A few days ago, I delivered a talk at the UK Marketing Summit 2014, organised by Simon Warner, Michelle O’Callaghan and Richard Fairbairn. As it was the first time I’d ever given this talk, I was a bit worried about the reaction. It turned out better than I’d ever expected: So in a couple of days, I’m running a webinar of the same talk for everyone who couldn’t make it. The talk is all about value, and how you can...
Of cons, commandments and capturing customers
In 1925, a man walked into the Hotel de Crillon, one of the most prestigious hotels in Paris. Five other men entered with him, but this man was the one who was special. This man would buy the Eiffel Tower. His name was Andre Poisson. He’d been invited to the Hotel de Crillon by the deputy-director of the Ministry of Posts and Telegraphs, as a leading scrap metal merchant known for his honesty and discretion. After a short presentation,...
When long copy doesn’t work
Ask any experienced marketer, and they’ll tell you ‘long copy outpulls short every time’. And usually, it does. But there’s a weird double-standard at the moment where the same people who will encourage you to make your copy as long as possible insist that your VSLs should be at most 4 minutes long, because ‘people don’t watch long videos’. And sometimes, ‘long’ copy can be remarkably short. ...
In Which Neil Tells Designers How To Do Their Job
First of all, have a look at this: http://www.nytimes.com/newsgraphics/2013/10/27/south-china-sea/ It’s amazing. It’s using what you can do online to tell a story far more vividly than it would be with simple words and pictures. It uses mapping and detail to draw you in. Tiny scraps picked out with video, pulling you into the report so much you can practically feel the rust and smell the salt. Now, one question: Why the fuck...
Webinar of Awesome: Monday 23rd September, 8PM BST
Here’s the thing: I’d like to get better at speaking. There’s only really one way to do that: practice. And if I can get that practice while I’m helping you make more money on your next launch, so much the better. So on Monday 23rd September at 8PM BST, I’m going to do a webinar. Here’s what will definitely happen: You’ll find out the best way to ensure you get good conversions You’ll...
Marketing luxury
A quick lesson for anyone who wants to charge more: http://www.vertu.com Vertu make luxury smartphones. They probably don’t work better than any other smartphone. They don’t even need to work as well, since most people who buy them aren’t actually going to want a smartphone. But they still cost about £7000, or about 16.5 iPhones. They’re not trying to make a product that’s functionally better. They’re...