“The Most Important Letter You’ll Ever Read.” Ya right.
Ever read that line in a sales letter? I think it has it’s place. And this isn’t it…
“If you’ve ever wanted to go birdwatching in your backyard, then this is the most important letter you’ll ever read.”
Could anyone possibly believe that birdwatching is the most pressing issue a person has experienced in their ENTIRE life.
Nope, it’s unbelievable. And in copywriting, every time you make a claim you need to back it up. This claim is indefensible here, and even laughable.
In fact, I laughed out loud yesterday watching a TV commercial use the line for a product equally trivial.
As it turns out, “the most important letter you’ll ever read” is often a sign of lazy copywriting. And I know that from my own experience.
The only time to use that line is when it may be true – like for life insurance or identity theft protection. With products like those, it’s not too hard to back up the claim.
Another alternative is to change the line, like Ryan Healy did for the Copywriting Code:
“…then this may be the most profitable letter you ever read.”
Ryan then goes on to back up this claim throughout the letter. That’s doing things right.
Given everyone has swiped this “most important letter you’ll ever read” line from Gary Halbert, it also shows the dangers of blindly swiping…