Regardless
of what you're trying to sell, you really can't sell it without
"talking" with your prospective buyer. An in attempting to sell anything on the
Internet, the sales letter you send out is when and how you talk to your
prospect.
All winning sales letters
"talk" to the prospect by creating an image in the mind of the
reader. They set "the scene"
by appealing to a desire or need; and then they flow smoothly into the "visionary"
part of the sales pitch by describing in detail how "wonderful" life
will be and, how "good" the prospect is going to feel after he's
purchased your product. This is the
"body or guts" of a sales letter.
Overall, a winning sales letter
follows a time-tested and proven formula:
1) Get his attention 2) Get
him interested in what you can do for him
3) Make him desire the benefits
of your product so badly his mouth begins to water 4)
Demand action from him - tell him to click the right button or send for
whatever it is you're selling without delay - any procrastination on his part
might cause him to lose out. This is
called the "AIDA" formula
(Attention, Interest, Desire and
Action) - it works.
On your website, your sales page
should be the length of what it would be
if
were doing a mailing, or longer if you're using bullets to emphasize benefits
to build the desire. Of course on the
Internet you don't have to worry about letterhead stationery or the cost of
postage, which is a considerable savings.
If, however, you want to also do a mailing campaign then the following
would apply. The sales letters in
mailings that pull in the most sales are almost always two pages with 1 1/2
spaces between lines. For really big
ticket items, they'll run at least four pages. - on an 11 by 17 sheet of paper
folded in half. If your sales letter is
only two pages in length, there's nothing wrong with running it on the front
and back of one sheet of 8 1/2 by 11 paper.
However, your sales letter should always be on letterhead paper - your
letterhead printed, and including your logo and business motto if you have one.
Regardless of the length of your
sales letter, it should do one thing, and that's sell, and sell hard! If you intend to close the sale, you've got
to do it with your sales letter. You
should never be "wishy-washy" with your sales letter. You do the
actual selling and the closing of that sale with your sales letter - any
brochure or circular you send along with in your mailing will just reinforce
what you say in the sales letter.
There's been a great deal of
discussion in the past few years regarding just how long a sales letter should
be. A lot of people are asking: Will people really take the time to read a
long sales letter? The answer is a
simple and time-tested yes indeed!
Surveys and tests over the years emphatically prove that "longer
sales letters" pull even better than the shorter ones, so don't worry
about the length of your sales letter - just make sure that it sells your
product for you!
The "inside secret" is to
make your sales letter so interesting, and "visionary" with the
benefits you're offering to the reader, that he can't resist reading it all the
way through. You break up the
"work" of reading by using short, punchy sentences, underlining
important points you're trying to make, with the use of subheadlines,
indentations and even the use of a second color, and leaving lots of white
space around it. On your website, the
sales letter should run down the middle of the page so the viewer doesn't have
to keep adjusting the screen to see the whole sentence. This is very
distracting and more apt to send that client to another website than losing
patience reading a long letter.
Relative to the brochures and
circulars you may want to include in your mailing with your sales letter -
providing the materials you're enclosing are of the best quality, they will
generally reinforce the sale for you.
But, if they are of poor quality, look cheap and don't compliment your
sales letter, then you shouldn't be using them.
Another thing, it will definitely classify you as an independent home
worker if you hand-stamp your name/address on these brochures or advertising
circulars instead of having them printed.
Whenever possible, and so long as
you have really good brochures to send out, have your printer run them through
his press and print your name/address - even your telephone number and company
logo - on them before you send them out.
The thing is, you want your prospect to think of you as his supplier -
the company - and not as just another independent entrepreneur. Sure, you can get by with less expense but
you'll end up with fewer orders and in the end, less profits.
Another thing that's been bandied
about and discussed from every direction for years is whether to use a post
office box number or your street address.
Personally, I don't like Post Office Boxes in a business address -
because it transmits an aura of instability or temporary location. If your business is run from home, get a mail
box from a post box vendor that has a street address. Then your address looks like, 1234 Willow Lane, #567
Above all else, you've got to
include some sort of ordering page or coupon if you're mailing. The coupon has to be as simple and as easy
for the prospect to fill out and return to you as you can possible make it. The
order page on your website should already be filled out, with perhaps just the
shipping left to choice. If your product
is an eBook or software to be instantly downloaded, then you don't have any
options to be chosen. A great many
sales are lost because this order coupon is just too complicated for the
would-be buyer to follow. Don't get fancy! Keep it simple, and you'll find your
prospects responding with glee.
Should you or shouldn't you include
in your mailing a self-addressed reply envelope? There are a lot of variables, as well as,
pros and cons to this question. Overall, when you send out a
"winning" sales letter to a good mailing list, a return reply
envelope will increase your response tremendously.
All winning sales letters
"talk" to the prospect by creating an image in the mind of the
reader. They set "the scene"
by appealing to a desire or need; and then they flow smoothly into the "visionary"
part of the sales pitch by describing in detail how "wonderful" life
will be and, how "good" the prospect is going to feel after he's
purchased your product. This is the
"body or guts" of a sales letter.
Overall, a winning sales letter
follows a time-tested and proven formula:
1) Get his attention 2) Get
him interested in what you can do for him
3) Make him desire the benefits
of your product so badly his mouth begins to water 4)
Demand action from him - tell him to click the right button or send for
whatever it is you're selling without delay - any procrastination on his part
might cause him to lose out. This is
called the "AIDA" formula
(Attention, Interest, Desire and
Action) - it works.
On your website, your sales page
should be the length of what it would be
if
were doing a mailing, or longer if you're using bullets to emphasize benefits
to build the desire. Of course on the
Internet you don't have to worry about letterhead stationery or the cost of
postage, which is a considerable savings.
If, however, you want to also do a mailing campaign then the following
would apply. The sales letters in
mailings that pull in the most sales are almost always two pages with 1 1/2
spaces between lines. For really big
ticket items, they'll run at least four pages. - on an 11 by 17 sheet of paper
folded in half. If your sales letter is
only two pages in length, there's nothing wrong with running it on the front
and back of one sheet of 8 1/2 by 11 paper.
However, your sales letter should always be on letterhead paper - your
letterhead printed, and including your logo and business motto if you have one.
Regardless of the length of your
sales letter, it should do one thing, and that's sell, and sell hard! If you intend to close the sale, you've got
to do it with your sales letter. You
should never be "wishy-washy" with your sales letter. You do the
actual selling and the closing of that sale with your sales letter - any
brochure or circular you send along with in your mailing will just reinforce
what you say in the sales letter.
There's been a great deal of
discussion in the past few years regarding just how long a sales letter should
be. A lot of people are asking: Will people really take the time to read a
long sales letter? The answer is a
simple and time-tested yes indeed!
Surveys and tests over the years emphatically prove that "longer
sales letters" pull even better than the shorter ones, so don't worry
about the length of your sales letter - just make sure that it sells your
product for you!
The "inside secret" is to
make your sales letter so interesting, and "visionary" with the
benefits you're offering to the reader, that he can't resist reading it all the
way through. You break up the
"work" of reading by using short, punchy sentences, underlining
important points you're trying to make, with the use of subheadlines,
indentations and even the use of a second color, and leaving lots of white
space around it. On your website, the
sales letter should run down the middle of the page so the viewer doesn't have
to keep adjusting the screen to see the whole sentence. This is very
distracting and more apt to send that client to another website than losing
patience reading a long letter.
Relative to the brochures and
circulars you may want to include in your mailing with your sales letter -
providing the materials you're enclosing are of the best quality, they will
generally reinforce the sale for you.
But, if they are of poor quality, look cheap and don't compliment your
sales letter, then you shouldn't be using them.
Another thing, it will definitely classify you as an independent home
worker if you hand-stamp your name/address on these brochures or advertising
circulars instead of having them printed.
Whenever possible, and so long as
you have really good brochures to send out, have your printer run them through
his press and print your name/address - even your telephone number and company
logo - on them before you send them out.
The thing is, you want your prospect to think of you as his supplier -
the company - and not as just another independent entrepreneur. Sure, you can get by with less expense but
you'll end up with fewer orders and in the end, less profits.
Another thing that's been bandied
about and discussed from every direction for years is whether to use a post
office box number or your street address.
Personally, I don't like Post Office Boxes in a business address -
because it transmits an aura of instability or temporary location. If your business is run from home, get a mail
box from a post box vendor that has a street address. Then your address looks like, 1234 Willow Lane, #567
Above all else, you've got to
include some sort of ordering page or coupon if you're mailing. The coupon has to be as simple and as easy
for the prospect to fill out and return to you as you can possible make it. The
order page on your website should already be filled out, with perhaps just the
shipping left to choice. If your product
is an eBook or software to be instantly downloaded, then you don't have any
options to be chosen. A great many
sales are lost because this order coupon is just too complicated for the
would-be buyer to follow. Don't get fancy! Keep it simple, and you'll find your
prospects responding with glee.
Should you or shouldn't you include
in your mailing a self-addressed reply envelope? There are a lot of variables, as well as,
pros and cons to this question. Overall, when you send out a
"winning" sales letter to a good mailing list, a return reply
envelope will increase your response tremendously.
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