Commonsense Direct Marketing [Hardcover]

Drayton Bird (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1994

In an updated edition of this acclaimed volume, international direct marketing expert Drayton Bird shares the secrets of direct mail success and offers the insights that only three decades of experience can provide. Packed with examples and illustrations from dozens of companies around the world, the author shows how to:

- Get and keep customers

- Create sales packages and offers that sell

- Select the right products and services for a direct marketing campaign

- Track and evaluate results

In his readable and witty style, Drayton Bird offers a practical yet entertaining guide to the intricacies of direct marketing.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Everything the testimonials say and a bargain at any price." - -- Robert Heller, Editor in Chief, "Finance"

"If you can spare the time to read only one direct mail book - this is it. Beg, borrow or steal it." -- Graeme McCorkell, Founder MSW Rapp & Collins

"Read it and re-read it. It contains the knowledge of a lifetime." -- David Ogilvy

"So clear and concise that selective quotations fail to do justice to the richness of its texture. Read it." -- Campaign --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Drayton Bird has over 45 years of experience at Ogilvy and Mather Direct, the world's largest direct-marketing network. Today he is Chairman of The Drayton Bird Partnership, which handles direct marketing and other marketing activities for clients both large and small. He is also the author of How to Write Sales Letters that Sell.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 373 pages
• Publisher: Ntc Business Books; 3 Sub edition (November 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0844235431
• ISBN-13: 978-0844235431
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,663,690 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is it! Everything you need to know about the business, July 22, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Commonsense Direct Marketing (Hardcover)

This book contains all of the information you need to know about direct marketing. It puts aside the myth regarding the 1-2% return on mailings. I had no idea that a 50% return was possible! The book is full of proven advice and tips; planning, list selection, the offer, pricing...it goes on and on. Reading it from cover to cover gave me the information necessary to execute my own mailing which cost me less than $200 but reaped close to $100,000. Read it!

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A remarkable overview of the direct marketing business, May 22, 2008

By 

Loren Woirhaye "Direct Response copywriting ... (Easthampton, Massachusetts - Los Angeles, California) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Commonsense Direct & Digital Marketing (Paperback)

I own an earlier edition of this book, written before
the internet stuff was added.

Still, Drayton Bird is a fine writer and he explains
things lucidly and he has hella' experience and knows
of that which he writes.

He has a good sense of humor. Sort of droll.

No book can cover it all, but this one does a good job
of touching on major points any direct marketer should
really get a grasp of.

It isn't until about half-way through that Bird gets into
Copywriting but he covers a lot of ground quickly in this
area. If you write copy you SHOULD read a lot of books
and read a lot of copy - one book doesn't do it.

It's not obvious to everyone but there are some "copywriters"
out there that don't actually know marketing very well.
They are best avoided if you are paying for copy, and this
book will help you a lot if you are thinking of writing
your own copy or thinking of hiring somebody to do it for you.

Favorite quote (of many):

"If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys"

Funny guy, that Bird.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Timeless Wisdom From a Master, August 3, 2010

By 

Mark (Perth, Western Australia) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Commonsense Direct & Digital Marketing (Paperback)

IF you know about Drayton Bird, then you know he's a bit of a legend. If you don't know about him, well then what are you doing in marketing/advertising?

But seriously, this book is a goldmine of marketing ideas and advice that are designed to get results.

If results matter to you, then get this book.

If you want fancy marketing and branding theory, then this is not for you.

It's a big book packed with tips on what to do and how to do it.

All delivered in Bird's irascible and highly amusing style.

As the name implies, it's about direct marketing. In other words the hard nosed approach towards getting the sale and the profit.

It should be required reading for all marketers and advertisers, but sadly it isn't.

That makes it a secret weapon for those of us in the know.