Scientific Advertising: 10 Timeless Lessons for Ad Copywriting
Learn 10 practical tips about the timeless art of salesmanship.
Here I summarise Scientific Advertising by Claude C. Hopkins and add my input to elaborate on the points I find most useful. The italicised passages below are paraphrases of his advice, not direct quotations.
Many of the questions that mattered in door-to-door sales and mail-order advertising still matter: who is the customer, what do they want, and why should they believe you? Advertising is leveraged salesmanship; costs are multiplied, as are the potential profits. Here are ten lessons to put to work, especially when the ad asks for a response you can measure.
Lesson 1
Offer a sample, a book, or a free package to induce direct replies.
People have little reason to trust a stranger's claims. If you want to get business, you need customers to trust you. A free sample lets an interested customer try your product before paying for it. Make it easy to request one, and ask only for the information you need to fulfil the request. Handing out samples indiscriminately can waste money. Judge the offer by the customers it brings you, not the number of samples you distribute.
Lesson 2
Advertising is salesmanship. Act as if you are a door-to-door salesman. The only difference is that advertising is multiplied salesmanship. It may appeal to thousands while the salesman talks to one.
If you think of advertising as door-to-door salesmanship, that will help you answer many of your questions. For example, many argue for slogans and hype. Ask what they help the customer understand or remember about the offer. The salesman's perspective is a useful check, even though an ad has less opportunity to answer follow-up questions. Give the reader a clear, readable presentation. A persuasive offer still needs type and layout that make it easy to understand. Some argue, "Be very brief. People read very little." Would you say that to a salesman? Give prospects enough information to take action, within the limits of the format. Put further detail where an interested reader can find it. When faced with questions, always think, "What would I do if I met the buyer in person?"
Lesson 3
Ads are not written to entertain. They are written to give interested individuals the information they need to buy your product.
The purpose of the ad should guide the writing. In a sales campaign, entertainment has to serve the offer. Seek sales, not applause. Help readers see how they can improve their lives through your product. A joke or a striking image can help, but attention alone does not tell you whether the ad worked.
Lesson 4
Try to sell your article in person, if possible. Put your customer's interests before your eyes, not yours. Don't please the seller; please the buyer.
Many advertising copywriters make the mistake of seeking the approval of the business owner. They try to please the seller rather than the buyer. If you are the owner, do not write to satisfy yourself, but to satisfy your ideal customer. Write for the customer whose eyes are caught by your headline. The purpose of a headline is to pick out people you can interest. The purpose of the ad is to appeal to the interested people and give them enough information to make a decision.
Lesson 5
Don't think of people in the mass. That gives a blurred view. Think of a typical individual who is likely to want what you sell.
Get to know your customers as if they are your best friends. Talk to them, listen to their objections, and pay attention to the language they use. Build your picture of the customer from those conversations rather than from assumptions. It is impossible to be everything for everybody. Choose the customer you can help, and centre your efforts on speaking to that person.
Lesson 6
Your product may have multiple desired qualities. You should learn which quality most of your prospects seek and put that into focus. A bar of soap may be advertised in multiple ways. It can have a refreshing odour and soften the skin. The latter may appeal to a greater number of people.
How do you know which quality to promote? Compare versions of the ad that emphasise different benefits, while keeping the offer and audience comparable. Decide beforehand whether you are judging enquiries, purchases, or another response. Almost no one gets it right the first time. A useful comparison gives you evidence to improve the next decision. Even an unsuccessful campaign can give you useful information, provided you know what you are testing. That information does not automatically recoup the cost. Set a budget and judge the result against the question you wanted to answer.
Lesson 7
'Lowest price in existence.' Superlatives of that sort are usually damaging. They suggest looseness of expression, a tendency to exaggerate, and a carelessness with the truth.
Be specific. Compare "Our tungsten lamp gives more light than a carbon one" with "Our tungsten lamp gives three and one-third times the light of a carbon one." The latter gives the reader a concrete claim to evaluate. But the number needs evidence; precision alone is not proof. Compare "Quick Shaves" with "78-Second Shaves." If you can substantiate the second claim, it gives you something specific to test.
Lesson 8
Show beauty, not homeliness; health, not sickness. Don't show the wrinkles you propose to remove, but the face as it will appear. Talk of coming conditions, not the conditions that exist. Picture what others wish to be, not what they may be now.
People are often already aware of the trouble. Help them picture the condition after the remedy. A toothpaste advertisement, for example, can show the benefit of a cleaner smile. Explain the problem where it helps, but give the reader a reason to look beyond it.
Lesson 9
Don't use pictures to decorate. Use pictures to sell.
An image takes space that could serve another purpose. Make that space earn its place: show the product, explain how it works, or make its benefit easier to picture. An attractive image can also help people remember the brand. Ask what it contributes to the ad's purpose.
Lesson 10
To sell shaving soap to the peasant of Russia, one would first need to change their beard habits.
Changing people's habits can be expensive. Educating people takes time and resources. Before taking on that work, ask whether you can begin with a benefit the customer already understands. For someone already trying to consume less sugar, a sugar-free drink has an understandable appeal. You can spend more of the ad explaining why they should choose yours. Education may still be necessary, but account for its cost.
In the end, you must go to the court of last resort—buyers of your product—to measure how well your ads are performing. Some copy that you scorn might appeal to a lot of people, while another you worship may prove to be worthless. Compare advertisements with similar audiences, allow enough responses to judge the difference, and account for what it cost to obtain them. Let actual buyers challenge your assumptions before you expand the campaign.
These lessons draw on Hopkins's original text. This blog post is not a substitute for the book. I recommend reading the book for more in-depth explanations and insights.