Winning Sales Letters

Writing the perfect sales letter can be a daunting task. Use the following recipe as a starting point.

Headline
Your headline is what counts. If it's strong and well targeted, they will keep reading. If not, it'll hit the circular file quicker than the envelope it came in.

Subheading(s)
One sentence summary of the letter.

The Hook
Deliver the hook. Don't build to it. Your first paragraph needs to appeal to your prospects and offer solutions to their needs quickly and concisely.
Body You've kept their attention to this point, now fill them in on the details of your offer. Be as informative as possible. Take care to avoid redundancy.

The Guarantee
Guarantee your offer and quell your customer's fears. After all, "No Risk" is a positive thing, right?

The Close
Present a call to action. Have them do something.

Add extra punch to your pitch with the following!

Callouts and Highlights
Used sparingly, callouts & highlighted text can bolster your message. Be careful not to overdo it or your letter will overwhelm and confuse your prospect.

Testimonials.
Testimonial statements are still the best means of communicating "trust" in a product or service especially if they are delivered by a prospect's peer.

Other Tips

• Add a more personal touch to your letters by using first class postage instead of bulk postage if possible.
• Real signature tells your prospect that they are worth your time. Scanned or script font signature says "you're one of a thousand people I'm writing".

A winning sales letter doesn't have to start from scratch. Create a file folder to house the sales letters that you find interesting and effective as inspiration. Whenever you need a bit of a boost, it'll be a drawer away.

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The Doctor, the Convenience Store Owner & the Wicked Receptionist

My doctor is a great guy.

He is a general practitioner in a family-run, private practice. His father and uncle started the business and he joined them after graduating medical school.

What makes him so special is that he is extremely thorough in his explanations as well as second-to-none in bedside manner. He greets his patients with a smile and a firm, warm, handshake. He is civil. He doesn't put on airs though his education and socio-economic status greatly surpasses that of most of his patients.

He is warm, sincere and genuine.

I've recommended him to everyone who has ever asked.

And, this is why I was so thoroughly disappointed when I called his office the other day.

I called the other day and was treated with outright contempt by the receptionist. Since the purpose of my call was not appointment-related and caused her to deviate from her mental script – her abrupt tone made it fully clear that I was wasting her precious time.

I asked if I could leave a message for him. She told me to call back later. He was busy, as was she. It still bothers me a week later.

I never bothered. I'm still not sure that I will. I felt THAT uncomfortable and I find it unlikely that I could face her without making a scene in the office.

Most of all, I can't help but wonder how much of his business has been affected by his $8-an-hour "gatekeeper". I, certainly, cannot be the only one with whom she had taken such a venomous approach, could I?

After all, I am not only a patient. I am a CUSTOMER.

Like the old Head & Shoulders commercial, you only get one chance to make a first impression...and if she were my secretary, I would have fired her on the spot - no matter how busy either of us were.

It doesn't take a genius to figure out what happens when customers call and find the wicked witch of the west on the other end of the line.

They hang up. They go away. They go find someone nice - even if that someone doesn't really mean it.

Why bother building your business? Why spend money on market research? Why scope out locations? Why pay top dollar for enticing creative as well as placement in effective media only to have it ruined by someone who would rather be doing something else?

All of the effort goes straight down the drain because 120 seconds of someone's time was "wasted".

So, the message of the week is to make sure that you and every person in your company answers the phone with a smile.

Yes, an actual smile. That's what I meant (don't laugh, it works!). The inflection and tone of your voice will be noticeably evident.

Your customers, vendors and even the dread tele-sellers will respond with a higher level of respect and courtesy. And if they don't, shame on them!

It's generally accepted that it costs much more to capture a new customer than retain an old one. It doesn't take that much extra effort to keep a loyal customer happy - just deliver what you promise and be nice about it.

Relationships aren't everything. I don't base my purchase decisions solely on my opinion of a sales person or my affinity towards a brand. I'm not a raving fan of my favorite car wash or of my wireless phone provider. But I do solicit businesses where I am treated well and with respect - even if I must pay a premium. Oftentimes, this is the final intangible.

My local convenience store is run by a nice foreign fellow who always calls me sir - and I always reciprocate. Strange, it's been two years and he still does it though he knows my name (as I know his).

Is he cheaper? No. Does he have a wider selection? No. But I'd rather give him my money than "the jerk" around the corner. I like making small talk with him when purchasing my Sunday paper.

At a modest twenty dollars a week, my annual spending exceeds a thousand dollars. If he were "the jerk" I'd be spending that $1,000 somewhere else. If twenty other people felt the same way, it could result in a loss of $20,000 of potential sales.

Personally, I also go out of my way NOT to shop at certain places and I'm sure you have as well.

Grace and common courtesy are increasingly growing out of vogue.

Though it is ironically fortunate for those who have the common sense to say "please" and "thank you". People like my local convenience store guy.

They stand out.

So do the rude. We never forget them either. Even years later!

Though this little story may sound like common sense, it's amazing how uncommon sense can actually be when put into practice.

Smile, be polite and make your customer feel special. Even if they're not calling to buy - they are calling for A REASON. Though it may not be important to you, it is to them!

Answer their questions and take the time to stand out. Eventually, they'll thank you through repeat business.

Thanks for reading!

Sales vs. Marketing

Think You Have a Team?

Think again.

Are your team members competitive or in-sync during meetings?

Are the two departments aware of what the other is doing? Do they provide constant feedback to each other or do they report their efforts exclusively to you?

Do you have a formal or informal liaison who serves as the link between the two?

How many different layers must one person in one department go through in order to obtain information from someone in another department?
What's at StakeYour sales and marketing staffs each have their own unique stakes and goals in your business.

In a perfect company, all departments work in tandem in order to create, produce, market and sell your product or service. The reality is that your "team" consists of individuals who are first and foremost looking after their best interests. (Don't kid yourself, because this also includes you.) The information bottlenecks, egos and politics that are prevalent in every company restrict your growth. So how do you knock them down?

By democratizing information.

I'm not suggesting that everyone in your company should have access to every scrap of information but there is no reason that sales figures and marketing objectives should not be freely distributed to all members of both staffs. We all know that information is power. By reducing the value of "secrets", you diminish the hoarding of valuable information.

Suppose your Sales Manager discovered that a marketing program for a particular territory wasn't proven effective. Instead of informing the marketing manager of his finding - he simply decided to wait until your regularly scheduled group meetings to announce his discovery.

What he also did is cost your company money by putting his own personal interests in front of the interests of the company!

Share the Wealth
Show your employees that sharing information is much more valuable than sitting on it. Instead of waiting for you to digest information and make a decision, empower them to co-act and present you with a list of "opportunities" instead of "issues" at your next meeting.

Clear and unobstructed communication in your workplace is imperative. It is what separates the leaders from the also-rans.

In Seth Godin's wonderful book, Spreading the IdeaVirus, he illustrates the importance of determining who the "sneezers" are in peer groups, thereby increasing the effective exchange of an idea or product information. By pinpointing and correctly utilizing peer leaders and communicators, a company can vastly increase the spread of their product, service or idea with less effort. The same tactics can be applied internally.

Put aside your organizational chart for a moment and determine where the real power centers in your company lie. It's not likely to be you.

These people should NOT be assigned to interdepartmental teams. Their interdepartmental functions have already organically fostered! Find them and use them because they are already communicating. Ask them if they have any ideas.

Go buy a water cooler. Buy some lawn chairs or a picnic table. Put them in places people congregate. Let them talk because you never know when the next million dollar idea is on the tip of someone's tongue.