Layers of Proof, Part II - "Show Me the Dirt"

Earlier this week, my wife and I sat in on a demonstration of unique vacuum cleaner as a favor for a friend who had bought one. (The more friends who see the demonstration, the more of a discount she gets.)

I had heard only that this was a vacuum cleaner that also purifies the air in your home, but had no preconceived ideas about it.

The demonstrator, Leon, showed us this vacuum using the “demonstration” form of proof.

For instance, he showed us the suction and air flow of our current vacuum vs. his super vacuum. Very impressive. He told us that “suction” had nothing to do with a vacuum’s cleaning power. It was air flow that really mattered.

He took out an air flower meter (a harmonica) and compared the air flow of our vacuum vs. his. No comparison! His had way more power (sound volume coming out of the harmonica).

Then, he had me vacuum our area rug with our vacuum. I thought I did a good job. But then he had me vacuum the same area with his super vacuum.

Now the key this super vacuum is the dirt and dust goes into a container of water, not a typical vacuum bag. You should have seen how much MORE DIRT was in the water after I used the super vacuum. Yuck!!!! Leon “showed me the dirt”—and boy, did his vacuum clean better! Very impressive!

Leon sells a lot of these super vacuums because he understands the power of proof. The more proof, the more you sell. His proof was very convincing, and I probably would have bought this super vacuum, but it was too pricey for me.

Now, my task as a writer is to “demonstrate” the uniqueness and benefits of a product or service, usually in print—whether that be in direct mail, a space ad or online.

How can you show more “unquestionable proof” as I mentioned in my last entry?

For one, you can show proof of a big problem.

Take the case of a very successful magalog I wrote for people worth $3,000,000 or more.

In a nutshell, the magalog was to sell the services of Barry Kaye, who helped the rich create and preserve wealth with innovative life insurance and investment strategies.

I’m not sure of the current estate tax situation now, but when I wrote this piece, there was the risk that upon death, the good ol’ US government could take a lion’s share of your estate in taxes.

So I demonstrated this point by…


















Showing a photo of a Fabregé egg, cut in half. The point: more than ONE HALF of your estate will be gobbled up by Uncle Sam upon death.

Showing a chart of "Estate Taxes, the American Tragedy." This showed that at a high net worth, you could lose up to 60 percent of your estate to Uncle Sam.

Showing a photo of a once wealthy CPA who lost over $7 million of a $12 million to taxes.

Showing examples of famous people like John D. Rockefeller Sr. whose estate's value plummeted 64 percent after estate taxes and expenses were paid after death, and Marilyn Monroe whose estate lost 55 percent upon death.

This "demonstrated" to readers that the problems of estate taxes at death was a big problem, even if you had a will.

For example, I demonstrated why an irrevocable trsut is the "single best way to recover estate tax costs, get a 5-to-1 or better return, and legally transfers nearly all of your worth to heirs.

Of course this magalog didn't just prove the problem. It also was laden with proof of solutions by Barry Kaye.

This was shown in a chart that promise an "89 percent discount on estate tax costs.

The promotion included a number of other wealth creation and perservation strategies, each backed with solid proof.

Leon proved the power of his super vacuum by showing me the problem with my own vacuum and the superiority of his. this magalog proved the problem of estate taxes and the superiority of Barry Kaye's innovative tax and investment strategies.

Remember, the more proof you can demonstrate, the more you sell.