My Life In Advertising; Scientific Advertising

Claude C. Hopkins | 4.54 | 934 ratings and reviews

Recommended by Andrew Chen, Seth Godin, Garrett Moon, and 3 others. See all reviews

Ranked #26 in Advertising, Ranked #29 in Copywriting — see more rankings.

Book may have numerous typos, missing text, images, or index. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1917. Excerpt: ... Chapter Seventeen SCIENTIFIC ADVERTISING THROUGH a book I wrote my name has become connected with "Scientific Advertising." That is, advertising based on fixed principles and done according to fundamental laws. I learned those principles through thirty-six years of traced advertising. Through conducting campaigns on some hundreds of different lines. Through comparing on some lines, by keyed returns, thousands of pieces of copy. Always, since I sent out my first thousand letters to the time when $5,000,000 yearly was being spent on my copy, I have had to face records on cost and result. So I have naturally proved out many fundamentals which should always be applied. I have little respect for most theories of advertising, because they have not been proved. They are based on limited experiences, on exceptional conditions. Some lines seem to succeed on methods of advertising which every traced return proves impossible. The reasons for success have little to do with the advertising. The line may have succeeded in spite of the advertising. Many unadvertised lines become highly successful, because of some wanted quality which people soon discover. Or because dealers are in some way induced to feature it. Or because of a name which in itself tells an appealing story. Cream of Wheat is an example. The name alone tells the story. So with Spearmint Gum. All successful gums have succeeded through fortunate names. There is almost no story to tell. There are no great distinctions. The very men who succeeded with one name failed again, and again with others. Any conclusions drawn from such experiences are bound to lead others astray. The cases where they apply are rare. Safe principles are evolved only by those who know with reasonable exactness what the advertising does, and who compare results... less

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Reviews and Recommendations

We've comprehensively compiled reviews of My Life In Advertising; Scientific Advertising from the world's leading experts.

Andrew Chen General Partner/Andreessen HorowitzRecommends this book

Seth Godin Author, Marketer, EntrepreneurVery old, very good. If you're doing any advertising, you have a professional obligation to read this. (Source)

Garrett Moon Ogilvy On Advertising by David Ogilvy and My Life In Advertising by Claude Hopkins for old-school marketing smarts. (Source)

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#89 in Marketing

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