“It’s taken me all my life to learn what not to play.” – John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie, Born Oct. 21, 1917. In persuasion, saying too much is a mistake. You need to say exactly enough, and no more. You want the mark’s memory and imagination and desire to do all the heavy lifting. Because their
Salesmen Know What Copywriters Don’t: When to Shut Up Read More »
“Television has a real problem. They have no page two.” – Art Buchwald, Born Oct. 20, 1925. What Art was talking about is how TV can only give you the page one stuff. Deeper commentary and lengthier coverage, or less prominent stories get passed over. Or a least, they did. That was the nature of
How We Can Provide “Blood” AND “Meat” to Feed Our Hungry Prospects Read More »
“You can’t make experimental work by copying past work.” – Trey Parker, Born Oct. 19, 1969. This is probably a lesson better suited to “advanced” practitioners of the persuasive arts, but it may well be useful to the intrepid beginner among the readers of these words. It’s becoming increasingly important to find and publish as
Copy THEN Experiment With What You’ve Swiped… Read More »
“People just need to be confident in their own skin and be proud of themselves.” – Bristol Palin, Born Oct. 18, 1990. Yeah. That’s right. Malign the source if you must. But wisdom is found in the interpretation… And the fact is, this is every single person that buys any old thing, hoping that thing
The True Face Beneath Every Person’s Public Mask Read More »
“Knowledge is not skill. Knowledge plus ten thousand times is skill.” – Shinichi Suzuki, Born Oct. 17, 1898. If you want to get good at something, study less and practice more. Study is great, don’t get me wrong. But practice is where improvement actually occurs. Discipline creates routine. Routine creates comfort. Comfort creates quality work
The Secret Shortcut To Securing Sublime Skill Read More »
“Obsessed by a fairy tale, we spend our lives searching for a magic door and a lost kingdom of peace.” – Eugene O’Neill, Born Oct. 16, 1888. This quote can give you a lot of insight into the consumer mindset. Let’s break it down. 1. Obsessed. That’s how people feel about the need to acquire
“I just sit at a typewriter and curse a bit.” – P. G. Wodehouse, Born Oct. 15, 1881. Oh, Pelly-boy, that may have cut the mustard back in your time, but these days you have to be a complete artist. Cursing is when you wish ill upon your enemies. As in, I pray to White
An Education in Bad Language for the Beginning Potty-Mouth Read More »
“If you can’t describe what you are doing as a process, you don’t know what you’re doing.” – W. Edwards Deming, Born Oct. 14, 1900. A lot of people who get into copywriting mistake it for other kinds of creative writing. They believe it is all art, and invention, and creative genius. And hey, work
Let Your Processes Become Your Secret Weapon Against the Betrayal of the Fickle Muse Read More »
“I’m not a comedian. And I’m not sick. The world is sick, and I’m the doctor. I’m a surgeon with a scalpel for false values.” – Lenny Bruce, Born Oct. 13, 1925. If you want to enter a market or niche, and you are an unknown, but want to make a big splash – this
The Recipe for Becoming and Instant Upstart in Any Niche Read More »
“I am certainly of opinion that genius can be acquired, or, in the alternative, that it is an almost universal possession.” – Aleister Crowley, Born Oct. 12, 1875. The word “genius” is an odd one. Because it gets thrown around loosely, but also is an intimidating label. Let let me tell you, being thought of
How To Become a Genius Overnight Read More »
