Scientific Advertising
By Claude C. Hopkins
table of contents
Chapter 2 - Just Salesmanship
cont.
Some say "Be very brief. People will read for little." Would you say that
to a salesman? With a prospect standing before him, would you confine him to
any certain number of words? That would be an unthinkable handicap. So in
advertising. The only readers we get are people whom our subject interests.
No one reads ads for amusements, long or short. Consider them as prospects
standing before you, seeking for information. Give them enough to get action.
Some advocate large type and big headlines. Yet they do not admire salesmen
who talk in loud voices. People read all they care to read in 8-point type.
Our magazines and newspapers are printed in that type. Folks are accustomed
to it. Anything louder is like loud conversation. It gains no attention worthwhile.
It may not be offensive, but it is useless and wasteful. It multiplies the
cost of your story. And to many it seems loud and blatant.
Others look for something queer and unusual. They want ads distinctive in style
or illustration. Would you want that in a salesman? Do not men who act and dress
in normal ways make a far better impression?
Some insist on dressy ads. That is all right to a certain degree, but is quite
important. Some poorly-dressed men, prove to be excellent salesmen. Over dress
in either is a fault.
Chapter 2 continued | Next: Offer Service
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