One of the world's greatest copywriting secrets is knowing how to make an irresistible offer. And I was going to take this in a different direction, but an e-mail I just received, made me change my mind.

On top of this, a catalog I was reading yesterday did the same exact thing, so I figured let me just listen to what the world's telling me and share it with you.

I got an e-mail from a watch company - medium grade watches, very nice looking... in fact, I bought my wife one or two of them over the last few years... and the subject line is supposed to make you "jump."

It says, "Enjoy Complimentary Shipping on any Order for a Limited Time."

And reality is, saying things like this creates a very common problem - one I'll discuss with you in just a minute.

But first, let's get back to the catalog I was thumbing through yesterday. It's from an old New York City retailer that has great food. And every few pages I kept seeing something distracting me, in some of the white space on each page.

So I finally looked at it after seeing it two or three times, and there it was, in brown cursive writing that is hard to read, "Our Gift Baskets And Boxes Include Shipping."

Got it?

O.K., now let's come full circle on this thing.

When you want to say things like, "Enjoy Complimentary Shipping on any Order for a Limited Time"... and... "Our Gift Baskets And Boxes Include Shipping"...

Don't do it. Instead, restrain yourself and just say, "Free Shipping When You Order Before November 15th" or whatever date you need to use.

See, one of the biggest problems people have is they simply can't say what they mean. They foolishly believe that making things sound difficult, convoluted or "highbrow" sounding, is somehow going to add some "panache" to what they're selling.

Now it may very well make you sound snobbier. But last time I checked... and who knows, I may be alone here -- you can't pay your mortgage with "snobby." Your mileage may vary on this but all my bank accepts, is cold hard cash.

So when I write an ad, my goal is simple: I want it to sell as many goods and services to as many qualified people as possible.

That's why I'd say something simple that everyone understands and loves hearing, like "Free Shipping When You Order Before November 15th."

And I'd print it in plain boring black ink using a big serif font offline, like Times, or Cambria, or Courier or something like that. No big fancy script that looks like someone's desperately trying to get my attention because they need to sell me something.

Look, making an irresistible offer is one of the most appealing, most effective things you can ever do. But making an offer no one understands or responds to... is just a waste of time. And copywriting secrets like this are what make the cash register ring!

Now go sell something, Craig Garber