How To Make Your Own German-Style Lager Beer For Only 12 Cents A Bottle!

Bud Weckesser was easily one of the most versatile direct response copywriters of all time — equally gifted at writing ads in biz-op, weight loss, self-publishing or how to reports like: “How To Make Your Own German-Style Lager Beer For Only 12 Cents A Bottle!”

Unlike a lot of his colleagues, he never set foot in an ad agency.

He was a professor at Penn State Behrend, Kent State University and Purdue University and received his doctorate in speech communication from Michigan State University in 1963.

After he was bitten by the mail order bug, he quickly became one of the most visible print advertisers in the States.

His specialties were:

• Using numerous detailed case studies, which served as strong proof elements
• Offering a test to the reader as a hook to delve into the body copy
• Including his phone number near the top of an ad to overcome mail order skittishness. Here is an example from his 1977 ad, “The $220,000 Man.” “We belong to the Dunkirk Chamber of Commerce. Our telephone number is 716-555-8300. We’re there from 9-5 on weekdays.”

This ad of Professor Weckesser’s is another one of my favorites. It sold over one million copies of a $12.95 book through print advertising sans back end.