15 Things Most Great Direct-Mail Letters Have in Common

In her latest post at Forbes.com, Lois Geller predicts the return of the great direct-mail letter. It occurred to me that a lot of people haven’t seen one in quite a while, if ever. They’re not extinct, but they’re rare critters, more like coelacanths than sharks.

They spring from a lot of background work, thought, understanding and, more than anything else, creativity, although creativity by itself isn’t much use.

Each great direct-mail letter is unique, but they all share many attributes, including …