![]() ![]() ![]() The second thing this suggests is that the letter was sent by a real person, not a company. The quickest way to encourage trust is via transparency. This is more important in the Internet age where emails and websites can be opaque and anonymous. For the recipient, even though they have no intention of actually picking up the phone, it’s very comforting to know they can reach you. Right off the bat, when you open this letter, you know how to get in touch with the sender. There was nothing to indicate that this was anything other than a personal letter. This had the address printed directly on the envelope using a font which gave the impression it was typewritten. There was nothing to give the recipient a reason to file it in the round filing cabinet.įinally, many direct mail pieces affix the address with a self-adhesive label typical of mass-mailings. ![]() Secondly, while many direct mail pieces of the time had teaser copy on the outside of the envelope, this had none. The kind of nondescript envelope you might use to send a letter to a friend. This tactic was implemented in three parts.įirstly, the letter was delivered in quality, plain white envelopes. The second stealth technique was the envelope. While this stealth approach did not lower the recipient's defenses it was one more tactic to ensure they wouldn’t be raised. To do this he had the letters delivered from the printer in Illinois by truck to the Ohio, Bath post office where they could receive the local post mark. To perpetuate the illusion that this was a personal letter and not the commercial pitch it really was, Halbert wanted the postmark to reflect the return address of Bath, Ohio where they had hired a house to act as their ‘office’. Just as important was the postmark – that official mark stamped on a letter giving the place, date, and time of posting. In far too many documented cases, postal staff simply dumped postage which screamed junk mail hoping the sender and recipient would be none the wiser. Many other direct mail marketers thought they’d save money by using bulk rate mail or franking. To address the first, Gary used real, honest-to-goodness first class stamps. Halbert used several stealth techniques to address these obstacles. The next hurdle is then getting it opened (let alone read). The first obstacle in any direct mail campaign is simply getting your letter delivered. Their application may now vary, but the principles are timeless. These techniques and the lessons they provide are just as valuable and applicable in the Internet age. Rather than a lesson in slick salesmanship, the coat-of-arms letter is a striking – and rare – example of the effective use of hidden and subtle psychological persuaders. They hired 40 staff simply to help process their bank deposits. No detail which may raise an eyebrow was unattended to.Īt their peak they were mailing nigh on one million letters a week and taking in around 20,000 orders a day. For example, the letters were trucked from the offset printer in Illinois to Bath, Ohio so the letters’ postmark matched the sending address. Gary went to extraordinary lengths to maintain the façade. In a world of commercial bombardment, the letter was designed from the outset to fly stealthily under the junk mail radar and be perceived as a personal letter from his then wife, Nancy Halbert. Suffice to say, there’s a few lessons in this direct mail campaign for all of us.
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