Anatomy of how to turn dead sales copy into a 10-year control
Published: Thu, 03/07/19
I used to believe without question the old adage "you can't turn chicken pewp into chicken salad" - but, she pulled it off by flipping a dead-on-arrival ad into a 10-year control, and it's quite the story.
Here goes...
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elBENBO: Who are you and what makes you qualified to talk about copywriting?
Kim Krause Schwalm: I’ve been a freelance copywriter for more than 20 years, most of that time racking up control after control in the highly competitive long-form copy arena working with the top direct response publishers, supplement companies, and health leaders.
Before I walked out of my $100k a year job back in 1998 to go freelance, I was a marketing executive with Phillips Publishing for six years during a time when this fast-growing company more than doubled its sales. During that time, I helped launch and run a nutritional supplement subsidiary called Healthy Directions (I came up with the name)—and with the help of my team grew it to more than $23 million in annual sales within the first 3 years.
While at Phillips, I also was a Publisher in a division that produced Jay Abraham’s and Dennis Waitley’s newsletters for small businesses and entrepreneurs, and I also worked with Toby Smith on the investment newsletter side. So I got great exposure to a number of key niches and earned a reputation as a “business builder”.
I also was a marketer who knew how to write copy, which was very much valued at Phillips. The company worked with now-legendary copywriters back then, like Gary Bencivenga, Jim Rutz, Clayton Makepeace (still going strong), and others.
As a marketer who wrote copy and also worked with copywriters like Parris Lampropoulus and David Deutsch back when they were up-and-comers (and I was the client), I gained a great deal of perspective of how to write successful copy in the most competitive markets.
It’s now been more than 20 years since I walked out of those hallowed doors of Phillips Publishing. I’ve written dozens of controls since then…have gone up against—and beat—some of the most respected copywriters in the business, such as the late Jim Rutz…and I became the first female copywriter to get a Boardroom control when I beat Parris Lampropoulus’ “unbeatable” 7-year control for Tax Hotline.
I continue to work with the top direct response companies but have also created some of my own training programs to share my hard-won knowledge and experience.
elBENBO: Tell us the story of how you broke in to the big mailers and your first big control was.
Kim Krause Schwalm: Before I ever got a shot at writing an actual magalog, I wrote all kinds of shorter, flat-fee copy. I paid my dues. And it paid the bills. I had one client I was working with who was a small health publisher. He hired me to help him rework some of his direct mail letters that he'd written himself.
(His name was Dr. Batmanghelidj, or "Dr. B." for short. He had an extraordinary life story and mission; unfortunately, he passed away several years ago.)
After working on a few rounds of reworked sales letters and helping him improve his results, I suggested to Dr. B that he try testing a magalog. And that he hire me to write it.
Now, I'd never written a magalog before...but I'd been around them a lot when I worked at Phillips Publishing.
And at this early point in my freelance copywriting career, I was on every mailing list I could get on. I was reading and studying and analyzing and soaking up magalog swipes day after day... figuring out the techniques that were used and just dying to apply them myself--once I got my big break.
Amazingly, even though I had no samples under my belt, Dr. B decided to take a chance. Granted, I only charged him a small flat fee. I was determined to do a good job. And I was determined to get that sample I could use to get other clients.
I put my all into writing this promo. Now, of course, when I look at it, I see all kinds of things I'd improve. But honestly, it's not THAT bad. And if I recall correctly, Dr. B. was happy with the results...it may have even become his control for a while.
I didn't earn one single penny in royalties from this promo. But I did get my sample.
I now had an actual magalog sample that had mailed and been proven to work. THAT was worth a lot.
So when that next prospective client called and asked if I had any magalog samples, I was able to show him this.
That precious sample not only got me in the door, it allowed me to negotiate a copywriting fee that was three times what I had charged for my first magalog. Plus, it would pay me royalties if it became the control.
Finally, after more than two arduous years of freelancing, I was going to be a royalty copywriter.
But...wait. Damn...
Things don't always go as planned, do they?
The client loved the copy platform idea, so I ran with it.
I gathered all my research...interviewed the doctor behind the product...and wrote what I felt was sizzling sales copy.
The client printed it and sent it out.
Guess what happened next?
It tanked.
My client was still talking to me afterwards, thankfully. (Actually, he approved it and agreed to print and mail it, so he was partly on the hook.)
We put our heads together to try to figure out what went wrong. We even got on the phone with another copywriter I knew to get a second opinion.
It was then that this copywriter suggested we'd been way too general with what this supplement could do. It could do everything...but what was working then (and pretty much always works) is to focus on solving one specific problem.
I went back to the drawing board and came up with a big "A-ha!" This nutrient had several studies supporting joint health claims, and the doctor behind it had his own story about using it to cure his knee pain. Oh, and it helped that he was a sports MD and had worked with Olympic athletes.
So we would reposition the supplement as a joint health supplement!
My client was as excited about my new idea as I was...and even paid me an additional partial copy fee to do a complete reworking of the promo.
The result? A complete "do-over" and revamped positioning (even the product name changed) that led to a super-successful control promo...
This tabloid-sized magalog promo mailed to millions of names (I don't have a complete total). It ended up mailing as a control for 10+ years.
(We tested different formats and headlines over the years, but most of the original promo copy continued to be used during that time period).
So I was able to turn my "total flop" into a 10-year-control...and become a royalty copywriter at last. (And even though my royalty rate then was lower than what I charge now, it earned me at least a few hundred thousand dollars on top of my copywriting fee.)
As it turns out, there's a bit of a pattern here. That wasn't the only time early in my copywriting career that I flopped right out of the gate.
Luckily, my client--just like the one I told you about earlier--gave me a second chance.
And that second chance is what helped put me on the map as a copywriter...and I never had to worry about getting booked up with clients again.
I mentioned before that when I was first starting out 20 years ago, I took all kinds of copywriting jobs. Mostly short-form, like 4-page inserts, subscription renewal and back-end mailings, and emails (yes, emails! We actually had those back then, too...)
I knew I had to work my way up the "copywriting ladder" if I wanted to write long-form promos with royalty potential and play in the big leagues.
So when one of my former Phillips Publishing colleagues referred me to a financial publishing company, I eagerly accepted any and all projects that came my way.
(Note: Even though I had primarily established myself in the health and supplement niche, it was way too early to niche myself. Had I done so, I would have severely and needlessly limited my options...and I've found getting experience writing for a wide variety of products invaluable.)
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And so ends part one of my interview with Kim Krause Schwalm.
I have also made a deal with her this weekend for anyone wanting to get well over $2,000 worth of her products, swipe file ads, and other material at a gigantic discount. Plus, if you take advantage of it before the Sunday night at midnight (EST) deadline, I will also send the following to your door step:
1. “Copy Slacker 2.0” book:
This 800+ page physical book is my newly updated and “augmented” Copy Slacker system I will be re-launching (it is not for sale yet) to the public in May. After it is launched, it will retail for $724.00.
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2. “Email Client Horde” book:
And this is the newly updated and augmented version of my “Email Client Machine” product, slimmed down into a 293-page book that shows how even new copywriters can get a horde of hungry clients descending upon you, demanding to hire you.
It won’t launch until probably June to the public.
And, after it does, it will retail for $610.00.
But, like Copy Slacker, you can get it free by hopping on the offer at my affiliate link below before Sunday at midnight EST.
That’s $1,334.00 worth of "for real" retail value shipped to your doorstep.
(NOTE: These bonuses are *physical* books, no digital components exist.)
For buying well over $2,000.00 worth of one of the top A-list copywriter on the planet’s best teachings at over half off that price.
Here’s my affiliate link where you can get all this lovin’:
http://www.EmailPlayers.com/kim
Ben Settle
P.S. If your shipping address is different than your billing address (Kim's shopping cart only asks for billing, since it's a digital product), let Kim know after you buy so she can get me the correct info to get the bonus books to you.
Simply reply to her "thank you" email what your shipping is.