Dan Douglass on direct

Dan Douglass

Question: Where do you begin a blog about direct? Answer: at the beginning of direct. The earliest recorded example of the direct response letter. St. Paul's letter to the Corinthians was written around AD4 and it offers up an object masterclass in the art of copy to all direct marketers.

St. Paul knew his audience, knew how to elicit a response, set out to raise funds from those most able to give and needed to summon up all the powers of expression, argument and persuasion to do so. And, In his letter to the Corinthians, he nailed it. It was a highly effective piece of communication - because he worked it not on bludgeoning sales patois or an overt CTA, but on persuasion, affirmation and psychological insight.

The context was this. After years of drought and floods, the people of Jerusalem were starving. Grain was scarce and there were riots on the streets. Hundreds of people were dying. In contrast, the City of Corinth was flourishing - the people sophisticated, cultured, high-brow, a high-earning, high aspiring Metropolitan elite.

The Kensington and Chelsea of The Holy Lands. It was therefore to the Corinthians that Paul targeted his fundraising appeal. And, in writing his letter, he adopts nine winning techniques. Direct copywriters take note. 1. Immediately engage the audience. St. Paul begins his letter with a story, citing the Philippi - a tribe of Barbarians, the least respectable in the eyes of his target market - and how in times of crisis they gave generously.

"Voluntarily, they gave according to and beyond their means", says the good Saint Paul. It's like Liverpool fans citing Milwall as exemplars of good crowd behaviour. Interestingly, Paul doesn't start his letter with a statement of need, but with a statement of the desired response. By not mentioning the disaster up front, he is robbing the people of Corinth of excuses not to do anything. Instead, motivate people by describing the what can happen when people give.

St. Paul's leading statement of the response appeals to their innate sense of goodness and generosity. It may seem odd that St. Paul avoided mentioning the thousands dying on the streets, but he clearly saw it as more productive to describe the value of the response. 2. Add compelling reinforcement. He then outlines a strategy - not to do with money, but to do with relationships. In this instance he is not asking the Corinthians to identify with those in need (the fact was that the high-minded Corinthians would have looked down on the inhabitants of Jerusalem anyway) but with the Lord.

Money, he says, is a dangerous and dynamic force - so it needs to be given to the Lord. Any organisation has to be seen as a good steward of its customers' money and St. Paul was no different. The credentials of the Christian church are impeccable even if those of the denizens of Jerusalem sometimes left a little to be desired. 3. Prompt affirmation, don't provoke guilt. Paul affirms the donor - 'as you would excel in everything so we want you to excel in this generous undertaking'. He recognises that people are motivated more by affirmation than by guilt.

A great planner's insight. 4. Appeal to loyalty. He then tests the loyalty of the Corinthians - their discipleship when he writes 'I say this not by command, but I'm testing the genuineness of your love against that of the Barbarian Philippi'. In doing so, he knows that, if the Philippi are the benchmark, there's hope for us all. 5. Stimulate the selfish gene. He then not only seeks their sense of justice and fair balance, but asks them to empathise with the plight of others by projecting them into that situation - 'that some day when you are in need, others will give'. So, by giving to ease the food crisis, the Corinthians will be engaged in an act of justice and self-regarding salvation, levelling the playing field. Like Cancer Relief, it's a case of 'there but for the grace of God go I'. 6. Be clear about the response device.

St Paul then does what any direct response copywriter would be sacked for not doing. He creates a response mechanism - he sends a guy called Titus from Jerusalem to Corinth to collect the money. 7. Offer proof. St Paul validates the appeal with the reassurance that the money will go where he says it will - direct to the people of Jerusalem. 'We're doing this so that God will be glorified - we'll ensure in the sight of God that this money is delivered to Jerusalem". 8. Bring the audience along with you. He avoids any proselytising or high-mindedness and invokes his audience's sense of integrity by saying 'I shouldn't have to write to you about this - you already know the need for giving'.

9. Add the ultimate signatory. And finally, he re-asserts the faithfulness of God - 'I am confident God will provide everything you need'. It's a flourish to the sign-off, the ultimate signatory and a name that denotes unimpeachable integrity. So what's all this about? Well, I don't want to get too holy about this, but we in direct marketing are responsible for how money is raised, not just how much.

Not just whether it's given, but why it's given. Jettison the Christian message from St. Paul's letter to the Corinthians and you're still left with a very powerful case for copy that's got truth and integrity at its heart - it's not just about going through the motions of 'the sell'. It's layered, subtle stuff. And this, my first blog, is a call for more of the same. Not just in fundraising, but everywhere.

As the last year has shown, short-termism is a bankrupt philosophy. That's why Barack will take the oaths of office in January. To quote Stephen Mansfield in 'The Faith of Obama', the people who teach us how to make our high-flying rhetoric into grounded reality will be most remembered'. That's why writers in our industry have a responsibility. To be true to our audiences, not just the products and services we represent.