What Copywriting Book Impacted Me the Most? (6)
Hey Guys:
Since "CA$HVERTISING" has become a popular title in the affiliate marketing space, I thought I'd say a few words about what books I read early in my career that made the most impact on me.
One of the very first was MAKING ADS PAY. Oh, how I love this book by John Caples. It feels like you're sitting next to him the whole time you're reading. It's essentially his experience as a young "copy cub" working in his first ad agency. He relates how his Copy Chief Ev Grady used to hand him a page with an already-written headline and said, "Write the copy for this." The lesson here was that the head was so important that the copy chief didn't trust the newbie writer to write it... only the body copy. He knew that unless people got past the head, it didn't matter how great the rest of the ad was.
After that great book, I was "Caples-hooked" and then devoured TESTED ADVERTISING METHODS and HOW TO MAKE YOUR ADVERTISING MAKE MONEY. I loved the science behind it... the data... the numbers. It whet my appetite for much more.
I also loved MY LIFE IN ADVERTISING/SCIENTIFIC ADVERTISING by Claude Hopkins, the master of the "Reason-Why" style of copywriting.
David Ogilvy said "Nobody should be allowed to have anything to do with advertising until he has read this book seven times. It changed the course of my life."
I agree. The primary lesson is that the purpose of advertising is to SELL. Not to entertain. Not to be cute or clever or tricky. But to simply motivate, persuade, influence, cajole, move people to spend money.
I was on fire to learn more. And my 4-year college degree in advertising didn't do enough to satisfy it. (I actually learned more from books.)
So I scoured the library and took out every book I could find. The best were the classics like these.
After I was well into it, I discovered BREAKTHROUGH ADVERTISING by Eugene Schwartz. His direct-response examples still make my pulse race to this very day. (You really have to be a copy nut to get excited by reading DR ads. lol)
I was one of the original subscribers to the Gary Halbert Letter and enjoyed chatting with him about personal campaigns I was working on. I devoured his handwritten BORON LETTERS that he penned to his son while he was languishing in Boron Federal Prison Camp.
I had the good fortune to be personally trained by advertising legend, Walter Weir whose name is mentioned in the credits in many of the old classics. Walter used to say, "If you have nothing to say in your ads... SING IT!" LOL
So why did I start with the classics?, you might ask.
Because it's the FOUNDATION for all advertising.
These "old guys" weren't concerned with anything else but SELLING. They created and taught the purest form of advertising: salesmanship in print.
There were no codes or style sheets or pixels or anything else to get in the way. Their focus was on bringing in the cash.
You don't learn to do acrobatics on your bike before you learn to ride the damned thing.
So first you learn the basics.
Then, when you can perform those successfully, you can layer on the tricks and the embellishments.
I could go on and on.
So I put a big list of my favorites in the bibliography in the back of CA$HVERTISING. (Which, by the way, is now available in audio format at Audible and Amazon.)
Yet after all these years... more than 37... I still have so much to learn. And most of it is learned by DOING.
Books will give you a solid foundation. Experience will bring it to life. It's the ultimate proving grounds. Life is the ultimate direct-response control. 
BTW, I'm always happy to answer questions from my friends in this forum because you guys teach me as much or more than I can teach you.
Success! (HANDSHAKE)
Drew Eric Whitman, D.R.S.
Direct Response Surgeon
www.DrewEricWhitman.com
Author of:
Cashvertising
Brain Scripts for Sales Success
Thank you Dr. Direct. You have created so much value. You are a true living legend!
Thanks so much Drew for the book recommendations!
Copywriting books recommended by a copywriting legend - you just KNOW they must be good!
Amy
Originally Posted by DrewEricWhitman
I've recommended it dozens of times.
Ah Drew my man they should sculpt a statue in your honour, have read your book over and over. Still to this day I think my major asset is the ability to write and sell, which I really did learn so much from your teachings man.
Going to pick up one of every recommendation you made right now, a massive thank you from me!
Thank you Drew, you're a legend. I read Ca$hvertising about 5-6 times a few years back and I still check up on my notes from time to time. I also read Halbert's stuff, next I'm picking up Breakthrough Advertising.
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