What the old masters know about marketing that you don’t

by Robert W. Bly

Subscriber TM writes:

“Hi. Bob. Long-time follower here. I have purchased some of your hard copy books over the years. They seem relevant today as they were last 2-3 decades.”

Is TM right?

Well, yes and no.

But mostly, yes.

Some people have the erroneous belief that any course, book, or info product with a copyright of 2020 or older is out of date.

​But, what TM knows — and others do not know — is this: While marketing channels — and the tactics for using them — do indeed change and evolve — sometimes rapidly — the fundamentals of persuasion and selling largely remain constant over time.

Reason: Technology, tactics, and channels are important — but they are not at the core of marketing and selling.

​The core of marketing and selling is the psychology of persuasion.

​The psychology of persuasion is rooted in understanding people.

• How they think.
• What they believe.
• What they feel.
• What they want.
• What they desire.
• And what they fear.

​And this remains constant. As Claude Hopkins noted in his classic book Scientific Advertising,

“Human psychology has remained unchanged for 10 centuries.”

Too many marketers today are obsessed with bright, shiny objects (BSOs).

​Yet, to dismiss books by Ogilvy, Caples, Reeves, Halbert, Schwartz, and the other marketing giants as old-school or out of date is a mistake–a big mistake.

As Jerry Buchanan, a 20th century mail order master, famously said, any marketer who does not study the great books

“is starving to death with a loaf of bread under each arm.”

​You see, when you ignore the wisdom of Clyde Bedell, Victor Schwab, and Joe Sugarman, you do so at your peril.

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Robert W. Bly is a freelance copywriter and marketing consultant with 3 decades of experience in business-to-business, high-tech, and direct marketing. He is the first AXIOMS EXPERT at Kallisti Publishing Inc.

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