In my previous post on this subject, I stressed the importance of making it easy for consumers to take action by clearly indicating in your advertising what it is you want them to do.  You need to lead consumers with verbal and visual cues to generate a desired response.

Experienced direct response copywriters know that a call to action is strongest when repeated.  Some espouse to a “tell ‘em what you want ‘em to do, tell ‘em to do it, and tell ‘em again” philosophy.  Experienced direct response art directors like to employ techniques like “handwritten” margin notes, highlighted copy blocks, and graphic design elements that grab attention and move the consumer’s eye towards a call to action. Read more…

A year ago I was recruited to test a digital kiosk application my agency had created for a major telecom client.  (I guess the team wanted to test usability on a lug-headed Boomer.) I went through the stages of touching elements on the screen to learn more about the client’s offerings until I came to a screen with four pictures in four quadrants.  That’s where I stopped.

“What would you do next?” asked my young host.

“I’d walk away” I replied.

“Wouldn’t you touch one of the images in the quadrants?” he inquired.

“Why should I?  I just see four pictures, and nothing is telling me what to do!” I explained. Read more…

Does the classic 40-40-20 Rule for direct marketing, crafted in the heyday of direct mail, still hold up in today’s for digital marketing communications?  We’re introducing this discussion topic to get your thoughts.

The 40-40-20 Rule is attributed to the distinguished direct marketer Ed Meyer, also known as “the father of direct marketing education”, and its origin dates back more than 40 years.  Simply put, the Rule states that success in direct marketing is determined:

40% by targeting the right audience

40% by an enticing product and offer

20% by the creative presentation of your message
Read more…