The Nation's #1 DRTV Commercial is Using These Classic Tactics to Win
Pocket Hose Copper Bullet is a clinic in direct-marketing mastery
I thought it would be fun to take a break for my ‘Masters of Marketing’ series and see how modern practitioners apply the tried-and-true tactics we’ve been exploring. Below is a detailed analysis of the #1 direct-response commercial in the nation right now, per DRMetrix.
Pocket Hose Copper Bullet
Starring: Richard Karn
Marketer: BulbHead
Producer: KERRmercials
The commercial opens with a classic problem statement: “Are you tired of wrestling with your old-fashioned hose?” There are at least three tactics embedded in this one line alone:
“Are you tired of X?” is about as tried-and-true as a DRTV phrase gets.
“Are you sick of X?” is a close second. Sometimes, they are even combined (“Are you sick and tired?”) The tactic is one that Alvin Eicoff first described: Trying to get the potential customer to “feel a strong personal identification … reflexively nodding his head in acknowledgement.”Eicoff also talked about using words with “visceral kick” to connect with the consumer. “Wrestling” is one of those words, and the next line in the commercial is replete with them (“heavy and hard to carry,” “tangle and kink”).
And then there’s “old-fashioned,” the impactful opposite of “new” that nicely sets up the introduction of the product as the “first and only” of its kind.
Both #2 and #3 are also negative emotional appeals and, as Joseph Sugarman taught us, “you sell on emotion.”
[0:10-0:19]
Next up: Celebrity Richard Karn (major credibility booster) introduces the product, and we immediately see a magic demonstration of the expanding hose, artfully shot from above. This recalls what Ron Popeil insisted: “Nothing works harder or sells better than a demonstration of your product’s superiority.”
[0:20-0:28]
In this case, we get a trifecta since the very next demonstration shows how powerful the hose’s sprayer is, and then we also watch as the hose “puts itself away.” That last scene is especially powerful, so I want to call your attention to it. In it, we see Karn and an attractive woman relaxing with cocktails while the hose does all the work for them. Karn even laughs at how easy life is, exclaiming: “See! There it goes!” This is truly great stuff — the perfect payoff to the negative emotions the problem opening created.
[0:29-0:38]
What’s next? Testimonials, of course. As we learned from the Great (Robert) Cialdini, “social proof” can dramatically improve response, and testimonials are the typical form that takes in a DRTV commercial. These particular testimonials are even shot vertically with a phone to give them that authentic, ‘user-generated’ feel. (However, I should note that the delivery of the testimonials isn’t particularly convincing, so the sequence fell a little flat for me.)
[0:39-0:47]
Moving on, we get an excellent response to Sugarman’s challenge to raise and answer objections. A big objection that often comes up in a prospect’s mind: Is it safe? The best way to address that concern? Show a cute kid drinking right from the hose, of course.
[0:48-0:58]
By this point in the spot, it would be easy to repeat something just to kill time before the offer. However, experienced DRTV players have internalized Eicoff’s nine principles, one of which is: “Don’t forget to demonstrate secondary benefits.” This team didn’t forget. Their next move is to highlight the hose’s “oversized connectors” that are “20% larger” than the competition, making them “easy to twist and turn.” This further enhances the product’s USP and addresses another potential question/objection.
[1:01-1:04]
There’s more! What follows that is a perfect example of Eicoff’s “Parallel Structure Technique” (PST), which involves “placing the viewer in two identical situations: one with the product advertised and one without.” This takes the form of a split-screen demonstration contrasting a kinking regular hose with the “never kink” Pocket Hose.
[1:05-1:12]
Finally, we have Karn delivering his closing pitch directly to the camera. “Trust the brand with over 100 worldwide patents and millions sold,” he says. “Enough to go to the moon! And back!”
Just like the opening line, there are multiple techniques at play in this single line:
“100 worldwide patents” is a powerful credibility booster and certainly meets Jay Abraham’s definition of a USP by evoking an “advantage that no other competitor offers.”
“Millions sold” is more social proof and triggers something called “the bandwagon effect” (which we haven’t discussed yet). It also takes care of the other half of Sugarman’s “sell on emotion” principle by helping to “justify with logic.” If millions have been sold, it has to be good, right?
“To the moon and back” is fun visual language that also makes an ambiguous claim more concrete and thus “sticky,” per the Heath brothers.
But wait! We can’t forget Dan Kennedy’s #1 rule for “No B.S.” advertising: “There will always be an offer.” To find out what’s happening there, you’ll have to go and watch the iSpot.tv version of the commercial. If you do, you’ll witness:
A perfect example of a relevant, low-cost premium
The satisfaction of Kennedy’s #2 rule: “There will be a reason to respond right now” (see if you can identify three phrases they use to achieve this)
An easter egg for Home Improvement fans (featuring a BulbHead executive 🤫)
In the end, it’s no wonder this hit commercial is such a clinic in direct marketing done right. The minds behind it — AJ Khubani and Tim Kerr — are industry veterans with decades of successes under their belts. They’re Masters in their own right, and we students of the craft can learn a lot by paying close attention to their work.
Chart Watch👁️
Bullseye Pro
Pitch: “Your anywhere, any time inflation station”
Offer: $79.99 for one, 2nd one for 50% off
Marketer: Emson (🏆 2022 True Top Marketer)
Producer: Hutton Miller (🏆 2022 True Top Producer)
Speaking of modern Masters, the team that put this campaign together is one of the best — and it shows. It’s already #12 on the DRMetrix report after just recently debuting in early March.
The product is Old Gold. The original hits were Ontel’s Air Hawk (#15 on the 2017 True Top 50) and Telebrands’ Air Dragon (#24 that year). What’s especially noteworthy here is that both of those products sold for $40, which was double the perceived $20 price barrier for DRTV at the time. Now, just six years later, we have a product that is double that again.
This goes to show how rapidly the industry is changing. It also suggests that with top-shelf creative and the right price-to-value perception, DR advertisers can overcome some of the old ‘impulse pricing’ constraints.
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