Is it ever acceptable to break rules of grammar in order to communicate your marketing message more effectively?

The agency that created Apple's "Think Different" campaign would seem to think so. Most direct marketing copywriters would agree. At our agency, it's rare that we'll compose a direct mail letter or an e-mail campaign without violating a few basic principles of the English language. Here's a sampling:

• Contractions

  Using phrases like "you'll learn " and "you'll receive" may annoy the purist, but they help maintain the flow of the copy since they're less choppy than the alternatives ("you will learn" and "you will receive".)

• Widows & Orphans

  Here's one rule to ignore completely. Never end a page with a complete paragraph, even it means stranding one line at the top or bottom of a page. By ending with an incomplete thought, you leave the reader "hanging," forcing him or her to proceed to the next page.

• But wait, there's more ...

  Lines that begin with "and" or "but" create a sure-fire recipe for sentence fragments. But they play a frequent role in direct marketing copy by a) compelling the reader to proceed to the next thought, and b) adding emphasis to an important thought or idea.

  Of course, bad spelling, punctuation, and mechanics can kill your copy just as easily as poor technique. But strictly adhering to rules of grammar can also cause your copy to flow less smoothly, to lose emphasis where appropriate, and to make the reader hesitate, all of which can lower response.