Dramatic Sales Writing

Closely related to the previous thought
about selling the sizzle not the steak,
is some feedback I was recently given about
a site I'd done.

In July I went to the Persuasion in Print
seminar put on by Kenrick Cleveland along
with Dr. Harlan Kilstein. The first day's
session was with John Carlton.

He did 3 marketing "hot seats" -- and one
was of a guy who sells high-fashion
designed swim wear - bikinis. He had a
large glossy catalog filled with pictures
of extremely beautiful women modeling all
the different bikini designs.

For the rest of the day, John referred to
him as "the pornographer." Even though, by
any conventional definition, his catalog
was NOT pornography. It did NOT contain any
full frontal nudity. Yet, of course, it was
sexually arousing to any heterosexual male.

My critic told me that my sales letters
should be that kind of "pornography." The
trouble with my site, it was full frontal
nudity.

That is, I explained too much. I should have
teased readers, revealed enough bare skin
to demonstrate the models are quite
beautiful, but left on a few strips of cloth
in strategic places.

You'll arouse your prospects more if you
give them hidden "pornography" than full
frontal nudity.

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