A great marketing letter?

I know that I talk a lot about the importance of having great content in your marketing materials. I know that I talk to you about citing legitimate references when quoting ideas and statistics. I know I talk to you about a call to action. BUT (and it is a HUGE but), none of that matters if your message is a BIG FAT LIE!

I got a letter today from a man in Hawii who I don’t know. It said I could make $250.000 (the punctuation is just like it is in the letter) in weeks!!! It says that Oprah Winfrey and ABC’s investigation Team 20/20 prove it can be done. It says I can invest $6 and make $800,000 …Guarenteed!! It gave me just a few tips to pass along (“when you handle a lot of letters an electronic letter opener is great”, “be smart in handling your money, especially if you’ve never had this much before”). And there WAS a call to action – Immediately send $1.00 to each of of the six people on the list.

I guess I just want to clarify my position. If you provide a GREAT service, tell people. If you can cite statistics that are better than your competition DO THAT. If you want someone to hire you, put a button on your site. BUT if you are trying to defraud people or lie, cut it out! Make a great product, provide excellent service, go above and beyond. I GUARANTEE you will make more money doing that than you ever will by sending 6 bucks to people you don’t know!