In a World Where Hollywood Puts Butts in Seats

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Been to the movies lately?

I don’t know about you, but one of my favorite things about the movies is the previews (or “trailers” as they are technically called).

And I’m not the only one who likes movie trailers either.  Did you know of some 10-billion videos watched online annually, movie trailers rank #3, after news and user-created video?

Part of what makes GOOD trailers so entertaining is they give you just enough to make you want more. In fact, a good trailer is even able to sell a bad movie…

But a BAD movie trailer, on the other hand, shows too much.

If a trailer reveals all the plot twists…all the best gags…all the crazy action scenes…why would you pay money when you already saw the best parts?

All of this got me thinking today about copywriting for emails and auto-responders.

Your emails and autoresponders should be written like great movie trailers.

Great movie trailers tantalize and tease…

They show just enough to leave the viewer with a burning desire for more…

They focus on one benefit of the film…action, romance, comedy…to reach out to specific prospects.

Most of all, they get people to the theater, ready to plunk down money to see the whole picture.

And you know what?

Once you get your prospect to the point of sale and ready to spend money, then you’ll know your email has done its job.

 

PS: Is your email doing the job? If you need help with your email or autoresponder copy, contact me today. As I’m writing this, I can make room for one more client to write specifically email/autoresponder copy.  Be advised that once I fill this spot, it might be a 3-month wait until I’m able to take another client. If you’ve got an information product (book, newsletter, course) I’ll put you higher up on the waiting list.

Before You Email Your Next Press Release, Read This…

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The following is a guest post by Jeffrey Dobkin…and before you even think of emailing your next press release, you simply must read what Jeff has to say below. Thanks for reading, and let me know your thoughts in the comments section below. ~ Ryan McGrath

Email Press Releases? By Jeff Dobkin

“Hey, it’s easy to send press releases by email!  Let’s send them all this way!”  Anything else?  “Yea!  Look here – on the web, we can send 10,000 of them for just 10¢ each!”

Yea, right.  Let’s write that into our media plan and go home and sleep well knowing how thorough we were.

While it may be much more convenient for you to send email press releases, it’s much more effective mailing traditional releases through the good old U.S. Postal Service.  Remember them?

Are you sending press releases because: “A. they are convenient for you” or “B. to get the maximum coverage in print magazines, newspapers, internet, and broadcast exposure?”  If you answered “A” Congratulations! You’ll get your wish – e-mailing them will be convenient for you.

As for great media exposure, well, you need to go back and select option “B”.  It’s a little more work but… well, your choice.

Email releases are fine for emergency issues and truly breaking news. But for new product releases, announcements, business personnel changes and so forth: regular, old fashioned traditionally-mailed press releases blows email releases away. Here’s why:

The first reason, and I don’t want to bore you with this but: How many documents can you have up on your screen at once?  One, maybe two.  Now, while you’re on your computer, how many other documents are waiting in Queue to be viewed by you?

So the email release gets very briefly noted, and with the click of a mouse it’s out of site.  And in this business of crowded, fast-paced and short-lived news stories, out of sight is out of mind.

As the mouse hand of the very very busy, busy editor (and I’ve NEVER known one who isn’t) waves and pauses over the delete button you’ve got to ask yourself, “Do I feel lucky today?”

Because if yours isn’t the most absolutely positively compelling release in the stack of 100 other releases the editor received this week, Poof – it’s gone faster than you can say spam, and has just transitioned from one more email clogging-up her inbox to one that she won’t have to deal with ever again.  There, that was easy.

Now let’s take a better look: A traditionally printed and mailed press release – and accompanying cover letter – arrives in a nice package and let’s face it – who doesn’t like to get this kind of mail.  Real mail.  She opens it and your brochure – brightly printed in four colors – pops out at her.

She feels the drape of your highest quality 24 lb linen stationary, the letterhead brilliantly designed, and your crisply printed press release almost sparkles with the words “Read Me – not necessary now, but at your convenience…”

OK, so I got a little carried away there.  But you get the idea.  A traditionally mailed paper release can sit on an editor’s desk for days, get passed around; and can be waiting, patiently waiting for a later review – over a quick lunch or while flipping through “things to do while you’re not at your computer.”  Yes, it’s a special time – shrinking in today’s over-computer-related junk environment.

Remember, while a busy editor can look at just one image at a time on her computer, she can have multiple sheets of paper displayed on her desk.  I don’t know about you, but my computer time is now very valuable and heavily guarded.  Email PR = computer intrusion.  Mailed PR = welcome.  Hello? Am I getting through to you?

OK, one last thought.  Yes, everyone has a computer now-a-days.  So penetration is good.  But, everyone, everything, every company, every catalog, every magazine – all are aiming right at your CRT.  It just doesn’t all fit on-screen.  And, no time to look at anything for too long – while you took that quick cat nap, your computer just downloaded 600 more emails.

No matter how you cut it, the editor just can’t leisurely leaf through your whole press package package on-screen.  And no, clicking through pages on her laptop isn’t the same as flipping through them at lunch at her desk. For maximum coverage – I say press releases should be sent by traditional mail.  Any questions?

About Jeff: Jeffrey Dobkin is a traditional DM copywriter, and a fun speaker. His humorous presentations are filled with practical direct marketing tips.  He has written four books on direct marketing.  Call him for a FREE analysis of your written PR, ads, direct marketing packages or programs: 610-642-1000 rings on his desk.  Or visit him at www.DanielleAdams.com.

Special Note From Ryan: Not only do I fully endorse sending your press releases via postal mail, for larger impact, you might consider sending your releases using Priority Mail, or even FedEx.  Think about it, have you ever NOT opened something you received in a FedEx package?  Yes, it costs a few bucks more per release…but you’ll have a guaranteed 99% open rate for your message.

One last thing to mention.  For a limited time, I’m offering my subscribers a special rate for PR services — $100/hour for PR consulting, and $400 for a press release. Note this special offer can be rescinded at any time, so if you are interested, contact me right away. ~ Ryan McGrath

7 Secrets to Money Generating Publicity Campaigns

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Publicity is the secret weapon in your marketing arsenal. Getting media coverage of your products or services is essentially high-profile advertising at zero cost.

But it’s more than that really. Getting PR is the ultimate social proof. You essentially gain a valuable third-party endorsement, a “super-testimonial” to knock down any risk in the minds of your prospects using the media’s credibility.

And that’s just the start. Think about it. Would you even know about the existence of Dr. Phil or Rachael Ray, if Oprah hadn’t mentioned and promoted them on her show? There are minor celebrities who have built entire careers using a single appearance on a major program.

Fortunately for you, many of your competitors don’t have access to this weapon.  And can I share a dirty little secret? Neither do most so-called professional PR firms.  But in a few minutes, you’ll have this weapon ready for your next marketing blitz.

Ready for your money-making publicity secrets? Let’s get started:

1) Think like a Direct Marketer. Having a direct response mentality will put you in a better spot than 99% of professional PR people. This means…getting into the heads of your prospects (reporters, radio hosts, media people, etc.)…writing press releases with clear calls to action using the AIDA formula…and solving the media person’s biggest problems (finding great sources to interview for content) versus yapping about what you want.

2) Start by deciding what ultimate result you want to achieve – sales, new customers, lead generation, improved credibility, third-party social proof, etc. Then figure out what results you need from the media to accomplish this. Which media reaches your ideal prospects? Is your story limited by geography, or are you selling something available nation-wide? What key messages do you want the media stories to convey? Working through this, start thinking of what kind of media is the best platform for your message (broadcast, web or print). For example, a newspaper will likely not run a story about a book launch (unless it’s a local paper covering a local author) but radio programs are eager to interview authors about new books.

3) Build your own list of media targets. Getting the contact info for media people is easy. You can go to the publication’s website to easily find a reporter’s email address. The real art is figuring out which media outlets you want to target, and which person at the outlet to send the press release. It might take a few hours of your time to look up each outlet and person, but it’s worth it. Trust me; it’s something that most PR services and PR firms don’t do, giving you another edge. As with direct mail, having your own lists always beats “spamming” a compiled list you bought off someone.

4) Write a killer press release. This means writing your press release following the famous direct response / sales letter models (AIDA, etc.). Test headlines to see which get the most response. Grab people by the throat with your lead. Weave in a story to keep interest. Position yourself as an expert with a sound-bite quality quote. Toss out some blind bullets to spark curiosity. And most importantly, tell the report what you want them to do, even if as simple as calling or emailing you for more information.  If you need more information on how to write a killer release, Paul Hartunian and Ben Settle have excellent products to help write one.

5) Mail your press release. Yes, send it using old-fashioned postal mail.  Do NOT send it email.  Email in general is becoming less effective, and you don’t want your release stuck in someone’s spam-filter. If you do send us the mail, I recommend the “Gary Halbert A-Pile” strategy of mailing the release in a plain #10 envelope. Better yet, send it with Priority Mail. It will cost a bit, but your message will be opened and read, I guarantee it.

6) Be ready to respond! If you have a good list, a killer press release, and your message is getting through…the media is going to come looking for an interview. And you need to be ready to jump on these interview opportunities, fast. Don’t wait a minute to call a reporter back. Immediately answer any questions or requests via email. Your job is only half-over, my friend. You still need to “close the sale” by getting interviewed. Because in most cases, the media won’t run with your story until after they have a chance to talk to you in person. No interview, no story. So make yourself available to talk!

7) Make sure your “sales funnel” is working correctly before your PR campaign. Let’s flash forward.  Your publicity campaign is rocking out.  The media is calling you like crazy. You are getting interviewed by TV, radio, major newspapers. You are getting a ton of traffic to your website. You are getting orders. But wait? Your shopping cart is busted? Your call center isn’t ready for a deluge of orders? Your website is crashing? OK, don’t panic. Just remember to test out your sales process BEFORE you start your PR campaign, and have a plan in place for worst-case scenarios.

And here’s a bonus secret, just for authors and information product marketers…

8 ) Shoot for interviews on radio programs. Yes, radio. It’s the perfect platform for authors and information marketers. Why? The biggest reason is radio hosts are very open to “plugs” after interviewing you, giving you a chance to directly pitch your book or product to the audience. Secondly, radio shows constantly need guests and most people are afraid to go live on the air.  So if you can handle your nerves during a live broadcast, and do your best to come off looking like an expert, radio is a “no-brainer” to get publicity for your book or product.

So there you have it.  Utilize these secrets during your next publicity campaign, and I know you’ll see results.

PS: For a limited time, I’m offering my subscribers a special rate for PR services — $100/hour for PR consulting, and $400 for a press release. Note this offer can be rescinded at any time, so if you are interested, contact me right away.

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