Page 28 - 1912 May - To Dragma

TO DRAGMA OF ALPHA OMICRON PI 147

all the advertisements indicated to the contrary, might have been
a joke book or a tonic for dyspeptic. Spotless Town, on the other
hand, was excellent, as are the Campbell Soup advertisements. Be-
cause the cleverness of the Sapolio advertisements was closely tied
throughout to the idea of perfect cleanliness and the engaging and
amusing Campbell "kids" and verses never forget their business obli-
gations to tout the merits of the soups that made them so hearty.

Another essential is the g i f t of brevity. Say it short. Clip it
clean. But keep the meaning clear. Uneeda Biscuit. The Pru-
dential has the Strength of Gibraltar.

Of course in technical publicity you have to use technical phrases
and there are similar exceptions to the rule of simplicity. But in
general let your advertisement be as easily read and digested as its
subject permits. Don't write a treatise. There are now a number of
famous department stores who are killing much of the force of their
advertising by over-wordiness.

Beware, however, of overdoing brevity. Say all that needs to be
said. Never take it for granted that your reader knows as much
about the goods as you do.

Nothing is more important than that you should know the goods
you advertise. Some advertising agencies make the tremendous mis-
take of not letting their copy-writers have a first-hand knowledge of
the articles advertised. But i f you are employed by a wise agency or a
store or the manufacturer of the advertised product, make it your bus-
iness to know and know and know.

I say, not with conceit but among friends, that when I was a
writer for John Wanamaker, I found it worth while to know every
important change of stock in that vast establishment, the names and
in general the process of all the great European manufacturers
from whom we habitually made big purchases, the legends of the
Orient that were interpreted in the goods from Japan; I had a clear
mental picture of the cottages of Scotland and Ireland that our linen
man knew so well and an image of the embroideries in Swiss valleys
and French convents. I knew the little style touches of the great
Parisian designers of fashion and could tell the marvelous chic of
Madame Paquin's hand across a roomful of Paris gowns,—and so
on. I found it necessary to know values too,—for the house held my
advertising manager responsible i f I let any department manager,
not as veracious as should be, beguile me into any exaggeration of
statement. I was proud to have a woman on the merchandising force
say of me, "Look it over carefully before you bring it up to the ad-
vertising office.—that girl up there would find one cotton thread in
a gross of linen handkerchiefs!"