September 20, 2001 | Read Time: 1 minute
Million Dollar Mailings: The Art and Science of Creating Money-Making Direct Mail
by Denison Hatch
First published in 1993, this practical book with examples of successful direct-mail packages has been updated with new letters, a discussion of the impact of the Internet, and a history of the “magalog,” direct mail that combines magazine and catalog formats with a fund-raising pitch.
Denison Hatch, founder and editor of Who’s Mailing What, features direct-mail letters that consistently succeeded in attracting donations to the sponsoring organizations. He traces the history of direct mail to 1194, when Chartres Cathedral, in France, was destroyed by fire, and the bishop thanked donors by memorializing them in the cathedral’s famous stained-glass windows. From there, the author leads readers up to the modern day and explains how writing, design, formats, and gift offers can make all the difference in the effectiveness of direct mail.
Part One, “The Art and Science of Direct Mail,” includes 26 design tips to increase the number of people who look at a direct-mail piece and make a gift. “The Grand Controls,” Part Two, discusses double postcards; small packages; special-interest, women’s, science and nature, and other types of magazines; membership; newsletters; reports; and catalogs.
The third section makes observations about direct mail in the 1990s, particularly how sweepstakes have affected magazine subscriptions and the influence of the Internet. Appendixes contain a questionnaire for consultants working with new clients and a checklist to use when creating direct-mail pieces.
Publisher: Bonus Books, 160 East Illinois Street, Suite 300, Chicago, Ill. 60611; (312) 467-0424 or (800) 225-3775; fax (312) 467-9271; http://www.bonus-books.com; 504 pages; $89; I.S.B.N. 1-56625-162-1.
