Wednesday, May 30, 2018

#8 BANKSY: Invisible Artist, Self-Marketer, Multi-millionaire


Issue #8 - Wednesday, May 30, 2018

Posted by Denny Hatch

BANKSY: Invisible Artist, Self-Marketer, Multi-millionaire

One of the very few snapshots of the elusive Banksy affixing his painting onto a bare wall in the Brooklyn Museum.

“I’ve wandered round a lot of art galleries thinking, ‘I could have done that,’” Banksy once wrote. “These galleries are just trophy cabinets for a handful of millionaires. The public never has any real say in what art they see.”

One day Banksy discovered his sister throwing a large number of his paintings into trash, “and I asked her why? She said, ‘It’s not like they’re going to be hanging in the Louvre.’”

Banksy was inspired. “I thought, why wait until I’m dead?”

During one week of March 2005, Banksy slipped into four major New York City Museums—The Met, MOMA, American Museum of Natural History and the Brooklyn Museum.

Using very strong glue, he stuck onto unused walls brilliantly painted, weirdly wild pictures such as the faux 17th century portrait below shown hanging (briefly) in the American Wing of the Metropolitan Museum.


One amazing result: hundreds of gallery-goers paused in front of these elaborate put-ons and then moved on without a clue they were being had.

Curators eventually removed the pictures. But Banksy could claim his works had hung in major museums.

The Bristol Mural
One morning in late June 2006, the city of Bristol awoke to find a Banksy mural high up on a blank wall of the Brook Young People’s Sexual Health Clinic, “one of the biggest providers of sexual health advice for young people in the U.K.,” according to the clinic.


The mural was executed in the dead of night atop a 20-foot ladder. Banksy created a tense scene in which a cuckolded man—presumably a husband—angrily is looking out the window. Behind him, looking worried and guilty is his wife in scanties. Hanging off the windowsill is her stark naked lover.

Brook Clinic’s medical director Annie Evans e-mailed Banksy to say her team at the clinic are “bouncing with joy.” She wrote, “Did you realise how utterly appropriate your latest subject matter was, given what goes on in the building?... Thanks a bunch and we’ll do our best to look after it.”

Fame and Fortune
Over the years, Banksy has blitzed the UK with hundreds of graffiti images in myriad styles: 17th century realism, Impressionist, Op/Warhol, Pop Art, comic book and cartoons from silly to sinister, happy to horrifying, always outré and outrageous.

He has also produced an avalanche of paintings and lithographs for sale. He even decorated a live elephant for the opening of his American exhibition in Los Angeles.

His works have sold at auction for six figures up to $1.1 million at Sotheby’s, Christies, Bonhams and, of course on eBay

Banksy has never been officially photographed and operates in the deep shadows.

Takeaways to Consider

By covering the UK with brilliant graffiti—giving away his art FREE!—Banksy generated massive media coverage worldwide.

He is a master of creating wants.

• He is currently worth $50 million.


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Word count: 500

Note to Readers:  
May I send you an alert when each new blog is posted? If so, kindly give me the okay by sending your First Name, Last Name and e-mail to dennyhatch@yahoo.com. I guarantee your personal information will not be shared with anyone at any time for any reason. I look forward to being in touch!

Invitation to Marketers and Direct Marketers: Guest blog posts are welcome. 
If you have a marketing story to tell, case history, concept to propose or a memoir, give a shout. I’ll get right back to you. (Kindly stay within the limit of 500 words.) I am: dennyhatch@yahoo.com • 215-644-9526 (rings on my desk).

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Wednesday, May 23, 2018

#7 Getting Your Prospects to Say "Yes"

Issue #7  — Wednesday, May23, 2018 

Posted by Denny Hatch


 Getting Your Prospects to Say "YES!"
     
Check out these small ads from HARRY’S that have been blitzing my iPad since the weeks before Christmas, 2017.



Each reads like the title of business article—either about Gillette or the razor industry.

Click on HARRY’S Read More >> in the Gillette ad above and you are buried in 833 words whining about Gillette, lawsuits, ownership, market cap and the mean things Gillette said about poor little HARRY’S. Here’s HARRY’S lede paragraph:

Since we launched HARRY’S in 2013, we have certainly attracted the attention of Big Razor. First, Gillette came after us immediately after we launched with a 'front pivot' patent lawsuit (later dismissed by Gillette). Then, more recently they created an entire advertising campaign claiming that most guys leave HARRY’S after trying us (false).

Yawn.

HARRY’S founders—Jeffrey Raider and Alex Katz-Mayfield—are not interested in telling you how they can make the daily nuisance of shaving blissfully easy, more convenient and save you a ton of money to boot.

Rather they seem to be saying… oh, maybe… gee, let’s start some kind of relationship so we can engage with you about the razor business.

“I don’t want a relationship with the guy who sells me aspirin. I just want my headache cured.”  
—Emily Soell, CEO, Rapp & Collins

Denny Hatch’s Test Ad for HARRY’S
Years ago, Direct magazine (now defunct) had a fascinating column by master copywriter Tom Collins of Rapp & Collins. He would take a so-so ad currently running and turn it into a marketing jewel.

Competing agencies were, of course, pissed off mightily, but Tom was a lot of fun and very instructive.

With 55 years in direct marketing, I’m taking a page from Tom’s playbook. Here’s a test ad written and designed by me to run against HARRY’S sphincter-tight corporate efforts.



Takeaways to Consider
• Old rules for print absolutely apply to digital.

• “You must appeal to emotions and self-interest.”
   —Pat Farley, Freelancer

• Always make an offer.

• "The offer should be so attractive only a lunatic would
    say no." —Claude Hopkins, legendary copywriter

• “Make it quick and easy to order.”
   —Elsworth Howell, Howell Book House

• “The prospect doesn’t give a damn about you, your 
    product  or your company. All the matters is: 'What’s 
    in it for me?'"  
    —Seattle Guru Bob Hacker

• Always listen to W-I-I FM.

• Is it a good idea to tell the prospect what dirt the competition 
   is spreading about you? 


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Word count: 400


Note to Readers:  
May I send you an alert when each new blog is posted? If so, kindly give me the okay by sending your First Name, Last Name and e-mail to dennyhatch@yahoo.com. I guarantee your personal information will not be shared with anyone at any time for any reason. I look forward to being in touch!

Invitation to Marketers and Direct Marketers: Guest blog posts are welcome. 
If you have a marketing story to tell, case history, concept to propose or a memoir, give a shout. I’ll get right back to you. (Kindly stay within the limit of 500 words.) I am: dennyhatch@yahoo.com • 215-644-9526 (rings on my desk).

You Are Invited to Join the Discussion!

Note: In order to Comment you must be recognized as a real person. If you are having difficulty posting a Comment, sign up for a Google account.