I've spent 27 years studying direct mail and sales letter copywriting and I still don't know everything. No one does. I will admit too...you probably know more about your business than I'll probably ever know.

I highly recommend these copyright-free direct mail templates.

One thing I do know though after all these years is how to tell the difference between a valuable direct mail template and a piece of junk scammy crap designed to take people's money. If you get this wrong you end up losing money and wasting time instead of making money.

Don't get me wrong. Knowing how to make money with the power of your pen or keyboard is a great feeling. I love it when a program I put together online or offline starts bringing in the bucks.

I know of no other way to bring in cash so quickly and consistently (short of robbing a bank for millions--and even then direct mail still can make more money -- and legally). That's because direct mail sales total over two trillion dollars annually.

Obviously with numbers like that direct mail works.

You probably already knew that though. Otherwise you wouldn't now be searching for free sales letter examples or free sample sales letters templates.

But you must be careful. Whether you're just getting started at writing direct mail copy or have been at it for years, if you haven't already, you'll probably try free direct mail templates that don't work.

Get burned enough times from freebies that don't work and people become desperate. They jump into the arms of the first set of wonderfully sounding sales letters templates that come along. Then get scammed by promoters of direct mail templates or sales letter samples they claim will work, but don't. But this time for a fee.

I must admit, I have been scammed too.

After all these years of study though I think I (mostly) have gotten it right. That's why I want to give you a sales letter writing formula that works. Every time.

Let me take a moment to explain to you the things you also must do with your sales letter if you want to stop spinning your wheels trying to figure out what works and what doesn't work.

I also want to tell you how to get your hands on direct mail templates plus a unique "insiders guide" to sales letter copywriting success that could literally make you rich. But more on that in a minute.

First, lets talk about what your sales letter template must contain if you want to make money from the words that come spitting out of your computer keys. And discuss what to avoid.

These Little Mistakes Are Costing Companies Billions

• Mistake #1: Sending a single letter and then sitting back crying because the mailing costs exceeded the income earned. The majority of your sales come from mailing multiple messages to each recipient, not just one letter. If you plan on mailing only one letter I suggest not mailing at all. Your profits will likely remain the same. Zero.

• Mistake #2:Sending the letter to the wrong people. My goodness, this is so heavily violated that it should be the Eleventh Commandment: "Though Shall Not Mail to Complete Strangers Who Have NOT Identified Themselves As Having A Connection With You Or A Prior Interest In What You Offer!" Don't waste time mailing to an untargeted list. It won't work.

• Mistake #3:And the Twelfth Commandment: "Though Shall Not Put People To Sleep With A Boring and Passive Sales Message!" -zzzz

How To Pump Out Direct Mail Letters That Sell

After you've eliminated those mistakes from your marketing you must next write content that is compelling and interesting.

Your message must grab your reader by the eyeballs and make it impossible for them to bat an eye for fear of missing something juicy. That's what effective direct mail copy does for you.

So what are the steps in creating content that will keep your readers glued to your sales letter?

Here they are:

• Write compelling content that magnetically attracts readers like sugar water attracts humming birds--it's impossible for them to resist you.
• Use a powerful "hook" throughout your message. All great ads use a hook to set the ad apart from every other message that competes for the attention of the same market. The last thing a sales message should do is sound like every other ad that is out there. When it comes to marketing, sameness will kill your sales.
• Focus your message on benefits to your reader. Remember W.I.I.F.M.
• Use plenty of credibility statements.
• And most of all...

...PREACH TO THE CHOIR!

Communicate your message to people who already want what you're selling. And people who have shown they already believe in what you are selling -- even if they have never heard of you before.

Here's what I mean...

It's easier to preach Jesus to Christians than to atheists. It's easier to persuade Buddhists to follow the ways of Buddha, than to get a Christian to do so.

The same holds true to what you're selling. It is far easier to sell to people who already want what you're selling than to sell to people who must first be convinced of the value of your product or service.

The real secret to sales letter copywriting success is to filter out people who don't have an interest in what you've got... and communicate only to people who do have an interest.

If you are looking for sample sales letters to emulate, Google lists a number of great sales letter samples. I suggest searching through Google for a few templates.

And if you are looking for a classic sales letter layout take a look at this picture.

Discover The Secret For Turning Your Words Into Money

The picture above is a sample sales letter layout for you to review.  It is a classic layout.

Depending on who you are sending your letter to, you may want to turn the headline into an opening sentence. Place the opening sentence right after the salutation. Omit a formal headline. This is especially true when wanting to avoid the mass-mail appearance and make your reader think the letter is sent direct to them alone.

Really, when was the last time one of your friends or family members sent you a letter with a formal headline as in the picture above. That  would look and sound goofy. So if you want people to believe the letter is personal, use the same format as when mailing a friend or family member.

But when you want to make it clear you want the reader to act, use the format as above.

Test which layout works best for you.

After you've formatted your letter into the layout the way you like, double check your work. Make sure your sales letter contains each of these elements, as a foundation for great copy:

• a captivating hook
• an offer
• guarantee
• reason-why
• benefits
• sample direct response headlines and subheads
• use of emotion (this is a big one, especially curiosity and empathy)
• use of  postscripts (P.S.)
• urgency

Those areas are just the beginning to writing a powerful sales letter.

There are hundreds more 'tricks of the trade' that get inside the head of your reader and prevents them from putting down your sale piece until they finish reading it. I'll give you an example in a minute.

But first, double check your direct mail sales letter to see where improvement can be made.

By the way, if any of those copywriting elements sound unfamiliar to you or you need help applying them to your message then I strongly suggest you get your hands on the copywriting 'cheat sheet' templates listed at the bottom of this article.

You'll get a collection of pre-written, copyright free sales letters and templates that you can use in any business -- even if you've flunked out of  third-grade English. That way you never have to worry about writing another sales letter from scratch again.

And what's nice about this is you don't have to spend time studying the mechanics of a good sales letter to get this right. The direct mail templates and copyright free sales letter examples below will instantly give you a strong sales letter that will pull in sales no matter what you are selling.

You'll also learn so much more that. I just don't have the space or time to list it all here.

So if you're serious about making your next direct mail project work you absolutely must add my recommended products to your library. This is a tool I refer to several times a year to make sure I stay fresh and accurate in my writing. And this is despite doing this for a living myself.

The Proof Is In The Pudding...

Hey, do you remember I said, "There are hundreds more 'tricks of the trade' that get inside the head of your reader and prevents them from putting down your sale piece until they finish reading it..." ?

Here's a copywriting secret you probably won't find anywhere available to the general public...

Psychologists point out that the human brain is designed to solve problems. If you give it a situation that is unresolved it will continue until that problem is solved or can be erased or forgotten. It hates cliffhangers.

So if you want someone to keep reading what you have to say you simply tell them something like, "I'll give you an example in a minute. But first..." then you go onto some other subject.

I used three similar 'cliffhangers' in this article.

Did you catch them all?

Did you scroll to the bottom of the page to see if what I hinted at was there?

Or did you keep reading all the way through?

Cliffhangers are designed to make you do that. Use cliffhangers and your readers will be forced to continue reading or skimming until they find what you were holding out from them. Just like you did ;-) 

That's just one way to guarantee your message is read instead of discarded without being reviewed by your reader.

Consider that a free copywriting lesson. To get more "meat" of copywriting I suggest you get the guide below. But heck. You don't have to believe me. You can instead continue surfing for "free sales letter templates" that don't work, or you can cut to the chase and start making money with your words now. Either way it's your choice.

I recommend you grab the copyright-free templates below today.

Yours In Success,