Latest / The Copywriting Podcast with Fexingo: Sales Letters, Headlines, and Persuasive Writing / How a Handwritten P.S. on a Typed Letter Lifted Response by 52 Percent
Transcript
- Lucas: So there's this B2B software company — I'm going to leave the name out because the campaign is still active — and they sent out a typed, fairly standard sales letter to about five thousand prospects. Control package, clean design, nothing fancy. Luna: Right, a classic direct mail test. What was the variable? Lucas: One tiny addition: a handwritten postscript at the bottom, in blue ink. That's it. Everything else identical — same envelope, same offer, same body copy. The version with the handwritten P.S. pulled a 52 percent higher response rate. Luna: Fifty-two percent? Off just a few handwritten words? Lucas: Yeah. And it's not an outlier. There's decades of testing showing the P.S. is one of the most-read parts of any sales letter. John Caples wrote about it in the 1930s. Bob Bly says the P.S. is often read before the body. But the handwritten element — that's doing something specific. Luna: What's the psychology? Is it the personal touch? Lucas: Partly. But the deeper mechanism is what copywriter Andy Maslen calls the 'conversational loop.' A typed letter feels formal — it's a monologue. But a handwritten P.S. signals, 'I, a human, sat down and wrote this just for you.' It breaks the fourth wall. It implies a relationship. Luna: So it's not just the P.S. as a device — it's the handwriting that makes it feel like a real note. Lucas: Exactly. In that campaign, the P.S. read: 'P.S. I know you're busy — I just wanted to say I really think this could save your team about ten hours a week. No pressure. Just a thought.' That's conversational. It's not a sales pitch; it's a friend passing along a tip. Luna: And the blue ink? That seems like a deliberate choice. Lucas: Blue stands out against black type. It's also the color of trust and calm — think of a handwritten thank-you note. Black ink feels more formal, almost like it could be printed. Blue says 'real pen.' In split tests, blue consistently beats black for handwritten elements. Luna: Was the handwriting real or a font? Lucas: Real. They had one person write the P.S. by hand on each letter. That's labor-intensive, but for a test of five thousand, it was doable. And they tracked that the handwritten version didn't just lift response — it lifted average order value by 18 percent too. People who responded bought more. Luna: Because they felt a connection? Or because the P.S. made the offer feel more exclusive? Lucas: I think both. The P.S. is also a second chance to make the offer. In a typical letter, the body builds the case, then the P.S. restates the core benefit in a fresh way. But when it's handwritten, it feels less like a repeat and more like an afterthought — 'oh, and one more thing.' That's disarming. Luna: Like the Columbo close. The detective solves the case by asking 'just one more thing' right as he's leaving. Lucas: Exactly. The handwritten P.S. is the Columbo move. It catches the reader off guard because it's informal. And because it's physically at the bottom, the eye lands there naturally. Eye-tracking studies show that on a typical letter, the P.S. and the signature get disproportionate attention. Luna: So if I'm writing a sales letter today, what's the actionable takeaway? Should I always add a handwritten P.S.? Lucas: Test it. Start with a control letter that has a typed P.S. — that's already a best practice. Then test a handwritten version. But make sure the handwriting is real, not a script font. Fonts are detected subconsciously. And use blue ink. And keep the P.S. short — one or two sentences, conversational, benefit-focused. Luna: What about email? Could a handwritten-style P.S. work in an email? Lucas: It can, but you lose the physical handwriting cue. Some marketers use a different font or a signature image. But honestly, the effect is weaker. The power of the handwritten P.S. is tactile — it's the ink on paper. In email, the best equivalent is a short, informal P.S. in plain text, no formatting, and placed after your signature. That can still lift response, but expect a smaller lift. Luna: So the physical medium matters. Makes sense for direct mail. Lucas: Right. And one more thing from the campaign: they tested placement. The handwritten P.S. worked best when it was below the signature, not above. Above the signature, it felt like part of the body. Below, it felt like a genuine afterthought. That boosted response another 7 percent. Luna: Small tweaks, big impact. It's almost like the P.S. is a separate micro-letter. Lucas: That's a great way to think about it. The P.S. is your second chance to make a first impression. In direct mail, it's often the first thing read. So if you write a weak P.S., you're squandering your best real estate. Luna: What are the worst P.S. mistakes you see? Lucas: Number one: making it a rehash of the body. 'P.S. Our product is great, buy now.' That's wasted ink. Number two: making it too long. A P.S. should be a burst, not a paragraph. Number three: typing it. If you can handwrite, do it. Number four: using it for a different offer that confuses the main message. Luna: So the P.S. should reinforce the same core benefit, but in a fresh, personal way. Lucas: Exactly. And ideally, it should contain a specific, relatable detail. In the campaign we talked about, they mentioned 'ten hours a week' — that's concrete. It's not 'save time,' it's 'ten hours.' Specificity builds credibility. Luna: I love that. It's a tiny sentence, but it's packed with psychology. Lucas: And here's the thing — this kind of deep-dive into a single copy element? That's what we try to do on this show. And it's only possible because a small group of listeners helps keep it ad-free. Luna: Yeah, if you've ever gotten a practical tip from an episode like this one, and you want to make sure we keep going, you can find us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It's a simple way to chip in. Lucas: No pressure at all — we're grateful for every listen. But that support literally funds the research time behind episodes like this. Luna: Okay, back to the P.S. — one more thing I want to ask. Does the handwriting have to be the same person's every time? Lucas: Ideally yes, but for large mailings, it's tough. Some companies use a 'handwriting robot' that replicates a real person's handwriting. It's expensive but scalable. In tests, robot handwriting still outperforms typed, but not as much as real human handwriting. The slight imperfections of a real hand matter. Luna: Imperfections signal authenticity. That's fascinating. Lucas: Right. So if you're doing a small test, get a real pen. If you're scaling, consider a handwriting service or even a handwritten font with slight variations — but test it against real handwriting first. Luna: So the takeaway: test a handwritten P.S. in blue ink below the signature. Make it short, specific, and conversational. Got it. Lucas: And if you do, let us know what happens. We'd love to share your results in a future episode.