“I specialize in ‘ugly’…The ugly thing in a world of beauty stands out.”
– Gene Schwartz
Speech to Phillips Publishing
Let me tell you a story:
I have a couple of friends who attend our Oceans 4 Masterminds in the weight loss niche who do great emails, write great copy, and have great results. And so, often when they come to us for advice, we are giving them ways to goose up their already big response using things like emails, funnels, copy appeals, headlines, etc.
But, there is one thing they still have to test.
(To my knowledge, anyway.)
Something that I suspect will either make them a bundle, with the rest of their competition (perhaps even the entire industry, if it really does well) copying… or be a huge bust.
(With no real harm done in a simple test).
What is this thing I speak of?
Testing a butt-ugly website.
In the weight loss world, everything is pretty.
Everything is sexy.
Everything is smooth and glossy.
So my advice to them?
Test a super ugly layout… no pictures at all (maybe one before and after), no graphics, no slicked up html, courier font, little or no visual elements at all.
I’m talking 1995 style website.
Pure ugly.
Would make one helluva test.
And, I would not be surprised if it won handily.
Why?
Well, for one, many smart people have tested ugly (like the late great copywriting Gene Schwartz) and conquered with it. And also because, according to the “founding father” of Internet marketing Ken McCarthy (there was a time when only about 5 people sitting around a small table thought you could sell online at all — and he was one of them, and is one of the reasons any of us sell online at all in some ways) has seen hundreds (probably thousands) of examples of ugly winning.
This guy was there in the beginning.
Got most of the late 1990’s gurus started.
And, has seen many a business rise, fall, fail, and succeed.
And you know what?
One of the (many) things he taught in his Titans Of Direct Response talk was how ugly pretty (heh) much always wins.
Anyway, something to think about.
Ken dropped a lot of great gold in his talk.
Including several tips — one can only get by being a student of direct response marketing both online and offline for nearly 3 decades — I’ve been profiting from ever since.
More:
If you buy the Titans DVD’s from my link you get a pile of bonuses worth just shy of $6k retail value (real value, not made up goo-roo value — money people actually have paid for these bonuses).
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(Even the stuff I snail mail to you.)
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1. Crypto Marketing Secrets book
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But, only if you try the DVD’s by using my affiliate link here before Sunday at midnight:
Ben Settle
