Steal These Ideas!: Marketing Secrets That Will Make You a Star, 2nd Edition

CHAPTER 17

NO ONE EVER BOUGHT ANYTHING FROM AN ENGLISH PROFESSOR

So do not write like one.

Think of the opening of a promotional letter or e-mail as a headline that needs to grab reluctant readers and draw them in—like the one-line paragraph that opens this chapter. To guarantee readership, a letter, unless it's from the IRS, needs short sentences; very short paragraphs, some just one sentence long; and a ton of white space, which is pleasing to the eye, much like a well-crafted brochure.

As I said in an earlier chapter, salutations get in the way. I suggest you leave them out unless you know the person's name or nickname for sure. “Dear Friend” is just plain dumb—I am not your friend and I don't know you. Dear Reader... Dear Colleague... Dear ...