… but first let me set the stage for you.
It’s spring in New England. That means icy cold rain pours down on even icier snow drifts from last week’s blizzard. (I won’t see a daffodil around here for another 4 weeks.)
My son just walked in the door from high school. Out of habit, he stopped at the mail box and brought me its offerings.
Normally, I stand over the trash can and toss 90% of it — laughing gleefully at the uninspiring ads and random bills that the mail lady mis-sorted into my box.
But today, I saw something interesting that I had to share with you. Let’s call it, “Princeton is calling…”
Here’s what’s in my mailbox today (yes, the physical, printed-on-paper mail):
- 3 renewal debit cards (because I cut my credit cards into a thousand pieces 5 years ago and never looked back)
- a financial newsletter (because I secretly wish that I could spend my days day-trading naked puts… way more fun than playing slots in Vegas… pays better too.)
- 3 letters for my son inviting him to consider Princeton, Miami U, and Cornell (they must have gotten his early SAT scores… 99th percentile, oh yeah!)
- a full-color magazine called “India New England News” (the mail lady must have gotten confused on this one… I’m one of the only caucasian Americans in my neighborhood. Most of my neighbors are from India, have Ph.Ds from fancy schools, and quietly work tech jobs from home.)
- a catalog from Hello Direct (now doesn’t that just say everything)
- an “Advance Planning Survey” from Phaneuf Funeral Homes (Did somebody in my neighborhood die? I work in advertising, people! I know how funeral home marketing works… “Did somebody you know just die?” Of course they did, death records are public!)
- and… drum roll please… 2 pairs of jeans in a size 6 (Why the fanfare? Because this time last year I was a generous size 14 still strapping herself into a size 12 and telling people I was wearing my “skinny jeans”. So yes, even a stay-at-home mommy copywriter who sits around writing all day can drop 20 pounds and fit into a jean size she hasn’t seen since 9th grade. Woot!)
Why am I sharing the contents of my mail box with you?
Here’s why: I teach Voice for direct response writers.
My mentor, Kevin Rogers, spends tons of time talking about the power of Voice to move your business forward.
How? By making more sales.
So I think about this question of voice a lot. What is voice? How do I develop one? Why would I want to develop a distinctive voice? Would I ever want anyone to emulate my voice (in a sales letter) to help me sell more?
I’ll be talking about that more… a lot more… over time.
But here’s my thought for today: what’s in your mailbox?
Go look. I’ll wait.
What does your mail tell you about your voice?
Your unique mix of junk mail, bills and randomness is a clue to the unique way you connect with the world.
Does it spark any ideas for your next blog post? Or email campaign?
Please post your thoughts below… surely I’m not the only person who mistakenly got a copy of “India New England News” today… 🙂
Melanie
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