Meet Interesting People… And Kill Them

I first saw this sometime around the late 1980s or early 1990s, I can’t quite recall which.

It basically said…

“Join the army, meet interesting people, and kill them”.

While I found it rather funny, it also made quite an impression on me as I was in the Territorial Army, which is the UK equivalent of the US Home Guard.

This came to mind when I heard something John Carlton say something about what a hook should do in a sales copy.

In case you don’t know what a hook is, it’s the angle that catches attention or grabs a prospect by the throat and says, “READ ME!”

It literally forces them to read your advert, making it difficult tear themselves away from it.

It’s the, “head turning hook that reels people in,” as John would say.

It’s the angle that forces people to take out their wallets and buy whatever it is you’re selling.

It’s the angle that makes such an impression on your prospect, he can’t relax until he’s bought the product.

It’s pretty final.

And, I guess that’s what reminded me of the words in the title.

When you kill someone, for all earthly intents and purposes, it’s pretty much final… there’s no turning back… you can’t un-kill someone when you’ve killed them.