Direct Marketing Creative Strategies Seminar Outline

Day 1 | Day 2

Day 1: 9:00 A.M. - 5:00 P.M.

Introduction: The Fourth Era of force-communication

Basic rules that assure effectiveness and dominance

How 21st century direct marketing differs from the past

• The Four Great Laws and how they protect you from dumb mistakes
• The one unmovable absolute – the Clarity Commandment

Sure ways to avoid firing “blanks”

• The simple but often overlooked Emotion v. Intellect Rule
• The five great motivators

Applying what we’ve covered so-far – hands-on exercises

• Easy “hands-on” exercises to lock in understanding and applications

Word changes and adaptations that automatically improve response

• Synonyms aren’t synonymous
• How “similar” words can have vastly different effects on impact and response
• Simple “hands-on” exercises to lock in the comparative use of words
• The Specifics v. Generalizations Rule
• “When” or “If”?

Weapons in your rhetorical arsenal

• The Generic Determination Rule
• The Chronology Rule
• The Law of Tenses
• The five types of comparatives and how to use them
• Easy “hands-on” exercises to lock in understanding and applications

A wonderful sales weapon: Information Optimizing

• The Asterisk Rule
• Imperative of declarative?
• An often-overlooked enhancer – parity advertising
• How to structure and use questions
• Easy “hands-on” exercise to convert statements to questions

Recap of Day 1

DAY 2: 9:00 A.M. - 4:00 P.M.

An advanced litmus test to pre-gauge effectiveness

•  How to use an expiration date
• The three components of effective force-communication
• The Rule of Negative Subtlety
• The First Sub-rule of Negative Subtlety 

What NOT to do

• “In your face” ads – desperation replaces inspiration
• The Shock Diminution Rule
• The Consistency Command

Effective email marketing 

• How to structure a subject line
• Text or produced message?
• Words that work better than other words
• How to bypass spam filters
• Rules for effective online newsletters
• Differing approaches for “urgency” and “artistry”
• Following up email with telemarketing

Social media

• How effective are social media as selling implements?
• Pros and cons of Twitter
• Are Facebook, Myspace, YouTube, and the like reliable brand-builders

An extra handful of tips

• Effective or ineffective envelope copy
• Proper structuring of sales letters
• How and when to use marginal notes
• How to write powerful fund raising copy
• The Illustration Agreement Rule

Personal critiques

• Dispassionate critiques of attendees’ samples

Wrap-up

• Implicitly weak words and phrases; implicitly powerful word and phrases
• Question/answer period covering all aspects

* Outline is subject to change.