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BEFORE THE WRITING STARTS
Most experienced copywriters follow a set procedure when creating their direct mail copy. Their
individual techniques may vary but they generally study "white mail/' review competitors' copy,
review old copy gather facts, write key paragraphs, and establish a starting point.
WHITE MAIL
Before beginning to write direct mail copy, the first step is to expose yourself to the so-called
"white mail" received by the advertiser. White mail is any correspondence other than an order or
a payment received from a customer. Here is where you'll learn the language used and most easily
understood by your customers. When you use the customer's language — rather than your
own language — the whole communication process is improved.
Every business has its own language — one that is probably understood by everyone in the seller's
organization, but perhaps not so readily understood by the recipients of your mailings. For
example, some years ago, I was involved in a research project for Ford Motor Company. A dispute
had developed in Dearborn between the marketing and engineering people at Ford about what
should be included in the owner's manual of each new car. We surveyed 5,000 owners of new
Fords. We interviewed 100 owners in each of 50 different markets in the United States and asked
them what they would have liked to have had in the owner's manual. Surprisingly, in each of the
markets surveyed, the most asked-for thing was the same: "How much gas does the gas tank
hold?" The answer was already in their manuals, but was labeled "Fuel Capacity." The owners
hadn't thought to look for it under that title. They wanted to know about "gas," not "fuel."
That's the problem with "internal words." Unless we're careful, we can quickly lose our audience
by using words that are unfamiliar to our readers. Reading direct mail letters should be an easy
process, with no need to stop and think for even a moment about what the writer is trying to say.
Whenever a reader comes to a stopping point, there's a good excuse to stop reading — something
every good copywriter should avoid. That's why we try not to end any page of a letter with a period.
It's ideal to have a hyphenated word or at least an incomplete sentence so the reader will move
quickly to the next page and not take advantage of an easy place to stop reading.
White mail can provide us with words that won't give our reader cause to stop and ponder their
meaning. Reading white mail is a great way to get to know your customers as well as the language
they use. If you don't get much white mail, use the telephone. A couple of dozen conversations
with customers can be quite enlightening and provide you with a good feel for the language they
use. Be sure to make an exact transcription of your customers' conversations without trying to
convert what they say into your own words.
COMPETITORS COPY
It's important to know the environment in which your mailing will be received before writing
begins. To do this, thoroughly review your competitors' copy, including every mailing that will be
competing with your copy.
REVIEW OLD COPY
Although it may hurt the creative egos of some copywriters, there is no need to rewrite copy that
works. No one — at least no one in the audience you want to reach — cares if you repeatedly use
old copy, as long as it fits into the flow of your letter.
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