Infomercial Insight: A look at Direct Response Advertising

We’re excited for another Response Expo in San Diego next week! It’s always great to share time with the best people in DRTV. This year, RW is sponsoring the 6th hole at the annual golf outing. Stop by and say hello, or we’ll see you on the show floor!

A quick photo from the Flexcin infomercial shoot. Hosts Duke and the Doctor did an amazing job!

RW Advertising is please to partner with the DRMA and Response Magazine in hosting the DRMA 2012 Chicago Housewares Show Reception Party! The event is Monday March 12 from 6p-9p at Vertigo Sky Lounge. Details are here.

Join us for  hors d’oeuvres, drinks, and socializing with the best in the direct response business! Leave us a note if you plan on attending – it will be a blast!

RW Advertising, Inc announces another winning solution for entering into
direct response television with smarttvshopper.com. Smart TV Shopper is a
creation that ties together the proven shopping network format with a
traditional infomercial. RW has done it again with a solution that allows
marketers to test the waters of DRTV without huge risk. Smarttvshopper.com
enables marketers to feature their products in a live to tape show that allows
up to nine minutes per product for on set demonstration and effective selling.
Smart TV Shopper just released a new show featuring three excellent products
through this format and has experienced traffic and sales instantly. Featured
product number 1: Loreem Skin Care: A all natural skin care solution for men
and women looking to clean, nurture and restore beauty. This effective skin
care solution comes in a two month supply and sells through smarttvshopper.com
for under $40. Featured product number 2: The Easy Sheet: The newest innovation
in bedding in over 60 years with a patented design that increases comfort while
keeping the sheets on the bed providing an uninterrupted good night’s sleep.
Through smarttvshopper.com customers get to try The Easy Sheet at a $30
discount off retail. Featured product number 3 Night Food: Sleep doesn’t have
to be the stressful part of your day. Many people toss and turn in bed wishing
they had a solution that satisfied late night hunger and helped rest their
minds to fall asleep. Now there’s Night Food the late night craving sleep aid
that gives customers what their body needs to effectively rest their minds and
get an incredible night’s sleep with no side effects. Through
Smarttvshopper.com night food is offered at $30 under retial and offers a
$19.99 sleep six pack to try it.

The format of the on air show is simple. It features three products through
a half hour format giving each product a 1/3 stake in the on air time. All of
the products are featured at smarttvshopper.com and are driven to one phone
number. The call center answers the calls and quickly identify’s which product
the consumers are calling about. At the end of the call the customers are given
an opportunity to save on the other featured products on the show and entered
into the smarttvshopper system to gain savings on current products and future
products even before they are released. “We came up with this idea out of a
need for more on camera time for our products. We found that :30, :60 and even
:120 ads weren’t enough to describe all the features and benefits each product
had to offer. Through this format we’ve been able to create a no nonsense
platform for both explaining products and testing consumer response through its
various channels. We’re excited by its future and look forward to bringing a
fresh new products and services to consumers at the best prices on the market”
Says Sean Ryan Owner @ RW Advertising, Inc

Smarttvshopper is live and taking orders for its customers through its
dynamic platform. Front end and back end traffic are currently driving sales
for participants in the program. It’s available for most product types and
looking forward to a long standing run in DRTV. Go to SmartTVshopper.com today
and find out more.

Don’t trust your project with just anyone.  It’s your baby and you want to make sure it has the right creative juice behind it.  I’m asked several good questions when being
approached to produce an infomercial.

1. What categories do you specialize in?
2. What is the biggest hit you’ve produced?
3. What is your philosophy on DRTV production?
4. What is your timeline for being on the air?

These are all good questions that need to be answered but the most important question is never asked. What makes you, the producer, right for me and my project?  Over the years one thing we at RW Advertising, Inc. have worked really hard at is relating to the products. A good DRTV producer will get to know your product as much as you do.   If the producer isn’t willing to learn about the product, its demographics and salability what good is he/she on your team? If you don’t walk away feeling like you’ve learned something other than how great that person feels they are you should run away to the other 10,000 plus options in the industry.

Understanding the product is a science!  A good writer has to know the topic of which they write. A good mechanic needs to understand everything there is about a vehicle to effectively repair. A doctor needs to understand the body and how it works, what could go wrong and have the experience to detect issues early enough to fix them. The same thing goes for a good infomercial producer. There should be no surprises that an effective producer learns after accepting a job. Remember you might only have one shot to make your product resonate with the consumer.   Make sure the partner you pick cares enough to completely understand your project prior to accepting it.

Is Information really free? Some producers will charge a fee to dive into your product.  I guess I don’t blame them for this but whatever happened to due diligence to earn trust/business. A good friend in the business once told me, “with me information is free; I’d rather you understand what I’m offering rather than blame me for not offering what you need.” We work around the clock on the notion that information is in fact free. This means we learn about the product to decide whether we can produce the show and bring the results you need.  If we find that we’re not a fit we back out and recommend someone who is. That might be too honest and forthright for this industry but we still believe in doing good business and have built our reputation on that foundation.

When you’re picking an infomercial producer just make sure you walk away feeling warm and fuzzy about your selection. Price isn’t the only factor marketers need to be sensitive of in the selection of this important decision.  Knowing the producer and his or her team has your best interests at heart and that they’ll put the time and energy into making your message sing is the most important think you should look for.

In that information is free I invite you to check us out anytime to get our perspective. Check us out online at www.rwadv.com for samples of our work and to get educated on the feasibility of your product. If nothing else you’ll walk away with a true, honest, educational approach to the Direct Response industry.

Check out this article from the December issue of Electronic Retailer. SF Global Sourcing’s Steven Feinberg presents a case study on RW Advertising client Maxxus Marketing. It’s a nice look at product creation and presenting value to the consumer.

The November issue of Response Magazine was recently released    and features our long-time client Masterbuilt Manufacturing. It is    a great story by Response editor Thomas Haire that takes you        from the early days of Masterbuilt and their original fish fryer to today’s incredibly successful Butterball Turkey Fryer product. Masterbuilt owners John and Don McLemore talk about many of the challenges and decisions they faced while growing the company. They also discuss the impact of direct response advertising, including having the right DRTV partner,  on their amazing success story.

It’s a great read…check it out here.

The story also interviews RW Advertising partner and CEO of west coast operations Heath Sorrells. Heath talks about how DRTV allows Masterbuilt to support retail with a much larger impact than would otherwise be possible.

If your interested in DRTV spend a few minutes with this article. It sheds some light on our very dynamic industry. As always, please leave us your comments.

Another season for our Butterball Turkey Fryer launched this Monday. This is a great show and is highly successful. Watch for it on your local and cable networks…

Busy wrapping up the week before heading to Las Vegas for the annual ERA show -See you there!