Creative Marketing Examples: Tap into the Power of Swipe Files!
If you’ve ever stared at a blank computer screen or sheet of paper when you sat down to begin writing a marketing piece, you know how challenging it can be to get started and how valuable it is to have a collection of creative marketing examples at your fingertips.
Starting a marketing campaign from scratch each and every time is tedious and not a great way to leverage time and creativity, which is why most successful marketers build and maintain a marketing swipe file.
A swipe file is your own personal collection of creative marketing examples that can include direct mail packages, sales letters, emails, advertisements, etc.
Personally, I have several large boxes in my office where I keep my creative marketing examples and my marketing radar is always on – looking for new things to add – which might help me in the future (I recently wrote about just such an example in this article (https://mikecapuzzi.com/marketing-ideas).
I also maintain a set of folders on my computer hard drive where I collect and store online creative marketing examples, like emails and web pages.
I use these swipe files to generate ideas and spark creativity. Sometimes I use the materials for to get ideas for my copy writing, but regardless of what I need to accomplish, by simply maintaining a healthy swipe file of both print and web materials, I can beat the blank page blues.
If you haven’t been keeping a swipe file of creative marketing examples, here’s several ideas to help you get started.
Offline Marketing (print) – study the mail you’re receiving each day and be on the look out for unique and creative ideas that grabbed your attention. Read magazines and newspapers and pay attention to the advertisements. Again, you’re looking for examples that catch your attention. Pay particular attention to headlines and eye-catching ads.
Recently I took home several ads, from the SkyMall catalog that you find on every airline flight, because the headlines were so good.
When you attend tradeshows or marketing events, don’t just walk through the vendor area – look for marketing ideas you can use in your business.
Online Marketing (web) – watch for email headlines and emails that grab your attention. Either print them off or store them in a folder on your computer. I like to use SnagIt from TechSmith to capture web sites, optin pages and sales letters. SnagIt take a picture of the entire site – no matter how long it is – and I use it many times throughout the day to build my digital swipe file.
And speaking of swipe files… we just put together a HUGE collection of creative marketing examples from over 160 CopyDoodles members. It’s our brand new CopyDoodles Swipe File book and you can learn more about it by visiting:
http://www.copydoodlesbook.com
The CopyDoodles Swipe File book is the ultimate companion for anybody who uses CopyDoodles to improve their marketing and is the short-cut for smart marketing ideas and strategies for boosting response with over 180 real-world examples from real-world business owners around the world. It’s over 5 lbs. and 700 pages of idea-generating examples covering just about every type of media possible, including…
• Advertisements
• Books
• Business cards
• Emails
• Envelopes
• Faxes
• Flyers
• Greeting cards
• Newsletters
• Order forms
• Postcards
• Sales letters
• Special reports
• Websites
There’s even a CD-ROM containing the full-color versions of each example in the CopyDoodles Swipe File book and a special interview video with a number of individuals who submitted examples describing their marketing and results generated. For example you will see…
• The business card from the dentist in Texas that’s stopping people in their tracks…
• The postcard from the restaurant owner in California that brought in the biggest turnout he’s ever seen in one of his locations…
• The advertisements from the magician in New Jersey that took his marketing to another level…
• The email from the insurance agent in Ohio that brought in 632 more sales…
• And the list goes on.
You can grab your copy of the CopyDoodles Swipe File book and CD at a very special introductory price by visiting:
http://www.copydoodlesbook.com
Finally, one last point I feel it’s important to make – swipe files should be used for inspiration and to spark creative ideas. I do not recommend simply copying these creative marketing examples verbatim.
The bottom line is to always have your marketing radar set to on and keep your eye open for creative marketing examples you can use add to your swipe files!