I've done this seminar hundreds of times ..sales people are amazed and motivated by what they obvisiouly did not know and understand about this artform !

1. How To Write Sales Letters, Proposals, and Emails That Make Things Happen Spencer H. Longshore, III

3. What business are you really in? The business of selling advertising pages. The business of selling product and service for your clients.

4. “ Today’s marketplace is no longer responsive to the strategies that worked in the past. There are just too many products, too many companies, and too much marketing noise.”

5. Creativity consists of looking at the same scenario as everyone else and viewing it differently. In other words, if you want to be more creative... THINK SOMETHING DIFFERENT.

6. STAGES OF CREATIVE THOUGHT A. The first stage is one of orientation. Define a problem and identify its dimensions. B. The second stage is over-preparation At this level, creative thinkers saturate themselves with as much information relating to the central problem as possible. Overkill.

9. A. There are two categories of letter writing: 1. A HOT letter - one that follows up a phone call, email, a visit, or a written request. 2. A COLD letter - sales correspondence written unannounced and basically unwanted. B. Hot letters may be two pages in length, but never more. How to Write Effective Correspondence That Produces Ad Space

10. How to Write Effective Correspondence That Produces Ad Space C. Cold letters should never be over one page in length. D. Never send a letter or correspondence with a misspelled word or obvious corrections. E. Never be guilty of bad grammar or incorrect use of the King’s English. F. Never start letters with trite phrases.

11. How to Write Effective Correspondence That Produces Ad Space G. Open each letter quickly with an impressive product/service selling question. H. Remember that you’re in the business of helping your client sell product and service and not in the business to hustle ad pages. I. Always send a “CC” to someone. The more the better.

12. How to Write Effective Correspondence That Produces Ad Space J. Do not use P.S.’s. K. Avoid putting demographic information in the primary text of sales letters. L. Show magazine specific research/ circulation information as attachments to primary sales letter.

13. My Own Personal Rules For Page Producing Written Correspondence A. To get results ASK QUESTIONS: 1. A question creates the opportunity for a prearranged answer. 2. Ask questions that lead to the answer you want. 3. Ask questions in each paragraph to lead the recipient through the letter and to the pre-designated conclusion.

14. My own Personal Rules For Page Producing Written Correspondence B. Use POSITIVE AGREEMENT ORIENTED WORDS in the infra-structure of the letter and phrases such as: 1. US 4. The Group 2. WE 5. You 3. Both of us 6. We agree

15. My Own Personal Rules For Page Producing Written Correspondence C. Start every paragraph with the most positive statement you can make relative to the purpose of the letter. D. Be conversational in your technique.

19. GIVE ‘EM A SHOW THEY WON’T FORGET

20. 6 Technical Tips to Radically Improve the Effectiveness of Your Email Communications 1. Make absolutely sure your return address is correct and programmed correctly. 2. Create your email messages in plain text and not HTML. 3. Write all email in the lowest common denominator. Not everyone has a huge screen nor does everyone use the same size system fonts as you do.

21. 4. Use clickable URL’s. Always use HTTP: prefix to allow instant access to URL’s. 5. Always test complex emails. Email them to yourself for a final check. 6. Spelling, grammar, and punctuation are of the utmost importance. Use auto spell check. Do not use “auto send” after spell check. 6 Technical Tips to Radically Improve the Effectiveness of Your Email Communications

22. Have you Considered the Previous Six Technical Tips 100% of the time? Always remember email is one of the most effective ways to get your message out to one or 100 people at an account or agency.

23. Have you Considered the Previous Six Technical Tips 100% of the time? You must be mindful of what the message is and how it impacts the recipient. Your email will probably remain somewhere in their email system. Once it’s there, you can’t change it, thereby you absolutely, positively must make it as strong a message and as technologically correct a message…. the first time.