Humor in Direct Response
Posted on September 4th, 2008 by Larry Chase
It isn’t a good idea to use humor in your direct response copy, unless you’re selling DVDs of Seinfeld, maybe. There’s plenty of humor in branding copy. But that’s meant to entertain while direct copy is meant to sell… and selling is serious business.
Maybe that’s because asking people to part with their money is no laughing matter. Most DM copywriters look at humor as a diversion away from the serious business at hand. On the other hand, if you’ve used humor and have gotten good results, tell me about it. Nothing trumps DM rules like experience. LC
The Internet Marketing Tip above originally appeared in Larry Chase's Web
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Maybe not humor but playfulness has worked well for me on OEs in particular. E.g., a credit card up-sell letter to existing customers to get them to upgrade to a business card with the line, “you’re about to be as giddy as a kid in a candy store.” Plus it didn’t have the offer on the OE. Beat out all other cells. Then tested against other versions incl w/offer and w/o line. Still won. Became the control for at least 4 years.