buttons.

These powerful benefits often aren’t obvious. You have to dig a little to find them. But the power they add to your copy is well worth the effort.

Here’s an example:

Michelin makes steel-belted radial tires. “Steel-belted” and “radial” are features. It’s useful information, but won’t sell tires to the average Joe.

One direct benefit of steel-belted radials is that they grip the road better than “ordinary” tires. That’s a benefit … but it’s not very exciting, is it?

Tires that grip the road better are also superior performers in emergency maneuvers. Now we’re getting somewhere.

But Michelin took their advertising one critical step further a few years back. Remember their ads with happy babies sitting inside tires? The message was clear: “Your precious family will be safer if you use Michelin steel-belted radials.”

Brilliant! The campaign sold boatloads of Michelin tires.

Here’s the trick to going from “steel-belted radial tires” to “protecting your precious family”:

Simply keep asking, “Which means?” Like this …

• Michelin makes steel-belted radial tires.

“Which means?”

• They grip the road better than ordinary tires.

“Which means?”

• They perform better in emergency maneuvers.

“Which means?”

• They protect your family in critical driving situations.

Bingo! Now you have a benefit that pushes your prospect’s emotional hot buttons – and helps your copy stand out from the pack.