Imagine selling up to 500 books from a single insertion of a 1/16th page space ad.
That’s exactly what mail order copywriter, Lyman Wood, did time and again from his backwoods advertising empire in Vermont. Sure, having an office in a New York high rise, like Paul Michael, sounds sexier, but the beauty of this business is the same today as it was then — lower overhead equals higher net profits.
There’s a little known, great read about Lyman Wood and his company called “What a Way to Live and Make a Living.” The book analyzes many winning ads and Wood explains the advertising philosophy that made them successful.
Click on the thumbnail to the left for an 864 KB PDF of this amazingly economical ad to save to your swipe file.
That’s a great opening headline on the ad!
Do you know when this ad was written? Because I wonder what the equivalent of $1 per book or $500 total sales is in today’s money.
I’ve never thought of selling via a standard print ad but I might now. The only problem is the high cost of placing an ad, typically several hundred dollars.
Risking money up front is something that many online marketers are not used to but I also have experience of it paying off and you do get great visibility.
The ad ran in the early 1950’s and $500 then is equivalent to $3,900, inflation adjusted today.
Understand this ad was one sixteenth of a page.
Infinitesimal and commensurately cheap, yet it converted like gangbusters.
True, a lot of “Internet marketers” are averse to risking dollars on space. Ultimately, you are a “marketer” and may be wasting valuable time if you don’t enter the print arena with an appropriate offer.
You know you never pay the quoted rate for space, right?
Best,
Lawrence
Yes I learned this the hard way. That the initial rate quoted can often be bargained hard down to a quarter or even less!
I realised this at a later date when the magazine was phoning me to get an ad in the day of the publication deadline.
I told them it wouldn’t be profitable unless I had it for a quarter of the price and they didn’t even hesitate!
By the way folks, READ THAT BOOK. Stories and advice from the trenches of a true-blue mail order man.
I know you’ve got a lot on your plate, but it’s well worth the time.