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He's referring to those super long letters that are sent out, & they do work. The trick is not just in the copy, but also in the list. A good marketer will choo

He's referring to those super long letters that are sent out, & they do work. The trick is not just in the copy, but also in the list. A good marketer will choose 10 lists or so, each targeting a slightly different demographic. To these lists the marketer will A/B test and see what the conversion rates are. After finding the best conversion rate, the rest of the campaign will go to the list that performs the best. After years and years of iterating through hundreds of demographic segments & lists, different copy/headlines, & even minute details like whether to have a hand-written note inside, whether to have a "P.S." message, whether to use the word "Guarantee" or "No-Risk", etc. (These little details actually make a repeatable difference in conversion rates) After all this, a particular company will know exactly the demographic that buys, exactly the headline that grabs attention, the copy that gets people to keep turning the page, the post-script message that increases conversions, etc. This kind of marketing has been perfected, as the author says. A good direct-mail marketer will get a conversion rate of 5%-10%. There are some books you can read to get at specific numbers of different campaigns... This is one of them http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Everything-You-Can-Youve/dp/0312284543 http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Everything-You-Can-Youve/dp/03....

gnosis 17y ago
Everything you've just said are claims about the effectiveness of direct marketing. They are not proof that it works. It would be nice to see some studies in credible peer-reviewed journals about the efficacy of direct marketing at getting consumers to buy their products. Though, from the quantity of junk mail that I've received, I personally have no doubt as to the efficacy of direct marketers at getting businesses to hire them. But that's a different thing from being effective at getting consumers to buy whatever it is they're selling.
- adammichaelc 17y ago
  Dude, seriously? It's perfectly fine to disagree, but to request a peer-reviewed journal about the efficacy of A/B testing? I don't know, maybe something like that exists, but my hunch is that the only things that get peer-reviewed are new ideas that are unproven and require the tough scrutiny of other smart people who are intimiately familiar with the subject matter. Regarding A/B testing, go try it. Write down 10 different ways to ask out a girl. Go and ask out 10 girls with the first method, 10 with the next, and on down the line measuring the effectiveness of each approach. You'll figure it out. :-)
  - gnosis 17y ago
    And what will my anecdotal experience prove? Anyway, I'm not questioning the effectiveness of "A/B testing". I'm questioning the effectiveness of direct marketing. Two very different things.

gnosis 17y ago

Everything you've just said are claims about the effectiveness of direct marketing. They are not proof that it works. It would be nice to see some studies in credible peer-reviewed journals about the efficacy of direct marketing at getting consumers to buy their products. Though, from the quantity of junk mail that I've received, I personally have no doubt as to the efficacy of direct marketers at getting businesses to hire them. But that's a different thing from being effective at getting consumers to buy whatever it is they're selling.

adammichaelc 17y ago
Dude, seriously? It's perfectly fine to disagree, but to request a peer-reviewed journal about the efficacy of A/B testing? I don't know, maybe something like that exists, but my hunch is that the only things that get peer-reviewed are new ideas that are unproven and require the tough scrutiny of other smart people who are intimiately familiar with the subject matter. Regarding A/B testing, go try it. Write down 10 different ways to ask out a girl. Go and ask out 10 girls with the first method, 10 with the next, and on down the line measuring the effectiveness of each approach. You'll figure it out. :-)
- gnosis 17y ago
  And what will my anecdotal experience prove? Anyway, I'm not questioning the effectiveness of "A/B testing". I'm questioning the effectiveness of direct marketing. Two very different things.