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Wall Street Journal Direct Mail Letter by Martin ConroyJanuary 4, 2007: Vol. 3, Issue No. 1 IN THE NEWS  Regnault de Mouçon pioneered the first direct mail campaign in history. The result was the creation of an architectural and artistic masterpiece that has awed pilgrims and worshippers for 800 years. “Of all the formats used in direct mail,” wrote the late guru Dick Hodgson, “none has more power to generate action than the letter.” No one used the humble letter with more prodigious effect than Bishop Regnault de Mouçon. And Martin Conroy. The Greatest Advertisement in History I started collecting direct mail in earnest in about 1982—noting, cataloging and filing it in what became more than 200 categories in 40 file drawers. From the beginning, I started noticing a simple letter from The Wall Street Journal that kept coming in month after month with the regularity of the moon. In a small No. 7 envelope, this simple mailing contained a two-page letter printed front and back, an order slip and a BRE. It was written and first mailed in 1974. The lead of the letter: Dear Reader: On a beautiful late spring afternoon, twenty-five years ago, two young men graduated from the same college. They were very much alike, these two young men. Both had been better than average students, both were personable and both—as young college graduates are—were filled with ambitious dreams for the future. Recently, these men returned to their college for their 25th reunion. They were still very much alike. Both were happily married. Both had three children. And both, it turned out, had gone to work for the same Midwestern manufacturing company after graduation, and were still there. But there was a difference. One of the men was manager of a small department of that company. The other was its president. Late in 1991, I called The Wall Street Journal’s circulation manager, Paul Bell, and ran some numbers by him. HATCH: Would you say that the average mail order circulation of the The Wall Street Journal over the past 18 years was about one million? BELL: [Pause.] Yes, that’s about right. HATCH: Am I right in assuming that the average subscription rate of The Wall Street Journal over the past 18 years has been about $100 a year? BELL: [Pause.] Yes, that’s about right. HATCH: Is it safe to assume that 55 percent of all your mail order subscribers over the past 18 years have come in as a result of Martin Conroy’s “Two Young Men …” letter? BELL: We have a lot of other sources—telemarketing, subscriptions as a result of newsstand sales, supermarket take-ones, inserts. But, yes, I think 55 percent is a fair estimate. HATCH: Paul, one million subscribers per year times $100 equals $100 million times 18 years is $1.8 billion times 55 percent equals $1 billion. If these numbers are correct, the Martin Conroy letter is directly responsible for bringing in $1 billion in revenues to The Wall Street Journal, and is, therefore THE MOST SUCCESSFUL SINGLE PIECE OF ADVERTISING IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD! BELL: [Long silence. Then in a small voice.] Uh, please don’t tell Marty Conroy. He’ll raise his prices. Raise his prices? It was everybody’s best guess that Conroy, who was a vice president of BBD&O, wrote this as a moonlighter and was paid a paltry $600, which, as Mrs. Conroy reportedly said, was a lot of money to them at the time. The letter finally ceased being profitable in 2003, after a run of nearly 30 years. It was replaced by another format. Direct mail guru Axel Andersson, whose archive of direct mail matched my own in size and scope, analyzed the “Two young men …” letter and came up with this astonishing statistic: The letter runs 780 words, which divided into $1 billion means that over its lifetime, it earned $1.28 million per word. In Andersson’s opinion, no other work of literature or advertising ever earned that much money, with the possible exception of the Bible, which has been around for 1,800 years. I met Martin Conroy once—an avuncular modest man with a twinkle in his eye. When Don Jackson and I were signed to write “2,239 Tested Secrets for Direct Marketing Success,” I wrote 750 colleagues around the world and asked if they would share with readers their secrets of success. Martin Conroy kindly took the time to respond: If you’re trying to find out what makes people tick, you might take a look at the Seven Deadly Sins from the old Baltimore Catechism. Remember them? Pride, covetousness, lust, anger, gluttony, envy and sloth. Of course, the deadly sins are all bad and all extreme and all no-nos. But there’s an unsinful, unextreme side to every one of them where you can see how good and honest people act and react. On the sunny side of sinful pride, for example, nice people still take normal, unsinful satisfaction in what they are and what they have. Short of deadly covetousness, people have an understandable desire to possess some of the good things in life. Instead of sinful lust, there’s good old love that makes the world go ‘round. Without raging in anger, good people can still feel a reasonable annoyance with bad people and bad things. Without getting into gross gluttony, normal men and women can have a normal appetite for good food and drink. Short of envy, there’s a very human yen to do as well as the next guy. And as for sloth, who isn’t happy to learn an easier way to do things. The Seven Deadly Sins. If you want to know what makes people act like people, they’re worth a look. Martin Conroy died on Dec. 19, 2006 in Connecticut at the age of 84. Whether or not any truth exists in the prediction that traditional mail is dead and that all communications of the future will be electronic, I do not believe anyone will match the success of Regnault de Mouçon or Martin Conroy. The fundraising letters of the Bishop of Chartres have most likely been lost. But here’s Martin Conroy’s “Two young men …” effort: THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, World Financial Center, 200 Liberty Street, New York, NY 10281 Dear Reader: On a beautiful late spring afternoon, twenty-five years ago, two young men graduated from the same college. They were very much alike, these two young men. Both had been better than average students, both were personable and both—as young college graduates are—were filled with ambitious dreams for the future. Recently, these men returned to their college for their 25th reunion. They were still very much alike. Both were happily married. Both had three children. And both, it turned out, had gone to work for the same Midwestern manufacturing company after graduation, and were still there. But there was a difference. One of the men was manager of a small department of that company. The other was its president. What Made The Difference Have you ever wondered, as I have, what makes this kind of difference in people’s lives? It isn’t a native intelligence or talent or dedication. It isn’t that one person wants success and the other doesn’t. The difference lies in what each person knows and how he or she makes use of that knowledge. And that is why I am writing to you and to people like you about The Wall Street Journal. For that is the whole purpose of The Journal: to give its readers knowledge—knowledge that they can use in business. A Publication Unlike Any Other You see, The Wall Street Journal is a unique publication. It’s the country’s only national business daily. Each business day, it is put together by the world’s largest staff of business-news experts. Each business day, The Journal’s pages include a broad range of information of interest and significance to business-minded people, no matter where it comes from. Not just stocks and finance, but anything and everything in the whole, fast-moving world of business … The Wall Street Journal gives you all the business news you need—when you need it. Knowledge Is Power Right now, I am reading page one of The Journal, the best-read front page in America. It combines all the important news of the day with in-depth feature reporting. Every phase of business news is covered, from articles on inflation, wholesale prices, car prices, tax incentives for industries to major developments in Washington, and elsewhere. (over, please) And there is page after page inside The Journal, filled with fascinating and significant information that’s useful to you. The Marketplace section gives you insights into how consumers are thinking and spending. How companies compete for market share. There is daily coverage of law, technology, media and marketing. Plus daily features on the challenges of managing smaller companies. The Journal is also the single best source for news and statistics about your money. In the Money & Investing section there are helpful charts, easy-to-scan market quotations, plus “Abreast of the Market,” “Heard on the Street” and “Your Money Matters,” three of America’s most influential and carefully read investment columns. If you have never read The Wall Street Journal, you cannot imagine how useful it can be to you. A 13 Week Subscription Put our statements to the proof by subscribing for the next 13 weeks for just $34. This is the shortest subscription term we offer—and a perfect way to get acquainted with The Journal. Or you may prefer to take advantage of our better buy-one year for $129. Simply fill out the enclosed order card and mail it in the postage-paid envelope provided. And here’s The Journal’s guarantee: should The Journal not measure up to your expectations, you may cancel this arrangement at any point and receive a refund for the undelivered portion of your subscription. If you feel as we do that this is a fair and reasonable proposition, then you will want to find out without delay if The Wall Street Journal can do for you what it is doing for millions of readers. So please mail the enclosed order card now, and we will start serving you immediately. About those two college classmates I mention at the beginning of this letter: they were graduated from college together and together got started in the business world. So what made their lives in business different? Knowledge. Useful knowledge. And its application. An Investment In Success I cannot promise you that success will be instantly yours if you start reading The Wall Street Journal. But I can guarantee that you will find The Journal always interesting, always reliable, and always useful. Sincerely, /s/ Peter R. Kann Peter R. Kann Publisher PRK:er Encs. P.S. It’s important to note that The Journal’s subscription price may be tax deductible. Ask your tax advisor.
Takeaway Points to Consider:* The “Two young men …” letter slavishly follows the rules of direct mail. |
