A few days ago, I watched Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone for the first time.
Odds are, you know all about Harry Potter.
But just in case, let me summarize the first 20 minutes of the movie for you:
Harry is an unloved and unlovable dork. He’s 12 years old and the most distinctive features about him are his John Lennon glasses and his Ringo Starr haircut. In other words, this kid ain’t going nowhere.
And then he gets a letter in the mail.
“You are a wizard, Harry Potter”
Within a whirlwind few days, Harry suddenly comes into talent, money, connections, plus he’s famous and good at sports. Oh — and he gets to wear some snazzy black robes.
So what’s the lesson hiding under all this?
Well, this Harry Potter fantasy is the human condition.
We are all unloved and unlovable in different ways.
We trudge on through life, smiling and putting on a brave face. But deep down, we all keep a bit of hope that we too will get a letter in the mail saying:
“All your problems have been solved, starting NOW! By a magical accident, you are now beautiful and talented and admired and by the way all your money problems have been solved from here to eternity!”
Admit it.
That would be a sweet letter to get, if you could at all believe that it’s true.
Trouble is, Hogwarts is full up for the year.
And probably next year too.
And that’s where direct marketers come in.
Because the best direct marketers will send you just such a letter, promising to take away your biggest problems, starting now — and in a perfectly quick and easy way.
So if you’re trying to sell something, think of poor bespectacled Harry Potter living under the dusty stairs in his aunt’s house, and imagine him receiving your sales pitch.
Will it transform the little dweeb into a magical wizard overnight?
Will it get him excited enough to scrape together his meager allowance so he can send for your “From Weirdo to Wizard” course?
Because if not, you’ve got some work to do, fashioning a better offer or some better marketing.
I can’t help with the offer. But if you want help with the marketing, then I’ve got a quick and easy solution for you: