Many marketers may not realize Merrill Lynch was a company built in part on direct response advertising.
This is the 6,540 word display ad written by copywriter Louis Engel in the 1940’s.
The offer is buried deep in the ad, yet it fetched over 10,000 responses.
In the last few days, I’ve spoken to friends around the globe — many who are marketers — and they’re lamenting over “losing money” in the financial markets.
We marketers should be grateful to be in the best (and most accountable) profession on the planet…producing riches out of thin air…and without the need for the colossal leverage that sent Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch (and potentially A.I.G.) down the tubes.
We can wake up tomorrow morning a run a promotion that can fill our coffers with cold hard cash.
What of the lifelong employees of Lehman who had most of their assets in company stock?
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