Let others publish — and pay for — your sales literature
October 12th, 2018 by Bob Bly
Back in the day, we referred to all sales materials we published
and distributed to our potential client as “collateral.”
Lots of freelance copywriters and other small businesses take
great pains to write, design, illustrate, and print their sales
brochures — a process that can be both time-consuming and
expensive.
But here’s an easy hack that can get a superior piece of
collateral designed, illustrated, printed, and widely distributed
… without costing you one red cent:
Write an article for a trade journal and use reprints as your
collateral.
Why is this better than distributing a sales brochure?
>> The brochure is to a degree self-serving and all about you,
while the content of the article is useful to your prospect.
>> Material that looks like information (article reprints) gets
higher readership than material that looks like marketing (sales
brochures).
>> The article reprint has the magazine name or logo on it,
implying a third-party endorsement.
>> An article with solid content is often kept for reference,
while many slick sales brochures are quickly round-filed.
Here’s how easy it is to make articles work as collateral:
#1–Make the content pure how-to or other useful information — not
sales talk about your product or service.
#2–Numbering your points makes the article easier to write and
easier to read. Use the number in the article title; e.g. “7 ways
to improve pump performance.”
#3–A 2-page article can be reprinted on both sides of an 8 ½ by
11-inch paper. A 4-page article can be printed in an 11 X 17-inch
paper folded once vertically to form 4 pages.
#4–Make sure yo ur “about the author” box concisely states who
you are, what you do, and gives your contact information
including phone number, email address, and website URL.
#5–Publish the article in the most prestigious or widely read
trade journal in your niche market.
#6–Post the article on your web site and send an email to your
list inviting subscribers to download it.
#7–Retain copyright and “first rights” to your article. That way,
once it appears in the magazine, you have the right to reuse and
recycle it however you wish; for instance, as a chapter in a
book.
#8–Buy reprints from the magazine or make copies yourself and
mail the hard copy with a cover letter to prospects and clients.
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