Johnson Box

Posted on March 24th, 2009 by Larry Chase

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At the top of many direct mail sales letters, you’ll see a succinct paragraph explaining what the offer is. This is called a “Johnson Box” because it is generally acknowledged to have been invented by, though he denied it, the late great Frank Johnson of Time Life.
The upside to a Johnson Box is the reader gets a fast take on what the purpose of the mailing is about… sort of like giving the bottom line at the top line. But it may run the risk of allowing the reader to quickly dismiss the mailing and throw it out without getting enthralled by the body copy of the letter itself.
Still, in this “give-it-to-me-quick” day and age, it amazes me how few online marketers use the Johnson Box in their solo emails, especially when you consider how many recipients use their email program’s preview pane to determine whether to continue with that email or delete it.
In the FYI from Web Digest For Marketers mailings I send out for my advertisers, I find more people click on the link in the Johnson Box than on any other link in the mailing. The second most clicked on link is the one in the PS.
So if you’re sending solo emails out, seriously consider the use of a Johnson Box, and be sure to word that copy succinctly and correctly. LC

The Internet Marketing Tip above originally appeared in Larry Chase's Web Digest For Marketers which you can subscribe to at no charge at www.wdfm.com.