The Copywriting Maven

When do you "tell" and when do you "sell?"
The letter sells. The brochure tells. Rules of thumb in direct marketing copywriting, that for the most part, hold true.
Now add "the email subject line tells" to another rule of thumb worth obeying. According to the article below, it’s far better to tell in your email [...]

I have a good friend from my high school days (I’ve known his wife since elementary school) who, because he’s got adult kids and is practically retired, has a lot of time on his hands to email me. He’s funny, has a wry sense of humor, and deep into his 50s is still a pretty [...]

"I’ll gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today." For those of us who grew up watching Popeye cartoons, you’ll recognize his friend, Wimpy and Wimpy’s famous catch phrase.
Robert Rosenthal in his blog, Freaking Marketing, speaks to the heart of this issue. Check out, Why Direct Marketing Agencies Don’t "Put Skin In The Game". [...]

Yet another intriguing meme hits blog play! Developed by Tino Buntic , this one highlights 2000 bloggers and includes celebrities and the "rest of us" with equal abandon. You’ll see Seth Goden and that Trump guy. Hundreds of other folks, and well, me. You’ll see me, too.
This whole social/viral marketing thing fascinates me, hence I [...]

When it comes to getting an almost 100% open rate, nothing beats a love letter.
Next in priority of open-rate effectiveness is receiving a box because instinctively our curiosity is aroused. What is it? Is it a present? Something fun?
That curiosity factor is the key driver behind the big-time effectiveness of a technique called [...]