the categorical imperative - Internet Opportunity News

The
Categorical
Imperative
By Owen Patton
Published by:
American Writers & Artists Inc.
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The Categorical Imperative
By Owen Patton
Many years ago, when my son was just a toddler, I
discovered that his little mind was (forgive the cliché) a
sponge. He sat in my lap as I read to him and, before long,
he had memorized a surprising number of his favorite books.
Verbatim.
Being an insufferably proud parent, I developed this into
a party trick. I would read the first word or two of a sentence
and he would repeat the rest from memory. I ran my finger
along under the words for good effect. If you didn’t know
better, you’d swear the two-year-old was reading without as
much as a stumble or hesitation. His grandparents couldn’t get
enough of this. Everyone else was more quickly satisfied.
The point of this story is that all of us have a built-in
mechanism that automatically attempts to pair up new
information with information already stored in our brain. It’s
remarkable. It only takes a few bits of recognized data for us
to fill in all the remaining blanks with information stored
earlier.
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Once we’ve made the connection, we’re off to the races. For
better or worse, we’ve made an association between what we
think we’ve heard or seen and something else already in our
brain.
What is the Categorical Imperative?
This timesaving
device is called the
categorical imperative.
Originally described
by the philosopher
Immanuel Kant,
it’s the tendency of
the human mind to
process information
by identifying — if and
when it can — patterns
of information it has
encountered before.
By recognizing
something that looks like
something else already
processed, the mind can merely put the new information into
a category without processing it further. It’s a mechanism that
helps us deal with an information overload and get on to the
next issue.
Bill Bonner, the founder and president of Agora Publishing,
has applied Kant’s idea to writing copy. He recognized that
copywriters have to work against this phenomenon every day.
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Bill wondered, how can writers prevent their readers from
dismissing copy as something they’ve “seen before”?
For example:
Oh, this is another song about an unfaithful
husband. I’ve heard plenty just like this and I
don’t need to hear another.
or
This phone call is another pitch to change my long
distance service. Why can’t they leave me alone?
I’m hanging up on this guy.
or
I can tell from the envelope that it’s another
MasterCard solicitation and I’ve already made up
my mind I have zero interest in another credit
card.
In all these examples, not only is the reader making an
association with something already known, but it’s a negative
association.
Creating and using categories to process information is an
efficient way to organize one’s thinking. But this natural human
tendency creates a challenge for the copywriter. If your copy
looks like something the prospect has already read, it’s going
to work against you. If he’s already rejected a similar looking
offer, he doesn’t need to review the particulars of his earlier
decision; he can fast-forward to the end result — rejection. In
other words, he already knows why it’s not for him.
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If, on the other hand, he’s seen and responded to a similar
offer, there’s a chance he might decide, “Oh. I already have
one of those. I don’t need another.”
The prime objective of your first sentence is to get the
prospect to read the second sentence. And the prime objective
of your second sentence is to get the prospect to read the
third. Involve the prospect long enough and you’ll have him
hooked. If he’s stayed with it this long, you’ve done something
right and you’ve avoided triggering a negative association.
But if your first sentence reminds the prospect of anything
he’s already seen, chances are you won’t have his attention for
long.
The secret for countering the categorical imperative is
not to write a lead that reveals exactly where you’re headed.
Say something that piques the interest of the prospect, even
something contrary to what he might expect. But don’t say
anything that allows him to categorize it as something old.
Don’t be predictable.
Example: A radio ad begins “DON’T buy furniture
➤
today” It’s not what you expect to hear, it gets
your attention, then it makes a logical transition
to the offer (you are told not to buy furniture until
you check out the company’s sale weekend.)
The “Don’t buy furniture today” lead seems to be headed in
exactly the wrong direction from what the listener expects. He
is intrigued by an ad that warns him not to buy and he’ll listen
long enough to understand what’s going on.
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Defeating the Categorical Imperative
Using Indirection
The categorical imperative is the problem and indirection, in
its several forms, is the solution. So what is “indirection”?
To use a military analogy, indirection is like a flanking
maneuver and the direct approach is like a frontal assault.
Both methods of attack have been successful, but you’re likely
to make greater progress without being discovered with the
flanking (indirect) maneuver.
indirect
flanking
VS
direct
frontal assault
(attack on
the sides)
The categorical imperative is the major reason to practice
the techniques of indirection. What we want to do is to
direct the prospect’s thought process in such a way that
he’s uncertain where he’s being led. Using the 6 types of
indirection, you can:
➊
Paint an image in your reader’s mind that shows
him all the benefits he can enjoy.
Example: Bill Bonner’s famous “You look out your
➤ window,
past your gardener, who is busily pruning
the lemon, cherry and fig trees…” promotion for
International Living. Bill has decided he wants to evoke
certain thoughts and feelings in the reader in order
gain his attention. He doesn’t want to initially admit
that he’s selling a newsletter.
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➋
Ask the reader a question or make a statement
that challenges him on a subject related to your
product or service.
Example: “This invitation isn’t for deadbeats, rip➤ off
artists or ‘gentlemen’ who hate to get their hands
dirty.” It’s from Popular Mechanics promotion of the
Do-It-Yourself Encyclopedia. Here the copywriter
wants to align himself with the emotions of the target
audience before he lets them know that he’s selling a
do-it-yourself encyclopedia.
➌
Raise a threat or warning that begs for a solution
(provided by your product or service).
Example: “Your wealth is in imminent danger” from
➤
the Swiss Money Strategies promotional insert. This
gets the reader’s attention by evoking a whole range of
fears. He can’t know from the headline, “Swiss Money
Strategies,” quite what the copywriter is selling. It’s
generally something financial, but what?
➍
Make a surprising or alarming prediction that
leads to your big promise.
Example: “A bank run like no other will hit every
➤ major
bank on earth in 2009. A worldwide panic is now
inevitable…” Your prediction of catastrophe forces the
prospect to read on to learn what the solution might
be.
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➎
Share a new piece of information, which will
benefit the reader.
Example: “This may be the most startling health news
➤ you
have ever heard…” In order to know if it is the
most startling health news she’s ever heard (a pretty
bold claim), the prospect has to read on.
➏
Debunk a myth with evidence that demands the
reader’s attention.
Example: “Conventional wisdom: You can’t push an
➤ insurance
company when it comes to collecting money.
Wrong! Here are two proven ways to get your check
within days.” By contradicting what most people think
is true, you force them to listen to your “proof.”
When the Direct Approach Works
The direct approach works well when the product you’re
selling has such a strong promise that it stops the prospects in
their tracks:
“Lose 50 Pounds in One Month Eating
➤ Example:
Everything You Like — Guaranteed “
That’s a remarkable promise that’s bound to grab the
attention of every severely over-weight person who reads it. If
they’re dieters, they’ve got to be interested. No need to beat
around the bush. If what you’re offering could really work, it
would be an answer to their prayers.
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This direct lead
guarantees that your
reader knows exactly
what you’re selling. In this
instance, you are letting
the categorical imperative
work in your favor. The
mention of weight loss
brings up all the linked
messages about overweight
and slender people, the
difficulty of losing weight,
the desirability of being
thin, etc.
Not Limited to the Lead
An indirect lead can keep the prospect reading beyond
the first sentence and into the second, third or fourth. But it
doesn’t have to end there.
Indirection can be used throughout the sales letter to keep
the reader’s interest. Take the Ken Roberts Company letter
from AWAI’s book, Direct Mail Hall of Fame.
It appears the copywriter made the decision to avoid any
use of the word “commodities” for fear it would be an instant
turn-off.
And in a bookalog for the same program, the copywriter
doesn’t get around to telling you that his course and manual
have to do with commodities trading for at least the first ten
pages of copy. If you are still reading on page 13 — where the
word “commodity” first appears — chances are the word won’t,
by itself, cause you to put the book down.
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Indirection All the Way to the Close
Finally, the false close is another example of how indirection
can be used late in the sales letter. The copywriter has made
all the big promises and has backed them up with ample proof.
So the prospect can feel the momentum building for the close…
but a good writer doesn’t want to take him there just yet.
Why? Because the prospect is expecting the close and may be
getting set to say no.
Instead, the writer backs off and tells another little story to
interrupt the rhythm and to increase his credibility. What he’s
doing is maintaining the prospect’s interest while providing some
additional proof or reiterating the promise. And he’s keeping
the reader just a little off balance. By doing so, he’s keeping the
prospect’s attention all the way to the end of the letter.
Michael Masterson calls this technique “the False Close.”
Your reader is prepared for your sales pitch. But instead of
taking your copy where he expects, you throw the prospect
off balance with a little indirection. This helps soften his sales
resistance for your real close, which isn’t where he expected.
Exercises:
The following three letters have direct headlines or direct
leads. Use any of the 6 types of indirection to make them into
indirect headlines or leads:
From the Direct Mail Hall of Fame
Newsweek Letter following here on page 10.
American Express Letter following here on page 12.
Easton Press Letter following here on page 14.
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