All of these tasks – and more – are time consuming. But the successful consultants have processes in place to automate as many tasks as possible. Lead generation is one such task.

Even the most in-demand consultants are constantly marketing themselves. Ideally, clients come to them already predisposed to make a long-term commitment. But often the consultant is going to have to get materials into prospects’ hands that will help make the case for making that commitment.

It’s a multi-step marketing process that plays out over months and even years. The question becomes… How best to convince a prospect that you’re “the one”?

The secret that other industries know that you may not

Recently, one of my clients (a health firm) completed a magalog after spending over a year working on it. Before I go any further with this story, let me assure you that “over a year” is an extreme exception and nowhere close to being the rule. But getting it right trumped getting it done fast. Copy rewrites, getting opinions from marketing experts outside the company, and even changes in company personnel created a process that took longer than expected.

So why all the effort?

Because they knew, if done properly, the magalog was going to provide a big payoff not only in immediate sales, but also with long-term relationships that would lead to more sales.

In other words, all the time and money that went into the magalog was going to give them a much higher return that would make it all worthwhile.

As I mentioned in my expanded magalog primer article, health and financial services/products generate a lot of skepticism. It’s not that people aren’t willing to buy if there’s value… they will! But they take their time to research and find out if the product or service is really beneficial for them.

Successfully meet the customer’s need in these industries and you’re likely to have a customer for a long time.

That’s why a maglaog (or slim jim, or issuelog, or bookalog) is so well-suited to these prospects.

The company has the space to build their case and provide the information that their customers or prospects demand. And in that process, the company also positions itself as an expert in its field.

Being viewed by prospects as an expert among your competition

Now, other industries are beginning to see the value in that benefit. One such industry is consulting.

For all the value and experience they offer, consultants are often viewed as a bit of a luxury. It’s not that clients wouldn’t love to hire one to help increase sales, it’s just not always given the priority it should, especially when times are tough. (Of course, that’s one of the most important times to hire a consultant.)

Then there’s the matter of finding the right consultant. Any one can throw up a basic sales letter website in a day and claim to be an “expert”. Try a Google search on “business consultant” or similar phrase. Not exactly an easy process for the person responsible for finding the best fit yet having no idea where to turn.

That’s where magalogs come in.

The fact that they’re used so widely in other industries should tell you something: When done properly, they generate qualified leads and increase sales.

If you’re a consultant, you know it can take some time to turn a prospect into a client. Part of that process is finding ways to communicate with the prospect on a regular basis. It can’t be a constant hard sell. That drives prospects away.

How to make your magalog work for you

Think about how you filter the marketing material you receive in the mail. If it looks like blatant advertising, it generally gets a lower priority. But something that stands out from the norm attracts attention.

A magazine-styled magalog with cover copy addressing your prospects core needs is going to get far more than a passing glance.

Here’s just a quick list of things you could include in your magalog:

• Advice that the prospect can put into action right now to increase sales.
• Little-known marketing techniques that can give the prospect an edge over his competition.
• Branding success stories and what your prospect can learn from them.
• Advice on hiring the right people and keeping them motivated.
• Tips to save time that actually work.
• Success stories from clients that your prospect can relate to.
• Q&A section addressing common questions about the value of consulting.

Each article helps to establish you as an expert in consulting while at the same time providing immediate benefits to the prospect. When the prospect feels you’re truly interested in helping them before they’re a client, you begin to break down the barriers that make them hesitant to hire you.

And when they do decide it’s time to write the check, who are they going to call? Chances are it’s not the consultant who believes “prospect value” is including a free recipe in their generic, template-based newsletter.

Chances are, you already have a lot of content via articles you’ve written or speeches you’ve given. Now, it’s simply a matter of taking that content and putting it into a format that few, if any, of your competitors are investing in.

A magazine-styled magalog spotlights you as an expert and adds to the perception that you’re one of the top people in your field in a way that a traditional sales letter, newsletter, postcard, or special report doesn’t. Those are all good marketing vehicles, but are they helping you stand out from other consultants who are doing the same thing?

Unlike some industries that mail their magalogs to a large mailing list, you can save money by only printing a small number of magalogs to send to your “A+” prospects and current clients. (We never want to forget providing extra value for existing clients who are an excellent source for referrals.) For prospects that may not be too serious on your radar, e-mail a PDF version if you choose.

Turning a cold-call into a warm-call… or having prospects call you

When you send useful information, clients respond in a positive way and are much more willing to want to know more. You’ve presented a positive image that helps you stand head and shoulders above the competition.

Better than you cold-calling, imagine your prospects calling you to discuss some of the ideas you presented in your magalog.

Even if you’re the one making the call, your magalog in their hands turns a cold-call into a warm-call and gives you a great starting point for a conversation.

Successful consultants know what they’re worth and charge appropriately. But to convince a prospect to write that check, you have to prove your value and find ways to separate yourself from your competitors. (Just like your prospects have to do with their customers.)

Because of their complexity and cost, magalogs aren’t done on a whim. But that’s one reason they increase your professional perception. It shows you’ve reached a certain level and should be taken seriously as an expert in your field.

As you consider ways to market yourself more effectively and show yourself as an expert among your peers, it might be wise to consider what the health and financial industries have already discovered: Magalogs work!

While any number of mistakes can cause a magalog to fail – such as a bad mailing list, weak copy or design, a poor offer – I’m going to tackle three common mistakes that are relatively easy to avoid.

1. Not enough sidebar stories.

This is important for a variety of reasons. First, magalogs are longer than most other marketing material. So you’re asking a lot for your readers to stick with it until the end. Even the best copywriters realize readers have only so much patience.

Sidebars break up the main copy and give the eyes some visual relief from page after page of flowing sales copy.

The second reason is related to the first. Readers are often more accurately called scanners when it comes to marketing material. Before they decide to invest the time to read your magalog, they’ll probably quickly thumb through the pages to see if anything catches their eye.

Page after page of plain copy with no breaks? A likely candidate for the trash can. Some sidebars to break things up? Your odds of converting the scanner into a reader just shot up.

Third, your sidebars can tell stories that don’t quite fit within the main copy. Maybe it’s a testimonial, maybe it’s a quick history of your company that helps the reader make a deeper connection with your product or service.

A skilled copywriter with magalog experience already knows that sidebars are vital to its success. If you’re writing the copy yourself, look for stories that support the main message you’re wanting to get across.

2. Too much information, too little space.

This may seem a bit at odds with the first point, but let me explain the difference.

Magalogs aren’t cheap to produce. So if you have a budget for a 16-page magalog, but 18 pages worth of information, it’s tempting to push the limits of what can actually fit in 16 pages while still being readable. Direct market designers have all sorts of tricks to make things fit. But there comes a point where you have to be realistic about what’s possible.

Generally speaking, if you add pages to a magalog, you add them in 4′s. In other words, a 16-page magalog would increase to 20 pages, then 24, etc. Obviously, that page increase means an increase in your costs… from design, to printing, and possibly mailing.

For good reasons, you want to avoid increased costs. But remember the point about the layout being enticing for a reader. If we’re cramming in copy, it’s far less enticing and then what have you gained? Certainly not more sales.

Instead, and I know this can be painful, it may be time to start hacking away at the copy.

Safe to say the copywriter felt all that copy was important which is why he or she has it there in the first place. But as someone who had a long career as a writer prior to becoming a designer, I can tell you that there are usually places you can cut. For example, something that was said in four paragraphs can be said in one. Or, a sidebar might be dropped if there are plenty of other sidebars and visual relief points.

3. Not bringing in creative and production people until the last moment.

It’s not a surprise that creating and printing a magalog takes more time than creating and printing a business card. The latter can be done in a matter of days if all the pieces are in place. The former can take at least a week or two in the best of circumstances.

From a design point of view, part of that time relates to the second point above: trying to fit all the pieces into a given amount of space.

Layout is a bit like a puzzle, but a puzzle that has multiple valid solutions. So it takes time to make all the pieces fit just right and find the best solution for your project. But that’s why you’re paying a professional to handle it, otherwise you’d do it yourself.

I’ve had more than a few calls over the years from potential new clients who want to get the copy to me by that afternoon and have a completed magalog done within a few days.

I’m not saying it can’t happen in that time frame. I am saying you should be worried if your new designer says it can. Here’s why…

Magalogs are a bit of a specialty item in the direct market realm. A lot of work goes into putting the pieces together properly and that comes with experience.

As in any industry, experience not only comes with a price, but it usually comes with a waiting list for new clients to get the benefit of that experience. In other words, a skilled designer in any niche is likely already busy with existing clients. That means ultra-quick turnarounds can be a bit unrealistic.

Plus, any creative person worth working with is going to want to know about your business before jumping into a project. For a designer, that usually means looking at past marketing material you’ve done. That includes material you’ve used that makes you cringe.

Both the good and the bad help the designer get a better sense of what you’re looking for and come up with ideas that will work for you.

I also mentioned production people and by that I mean your printer. For larger projects like a magalog, some printers may need more time to work that into their schedule.

From a design point of view, your designer actually needs to know some things about the eventual print process before he or she starts work.

Choosing a printer after the design is done is asking for trouble. In fact, working with a designer who doesn’t ask some questions about the print process right at the start is asking for a double-dose of trouble.

Here’s the takeaway: Magalogs are not rush projects. When you treat them as such, the odds of success drop dramatically. When you’re serious about getting your magalog done right, contact me.

Assuming the person goes forward with having one created, my question to them is, “How will you know if I’ve given you a great magalog?” In a broader sense, how do you, as a client, judge any work your designer gives you? (In this case, I’m talking about print design, not online.)

Most of the clients I work with on a regular basis are very smart and very experienced when it comes to marketing. They’ve been around a long time and have a great sense of what works and what doesn’t when it comes to copy, design, offers, pricing, when to mail, etc. Another way of saying it is that they know their target audience really well.

But some clients have little experience in direct marketing. They know they need help, but they’re not quite sure if what they end up looking at from their designer will really work.

To a certain extent, you won’t be able to fully judge your designer’s work until you’ve tested the material. (And to be fair, success or failure is dependent on more than just design.) But there are some things you can do before setting your marketing material free into the cold and crowded mailboxes of the world.

1. Get my free book, Increase Sales & Build Deeper Connections: How To Get Prospects To Pay Attention To The Story They Want And Need To Hear Before They Buy, on the MagalogGuy.com homepage. Sorry to jump in first with a shameless plug, but this book covers aspects of magalog design. By knowing some of the things that go into the design of magalogs (and other types of marketing material), you’ll have a better sense of what to look for when a PDF proof arrives in your inbox.

If you’re not seeing some of the things I mention in the guide on your proofs, it doesn’t necessarily mean your project will fail and you chose the wrong designer. What it will allow you to do is bring up some points with your designer so you can better discuss why certain things were or were not done.

2. Don’t judge things too much on your personal preferences. The fact that you may not personally like the color blue, for example, isn’t terribly relevant. That’s hard for some client’s to hear, but your marketing material isn’t designed for you… it’s designed for your audience.

Now, if you have some study that shows your target market hates blue, blue is out. If you have a color scheme for your business or product that doesn’t lend itself to blue, again, blue is out.

Most designers I know don’t pick random colors and certainly don’t pick colors to annoy the client. When there is no color scheme that needs to be used as a foundation, your typical designer is going to go with certain colors that he or she knows will work well based on experience with other projects. Or they’ll choose certain colors or color combinations that reflect a certain feeling you want to put forth. Sometimes a significant photo on the cover might dictate the color palette.

3. Show your designer samples of things you like or don’t like. One of the biggest mistakes clients make is waiting until after seeing a draft of a design to start saying things like, “Oh… forgot to mention… I really dislike ______.” Ideally your designer will ask about your likes and dislikes at the start of the project, but don’t be shy speaking up if he or she doesn’t ask.

The reason this step is important is because, as any designer who has been around can tell you, some clients will take a PDF proof and say they don’t like it at all when they actually just dislike one little thing. But that one little thing is so important to them, it causes them to dismiss the whole thing as bad. If that little “thorn” had been known ahead of time, it would have saved you and the designer valuable time.

By the way, I’ve run into plenty of clients who hated the idea of showing me (or any other designer) samples of stuff they’ve used in the past because they hated it and didn’t want that to influence the new designer. But that’s the wrong way to look at things… you want it to influence your designer!

By showing the designer something you’ve used that bombed or made you sick to your stomach just looking at it, you’re helping your designer dismiss any ideas he or she might have had that had similar characteristics.

4. Is it easy to read? Ah… now we’re at the heart of direct market layout and design: Did the designer make the copy easy to read? While this can be subjective, more often than not it’s going to be pretty clear whether the designer has hit the mark or not. This includes not only the font choice and font size, but white space, leading, kerning, tracking and a host of other issues. You may not know the “rules” behind some of that terminology, but you’re going to know if you can read the thing easily or not.

Sometimes clients ask the near-impossible: Fitting way too much copy on way too little space. At a certain point, there’s only so much a designer can do and then it’s up to you to either cut copy or pay for more space. For example, your magalog may need to expand from eight pages to twelve. Bottom line: Your designer will do his or her best, but you might have to face the reality that things aren’t going to fit the way you thought they might. If it’s not going to work as-is, it’s time for Plan B.

Like just about any topic, we could spend pages and pages discussing this in more details. But for now I simply wanted to highlight some key points so that your projects can go as smoothly as possible.

So it wasn’t any surprise to see about three pages of answers whittled down to six paragraphs in the published article. However, it occurred to me that some marketers new to magalogs would find this information useful. Since the interview was done via e-mail, it’s an easy task to copy/paste the magazine’s questions and my answers here on the magablog.

So, you’ve been warned… this will be lengthy. But if you’re new to magalogs, I really believe this will be helpful.

What is your definition of a magalog?

When I get that ‘definition’ question, it usually comes from marketers who have experience in other areas, but not with magalogs. They’ve already heard that it’s a combination of magazine and catalog, but for whatever reason, that doesn’t seem to create a clear picture for everyone. So, to keep things simple, I tend to describe it as a sales letter on steroids. Like many sales letters, a magalog will start with a big idea or promise headline, include graphics and charts, some sidebars and an order form to go along with the main body copy. But with the magalog, we’re usually creating something with a stronger visual appeal, much like you’d notice in a magazine or even a high-end newsletter.

Magalogs also remind me of theater actors who have to project and make bigger movements so people all the way in the back can see and hear. In this case, the magalog has to stand out from the other mail that people get and that’s why you often see bold headlines and large cover photos.

They do contain advertising, correct?

Primarily, yes. But it’s not always as direct as “Read this magalog about our product, then order the product when you’re done.” For one client, the thrust of their magalog was to get people to go to their site to take a quiz. Obviously, once the quiz is complete, their intent is to sell their products and services, or at the very least get contact information. But there wasn’t an order form at the back of the magalog where you could actually buy something.

I’ve also been contacted by individuals, primarily consultants, who feel that a magalog would give them a vehicle to contact their current and potential clients throughout the year without it coming across as a blatant ad. Again, the ultimate goal is to sell a product or service they offer, but they want to provide more than just sales copy…perhaps some inspirational articles or tips related to the industry they target. Their hope is that people won’t throw the magalog away as junk mail…they’re hoping the reader will find the articles useful and keep the magalog or pass it on to others so their name is visible throughout the year.

Is the term synonymous with bookalog?

Not completely in my mind, but we could debate the point where one becomes the other. Some would say it’s physical size, some would say it’s page count, some would say it’s the binding that’s used. (At a certain point, saddle-stitch might not work so you’d use perfect binding and thus slip into bookalog territory.)

Personally, I don’t spend much time on terminology. I try to listen to what the client is wanting and give it to them. Whatever they want to call it is fine with me.

Which industries are among the biggest users of magalogs?

Health (normally alternative health) and financial products like investing newsletters, by far, are the most popular topics for magalogs that I see. And for a couple of reasons this makes sense. First, those two areas have to deal with a lot of skepticism. So having a long-form magalog allows you the space to “build your case,” so-to-speak, and include all your supporting information…testimonials, charts, graphics, etc. And in the health field, large, full-color photos of healthy people enjoying the benefits of your product look better in a glossy magalog. (Of course, all sorts of paper types are used in magalogs…they’re not always glossy.)

Do you see use of magalogs growing?

I think I see it evolving and that will really determine whether it grows, stays the same for a while, or drops in popularity. One reason is the new postal rates where mailing a traditional magalog is more expensive. Generally speaking, a magalog isn’t cheap to produce to begin with when you factor in copywriting, design, printing and mailing. So with a rate hike, you really have to consider if it’s cost effective.

What I have seen in just the last couple of weeks is magalogs in smaller sizes, like 5.5 x 8.5, or full-size but folded in half to fit into a 6×9 envelope. That’s not a totally new idea, but I think you’ll see more of it if marketers find it’s less expensive, yet still generating a good response rate.

I do feel strongly, though, that there will always be a need for long-form marketing pieces like magalogs or bookalogs.  But it won’t be for marketers who casually jump from one marketing method to another. I think a lot of people jumped on the magalog bandwagon when they probably shouldn’t have.  Those people won’t find increased costs very attractive and will likely move on to something else.

Those who continue with magalogs or start using them will really need to feel confident not only in what they’re offering and the premiums they offer, but also in their mailing lists. With the costs involved, mailing to a weak list is probably going to lead to disappointment.

Earlier I mentioned consultants and I think that is a potential, albeit small, growth area for magalogs. The people I’ve talked to want to get away from a traditional brochure or sales letter and they don’t feel their target audience has the time or the desire to be visiting a website to get information.

They want something similar to a magazine that will be kept and handed around or left on a lounge-room table because there is useful information included, not just a list of their products or services.  But because these people are not always a large business with lots of money for marketing, they may only do a small print run of their magalog. The downside for them is that it will be a bit more difficult to track the effectiveness of their magalog because there might not be an “order now” offer that would tell them immediately if the magalog is a success.

What makes this an effective format compared to, say, a brochure or other type of printed promotional piece?

In the beginning, the magalog’s newness is what made it effective. All of us do a pretty good job of filtering out the noise in our lives, including the attempts to sell us something. So when something new comes along, it takes us a while to put up the barriers to ignore it. And to a certain extent, as we sift through our daily mail, a magazine-size magalog, or a thick bookalog, seems a bit more important than a regular envelope enticing us in some way to open it.

If a magalog is a self-mailer and looks just like a magazine with a great cover, a strong headline, or some interesting bullet points to pique interest, there’s really not much effort involved for the reader to thumb through it. At that point, any number of things could catch their eye and entice them to invest more time reading it, and, hopefully, placing an order.

While brochures and other printed pieces can be self-mailers, quite a lot of the “junk mail” we receive has to be opened because it’s in an envelope. If you’ve got a stack of mail and you see something in an envelope that appears to want to sell you something, it gets an even lower priority rating than the bills you get.

Also, a magalog is well-suited toward people who really want to be convinced to buy a product or service. We tend to think that all people hate all advertising, but that’s not true. If I’m interested in alternative health, for example, I’m willing to read a lot of copy – far more than you could fit in a traditional brochure or other promotional piece – to get information that might help me be healthier.  I want to see charts and graphs in full color and I want to see people who look healthy and are having a good time.  It doesn’t mean I’m a sucker for every marketing piece that comes my way, but because of my interest in the topic, I’m willing to invest the time to see if the product might be right for me. So a magalog typically allows a marketer far more space to build and support a case for a product or service compared to other methods.

What would be three to five general dos and/or don’ts to keep in mind when designing a magalog?

I’m not sure any one idea is more or less important than another because if you drop the ball on one of these points, it could bring the whole magalog down.

A quick summary would be:

DO talk with a printer early on in the process. Because of a magalog’s complexity compared to some other print pieces, it’s really important that the printer is part of the discussion (along with the designer and copywriter) right from the start.

DO spend lots of time on the order form. It needs to be as complete as possible so that if, for some reason, it gets separated from the rest of the magalog, the customer can still place the order and know exactly what they’re getting.

DO spend a lot of time on the front and back cover. Depending on how it arrives in their mailbox, either the front or the back cover is what the customer will see first. If you don’t grab them at that point, the inside of the magalog won’t get read.

DO highlight the word FREE anytime in your copy. Despite our inclination to be skeptical about such things, FREE still has power.

DON’T think that photos on your website are high enough quality for print. Traditionally, website photos are smaller and set at a lower resolution so they load quickly. That usually means they’re not going to be appropriate for print.

DON’T get overly fancy with fonts. Fonts are a whole world unto themselves, but more people have been sunk by using some fancy font that they thought would help them stand out or look clever, when all it did was make it hard for people to read the copy.

DON’T proof a magalog design on the screen. Print it out and look at it because that’s how your customers will see it.

Are magalogs typically big-budget items?

Relative to many other methods of print marketing, yes.  But with variables such as page size, page count, color usage, mailing costs…the price can be all over the map. And since magalogs usually have more content than other marketing methods, that would mean your copywriting and design costs will be higher. (That’s assuming you’re not doing that work in-house.)

Magalog marketers also like to make the offer enticing, so you’ll usually see a variety of premiums added which will also add to your costs to some degree. It might only be a downloadable bonus report, but someone still has to write, edit and lay it out.

I have been approached by some online marketers to design magalogs, but not for use in print…they want to try them as a PDF download. That cuts down on the printing and mailing costs. I’m not convinced that’s a great route to go, though. Online is more about instant gratification in a number of ways and I don’t think many people want to download a PDF when the same information can be presented in HTML or Flash.

Who would not be a good candidate for magalogs for business-building purposes?

In theory, if you have a solid product and the right mailing list, I’m not sure there’s anyone who wouldn’t be a good candidate for a magalog, but I think you’d want to ask a lot of questions up-front if you’re a first-timer including:

1. Why am I doing a magalog in the first place? I’ve run into people who want to do a magalog simply because they’ve heard it’s popular or someone they know had success with one. From initial idea to mailed piece, magalogs can take a relatively long time to produce and mail compared to a brochure or traditional sales letter, so it’s not something you do on a whim.

2. Do I have a list that I trust? I think so much rides on the mailing list. Because of the costs, you just can’t afford to send magalogs to any name you come up with, unless you have an unlimited budget. You’ve really got to feel you have a list of solid names and that you understand what motivates them to buy the product or service you’re selling.

3. Am I confident with our sales copy? Design is certainly important, but the copy needs to make people want to turn the page to keep reading.  Like a great action movie, you want to start with a bang right on the cover and keep the excitement and interest high on each page. By the time the reader gets to the order form, the case for buying needs to be air-tight and that takes a skilled writer to pull off.

4. Am I willing to test? Most successful marketers test like crazy, including their magalogs. This includes testing cover copy, the bonus offers, the size, certain design elements, and even the price of the main product. So it can take some time and money to find something that works.  Not everyone has that kind of patience or budget.

So a short answer to your question of who might not be a good candidate is someone who lacks patience. (Lacking money is kind of obvious.)  It takes time to get things set up for any type of print marketing, but magalogs, I believe, are at the higher end of the time scale. And if you’re committed to testing, multiply that time schedule by the number of different tests you plan to run.  That’s quite an investment.

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And now you know why the magazine had to edit out so much. But as mentioned, it’s useful information if you’re considering magalog marketing.

I get occasional calls from potential clients who tell me they want/need a magalog. That comment is immediately followed by, “Oh… and what exactly is a magalog?” I’ve tackled the “What is a magalog” question here, so today let me focus on why I might try to talk someone out of using one.

Ultimately, a client knows his or her business far better than I do. But it’s fair to say that some clients aren’t as clear about the positives and negatives of certain types of marketing material. So it’s natural that if you hear people talking positively about some type of marketing – such as a magalog – you’re going to want to learn more about it. You might even think it’s a magic bullet that will have customers jamming your phone lines to place an order.

But that’s where a designer you trust is going to pay off. A good designer is not going to get hung up on terminology. He or she isn’t going to assume ‘magalog‘ just because you used that word. Your designer is going to ask questions about your copy and even ask to see it if it’s available at that point. Based on that, the designer will have a good idea of which direction to go if you’re not sure.

Even more important, if you actually do think you have a direction, a good designer isn’t going to be shy if he disagrees with you. That doesn’t mean your designer indulges in endless arguing. It just means he’ll give you other options to consider and explain why he’s presenting those options.

What sometimes happens when I talk to people who think they want a magalog is that they really need a sales letter. No, it’s not quite as glamorous as a magalog, but based on the content the client has, along with other factors, a sales letter is best for the job. (And we can make a sales letter look great even without all the extras that go into a magalog.)

That doesn’t mean you can’t make adjustments and additions to the copy to create content more appropriate for a magalog (or slim jim, or bookalog). It just means that, as it stands, your copy isn’t to that stage yet, in the designer’s opinion.

By the way… if you haven’t guessed yet, this situation normally occurs with clients who write their own copy or are considering taking existing website copy and converting it into a magalog. A good freelance copywriter is going to know from the beginning what he or she is writing for… magalog, sales letter, white paper, etc. In that case, the designer simply takes the copy and applies it to the proper format.

Content alone is not the only reason to question whether a magalog is the best choice. The cost of producing and mailing a magalog can be quite a financial hit… it’s not for the financially timid.

Just speaking from the design side, a magalog costs more than a sales letter because there’s far more work involved. A very basic rule of thumb: if it ends with ‘log’, it’s not going to be inexpensive… magalog, catalog, issuelog, bookalog. And that usually not only applies to the design, but also the copywriting, printing and mailing.

While I love getting paid for magalogs, I don’t steer clients down that path if I really don’t believe it’s the best marketing vehicle for them. That’s why I’ll ask any number of questions to ensure that the client is picking the right format.

So if you’re considering a magalog, but not sure if it’s right for you, find a designer you can trust and discuss it. In particular, focus on whether the content currently supports the magalog format, and whether you have a budget that will allow you to get the most out of your magalog.

I’m not one to get too hung up on terminology. Part of my job is to listen to what you need, then we can put a label on it if we need to. (Steering someone away from a magalog, and it’s relatively large financial investment, is something I’ve done a few times. I’ll discuss that in a future article.)

As you’ve probably guessed, the word magalog is traditionally considered to be a cross between magazine and catalog. I say traditionally because the way words and names evolve over time, I have no doubt that someone has another origin for the word. But for now, magalog + catalog is good enough for us in the realm of direct marketing.

When I was interviewed for Print Professional Magazine, I gave my own definition that I thought direct marketers could relate to:

I tend to describe [a magalog] as a sales letter on steroids. Like many sales letters, a magalog will start with a ‘big idea’ or ‘promise’ headline, include graphics and charts, some sidebars and an order form to go along with the main body copy. But with the magalog, we’re usually creating something with a stronger visual appeal, much like you’d notice in a magazine or even a high-end newsletter.

Magalogs also remind me of theater actors who have to project and make bigger movements so people all the way in the back can see and hear. In this case, the magalog has to stand out from the other mail that people get and that’s why you often see bold headlines and large cover photos.

Of course, there’s no law that says we have to do things a fixed way. In fact, the magalog has a few variations including slim jims, issuelogs and bookalogs. (Again, something else I’ll be tackling in the future.)

But the “sales letter on steroids” phrase seems to click with most direct marketers I talk to who are learning about magalogs for the first time.

At that point, the sky’s the limit… or more accurately, the budget is the limit.

We want the magalog to be something appealing to read. Obviously there will be sales copy, but a great copywriter is going to find nuggets of information to sprinkle throughout the magalog… info that people might actually want to share with other people.

In my prior career in a radio newsroom, it’s what we’d call the “Hey, Martha” story. You’ve probably heard that phrase before. You can read a bit more about that in my free book, Increase Sales & Build Deeper Connections: How To Get Prospects To Pay Attention To The Story They Want And Need To Hear Before They Buy, on the MagalogGuy.com homepage.

Designers take all that and put it into something that’s going to stand out when the recipient gets his or her mail.

Magalogs can sell a single product or service, or many. Most I’ve dealt with have been a single product, with the copy focused on creating the desire and supporting the claims that are being made.

Magalogs have no set size or page count, although 8.5 x 11 is a common size and 12-16 pages is a common page count. Once you start significantly changing those variables, the discussion moves into things like slim jims and bookalogs. Yet another topic for another day.

For today, I just want to keep things as simple as possible and give you a fairly common definition of a magalog.

While I maintain http://mikeklassen.blogspot.com, I felt that if I was going to start a new blog for MagalogGuy.com, I’d bring the blog “in-house” and start working with WordPress.

The goal here is to focus on information relevant to magalogs, issuelogs, bookalogs and slim jims… although a lot of that information will apply to other types of design projects.

One big difference between this blog and my blog on Blogspot is that this one is focused on information for clients and potential clients. My Blogspot blog is focused on helping beginning direct market designers.

If you have any questions about magalogs, issuelogs, bookalogs or slim jims – or general questions related to the layout of your projects – please feel free to contact me. Unlike some creative types, I’m easy to get a hold of either by phone or direct e-mail.

You’ll find the contact info at the bottom of the main MagalogGuy.com site.

Thanks.

Mike Klassen – The MagalogGuy