Is This Intimate?

It’s 7 pm on May 2nd, and the skies in Miyazaki are dusky blue after a cloudy day that ended in a heavy downpour.

I’m quietly tapping away at the keyboard of my Dell XPS laptop. VIDEOCLUB – En nuit plays in my cheap but trusty and oh so well made Sennheiser MX365 earbuds.

Despite two pillows under my butt, I feel the hardness of a solid, aged wooden floor underneath.

In my brain are thoughts of tomorrow’s flight to Taipei. I sense a hint of sadness associated with leaving the kind, respectful, and calm people of Japan.

(this email is sponsored by VIDEOCLUB, Sennheiser, and Dell…

Oh come on, I wish that were the case!)

If I did my job even a tiny bit well, you now feel closer to me. Perhaps you can imagine the room or the humid weather outside. The atmosphere is more intimate, more… human.

Through my words, I brought you into a fleeting moment into my world (even if it happened many weeks ago).

That sense of intimacy can happen only between two humans.

When you share a fleeting moment in your life with your subscribers, you make them feel a part of it. And they become more invested in you as a creator because they see you as a real human being, not just some words on a page.

A Classic Copywriter’s Take On Creating a Bond With Your Readers

In Boron Letters, famous copywriter Gary Halbert writes a letter to his son in which he mentions this:

I think I left off in my last letter where I was just about to comment on the part above the salutation, the part that tells the day of the week, the exact time, the day of the month and the year. Why is it important to put these specifics in the letter?

Well, it makes the letter a little more personal, doesn’t it? I mean seriously, don’t you feel a little closer to me because I put all this data in each of my letters to you? I think so. I think this way of doing things bonds the writer and the reader closer together. It also gives our transmission the quality of immediacy. And, while I’m on the subject, it just occurred to me that I should tell you that another additional way to achieve this bond of intimacy and immediacy in your letters is to describe where you are and what you are doing as you are writing the letter.

For example, right now I am sitting cross-legged on my back here in room 7 of dorm 6 in the Boron Federal Prison Camp. I have just finished running the hill five times (4-miles) and I did it in 57 minutes and 5 seconds.

Do you see how this type of personal specific info bonds the reader and writer closer together? You do? Good. I’ll continue.

Now, here’s another little thought: When you tell the day of the week plus the exact time you are writing the letter, it makes it seem a more important communication too, doesn’t it? Sort of like a telegram. There’s no doubt about it: A time-dated communication carries considerable more weight than one which is not.

I remember reading this many years ago, and for some reason that little description of his moment in prison stuck with me. To this day, I feel as if I’m there, watching him write a letter to his son. That’s how powerful this technique can be.

Banal Is Human

When sending an email to your subscribers, you may have a tendency to jump straight into the “good stuff.”

But adding these seemingly irrelevant little details humanizes your writing.

AI won’t ever tell you that it’s writing from a cramped basement on a grim winter morning.

AI won’t ever tell you what music it’s listening to.

(I tried: it said “I don’t listen to music myself, but I can help you explore any genre, artist, or vibe you’re into—whether it’s ambient for focus, obscure Balkan folk, or the darkest techno from Berlin”).

AI won’t ever tell you anything that will make you feel “That’s so cool. I do that, too!”

So open your next broadcast by giving some context of where you are, what you’re doing, and describe some little interesting details around you. It’s a glimpse into your life that your subscribers will find more interesting than you think.

Hit me back and let me know how it worked for you.

Until next time,

Martin

P.S. All these little details you share will increase your response rates, too. People are more likely to share that they also like French music or surf towns in Japan than they are to comment on your advice. And that builds genuine connections that increase sales without you having to hard sell anything.