A Clayton Makepeace Essay I Love. Direct Response Copywriting Email Archive. June 2020.

What Clayton Makepeace Wrote About Copywriting and Being Successful

Clayton Makepeace passed away about 6 weeks ago.

I wrote about him in my blog here and here.

I’m fortunate to own his “Quick Start” copywriting manuals. These are expensive but I’ve learned a great deal from them. Makepeace had his own style and he was the #1 copywriter for a long time, mostly when he was writing for Weiss Research. I still regularly dip into those manuals.

In the first part of the first manual, Makepeace has a long essay about what it really takes to make it as a copywriter.

Here’s an excerpt. It's gold.

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Before you take the copywriting world by storm, there’s something you should know …

Pursuing a copywriting career is NOT a get-rich-quick scheme. It can, however, be the single best idea you ever had.

So whatever you do, do NOT be discouraged.

Resolve to do whatever it takes in the short term to reap the long-term rewards. Stick with it. Redouble your efforts. Refuse to accept anything but success.

Take my word for it …

The first time a client wires six figures into your bank account to pay you for two weeks’ work, you’ll be glad you hung in there.

In that moment, all the hours you worked to perfect your craft … all the rejection you faced in finding your first few clients … and all the sacrifices you made to build your copywriting business will all be worth it.

Yes it’s going to take some effort on your part.

If you think this is easy … if you sleepwalk through your work … if you fail to invest the mental and physical energy required to get the details right … if you resent honest, well-meant criticism … and if you’re going to cut and run the first time the going gets tough, there’s not much I or anyone else can do to help you.

But if, as my high school football coach loved to say, you’re eager to pour 110% of your genius, your creativity, and your energy into this …

If you’re willing to take the time and expend the energy to do it right … and obsess about the minute details that must be right to bring in every last sale …

If you’re willing to expend every ounce of mental and physical energy at your command … take your best shot … accept the consequences … take a hard, honest look at what you did right and what you did wrong … and learn your lessons …

And if, when all else fails, you can muster the will to pick yourself up, dust yourself off and do it better next time …

There’s no stopping you. Whether you’ve made it yet or not, you’re a winner in my book. And someday soon, you’ll find yourself relishing the winner’s rewards.

But what if nobody wants to hire you? Or worse: You create the best campaign you know how to create – and it flops?

Look. Let me tell you something that all the gurus out there won’t.

It’s not until you begin applying this stuff in the real world that you REALLY begin to learn.

You’re going to have to bang the phones for hours every day until you get a client – and those first few clients may not be worth a bucket of warm spit.

Courage … true courage … means being scared to death and then doing what needs to be done anyway.

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It’s extremely rare these days for someone to “bang the phones” like Makepeace used to do many years ago. How many people answer their phone when they don’t know who is calling? Not many. We sadly get so many unsolicited calls that are pure fraud.

Today, a great method of contacting prospects is through LinkedIn or through an email listed on the company’s website. But it’s all the same as “banging those phones.”

I even contact prospects through the mail.

What else can you take from that powerful excerpt? Here are my thoughts:

All those copywriting programs that promise “$10K a month in just 6 weeks” are fraudulent. I hope you don’t believe any of that guff.
You must be totally persistent.
You must be patient and dedicated.
The rewards will come if you put the effort in.
It’s not easy. It’s hard work and it’s never easy getting rejected.

I hope this helps you.

Scott Martin

The Joy of Rejection. Direct Response Copywriting Email Archive. May 2020.

Oh ... The Raw Joy of Rejection ... I’m sure you’ve heard the saying, “a picture is worth a thousand words.”

It’s just one of many popular sayings that are totally wrong. If the saying were true, copywriters would be out of business. Every ad would be a series of photos. Right?

Here’s another popular saying that’s totally wrong.

“Salespeople are born, not made.”

Either way, that saying is totally wrong. If it were correct, all the sales trainers would be out of business. Mind you, many sales trainers have never actually sold much of anything. In fact, there are plenty of people selling copywriting training programs who have …

Never sold anything
Never made it as a copywriter.

Proof? Here’s something from the late Clayton Makepeace.

“Right now, the Internet is crawling with charlatans claiming to be the greatest copywriter alive – and then urging you to pay them a fortune for their books and courses. Most are complete frauds – scam artists who have never had a single hot control for a major mailer – looking to make a quick buck off of you.”

That was in 2008 and it's still true today.

During this “pause” in proceedings, these "scam artists" have been out in full force. I’ve seen all sorts of crazed promises out there.

The best?

"$5K by Friday" … and I got this on Thursday.

Another video talks about a certain copywriter who has been writing copy for a few years and is already “the #1 copywriter” and “the next Gary Bencivenga.” His latest product shows you how to write a sales page in 10 videos and the product is yours for a mere $997.

OK.

I wrote two blogs about Clayton Makepeace. They’re here and here.

Sadly, Clayton’s personal blog is currently down. Hopefully it will pop back up. There’s some gold in there.

I’m already way off course.

Because finding great clients is such a challenge for copywriters … and everyone for that matter … the scammers target that part of the market. Again … with all sorts of wild promises that are pure lies.

How did Clayton Makepeace find his initial clients all those years ago when he was just starting? He got on the phone, calling people he knew wanted copy. People who understand the power of copywriting are always looking for copywriters.

He called it “banging the phones.”

Today, we contact prospects through LinkedIn, email, and even social media.

The “platforms” have changed but one thing remains the same. We’re going to get rejected.

Here’s one thing the greatest salespeople will tell you: that first “no” is just the START of the conversation. Yes, there are times when that first conversation has led directly to work for me but making a sale can often take 6-9 touch points. A “touch point” is fancy-schmanzy lingo for some type of contact.

We’re in the middle of a 'pause' right now (duh) and who knows how long things will last this way. My work has increased. I’m not sure why. But now is a GREAT time to identify some epic potential clients and start contacting them. It’s also a great time to leverage this effort to build your database.

I just wrote “leverage” although I’m not sure what it really means. It just sounds good. Sort of like another word I’m seeing an awful lot … PIVOT. What does that mean?

Let me end with a word you can all understand: PERSISTENCE.

One of my earliest clients, and a man I admire massively, Jim McLean, has been one of the world’s top golf teachers for about 30 years. He was friends with a guy called Jackie Burke who won The Masters. Burke said to McLean:

"I never saw a persistent person fail."

The persistent copywriters are going to thrive in the next couple of years. The ones who give up and blame a virus for the lack of work will struggle.

Want to be persistent? Remember that “no” is just the beginning of the conversation.

There’s an essay Clayton Makepeace wrote about the career side of copywriting. It’s brilliant. I’ll include an excerpt in the next email.

I hope this helps you.

Scott Martin

Thoughts About Clayton Makepece. Direct Response Copywriting Email Archive. March 2020.

What You Can Learn from The Late Clayton Makepeace

I just got the news that Clayton Makepeace passed, apparently not related to Covid-19 but related to a lung issue. Very sad news ... I didn't actually know he was ill.

Clayton was the #1 practicing copywriter for many years. He wrote for Boardroom, and established some controls, plus he wrote extensively for Weiss Research and many other direct marketers. He used to live in the mountains of North Carolina and had a "farm" system for a while. A friend of mine was a copy cub. Another friend worked extensively with him.

I met Clayton at the AWAI bootcamp and also at The Titans Mastermind. He was extremely friendly and affable; he used to hold court at the bar in Delray Beach during bootcamp. His presentation was really the only "must not miss" presentation at bootcamp. Clayton loved direct marketing and he also loved life. A pretty strong combination.

What can you learn from Clayton?

A ton.

In fact, you should very closely study his work.

Why?

A lot of copywriters make crazy claims about being 'the best' and so on. But Clayton actually was the best in part because he knew the technical side of direct marketing and direct response copywriting backwards and forwards.

He could tell you the most effective font size for body copy in a print promotion … and why. He could tell you which fonts to use online … and why. He wrote sizzling bullets.

I spent a small fortune on his “Quick Start” copy system manual and it’s pure gold. I refer to this manual every week. It’s hard to find but one of the greatest direct response copywriting guides out there.

If you don’t want to spend the cash, then head to Clayton’s blog.

It’s here. Start with the 6-part interview with Gary Bencivenga.

That interview and the archive are choc-full of direct marketing gold ... and all for free.

I don’t want to write a long email about Clayton. You’ll find plenty of tributes and information on social media.

Here’s what I liked the most about Clayton. He was one of the good guys. He could get “loud” in his copy but he never made stuff up, unlike some of the so-called ‘legendary’ copywriters.

Clayton knew direct marketing backwards and forwards and he also did his homework. He found the truth and he told the truth. He helped his clients generate billions in revenue.

Who knows if the AWAI bootcamp will take place this May, given the current public health situation. If bootcamp goes ahead, they will sorely miss Clayton. I wish I had gotten to know him more in person. He was always gregarious, gentlemanly, and generous when I met him.

Thankfully, we have a lot of his wisdom.

Scott Martin

Introducing Clayton Makepeace. Direct Response Copywriter Email Archive. August 2019 1.

Copywriters You Should Know. Part 6. Clayton Makepeace.

Clayton Makepeace is a well-known figure among copywriters perhaps primarily because he speaks at the AWAI Bootcamp every year.

Apart from that appearance, Makepeace keeps a low profile. He used to organize his own copy seminars, usually with help from AWAI. Some of these are available online.

Is he the world’s top practicing direct response copywriter? It would be tough to argue otherwise. If not, he’s certainly right up there. He wrote copy for a company in Florida called Weiss Research and he generated a lot of revenue for them. He’s now with an Agora division.

At one stage, Makepeace had his own shop, complete with copy cubs. One of my copywriting friends was/is a Makepeace copy cub. She’s a great copywriter.

Before that adventure, he was in the stable of Boardroom direct response copywriters, competing with the likes of Mel Martin and Jim Rutz. Makepeace established some controls ... which says a lot about the quality of his work. You tend to hear a lot more about other copywriters who wrote for Boardroom. Why? I'm not sure.

I’m not being especially precise about the copy history of Clayton Makepeace, so apologies, but I remember an interesting story he told about chasing work.

He needed some money pretty badly as he had a young family. This was many years ago. So he called up a potential client and simply said, “I’ll happily write a bunch of copy … just pay me based on the revenue that comes in.”

Client finding sagacity: be direct. Pick up the phone.

One of the more amazing copywriting resources on the Internet is the blog archive on his website. You can find it here.

I’ve spent hours reading the interviews and the direct marketing common sense in that archive. There’s also a 6-part interview with Gary Bencivenga. A must read.

It’s hard to find, but the Makepeace copy manual is excellent. It’s called the Quick Start Copywriting System. You might be able to get it here. It’s an investment but it’s really comprehensive and I use it all the time.

And AWAI has a ton of stuff built around Makepeace.

You can search around and find the goods. I don’t get any affiliate commissions, just in case you’re wondering.

You can read Makepeace copy and you’ll notice it’s very direct and ultra-clear. He has a unique headline style … a couple of words in big type then a long subhead and deck. Dan Kennedy’s headlines tend to be very long. Both can work.

But the key to success for Makepeace is the quality and depth of his research. He assembles copy based on what he digs up during the all-important research phase. He takes features and turns them into benefits and goes one step further and gives the benefit some color and heft.

Feature ... the golf club has a titanium face milled with the latest milling technology. Benefit ... longer drives ... 5-15 yards more off the tee. Dimentionalized benefit ... make your regular swing, make contact with the ball and watch it land 15 yards past where it used to land ... then gain more even more distance as the ball rolls out thanks to the improved trajectory.

He was also an early adopter of the VSL, with great impact. His VSL course is excellent; it's in tandem with AWAI.

I could write thousands of words about Makepeace’s copy. I’ve met him a few times at the AWAI bootcamp and he’s very personable. And everyone wants to talk to him at bootcamp.

If you’re serious about improving the quality of your copy, spend a couple of hours, at least, digging around looking for his work and his opinions.

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SHAKING THE TREES ... CLIENT FINDING ADVICE ...

A long-time client was swallowed up by a much, much bigger company a couple of years ago. At the time, I thought it would be either really great for me or really bad.

Things stayed the same for a while and now it’s looking like the latter. This happens. There's a new group of people in charge and they know next to nothing about direct marketing. Oh well.

So the month of August, for me, is all about what I call “shaking the trees.”

I’m sponsoring an event in September. I’m not organizing the event.

In return for my ‘participation’ I get the list of people attending. So I’m going through that list and politely letting potential clients know I exist.

This effort has already generated some work.

What else will I be up to?

I’ll be going through my own databases. I’ll send an email or two to people who have asked about my services in the past and opted in to my other list. I’ll contact former clients. I’ll re-contact old leads. And so on …

Rejection will come my way, and lots of it. People will ignore me. But I’ll get a lot of work out of “shaking the trees.”

Want/need work? See above. Put your hand around the bark.

Scott Martin Direct Response Copywriter

P.S. I've been populating the email archive. It's here.