#2 on my list of 10 ideas to simplify your marketing is “Don’t use big words when small words will do.”
In the three minute video below, direct marketing copywriting guru Herschell Gordon Lewis attacks an undecipherable email, then shares how Mary Had a Little Lamb would have turned out had the email author written it.
I’m sure you are wondering what “The Godfather of Gore” has to do with this. Well, this is really a second career for Lewis. Here’s the first paragraph of his Wikipedia profile:
Herschell Gordon Lewis (born 15 June 1929, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.) is an American filmmaker, best known for creating the “splatter film” subgenre of horror. He is often called the “Godfather of Gore”, though his film career included works in a range of exploitation film genres including juvenile delinquent films, rural-themed comedies, nudie-cuties and even two children’s films.
Doh!
Proof positive that great ideas are all around us, sometimes from the people we’d least expect.
So, what’s the strangest place you’ve ever received a great piece of marketing advice?
Comment below to weigh in.
Inspiration from the this post came from Shel Horowitz at Principled Profit. Thanks, Shel!
“Short words are best. And the old words, when short, are best of all.” Advice from another man with more than one career – Winston Churchill.