![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.marketingforsuccess.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/03\/Copywriting2.jpg\" "\\"Copywriting\\"")
last two paragraphs.<\/p>\nIf you owned a restaurant, you\u2019d only be as good as your last meal.\u00a0 If it wasn\u2019t any good, your customer won\u2019t be back.<\/p>\n
If you owned a print shop, you\u2019d only be as good as your last job. Deliver poor printing, or deliver late\u2014you\u2019re outta there. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 In direct mail, you\u2019re only as good as your…last two paragraphs.<\/p>\n
You see, in direct mail, you get less of a shot.<\/p>\n
You can entice your potential customer to open your package with great teaser copy; you can write the most brilliant opening line, then have a compelling set of benefits to keep your reader reading.<\/p>\n
But as soon as your copy becomes dull, boring, stiff\u2014or worse, less interesting\u2014your mail piece will hit the round file faster than you can get gas eating at Denny\u2019s.<\/p>\n
And therein lies the danger of long-copy packages in direct mail.\u00a0 Any time you put together two paragraphs that aren\u2019t crisp, fluid, and fun reading, your readership drops off dramatically\u2014and fast. So does your response, and your income.<\/p>\n
In today\u2019s busy environment, readers simply no longer have time for long passages.\u00a0 Just give me the essence; the Cliffs Notes.\u00a0 Don\u2019t bother me with the long, lurid details, just give me straight-up information in a fast and easy-to-digest form.<\/p>\n
Information is presented in catch phrases and synopses.\u00a0 News\u2014and information\u2014is delivered today in bits and bytes. TV news, the ultimate presenter of hyped stories and trivial information, is delivered in soundbites, in three-second bursts, just like videos on MTV.<\/p>\n
In direct mail, if you can hold a reader\u2019s attention for a couple of minutes, you\u2019re doing much better than average.\u00a0 Five minutes in your package is excellent.\u00a0 And if they look for it, can they find the order form in all the clutter?\u00a0 If they do and they can, you\u2019re probably about 85% of the way home.<\/p>\n
Just keep in mind, the longer your package, the more chances you give your reader to find those two not-quite-up-to-snuff paragraphs, and the faster your mail piece goes from the black \u201cwe made money\u201d to the red \u201cwe lost money\u201d side of your profit and loss statement.<\/p>\n