Book Review: Cashvertising by Drew Eric Whitman

Cashvertising, or to give it the correct printed title; Ca$hvertising, is a very easy and fast introduction into the secret ways to make your adverts coin in the cash.

This book is a must read for anyone who advertises right now, or wants to advertise, on or off the Internet.

In it Whitman shows exactly how to create websites, brochures ads, sales letters and more that actually have the best chance of selling.

The Life Force 8

The Lifeforce 8 looks to be an adaptation and extension of the famous Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. However, Drew Whitman explains how to use the lifeforce 8 to tap into “what makes humans tick.” Plug that into an ad and as he says people want to know more.

He also demonstrates the power of the lifeforce 8 by showing the increases in sales for books when their titles are changed to reflect one of the lifeforces.

The Nine Learned Human Wants

As Whitman notes people don’t just want the Lifeforce 8. So he shows 9 other needs researchers have identified. These are known as the Nine Learned Human Wants. These needs are strong but not as powerful as the Lifeforce 8.

The 17 Foundational  Principles of Consumer Psychology

Whitman lists each of the principles and explains how each one can be used in advertising. And not just how to use them but the research behind them and how they must be used to actually drive what you want to achieve.

Ad Agency Secrets

A great deal of research has been conducted into consumer psychology. And anyone with any sense needs to use the research. Often however, it’s ad agencies that know where to look, after all how many business people have the time to read beyond their own industry?

An example of the research is the use of typefaces, either in print or on the Internet. One author suggests that using the wrong type can “blow away three-quarters of our readers.”

In this as with much of the book Whitman pulls on research conducted decades ago. He also quotes research reported more recently so that he speaks authoritatively on the use of advertising on the Internet too.

For example do you know which font is best in printed work? Interestingly enough it’s not the font I use for printed documents. So I will be changing to the font that research demonstrates that content is better understood.

What about online fonts?

I’m glad you asked, yes Whitman has research for that too, plus the point size – his tip 12 point for normal readers and 14 if you’re targeting the more elderly.

Want to know the best way to set a photo in a printed advert, or what photo type is best? What about whether an advert size affects sales? How about ways to create “mental movies” to make your prospects pus the cash into your hand?

Yes, all of this comes out in Ca$hvertising.

Long Copy Vs Short Copy

And like a red rag to a bull Whitman grasps the horns of the eternal dilemma: short copy or long copy?

He shows that the right length of copy is the best length. And more often that not, it tends to be long copy. That is based on the hundreds of studies done to check and re-check. As he points out you may have written 8 pages worth of an ad but if someone is ready to buy after just reading the headline that’s great. Someone else may get half-way through and buy, another may get right to the end before they’re convinced.

In fact using long copy gives you the chance to speak to everyone, not just people who like short copy. And in case you thought that doesn’t apply to the Internet he explains that experiments have been conducted to show that long copy outperformed short copy on web sites too.

You Can Make Ads Sell Rather Than Suck

This book is like the Special Services arriving in the battle for better advertising for the beleaguered business owner. It’s going to help you win!

You owe it to yourself to grab it, devour it and really apply everything that Whitman lays out and put it into action in your business battle plan. So click below, get it from Amazon and then go and kick competitor butt!