Testing copy concepts is crucial to improving your response. Often what you think will generate a higher response is not always the case.
I have tested hundreds of headlines in search of the highest return. Time and time again, when I speak at conferences and show examples of what I have  tested and ask people to pick the winner, they choose the one that generated the lower response.
Test: We tested two magalog covers for our clients (click here for a video briefing on magalogs) Both covers targeted men and women age 60 years and older, and both covers promised prevention methods and remedies for arthritis, back pain, stroke, and heart attack.
Cover A read: “Do you have any of the illnesses that these stars had?”
Cover B: “Discover the amazing health secrets of today’s ‘over 60’ Hollywood stars …”
Take a minute to guess which cover generated the highest response.
Result: If you guessed Cover A, you are right! It was the winner by 39%.
This is unusual because typically questions within the headline copy do not do well. But in this case, the question was very powerful and created a great deal of curiosity. The other cover, which specifically called out to people age 60 and older—the target audience—was not compelling enough to beat out Cover A.
If you have any questions or would like help creating and/or testing any of your direct mail pieces, call me at (310) 21-5727 or email at [email protected]