SALESPEOPLE HAVE LONG KNOWN THE EFFECTIVENESS OF DEMONSTRATION

from Bob Bly via Gary North

The reason I think it is so strong is that the commercial masterfully employs one of the most powerful -- and also one of the most neglected -- copywriting persuasion techniques:

Demonstration.

Direct marketers as well as salespeople have long known the effectiveness of demonstration.

Yet so many copywriters today strangely neglect it.

But Flex Tape makes full use of the tactic with one of the most dramatic, attention-getting, and convincing demonstrations I have seen in recent memory.

The TV pitchman cuts a small metal boat in half with a power saw, tapes it together with Flex Tape, and then takes it out on the lake for a ride.

He points out, and you can clearly see, that the interior of the boat is completely dry!

Obviously, he must be confident in the tape's ability to stick even when wet.

There's a lot of other good stuff in the spot I want to call your attention to as you view it:

There are multiple smaller demos packed into the 2-minute spot such as patching a leaking roof in the rain and instantly fixing a broken pipe.

The pitchman is sincere and enthusiastic without, at least IMHO, being over-the-top, irritating, or grating, as some are.

Quick descriptive phrases convey a lot of features and benefits; e.g., "super-wide," "triple-thick."

He implies the tape is equivalent to a weld without violating the law, saying it "virtually welds" as he slaps it over the hole in a water tank, immediately sealing it.

Now, as persuasive as the Flex Tape spot is, notice what it is NOT:

It's not clever, creative, funny, or entertaining -- as it would be if the typical Madison Avenue ad agency had produced the commercial.

It just sells.

So you can be pretty sure it was written, produced, and approved by a direct marketer who counts sales, not creative awards, as the indicator of a job well done.

Sincerely,

Bob Bly
Copywriter / Consultant 
31 Cheyenne Dr. 
Montville, NJ 07045 
Phone 973-263-0562 
Fax 973-263-0613
www.bly.com