Words sell.  The best buyers are readers.

Con artists use words to damage.  So do politicians.  Words used incorrectly can and do kill.  But words used correctly inspire and heal.

An ethical salesletter inspires the reader to act in their own best interest by truthfully and thoroughly answering 5 questions, with no reasons held back or toned down, yet nothing exaggerated or falsified:

– Why This

– Why You

– Why From Us

– Why at This Price

– Why Now

An unethical salesletter answers these with the goal of getting the reader to act against their own interest –OR– falsifies and exaggerates to move users towards action.  (Unethical even if the end is positive because the ends don’t justify the means).  

Armed with a thoroughly articulated verbal argument, one can (and should) consolidate a salesletter’s message using images.  But I’ve never seen this taken to the extreme of a wordless page.  (At least not one that converts)

Even if it could be done, a process of verbal reasoning would still be necessary to reach it.   Because while a picture certainly IS worth 1,000 words, you’ve gotta write those 1,000 words first if you’re going to choose the right picture.

Until people can reason wholly with images, we’ll need “words that sell” and experts who write them.

I think it behooves us to rebel not so much against language, but against the con artists who pervert it. And against them I’ll rage right along your side.

I hope that makes sense 🙂

(Note: I first read the 5 “whys” on Michael Fortin’s blog)