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... the opening is a mite trite. But it grabs. Cataclysmic declarations should have two mechanical components: a cut-off date and a suggestion of exclusivity. If the reader concludes the entire world has the opportunity to profit from the identical decision, the argument doesn't work because the cataclysm is too universal to generate a head of steam. 5. I [WE] NEED HELP. At one time a generic fund raising opening, this one suffers from overuse and from sociological evolution (devolution?) . Among fund raisers it's just as poplar as ever, even though the impact isn't as formidable as it once was. Its use is actually growing, because it no longer is the exclusive property of fund raising. We need help' flourished during the 1950-1980 period-a kinder, gentler time, when guilt was ... more automatic motivator than it has become in the self-centered 1990s. Many of today's old-line donors are holdovers from We need help' recruitment campaigns of 15 to 30 years ago. Oh, sure, fund raisers still use We need help, ' and it still pulls well enough, for some, to maintain position. That's one reason it's on the list. But another reason is the spillover from fund raising to commerce. A paradox! Business mailers have discovered need for dominance as a burgeoning motivator. By appealing to this need for dominance . . . by putting their target in a position of make-or-break supremacy . . . shrewd mailers have picked up the slack. Few commercial mailings use the words We need help, ' because 1990s consumers don't buy from weaklings. Instead, the mailers use ...

...ision is possible and logical. A fund-raising organization has this cataclys... another reason is the spillover from fund raising to commerce. A paradox! Bus...

... be asking, Huh? ' isn't a barn-burner. I enjoy being called the Creator (Oh, all right-Let there be light), but what does the assumed uniqueness of my job have to do with Let's face it'? Does this use establish rapport or damage it? 54. It's late and I'm tired, but I have to tell you this. This one is a favorite of fund raisers, and you can see why: The touch of martyrdom reaches out to the best prospects. This opening is underused by commercial mailers, many of whom feel they're taking off their pants in public. In that objection is the nucleus of why #54 can work when no other opening can grab and shake your target. If you seem to be firing blanks, that's the time to ... for action. A fund-raising letter is an archetype of It's late and I'm tired, but I have to tell you this': It's 11:30 P.M. on a Tuesday night and I'm tired. I need a shower, and I want to go to bed. But I can't sleep . . . not until I finish this letter and pray that God will fill your heart with compassion for the poor of Appalachia -as he did mine in 1957. See how the writer's agony coats the reader's attitude? Try it the next time you're mounting a commercial letter test. 55. We've chosen you . . . or . . . You have been chosen. This is the cousin of two other openings, #17 ( 'Because you are who you are, you'll get special attention ...

... this. This one is a favorite of fund raisers, and you can see why: The touc...t's the time to strip for action. A fund-raising letter is an archetype of '...