zaza interesting facts

Let's take Interesting Fact #31, the one about
the guy inventing the microwave oven after his candy bar
melted when he walked by a radar tube. Obviously, that caused
him to have an "aha" experience which led to the
invention and sales of tens of millions of microwave ovens.
Today, I read something in the news and it gave me an
"aha" experience: A recent survey shows the number
one reason people purchase a camcorder is the birth of a new
child. It seems to me that nugget of information would open
all sorts of possibilities for people who sell camcorders.
First, they could get a mailing list of mothers-to-be or
brand-new mothers who recently gave birth to their babies.
They could solicit these specific mothers by direct mail with
an enticing reason to buy a camcorder from them.

Another possibility, is running headlines of
this nature: "K-Mart
Offers 50% Discount On Sony Camcorders To All Women Who Are
More Than Seven Months Pregnant."

Or, perhaps, a certain camcorder could be
"positioned" as a "baby cam" specifically
designed to record the adventures and events which occur as
your new child's life unfolds.

One thing I failed to emphasize when I wrote
so many copywriting "lessons" recently is... how
important it is to make your sales message interesting and
thought-provoking.

Let's take another look at those 35
Interesting Facts and see if there is any way we can use them
to start a sales letter or an ad that would capture a reader's
interest... and... allow us to smoothly segue into our main
selling message.

By the way, if you are not familiar with the
word "segue" here is the dictionary definition, "to move smoothly and unhesitatingly from one state, condition,
situation or element to another." For our purposes, a
segue is simply a slick way of capturing someone's attention
which makes it possible for us to make a logical and seamless
transition to the really important message (why they should
buy something from us).

Shall we begin with Interesting Fact #3?
That's the one that says, "There are 293 ways to make
change for a dollar." We could put up a big sign in a
retail store and have a contest to see who would be the first
of our prospects or customers to come up with all 293 ways
listed on a piece of paper. The winner would get something
valuable, like a big screen, high-definition television set.
Then, the "losers" would all get a letter telling
them they didn't win the contest (but telling them who did)
and also informing them they have won a valuable second place
prize. Perhaps that valuable second place prize could be a
drastic reduction in the price of the television they were
competing for, justified by all the time and effort they put
into the contest. Perhaps the prize could be a waiver of any
down payment necessary for them to purchase the T.V. Whatever.