Joseph Sugarman had a major impact on direct marketing & received the highest honors in this field. Having created many businesses in his successful 25-year career, Sugarman has been credited with introducing everything from toll-free order taking to the new wave of consumer electronics. MARKETING SECRETS OF A MAIL ORDER MAVERICK is a compilation of many of the techniques he created & the results he experienced while selling thousands of different products to millions of people. Lessons include how to find a winning product, secrets for a successful layout, how to avoid typefaces that hurt response, how to buy media for less, testing a product's potential & hundreds of other insights that will guide the reader to understanding what works & what doesn't. The lessons are alternated with entertaining & enlightening marketing stories from Sugarman's vast personal experience. Sugarman's insights will be helpful to anybody in business - from the advertising director of a large corporation to the individual starting his or her own business. Cover quotes from Vice President Albert Gore, Jack Canfield, & national magazines.

With more than 60,000 copies sold, this amazing manual has become aclassic in its field--and rightfully so. Nowhere else will youfind--in one book--so much valuable information on achievingsuccess in the mail order business. Dr. Bill Cohen has drawn on hisdecades of experience testing, researching, and constantly refiningthe mail order techniques described in this invaluable guide.Building a Mail Order Business offers a virtual treasury oftechniques and methods guaranteed to work in the real world ofselling through the mail. You'll get practical advice and learntricks of the trade that will get you started quickly, with thefewest missteps and greatest chances for success. Thorough and completely up-to-date, this authoritative guide coversevery aspect of the mail order business, from the basics of gettingstarted to the details of product selection, preparing a marketingplan, copywriting, designing graphics, printing, protectingyourself from competition, telemarketing, and advertising throughmagazines, radio, and television. In addition, a handy appendixlists hundreds of valuable contacts with complete addresses. In this new Fourth Edition, you'll learn the latest trends in mailorder--what works and what doesn't, the most effective look in adsand mailing pieces, how to put together the most attractive offers,and much more. For entrepreneurs, direct marketers, business owners, and otherseager to get into the mail order business, Building a Mail Order Business has proven itself to be anindispensable resource for the ideas, techniques, and expert advicethat will lead to success. All the success secrets of one of America's best-known and mostrespected experts on mail order and direct marketing--Now in a newedition! BUILDING A MAIL ORDER BUSINESS Fourth Edition Complete, authoritative, and now in a new edition, thisbest-selling guide to mail order success covers everything fromgetting your business started to handling legal issues, preparingcopy and graphics, selecting mailing lists, telemarketing, andadvertising in all types of media--an unbeatable source of directmarketing ideas that really work. Here's what the pros have said about previous editions of BillCohen's Building a Mail Order Business: "Dr. Bill Cohen's book thoroughly explores the many facets, andpitfalls, facing the budding mail order entrepreneur."-- Henry R."Pete" Hoke, Jr., Publisher, Direct Marketing "It took a mail order businessman who is also an educator to putdirect mail and mail order guidelines all in one place--and inlanguage we can all understand."--Freeman F. Gosden, Jr.,President, Smith-Hemmings-Gosden, one of the nation's largestdirect marketing advertising agencies "An outstanding primer for our industry. It gives you the nuts andbolts necessary to carry you through almost every aspect of mailorder from the very rudimentary basics to the same techniques usedby the pros."-- Joe Sugarman, JS&A "One of the best books I've ever read on the subject. Ienthusiastically recommend Building a Mail Order Business to anyman or woman who is serious about getting involved in thisfascinating activity."-- E. Joseph Cossman, President, CossmanInternational, Inc., author of How I Made a Million Dollars in MailOrder "An excellent, informative, comprehensive, illustrative workbookthat will help anyone get started making money in the fascinatingfield of mail order. I highly recommend this professional book."--Melvin Powers, mail order entrepreneur "...must reading for the entrepreneur whose mind is on mailorder."-- Paul Muchnick, Chairman, National Mail OrderAssociation "Its good sense and nuts-and-bolts, bottom-line approach make it adelightful guide through the mail order world."-- DM News

Recounts the story of one of America's greatest mail-order geniuses, and points out by his example the most valuable lessons for aspiring entrepreneurs. Included here are detailed explanations of his famous success stories, such as the placement of a –44.00 ad in the Wall Street Journal that turned into a –15-million-a-year business and his artificial diamonds direct-mail campaign. Describes the 12 ``hats'' of direct marketing, how to pick products that will sell, and psychological and motivational aspects of the direct mail buyer.

Rediscover your sense of wonder! Generations of comic book readers remember the tantalizing promises of vintage novelty advertisements that offered authentic laser-gun plans, x-ray specs, and even 7-foot-tall monsters (with glow-in-the-dark eyes!). But what would you really get if you entrusted your hard-earned $1.69 to the post office? Mail-Order Mysteries answers this question, revealing the amazing truths (and agonizing exaggerations) about the actual products marketed to kids in the ‘60s, ‘70s, and ‘80s. Pop-culture historian Kirk Demarais shares his astonishing collection, including: 100 Toy Soldiers in a Footlocker Count Dante’s World’s Deadliest Fighting Secrets GRIT Hercules Wrist Band Hypno-Coin Life-Size Monsters Mystic Smoke Sea Monkeys Soil From Dracula’s Castle U-Control Ghost Ventrilo Voice Thrower ...and many, many more! With more than 150 extraordinary, peculiar, and downright fraudulent collectibles, Mail-Order Mysteries is a must-have book comic book fans everywhere. Trust us.

"After I sent my team to the Question Based Selling program, not only was the feedback from the training outstanding, but we experienced an immediate positive impact in results."—Jim Cusick, vice president of sales, SAP America, Inc. "Following the program, even our most experienced salespeople raved, saying QBS was the best sales training they have ever experienced!"—Alan D. Rohrer, director of sales, Hewlett Packard For nearly fifteen years, The Secrets of Question Based Selling has been helping great salespeople live you deliver big results. It's commonsense approach has become a classic, must-have tool that demonstrates how asking the right questions at the right time accurately identifies your customer's needs. But consumer behavior and sales techniques change as rapidly as technology—and there are countless contradictory sales training programs promising results. Knowing where you should turn to for success can be confusing. Now fully revised and updated, The Secrets of Question Based Selling provides a step-by-step, easy-to-follow program that focuses specifically on sales effectiveness—identifying the strategies and techniques that will increase your probability of success. How you sell has become more important than the product. With this hands-on guide, you will learn to: Penetrate more accounts Overcome customer skepticism Establish more credibility sooner Generate more return calls Motivate different types of buyers Develop more internal champions Close more sales...faster And much, much more

Sex sells. And sexy lingerie sells a lot. How much? Lingerie is one of the top mail-order revenue producers-selling more than computers, appliances, toys, even books and compact disks.

Popular Mechanics inspires, instructs and influences readers to help them master the modern world. Whether it’s practical DIY home-improvement tips, gadgets and digital technology, information on the newest cars or the latest breakthroughs in science -- PM is the ultimate guide to our high-tech lifestyle.

From his own experiences in starting a small mail order business, the author has written this important, basic book. He has included some of the critical problems he encountered and overcame. During the difficult times when he made mistakes, he chose to accept it with good humor and as a learning experience which he passes on to the reader.He does not promise, 'to make you a millionaire', however, he explains how the mistakes he made could make you lose your shirt if you repeat them.He tells you about his successes and his failures with a few tears and a little boasting, and he warns you that losing your shirt can be very painful. The guidance he offers should prevent you from repeating some of the serious mistakes that he made.Starting small, with a tight budget, and little knowledge about the mail order business, the author developed press releases and advertising that sold many products including plastic spouts and orange peelers, garlic that had no odor, fake alarm panels, and books. A very popular product, The Seat Bag, was sold to thousands of Bird Watchers, Artists and other customers around the world.His press releases were used by The New York Times, other large newspapers, and the Associated Press. How he did this and who he met along the way will make you laugh as you learn.