Yes, it's all about the start.
That's the most important part of your direct mail piece.
Imagine if you are watching TV, flicking channels.
Suddenly something catches your attention and you stop to watch. The first line acts just the same way. It's your best, and maybe your only chance, to capture your reader's attention. It must have stopping power.
Remember, you only have three seconds to capture your reader's attention.
Here are some great examples of how to hook the reader from the start.
"Call me Ishmael."
What a great beginning. Herman Melville knew the value of a hook as he set out to entwine you in Captain Ahab's struggle with Moby Dick. What makes it brilliant is that it immediately captures your interest.
Another memorable opening is from Charles Dickens book A Tale of Two Cities:
"It was the best of times. It was the worst of times..."
You want to read on. So you do. The author has your attention.
Mystery writer Edward D. Hoch explains how to do that in novels. According to him the ideal opening should do three things: grab the reader, introduce a character and establish a setting.
Nathanael West did that in the first sentence in his book The Day of the Locust:
"Around quitting time, Tod Hackett heard a great din on the road outside his office. "
In direct marketing the rules are different. The lead should serve as a teaser, presenting a benefit or the promise of one, to spark the reader's interest in finding out more.
The famous letter for Wall Street Journal that generated over two billion dollars in new subscriptions was 'The two young men' letter. Written by freelance writer Martin Conroy it was a control package for eliciting subscriptions for 29 years.
That letter got you from the start. "On a beautiful late spring afternoon, twenty-five years ago, two young men graduated from the same college."
TO CREATE INTEREST IN YOUR DIRECT MAIL PACKAGE, YOU HAVE TO START FROM THE START - To learn more about this author, visit Billy Sharma's Website.
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Billy Sharma
(Visit Billy's Website)
BILLY SHARMA
Billy holds a Bachelor of Science degree
and is a Summa Cum Laude graduate of J.J.
School of Art (Bombay) and the Hochshüle
für Gestaltung (Bauhaus School of Design,
Germany).
After many years of working for other
companies, Billy founded Designers Inc. In
1999 he became Managing Director and
Creative Director of Brann Worldwide in
Toronto. Under his stewardship the agency
grew three-fold in two years when Brann
Worldwide was elected the number one
direct marketing agency in the world in
2000.
Billy has extensive advertising and direct
marketing experience gained in many
national and international advertising
agencies in Europe, U.S. and Canada. This
has honed his creative skills to help
provide breakthrough creative ideas for
his clients.
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