My Social Security # Is 457-55-5462

[Editor's Note: I do not endorse LifeLock or recommend their service. The lesson below is about the power of proof in copy. The idea came from a LifeLock ad. But my most recent article is critical of the company. Find out why by reading Is LifeLock Selling a Lie?]

It is rare for an ad to really grab me. It comes from over-exposure to advertising I suppose. Anyway, the reason this particular ad got my attention was because the headline said this:

My Social Security # Is 457-55-5462

Naturally, I kept reading...

I'm Todd Davis, CEO of LifeLock, and this really is my social security number. I give it just to prove how safe your identity can be with LifeLock. All of us, no matter how careful, can become victims of identity theft. In fact, every three seconds another identity is stolen.

The ad continues for a few more paragraphs. But you hardly need to read them. That's because in the space of a headline and one paragraph, I'm basically sold. I'm guessing most other readers who would like to protect against identity theft are already sold, too.

This is the power of proof.

In the case of this product, what greater proof could Todd Davis have offered than to publish his SSN on the top of a publicly distributed advertisement? I can't think of anything.

I scanned the ad in so you can see for yourself what it says.

==> Click here to view the LifeLock ad.

How can you use proof like this to strengthen your advertisements and sales letters?

Comments

[Ben Settle]

Ryan, that is really awesome stuff... thanks for sharing that!

Ben

[Steve]

It's on their website:
http://www.lifelock.com/

[Kyle Tully]

Imagine how many people are trying to steal his identity just to prove him wrong...

That's confidence!

[Shaune Clarke]

Hey Ryan,

This also speaks to our ability to "choose" clients with material to support our copy.

Proof, Story, Resonance, Offer etc.

Rather than "take" a client, we ought to be qualifying clients.

Even more so we shouldn't shy away from "working" the client to add more.

IE: What can they add to help the offer?

A consultation, a special report, an interview with an expert.

All these things are easy, low cost ways to add to the response-boosting power of our copy.

Shaune

[Ryan Healy]

Thanks for the comments, guys. By the way, Michael Green of HowToCorp did a similar thing when he launched Easy Download.

He actually posted a live download link in a forum to prove nobody could get the product without paying. It was the ultimate proof that the product worked as described.

(I discovered this story when researching what software to use to protect digital downloads from being hacked. I ended up with DL Guard.)

[Michel Fortin]

The ad is not the only one. Sylvie and I went to Las Vegas at a seminar, and a TV commercial (same guy, same product, same company) was being advertised.

It was the same headline, and the video was of the man on the street with a bullhorn, screaming his SSN, and handing out sheets of paper with his SSN and his picture, etc. Even scans of his SSN card and some other pieces of ID, if I remember.

Brilliant.

Absolutely brilliant.

[Chad]

I researched Lifelock for my parents and could not find a glitch in their armor so to speak. This guy really has a quality product. Not to mention all of the law enforcement that endorse him and his $1 million guarantee. Can't argue with that!

[Cory Fossum]

As brilliant as this is—and I'm not a body language expert or anything—but he still looks a little stiff and uncomfortable in the photo. Like someone is standing right next to him reminding him that everything will be OK.

"Now you're absolutely SURE our technology is 100% safe, right?"

"Oh yeah, Todd, you're golden. Trust us, this will be a GREAT campaign. Now hold up your card and smile!"

Click.

[Tommy]

One very brave man this!

He should try this in South Africa.

His million dollars insurance might be too little to sort the problem out!
Here they steal the steam off your coffee, so your indentity would be a cinch. Many people have been married off to Nigerians and Russians, etc without even knowing it. When they want to get officially married, OOPS, you are already.

Theses victims spend years and a lot of money trying to get their lives back.

Maybe he should branch out here. He will have plenty of takers.

A good and very gutsy ad, though.

[id theif]

there are more then financial id theif. Life lock does what any person can do, for free, for themselves. You are just paying to be lazy and have someone else do it for you. Sure it will stop people from opening (opening not using) credit in your name, but its still easy to use the credit you already have. We use to follow a "sugar daddy" (they got that name because they would buy lots of stuff on a crdit card) around for a week, then get a job at one of the places he stopped by alot. When he or she would stop in and pay for their food or clothing or what-have-you, I'd just remember their name, number, exp date, and three digit number on the back of the card. I'd ask for ID "because its store policy" and then I have an address, drivers licence number and date of birth. I would go around to all of the stores they had shopped at and for weeks I'd buy stuff in their name with their already open credit. All it takes is a half decent memory and a laptop. Trips to vegas, food, disneyland, I bought my girlfriend diamond earings from the tiffanys on rodao drive...because someone else had good enough credit to get us in when they checked it at the door. In cali there are so many people and so much money, if a little gets "lost" not too many people notice. We grew out of it and went on to college, but I still make a scene at the bank when the lady or the dude asks for my id. Simply put, you cant stop it and using something like life lock might be of a minor help, but just be careful and dont do stupid crap. Oh and that ss number is not really issued to a todd davis. Its a phoney number set up with the DOJ to try to catch stupid people. 5 minutes online could have told you that.

[Oh come on]

Hello, my name is Butthead and my social security number is 569-42-9481

Looks real enough? Any real buisnessman knows to NEVER use your own product... and that a lie works as easy as the truth.

Second... it appears this is more of a scam then anything. LifeLock doesn't offer anything that you don't already have. They just UTILIZE it while you're unaware that you have it.

[Andy - Compare identity protection programs]

It is great copy and great marketing which is why Lifelock is doing so well. Consumers are advised to compare options first to see what identity protection service is right for them.

[Irvmeister]

Powerful ad, yes. Truthful, very doubtful.

For fifteen years I was a criminal investigator for NY State and we were trained in spotting phony Social Security numbers as the majority of our fraud investigations were in Unemployment Insurance.

Now, unless the Social Security people have changed the rules since I was employed in the field, this SS # does not exist in their system. Their rules are that you cannot have an odd number in the middle two numbers unless the first digit is zero, ergo, having the middle numbers of his SS # as 55 is impossible.

If that is still true, then the FTC ought to go after this guy for false advertising. Besides, I don't care how secure his system is, no one in his right mind would broadcast his real SS# to the world.

Besides, the services he is offering is available to anyone free of charge. All you have to do is contact the credit bureaus and ask them to add a fraud alert to your credit file and no one can open a new account without the credit grantor contacting you first.

iRv ô¿ô
The Long Island Sleuth
http://www.lisleuth.com/

[Mark]

This ad is one of my greatest pet peeves. As The Long Island Sleuth has stated, I too was instructed on spotting fake SS#s as part of a security training at college. Simply put, no odd middle digits.

My skin crawls everytime I see the ad...deception by design.

MC