Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Hopkins
Scientific Advertising
"The time has come when advertising has in some hands
reached the status of a science." -Claude Hopkins
Chapter 5: Headlines
A Headline Is Equal to Personal Contact
A salesman is there too demand attention, he cannot be ignored,
people will listen politely to someone boring or boasting.
An advertisement can be ignored, people will not be bored in
print.
Chapter 6: Psychology
You Must Understand Psychology
Certain effects lead to certain reactions. -> Use that knowledge
to increase results and avoid mistakes.
Principles of psychology are always the same.
Curiosity
Curiosity is one of the strongest human incentives.
"Grains puffed to 8 times the normal size." -> Turned a failed
product into a success.
People Judge Largely By Price
Cheapness is not a strong appeal.
Americans want bargains, but not cheapness. -> Want to feel as
though they can afford the best, resent those who treat them as if they
couldn't.
Guarantees Have Ceased To Be Impressive
Instead of: "Try it for a week. If you don't like it we'll return your
money." -> Use: "Pay in a week if you like them." (Much more
impressive.)
Personalization
Selling a set of books -> Offering to put the buyer's name on each
book in gold lettering gave much added value. (Boosted orders
dramatically.)
Sending out free gifts not very effective, but sending letters saying
there is a free leather-covered book waiting for him is very effective. ->
When a man knows something belongs to him - something with his
name on it - he will make an effort to get it.
Limited Offers
An offer limited to a certain class of people is far more effective than
a general offer. (Ex: to war veterans, members of a lodge/sect, or to
executives.)
Those who are entitled to any seeming advantage will go a
long way not to lose that advantage.
Reverse Psychology
Selfish appeals don't work (Ex: "Be sure you get this brand.")
Instead: "Try our rivals' too."
He invited comparisons and showed he did not fear them. -> Buyers
were careful to get the brand so conspicuously superior that its maker
could court a trial of the rest.
Free Samples Have a Price.
Giving away your full product for free cheapens it. -> It is hard to
pay for something which has once been free.
Another man paid people to use his product. (Bought redeemable
coupons from people who showed them and gave his product.) This
man succeeded. -> An article good enough for the maker to buy is
good enough for the seller to buy.
Pre-Qualified Leads
Hand someone an unwanted product and they pay it little respect.
But tell them its qualities and your claims and get her to ask for a
sample and she is in a much different position. -> She is interested
(because she acted) andexpects to find the qualities you told.
Power of Expectations
If people can be made sick or well by mental impressions(placebo
effect), they can be made to favor a certain brand.
Show five articles exactly alike to five people and they may pick
either one, but point out some qualities in one and they will all
notice and then all choose the same article.
An identical offer made in a different way may bring multiplied returns.
Present to the reader, once you get him, every important claim you
have. -> That reader is someone willing to listen, but if you lose him
now he may never again be a reader.
People Will Read Much
The most common expression you hear is: "People will not read
much."
Example: A car may be a lifetime investment. A man interested
enough to buy a car will read a volume about it if the volume is
interesting.
You have an extremely hard job. If you do not believe it go to
someone in person and try to make them not only buy the first
package, but to adopt your brand. -> A man who does that will
never again say: "A sentence will do."
Note that brief ads are never keyed. -> Never be guided in any way
by ads which are untraced. -> Never be led in new paths by the
blind.
Dealers will often ask for some aid, discounts or loading offers (Ex:
Get one case free in ten.) from the advertiser in exchange for extra
effort on their part to sell more product. The extra effort usually
doesn't pay.
Word of Mouth Is Often Ineffective
People who buy from casual recommendations (Ex: From a dealer's
recommendation.) do not often stick. -> Next time someone else
recommends differently.
On most lines, making a sale without making a convert doesn't
count for much.
Window Displays direct sales, but don't increase them.
A window display may bring one dealer a large part of the trade,
but may not increase your total sales at all.
One Extra Case in Ten means advertising must sell 10% more to
bring you the same return.
Testing
You can apply scientific advertising to other types of selling, and
even manufacturing, to cut costs
You should try one town with displays, etc., one town without,
and compare cost and result.