GIFT OF THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING A Simple Exposition of The Principles of Psychology In Their Relation to Successful Advertising By WALTER DILL SCOTT, Ph.D. Director of the Psychological Laboratory of Northwestern Uni"versit\ Director of the Bureau of Salesmanship Research, Carnegie Institute of Technology President of the National Association of Advertising Teachers Author of "The Theory and Practice of Advertising^ l( The Psychology of Public Speaking^' ''Die Psychologic der Triebe^ "Increasing Human Efficiency in Business," " Influencing Men in Business," etc. ^r NEW EDITION, WITH ADDITIONS AND A COMPLETE INDEX Boston Small, Maynard & Company 1917 << Copyright 1908, IQIO, by Smatt, Maynard & Company {Incorporated} Entered at Stationers' Hall Eighth edition, December, 1916 PRESSWORK BY THE UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U. S. A .* * *.: j* i THE AUTHOR RESPECTFULLY DEDICATES THIS VOLUME TO THAT INCREASING NUMBER OF AMERICAN BUSINESS MEN WHO SUCCESSFULLY APPLY SCIENCE WHERE THEIR PREDECESSORS WERE CONFINED TO CUSTOM. 404130 CONTENTS PAGE ^1. Introduction I -^ II. Memory : Remembering and Forgetting .... 7 * III. Th_Flinc5 rind thp ^it lV> " c 22 IV. Appeals to the Customer's Sympathy 38 Human_Instincts 52 r^VI. Suggestion 80 ""VII. The Will: An Analysis 93 "VIII, The Will : Variety in Action IX. Habit 126 X. The Habit of Reading Advertisements 134 XI. The Laws pf Progressive Thinking 147 r Attention Value of Small and of Large Spaces . .157 XIII. Mortality Rate of Advertising 178 XIV. The Psychology of JEood Advertising 188 */ XV. The Unconscious Influence in Street Railway Adver- tising 215 jX (XVI. The Questionnaire Method Illustrated by an Investi- gation upon Newspapers 226 XVII. Bibliography of Advertising 249 Index . . 273 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Vitalized Phosphates 12 Cream of Wheat ... 13, 71 Pompeian Massage Cream . . . ... 15 Gold Dust ... .... . . 16 Rat Exterminator . . . . 17 Buster Brown Stocking Co. . . . .19 Bisected Lines . . 27 Square and Rectangle . . . . 31 Butler Paper Co. ... . . . . .' 35 Thomas Cook & Son . ... 40 Santa Fe Railroad ... . . . . 41 Hall Chemical Co 42 Howard Obesity Ointment . . 44 Dr. Bull's Cough Syrup . . . 46 Conklin's Self-Filling Pen ..... . . 48 Pelman System of Memory Training .... .49 Karo Corn Syrup , . 58 American Reserve Bond Co. , . , 65 Stevens Rifles . . . . ,66 Golden Fleece Yarns . . .... . 68 Gage Millinery . 73 Regal Shoes ......... .... 74 White Star Coffee 75, 209, 210 "What Did the Woggle Bug Say?" 79 Jap-a-Lac . 86, 100 Lucas Gloss Paint . ... . 88 Westerner's ... . . .88 Kerr's Studios ... 89 Postum Cereal Co * . ... 89, 125 Arrow Collars . . . . . . 90 Calox . . . . 90 Hand Sapolio . . , . . ... 91 Triscuit ... ...... , . . . . 98 Holbrook's Sauce 90 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS National Biscuit Co. .......... 102, 196, 197 Modern Eloquence 112 Pear's Soap . . 113, 173 Cook's Flaked Rice 115 Ivory Soap . . . 12,3, 172, 193 American Radiator Co . 124 J. G. Wilson Co .140 American Lead Pencil Co . . 141 Advertising Taught by Mail 142 Wanted Good Neighbors . 143 Report of a Pupil . . 164 Packer's Tar Soap . . .165 New York Central Railroad ....... .174 American Waltham Watch Co . . . 175 Chickering Piano ......... . 194 Franklin Mills Co. , - 201 Egg-O-See 202 Leibig Company . 206 Armour & Co. 207, 208 Korn-Krisp 211 Advertisements Ruined by Make-up of Paper 213 An Optical Illusion .......*.. 2l6 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING I INTRODUCTION THE typical business man is an optimist. For him the future is full of possibilities that never have been realized in the past. He is not, however, a day- / dreamer, but one who uses his imagination in form- ulating purposes which lead to immediate action. His power of execution often surpasses that of his imag- ination, and he is frequently surprised to see his vision realized in less time than he had even dared to hope. The advertiser may well be regarded as typical of the class of American business men. At a time when advertisements were poorly constructed and given lim- ited circulation, certain enterprising men saw the pos- sibilities of advertising and began systematically to improve the whole profession of 'advertising^ /Artists were employed to construct appropriate illustrations, and skilled typographers vied with each other in set- ting up the text in the most artistic and legible man- ner possible. Business system was used in ascertain- ing the amount of circulation of various publications as well as the kind of circulation. Advertisements were keyed, and other means were employed to dis- cover the exact value of each style of advertisements and of each medium in which advertisements were in- serted. ^T These improvements nave been as beneficial as the most sanguine could have hoped for, but in and of I OF ADVERTISING themselves they were not sufficient to place advertis- i ing upon a scientific basis. Advertising has aJts oe- frfunction the influencing of human minds. Unless it does this it is useless and destructive to the firms at- tempting it. As it is the human mind that advertis- ing is dealing with, its only scientific basis is psychol- ogy, which is simply a systematic study of those same minds which the advertiser is seeking to influence. This fact was seen by wise advertisers and such con- ceptions began to appear in print and to be heard in conventions of advertising men some ten years ago. Occasionally one who was especially optimistic proph- esied that at some time perhaps in the distant fu- ture advertisers would turn to psychology for ^guidance. One such prophecy appeared in Printers' Ink for October, 1895: "Probably, when we are a little more enlightened, the advertisement writer, like the teacher, will study psychology. For, however di- verse their occupation may at first sight appear, the advertising writer and the teacher have one great object in common to influence the human mind." Printers' Ink seemed to assume that it would be many years before we were " more enlightened," and hence did not look to see advertisers actually turning to psychology in the immediate future. In Publicity, for March, 1901, we have a more hopeful prophet, and although each expects to see advertising estab- lished on psychological principles, the author in Pub- licity hopes to see that day in the near future : k> The time is not far away when the advertising writer will 2 INTRODUCTION find the inestimable value of a knowledge of psychol- ogy-" Previous to the appearance of this article (March, 1901) there had been no attempt to present psychol- ogy to the business world in a usable form. As far as the advertiser could see all psychologies were writ- ten with a purely theoretical end in view. They con-* tained a vast amount of technieaT material devoid of interest to the layman who struggled through the pages. This condition made it quite difficult for the business man to extract that part of the subject which was of value to him. Several of the leading advertising magazines and advertising agencies sought to father a movement which would result in such a presentation of the subject of psychology that it would be of use to the intelligent and practical advertiser. These efforts on the part of the advertisers were successful in stimulating several professional psychologists to attempt such a presenta- tion. Psychological laboratories were fitted up to make various tests upon advertisements. Elaborate investi- gations were undertaken and carried through to a suc- cessful issue. Psychologists turned to the study of advertising in all its phases while, on the other hand, intelligent and successful advertisers began to devote attention to a systematic study of psychology. Inves- tigators in the various parts of the country and among different classes of society united in their efforts to solve some of the knotty problems which are ever be- fore the business man who desires publicity for his 3 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING commodity. Soon addresses were made before ad- vertising clubs upon the specific topic of the psychol- ogy of advertising. The leading advertising jour- nals in America and Europe sought and published ar- ticles on the subject. Several of the recent books on advertising and general business promotion deal more or less extensively with the subject.- As a result of all these various efforts more has ac- tually been accomplished during the last five years than the typical optimist even imagined. Just as the manufacturing world has been compelled to turn its attention to physics and chemistry, and as the manu- facturer's vocabulary is composed of many terms which were but recently technical terms used only by scientists, so the advertising world has turned its at- tention to the subject of psychology, and many words formerly used only by professional psychologists are to-day commonplaces with advertisers. The changed attitude of the advertising world can be judged by reference to current advertising liter- ature. In a recent issue of Printers' Ink (July 24, 1907), one article has this significant heading, "PSYCHOLOGICAL." Another article by a lead- ing advertiser contains the following sentences. "Scientific advertising follows the laws of psychology. The successful advertiser, either personally or through his advertising department, must carefully study psy- chology. He must understand how the human mind acts. He must know what repels and what attracts. He must know what will create an interest and what 4 INTRODUCTION will fall flat. . . . He must be a student of hu- man nature, and he must know the laws of the human mind." Although italics were not used in the orig- inal, the word " must " is here put in italics to draw attention to the actual emphasis used by the author. In articles appearing on the subject before the last few years, all persons had spoken of the study of psychol- ' ogy as something which might be brought about in the future. At the present time the writers are as- serting that the successful advertiser must study psy- chology and that he must do it at once. Although the attitude of the advertising world changed and even though much has been done to pre- sent psychology in a helpful form to the advertisers, the work of the psychologist is not yet available to the business world because the material has not been pre- sented in any one accessible place. Contributions are scattered through the files of a score of American and European publications. Some articles appearing un- der this head are of minor significance, while others are so important that they should be collected in a place and form such that they would be available to the largest possible number of readers. The psychol- ogy of advertising has reached a stage in its devel- opment where all that has thus far been accomplished should be reconsidered. The worthless should be dis- carded and the valuable brought out into due prom- inence in systematic arrangement. In view of this condition of affairs the author has assumed the pleas- ing task of systematizing the subject of the psychol- THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING ogy of advertising and of presenting it in such a form that it will be tff distinct practical value to all who are interested in business promotion. Incidentally it is hoped that the present volume will be welcomed by many who have no especial inter- est in business promotion. The professional psychol- ogist will be interested in the contribution made to his science from a study of mind in a particular field of activity. The general reader will derive benefit from the reading of the book; for he will be able to grasp some of the most fundamental psychological principles because they are here presented in concrete and comprehensible form. II MEMORY IMPRESSIONS once received leave traces of selves, so that, in imagination, we can live over the same experiences and can recognize them as re- lated to our past. This knowledge of former impres- >iuns, or states of mind, which have already once dropped from consciousness, is what is known as mem- ory. I can imagine how the jungles of Africa must look. This is an act of productive imagination. Yester- day I was on the corner of Fifth avenue and Lake street in Chicago. I heard the shouts of teamsters. the rattle of passing vehicles, and the roar of elevat- ed trains; I saw the people, the wagons, and the cars. To-day I can, in imagination, live over the same ex- perience, and as I do so I recognize the experience as belonging to my past. I am therefore remember- ing my past experience. As I try to recall the street scene of yesterday I find that many of the details have escaped me. I can- not remember how the teamsters looked nor what sort of cries they were uttering. I remember that there were teamsters and that they were shouting at their horses, but I cannot, in my imagination, see their faces or hear their voices as I did yesterday. In short, my memory has faded, and has faded rapidly. It is not likely that any memory is so vivid as the orig- 7 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING inal experience, neither does it contain all the details of the actual experience. Immediately after crossing the street I could have described the scene much better than I could now. A year hence I shall probably have forgotten all about it. Our memories gradually fade with time. Profes- sor Ebbinghouse, of Germany, was the first to try to find out exactly how fast our memories do fade. Since he published his thesis many others have taken up the work, and his and their results are fairly well established and definite. They have found that our memories are at their best two seconds after the ex- perience has taken place. After two seconds the memory fades very rapidly, so that in twenr^minuies we have forgotten more of an experience than we shall forget in the next thirty days. We forget very rapidly during the first few sec- onds, minutes and hours. What we remember a day is a very small part of our experiences, but it is the part which persists, as the memory fades very slowly after the first day. What we remember for twenty minutes and what we can get others to remember for that time is of great concern, for it is what we and they remember for longer times also. What the practical business man wants to know about memory can be put in two questions. J First, how can I improve my own memory? r. Second, how can I so present my advertisements that they will be remembered by the public ? It is not possible for a person with a poor memory 8 MEMORY to develop a good one, but every one can improve his memory by the observance of a few ^Foyr well-known and thoroughly established Principles of principles. The first principle is repc- Improving titloii. If you want to make sure that Jne s Own vou w -jj rem ember a name, say it over Memory tQ yourself R epe at it in all the ways possible say it over aloud, write it, look at it after it is written, think how it sounded when you heard the name, recall it at frequent periods and until it has become thoroughly fixed in your mind. The second principle is intensity. If you want to remember a name, pay the strictest possible attention to it. If you apply the first principle and repeat the name, then you should pay the maximum amount of attention to every repetition. In this way the process of learning will be so reduced that a single repetition may be enough, and still the name may be retained for a long period of time. The third principle is that of association. The things which we think over, classify and systematize, and thus get associated with our previous experience, are the things which we commit most easily and retain the longest. As a boy at school I learned by repetition that Co- lumbus discovered America in 1492. At that time this was to me an entirely disconnected fact. It was not associated with anything else, and so cost me great effort of attention and frequent repetition before I had it thoroughly memorized. At a later time I was com- 9 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING pelled to learn the approximate date of the fall of Constantinople, the application of the compass to navi- gation, the invention of printing, the time of the activity of Copernicus, Michelangelo, Titian, Diirer, Holbein, etc. Such a list of unconnected dates would have cost me much unprofitable effort if I had been compelled to learn them separately. As it was, I connected them all with the date of the discovery of America, and saw that these men and these events were all contemporaneous and together made what is known as the Renaissance. The details of a business or professional life which are connected in a series are not hard to learn, and are not soon forgotten. A man may have no trouble from forgetting the details of his business or profes- sion, yet may have a poor memory for all events not thus associated. The fourth principle is that of ingenuity. I re- member the name of Miss Low, for she is a short woman. I remember a friend's telephone, which is 1391, by thinking how unfortunate it is to have such a number to remember 13 is supposed to be an un- lucky number, and 91 is seven times 13. This method is applicable only to disconnected facts which we find difficulty in remembering by the meth- ods given before. It is, however, a method which was used by the Roman orators and has been used more or less ever since. There is probably no one who does not make frequent use of it in attempting to remember names, dates, figures and similar data. 10 MEMOR\ \Ye all appreciate the value of a good memory, and are willing to pay any one who will tell us how to train ours. This condition of affairs has made "memory training" a profitable business for the fakir. It is fairly well established now that one's native retentiveness is unchangeable. One who has an unretentive memory cannot possibly change it by any method of training. All he can do is to improve on his method of acquiring and recording knowledge. The third principle given above association is^C the one by far of the most importance. The fourth principle is the one of least general ap- plication ; indeed if an attempt is made to apply it too frequently, it becomes worse than useless, yet it is the principle used by most persons who have " memory training " to sell. \Yhen the question arises, how to construct an advertisement so that the reader cannot forget it. we find that the question is answered bv the proper application of the prin- Advertise- * . v F , \ ciples enunciated above. The adver- ments are . Rememb red? tisement tnat ls repeated over and over I again at frequent intervals gradually becomes fixed in the memory of the reader. It may be a crude and an expensive method, but it seems to be effective. This method gains added effect by repeating one or more characteristic features, and by changing some uf the features at each appearance of the adver- tisement. Thus the reproduced advertisement of Vi- ii THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING talized Phosphites (No. i) is frequently repeated in identical form. We cannot forget this advertisement, VITALIZED PHOSPHITES. Brain and Nerve Food, tbc pho- phoid principle of the Ox Bralo and the Embryo of Wheat. Has been used more than thirty years by thousands of active business men and women, from whom ^ sustained, vigorous application of brain and nerv- ous power is required, promptly relieving the de- pression from overwork, worry, nervous excite- ment, and sleeplessness, increasing activity and vital force by feeding the brain and nerves with the exact food they require for their nutrition and normal action. May we send you a descriptive pamphlet f West 3sth Street, New York City. If not /oun Yja If . K. FAIMU1K COMPANY. CUao-Uitan el FAIRY SCAT. GOLD DUST makes hard water soft No.4. Those who laugh at this ad- vertisement will remember it. the whole attempt seem ridiculous, and the advertise- ment falls flat. Anything humorous or ridiculous even a pun is hard to forget. But unless the attempt is success- ful, the result is ludicrous and futile. Furthermore, that which impresses one person as funny may seem silly to another. The reproduced advertisement of Gold Dust (No. 4) seems funny to some, but does not to others. The reproduced advertisement of 16 MEMORY Rough on Rats (Xo. 5) impresses some persons as silly, while others think it funny. Advertising is a serious business, and unless the advertisement is extremely clever, it is unwise to at- tempt to present the humorous side of life, although it is highly valuable when well done. Anything will be remembered which awakens our emotions, whether the thing be ugly or beautiful, No. 5. An evident attempt to be hu- morous. whether it causes us to smile or to sympathize with the sorrows of others. That which excites an emo- tion is not easily forgotten, and hence is a good formO of advertising, if it can convince the reason at the^ same time that it stimulates the feelings. The adver- tisement of Gold Dust (No. 4) pleases me and con- vinces me that the product is good. The advertise- ment of Rough on Rats (Xo. 5) amuses me because it is so excessively silly. It does not please me, does not convince me of the desirability of the goods. I find 17 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING that both advertisements have made such an intense impression on me that they have stuck in my memory, and I see no prospect of being able to forget them soon. The writer of advertisements must consider the principle of association, and ordinarily does so, even if he does it unconsciously. He should T^ViA T^li-ir^/^ present his argument in such a form Principle . .,, ., , A v j that it will naturally and easily be as- Applied ; . sociated by the reader with his own former experience. This is best done by appealing to those interests and motives which are the ruling prin- ciples of the reader's thinking. Personally, I should forget a recipe for a cake before I had finished read- ing it, but to a cook it is full of interest, and does not stand out as an isolated fact, but as a modification or addition of something already in his mind. The statement that the bond bears four per cent, interest is not forgotten by the capitalist; for he immediately associates the bond of which this statement is made with the group of similar bonds, and so the statement is remembered, not as an isolated fact, but in connec- tion with a whole series of facts which are constantly before his mind. The arguments of an advertisement should be such as are easily associated with the personal interests and with the former experience of the majority of the readers. The reproduced advertisement of the Buster Brown Stocking Co. (No. 6) is in direct violation of this prin- 18 MEMORY ciple. The advertisement was evidently written by a man, and appeals to men as being a good advertise- ment. It would be remembered by men, and if they were the purchasers of boys' stockings, it would be an ThtRt is MONEY m a* BUTTER 5% ' 1W BOLSTTK BUoWtJ JTTX^ffteJ- rof? Btfry ARE THI B wr or CVTKY PAIR u- T A 5% INTEREST COOPOtf L1KX THUS 1 TKU CoOpONJ'HoOl.D Bi JAVtD PRtJIHT^ YOOR WVt JT>/r WORTH 01 CDOPOK* THEVAfiE EEDItJMBLS BV THE Here is the opportunity to give your boy a lesson in the value of money and the growth of interest No. 6. The wrong associations sug- gested. excellent advertisement. In reality the men do not buy the stockings, and so the advertisement appeals to those who have nothing to do with the business ex- cept those who pay for the advertisement. The following expressions appeal powerfully to a manufacturer, but not to a mother : '* Five per cent, gold bonds," " Clip your coupons and make money," " Give your boy a lesson in the 19 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING value of money and the growth of interest/' ' This is one per cent, more than any bank pays, and allows you the use of the principal, allowing you a share of our profits/' etc. The principle of ingenuity can have but an occa sional application, but there are instances when it K been employed with great effective- The Fourth * TT , ,, . ness. Thus Uneeda is a nar Principle . - , , , A v , which cannot be forgotten. It plea Applied by its very ingenuity, although rr of the attempts in this direction have been fu.ile. Thus " Uwanta " is recognized as an imitation, and is neither impressive nor pleasing. " Keen Kutter " is a name for tools which is not easily forgotten. " Syrup of Figs " is a name for a patent medicine which is easily remembered, although the product contains no figs. A tailor in Chicago advertised himself and his shop in such an ingenious way that no one could read his advertisement and forget the essential features of it. His street number was 33, his telephone number was the same. There were 33 letters in his name and address. He sold a business suit for $33. The num- ber 1 33 stood out prominently as the striking feature of his advertisement and impressed many as being unique, and at the same time fixed in their minds his name and address, and the cost of his suits. The four principles enunciated above for im- pressing advertisements on the minds of possible cus- tomers are capable of unlimited application, and will 20 MEMORY not disappoint any; for they are the laws which have been found to govern the minds of all persons as far is their memories are concerned. 21 Ill THE FEELINGS AND THE EMOTIONS WE all know what is meant by pleasure and pain, by joy and grief. These feelings and emotions are not better understood after we have attempted to de- fine them. They are known only by experience, and we are all familiar with them. In the present chapter we are interested in the effect which pleasure and pain and the different emotions have upon the mind and the body of the person experiencing them. These ef- fects are not sufficiently recognized and yet they are of special significance to the advertiser. For the sake of brevity we 'shall use the word pleasure not merely to express such simple pleasures as tasting an appetizing morsel, but also to express such pleasurable emotions as joy, love, benevolence, grati- tude, pride, etc. The word pain or displeasure will likewise be used to express simple painful sensations and also emotions which involve pain, such as fear, hate, jealousy, antipathy, etc. Every pleasurable and every painful experience has a direct reflex effect on the bodily functions and also on the action of the mind. These ef- Effects of - . , p. fects are widespread and important. , p . Some of these changes, even though significant, are not directly detected without the use of delicate recording instruments. 22 THE FEELINGS AND THE EMOTIONS Pleasures actually cause the limbs to increase in size, and, accompanying the physical change, is a feeling uf expansiveness which serves to heighten the pleas- ure. With pain the limbs shrivel in size, and this is accompanied by a feeling of depression. Under the influence of pleasure the efficiency of the heart-action is greatly enhanced. This increase of blood supply gives us a feeling of buoyancy and in- creased vitality, which greatly enhances the already pleasing experience. Displeasure, on the other hand, interferes with the normal action of the heart. This gives us a feeling of sluggishness and depres- sion. Pleasure assists the rhythmical action of the lungs and adds to the depth of breathing. These changes serve but to add to the already pleasing experience. Pain interferes with the rhythm of breathing, makes the lung action less deep, and gives a feeling of being stifled, hindered and checked in carrying out our pur- poses. Pleasing experiences increase our muscular strength and cause us to feel like men. \Ye feel more like un- dertaking great tasks and have more faith in our abil- ity to accomplish them. Pain decreases muscular strength and gives us a feeling of weakness and lack of confidence. Pleasures not only give greater strength to the vol- untary muscles, but they affect directly the action of all the voluntary and involuntary muscles of the body. In pleasure the hands go out from the body, the shoul- 23 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING ders are thrown back and the head elevated. We open up and become subject to the influences in our environment. Being pleased with what we are re- ceiving, we become receptive and expand that we may take in more of the same sort. In pain the hands are drawn in towards the chest and the whole body draws in within itself as if to protect itself against outside influences. These actions of the body are reflected in the mental attitude. In pleasure our minds ex- pand. We become extremely suggestible, and are likely to see everything in a favorable light. We are prompt to act and confident of success. In pain w r e are displeased with the present experiences and so withdraw within ourselves to keep from being acted upon. We refuse to receive suggestions, are not eas- ily influenced, and are in a suspicious attitude toward everything which is proposed. When in pain we question the motives of even our friends and only suspicious thoughts are called up in our minds. These brief statements of facts serve to call to the reader's attention the mental attitude in which the person is placed by the influence of ** pleasure and pain. Keen observers of Customers ,_, , men have not been slow in profiting Their ^7 these facts. In " Pickwick Pa- Feelings pers," speaking from the view-point of the defendant, Dickens says : " A good, contented, well-breakfasted juryman is a cap- '.tal thing to get hold of. Discontented or hungry jurymen always find for the plaintiff." Here Dickens 24 THE FEELINGS AXD THE EMOTIONS expresses the fact that man is not pre-eminently log- ical, but that his thinking is influenced by his present state of feelings. If the juryman were discontented and hungry, he would be feeling pessimistic and suspicious and would believe in the guilt of the de- fendant. The modern business man does his utmost to min- ister to the pleasure of the customers in his store. He knows that they will place a larger order if they are feeling happy than if they are feeling otherwise. The American slang expression, " jolly up," means the pleasing by flattery of the one from whom it is de- sired to obtain a favor. The merchant attempts to please the customer by the appearance of the store, by courteous treatment and by every other possible method. The same pains must be taken by the adver- tiser in his attempts to please those to whom his ap- peals are made. The methods open to the advertiser are relatively few and hence all available means should be employed most assiduously. In the present chapter the importance of pleasing the advertiser by appealing to his esthetic sense will be emphasized, and suggestions will be given of con- crete methods which are available to the advertiser in appealing to the sense of the beautiful. To be beautiful a thing must possess certain char- acteristics which awaken a feeling of appreciation in the normal person. It is true that the artistic judgment is not possessed equally by all, or at least it is not equally developed in all. There are, however, 2 5 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING certain combinations of sounds which are universally called harmonies and others which eau . ty are called discords. There are cer- Appreciated . , . .... 1 , . , mil i. TVT ^ tain combinations of colors which are Though Not Understood re g ai "ded as pleasing and others which are displeasing. There are likewise certain geometrical forms or space arrangements which are beautiful, and others which are displeasing. The musician knows what tones will harmonize and which ones will not. The man .without a musical edu- cation does not possess such knowledge, but he appre- ciates the harmony of tones when he hears it. The colorist knows how to produce pleasing effects with colors. He has acquired this knowledge which others do not possess, although they are able to appreciate his work. The artist knows how to produce pleasing effects with symmetry and proportion of space forms. The uninitiated does not possess such knowledge or ability, although he is able to appreciate the work of the artist and can distinguish it from the work of the novice. Perhaps the simplest thing that could be suggested which would have an element of esthetic feeling con- nected with it is the bisection of a straight line. It seems almost absurd to suppose that the position of the point of division in a straight line would have any- thing to do with a feeling of pleasure. Such, however, is certainly the case, but, as might be ex- pected, the esthetic feeling is not very pronounced. As an illustration, look at No. i. Here we have a 26 THE FEELINGS AND THE EMOTIONS series of straight lines divided by short cross lines. Look at the lines carefully and you will probably feel that the lines A, B and C are divided in a more pleas- ing manner than F, G and H. In other words, if a straight vertical line is to be divided into two unequal parts, you prefer to have the division come above the ABCDEFOH No. 1. A series of bisected lines. Which bi- section is the most pleasing? middle. This is not an altogether unimportant dis- covery. In judging of vertical distances, we over-estimate the upper half. For this reason the line E, which is divided into two equal parts, appears to be divided into two slightly unequal parts and the lower section seems to be the smaller. The line D is divided at a point slightly above the middle, but it appears to be divided into two exactly equal parts. Many persons would say that the line D is more pleasing than E, 27 i THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING for D appears to be divided into two equal parts, while E appears as if an unsuccessful attempt had been made to divide the line into two equal parts. Line D seems to be perfectly symmetrical its two parts appear equal. The symmetry about this divi- sion pleases us, and most persons would say that this line, which is divided symmetrically, is more pleasing than A or H, which are not divided symmetrically. The two parts of the lines A, B, C and H appear too unequal and the two parts of line E appear too nearly equal. Lines C and F are very pleasing. They have divisions which do not seem to be too much alike, so the divisions give diversity. The parts are not so different that they destroy the feeling of unity in the line. A line is pleasing if its two parts are not too much alike and not too different. The ratio of the smaller section of the line to the larger section in C and F is approximately that of 3 to 5. That is to say, if a vertical line is eight inches long, the result is pleasing if the line is divided into two sections which are respectively 3 and 5 inches long. Exact experi- mentation and measurements of artistic productions show that there is a remarkable preference for this ratio, which is known as the " golden section." The exact ratio is that of i to 1.618, which is approxi- mately that of 3 to 5. A line is divided most artistic- ally, if the lower section is 1.6 1 8 times as great as the upper. Although this fraction seems very formid- able, it is the arithmetical expression of a simple pro- portion which is this : the short section is to the longer 28 THE FEELINGS AND THE EMOTIONS section as the longer section is to the sum of both sec- tions. Any division of a line which approximates this golden section is pleasing, but a division which ap- proximates the symmetrical division (and is not quite symmetrical) is displeasing. If you hold No, i sideways, the lines w T ill all be changed from vertical to horizontal. The divisions will now assume a new relation. The divisions of lines A, B and C cease to be more pleasing than those of F, G and H. E now seems to be divided sym- metrically and is more pleasing than D. In fact, for most persons the symmetrical divisions of E seem to be more pleasing than those of even C and F, which are divided according to the ratio of the " golden sec- tion." The most pleasing division, of a horizontal line is that of perfect symmetry and the next_most pleasing is that of the " golden section." In these divisions of straight lines into two equal parts unity is secured; in the divisions according to the ratio of the golden section diversity is secured, and the unity is not entirely lost. Unity and diversity are essential elements in all esthetic pleasures. In vertical lines we seem to prefer the emphasis on the diversity, while in horizontal lines the exact symmetry, or unity, is most pleasing. The discovery of the most pleasing proportion between the parts of Divisions . , ., ,. of Form straight lines would be of decidedly more importance if we should find that the same ratio holds for the parts of more com- 29 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING plicated figures. Is a rectangle more pleasing than a square? (For the sake of brevity of expression we disregard the fact that a square is a particular form of a rectangle.) Men have been called on to decide this question times without number. By investigating a very large number of such decisions we may be able to discover something of value. The architect is called upon to decide this question every time he constructs a building in which the artistic effect plays any part and it always should. Think of the temples, pal- aces, cathedrals, cottages, museums and all other struc- tures in which the artistic element plays a large part. In a great proportion of these the height is not equal to the width. The individual rooms not infrequently bear the same ratios as the height and width of the entire building. Careful measurement of such struc- tures has revealed a striking tendency to approximate what we have learned as the " ^Idensection.'' In fact, it was originally called the " golden section of architecture," because it was discovered so uniformly in architecture. Think of the shape of the flags of all nations, of all the picture frames which you have ever seen, of win- dow panes, mirrors, playing cards, sheets of paper, envelopes, books, periodicals and all other objects in which the shape is determined to a greater or less ex- .tent by artistic demands. In most of these objects we find a very decided tendency to make the height equal the width, ar else the height is to the width approxi- mately as -3 is to 5. 30 THE FEELINGS AND THE EMOTIONS Look at the square and the rectangle in No. 2. The height of the rectangle is to its base as 3 to 5. Most persons say that the rectangle is the more pleasing; some have a preference for the square. In the square we have a very decided symmetry. Each line is equal to every other line. A straight line drawn through the center of the figure from any angle divides the figure into two equivalent parts. In the rectangle the height is not equal to the length, but a line drawn through No. 2. A square and a rectangle. Which is the more beautiful? the center of the figure divides it into two equivalent parts. The square seems to possess much symmetry but little diversity. The rectangle possesses both unity and diversity. A very careful investigator of the esthetic value of the different space forms gives some interesting re- sults as the fruits of his labors. Thus, a rectangle whose base is three per cent, greater than the height is more pleasing than the perfect square. This is ac- counted for because we overestimate the height of a square about three per cent. Thus the rectangle whose base is three per cent, greater than its height 3 1 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING appears to be a perfect square and so is more pleasing than the perfect square. If the height of a rectangle is approximately eighteen per cent, greater or less than its base, the figure is displeasing because it looks like an imperfect square. If the difference in the two dimensions of the rectangle becomes as great as forty per cent., the effect is pleasing because the difference is great enough to make it evident that the figure was not meant for a square. If one dimension of the rec- tangle exceeds the other approximately sixty per cent., we have the ratio of the " golden section," and the result is more pleasing than it is for any other ratio of base to height. If one dimension of a rectangle exceeds the other by more than two hundred and fifty per cent., the result is not satisfactory. The differ- ence between the two dimensions seems to become too great and the unity of the figure is weakened. When we consider that the ratio of one dimension to the other is but a minor element in the total esthetic effect, we are not surprised that we find exceptions to the conclusions reached in the foregoing, but the sur- prising thing is the lack of more exceptions. Build- ings that exceed in height the ratio as given here do not look beautiful, and if the disproportion becomes great because of the excessive height, we call the buildings skyscrapers and regard them as eyesores to the American cities. A building whose width is many times its height is usually ugly and is designated as a shed. That which has been said of the square and the rec-- 3 2 THE FEELINGS AND THE EMOTIONS tangle holds equally true for the circle and the ellipse. A circle is a pleasing form which pleases because of its symmetry and regularity. An ellipse that is too much like a circle is much less pleasing than an ellipse in which the smaller diameter is to the greater one as 3 is to 5. The same holds true of a triangle also. The space used by an advertiser is usually a rec- tangle. In choosing this space, does the advertiser take into consideration the relation of the height and width which will pro- Form for j i re :> TJ duce the most pleasing effect? He Advertise- . 1 ments certainly does and the space he chooses meets the conditions of esthetic pleas- ure as given above, although he may be entirely un- conscious of any such intention. Thus in an ordinary magazine the full page and the ordinary quarter-page (the upper right, upper left, lower right and lower left) approximates most nearly the " golden section." Xext in the approximation to the standard is the division into upper and lower halves; next comes the horizontal quarter, and last the division into right and left halves. This order of esthetic effect is also the order of frequency of choice of space. The fact that a right or left half-page may be next to reading mat- ter makes this division more popular than it otherwise would be. Turn over the pages of advertisements in any magazine and look at the different spaces to see which class of spaces pleases you most and which least, and you will probably choose the spaces in the order as indicated above. (No mention has been made of 33 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING small advertisements, but what has been said of the larger spaces holds true of the smaller also.) Some advertisers have used narrow spaces which ex- tend entirely across the page. The effect has not been pleasing, although such shapes might be striking, because of their oddity. It is to be hoped that no pub- lisher will allow the pages of his magazine to be chopped up into vertical quarters, for the effect would be most inartistic. The artistic subdivisions of spaces follow the laws of symmetry and proportion as given above. Almost every artistic production can be sub- divided into two equivalent parts by Subdivisions . \. f Adv r drawing a vertical line through the tisements m iddle f &- Such symmetry as this is called bilateral symmetry. As a typical example of bilateral symmetry as well as pleas- ing proportion in an advertisement we reproduce here- with the advertisement of the Butler Paper Company (No. 3). The line drawn vertically through this ad- vertisement divides it into two symmetrical parts. Every subdivision of the display and of the text is centered. The horizontal divisions are strictly bilat- eral symmetry. Dotted lines are drawn to indicate the vertical divisions. In this we see that the sub- divisions are not equal, but increase from the bottom upward in a pleasing proportion. A marked display is found in the words " Snow Flake," which serve to divide the text into two unequal divisions which are related to each other in a pleasing proportion. Such 34 THE REELINGS AND THE EMOTIONS an arrangement of the vertical subdivisions is cer- tainly more pleasing than equal subdivisions would be. By such subdivisions as we have here the unity of the page is not destroyed, and diversity is secured. *KIATB NAMB HE BONDERS A MOST APPS FOR ONR OP THE Snow ENAMELED 1 Like the Suow Fla sake has six cardin; are as many as the c< wonderful crystal, form the paper may > of nature, its name points and t uses unless desiifns the (act. aad believes ii 10 be only tem- porary, until he suddenly reahzes that be lias ?-med many pounds and no remedy appears to M forth- coining. T^you.who liave dulled into tins situation, we can offer truUu that are beyond the shadow ot questioning. We can bring down your weight, not by elab- orate and expensive redaction emedies, but by simple treatment hat brings health and strength in ts tram. Our hies are hlleo with hundreds, yes thousands ol tesn- roo no Is to this effect, and are the best guarantees of our signal suc- cess H ere are rwo of many. Mrs. S. Mann. o{ La M one. la,, writes : *tx rears no I )ol7O Ib*. of Fa in 3 utonllt* b.r (tie II it 1 1 mi-ilixxl mil I l;n- not Caiitcit oMiire iw M-I K !H kite*. I ACT An DflllMnC Mr. Hugo Horn. 4-J9 E. 63rd LUSI 4U rUUBUO, s , .. New York C.iy. wnte: "Three years ago 1 took a lour month*' treatment and wa reducT^l 4O Ibs. m weight. I have oot gained any in weight since." We axe giving away barrels and Barrels of Sample Boxes Free just to provf how effective, pkasant and sle ilit* .remedy is. to reduce wtighi If you want one. send us yoot name >iid address and 4< to cover post- agf etc E.acli box is mailed in a plain sealed wrapper with no advertising on it to indicate what it contains. Pnce. laige sue Uui, $1 OO. postpaid. Correspond- ence strictly conftdeniiAl Hall (. henucil Co . Dem- H. M . Sc Louis, Mo. No. 3. Ridiculous but not ludicrous. No. 3 is a reproduced advertisement of a fat-reduc- ing compound. The illustration is supposed to be ludicrous, but to me it is ridiculous. The fat lady in the illustration does not seem to make the "best of a 42 CUSTOMER'S SYMPATHY bad situation. She dresses in plaids, which, as every corpulent person knows, serve but to increase the ap- parent size. Both the lady and the gentleman are the kind of people whom we do not admire, who are far from our ideals and who present but few elements of likeness to ourselves. The material advertised might be good for such persons as the illustration depicts, but that is no reason for me to imitate their actions and become one with them in any line of action. Xo. 4 is a reproduction of an advertisement of a fat- reducing tablet, and the illustration is that of a lady who at once begets my sympathy. She is apparently making the best of a bad condition. If she is going to use the Howard Obesity Ointment, it certainly must be worth considering. I feel sorry for her and sympathize with her in her affliction. She certainly feels about the matter just as I should, and conse- quently it is easy for me to imagine myself in her stead and to feel the need for relief from obesity and to take the necessary steps to secure such relief. The tragedy and the comedy are forms of litera- ture and of dramatic representations which have al- ways been popular. There is scarcely a tragedy with- out its comic parts, but frequently there are comedies without any element of the tragic. There are prob- ably more great tragedies than comedies, but it is true that the ordinary men and women read more comedy (including the comic in a so-called tragedy) than tragedy, and that the same holds true for their at- tendance upon dramatic representations. 43 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING In a comedy the rollicking fun may be introduced immediately, and the reader or the spectator may be brought into the spirit of the whole at once withont danger of any shock to the sensibilities because of the WASH YOUR FAT AWAY Howard Obesity Ointment m Simple, Harmless and Inexpensirft External Remedy It removes fat from that part of the body to which it is applied -restoring the natural bloom of 3'outh, leaving no wrinkles or flabbiuess. No nauseous drugs thaj ruin the stomach ; no diet- ing; no change of habits whatever. . The application is s5m- k- plicity itself. You merely, g, apply the ointment to the' ; .part you wish' reduced^ -.then literally "wash" ih fat away" without injury - to the most delicate skin. : Wo Guarantee ; Results On receipt of request we will send you our book on obesity," which gives cases and facts of the new discovery a cure by absorption. All CorrespfWdenoe Considered < onfldential. THE HOWARD CO. ( Suite rephone V& 18th. > icians becau* tftey know it hii wed many popl from an earlr pin. Don't delay ; ate BOW tefort too IaU UM caltbnUd Dr. Bull's Cough Syrup "- ^^'JSfHL * H t t SH SlTtopl!!!*^ ." ? d " - w. NO otk* ipertaent with other medi, ^_ e'^owliag troii.Tiulu'rdo it . o irrqaUttoi. and for to r.a.oa ,o. cannot afford to AVOID SUBSTITUTES. aS No. 5. An outrage upon the reader's sen- sibility. of life may be very effective, but the depiction of the rosier hues is more attractive to most people. It is said that savages laugh more loudly than per- sons in civilized countries, and in general loud or boisterous expressions of pleasure are not regarded 46 CUSTOMER'S SYMPATHY as in good taste. Culture and good breeding have decreed that we shall not express our griefs in the sight or hearing of others. In fact, it is not in good form to express grief at all. \Ye are not allowed to parade our sorrows before the gaze of the public. It seems to be assumed that everyone has sorrows enough of his own and therefore should not be called upon to share the sorrows of others. This attitude towards expressions of grief seems to be quite universal, and is taken so much as a matter of course that we feel of- fended when persons seek to awaken our sympathy by any form of external manifestation. Even in dramatic representations the expressions which accom- pany sorrow or pain are largely subordinated to ap- parent attempts* to stifle such manifestations. \Ye weep more readily with those who seem to have great cause for weeping, but restrain it. than for those who give way to their feelings. This attitude towards the manifestations of sorrow often causes us to be offended by manifestations of suffering. Thus in Xo. 5 there is an appeal made to our sympathy in such a rude manner that we feel angered with the advertiser, if not with the publisher, for allowing us to be insulted by such an audacious attack upon our sensibilities. One function of representations of ppea s to eeling . s and erno tions is to attract at- Sympathy . " _, XT . . .' \ tention. Thus AO. 6 is one of the Attract Attention most attractlve advertisements in the current issue of our magazines. The smile is very contagious and the whole effect is so 47 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING clear and so pleasing that I can scarcely turn the page without stopping to look at it. As far as the attention value is concerned, equally good results may be secured by representations of sorrow. Thus in No. 7 sorrow is depicted in such a He irtll be delighted if you present Ulna with JJonMiiTs Self- Fling Pen. He knows it is the highest quality, most automatically or that successfully feeds copying ink. Mrs. GroVer Cleveland Says: Princeton, March t2th, 1903. r Tour pens would be pretty stir*- to |j have larpre sales here it they were . once really known. OUR FREE BOOKS ive further Convincing evidence, and fifty original suKjrestionaforcor- greeting commoa errors in handwriting. The CoDklin .Pen Co. No. 6. A successful appeal to sympathy for pleasure. way that it succeeds in attracting the attention of the most casual reader of advertisements. CUSTOMER'S SYMPATHY Nos. 6 and 7 are reproductions of advertisements which represent the opposite sorts of feelings, and each awakens its appropriate kind of sympathy, and yet it is difficult to tell which advertisement has the greater attentive value. Personally, I enter into the Pelman System o! Memory Training The Pelman School of Memory Training, 1661 Ma.onic Tempi.. CHICAGO. - No. 7. A successful appeal to sympathy for sorrow. pleasure of the smiling young man more fully than I enter into the sorrow of the grief-stricken one. These examples are sufficient to show that appeals 49 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING to the sympathy, either for pleasure or for pain, may be used with great profit by the advertiser. We are not cold, logical machines, but we are all human be- ings, with hearts in our breasts and blood in our veins, and we enjoy the depictions of real life with all its joys and sorrows. Whether the dark or the bright side of life offers the most material for the advertiser may be questionable, but there is certainly no question as to the advisability of appeals to the sympathies. The time is coming, and indeed has come, when the advertising pages of our publications must be edited as carefully as the pages of the literary department. The advertising manager should not only refuse ob- jectionable advertisers, but he should refuse all ob- jectionable advertisements. It is quite possible that an advertisement which might be good for the indi- vidual advertiser would be injurious to the many who are occupying space in the same publication. The advertisement reproduced in No. 5 may be good for the firm placing it. It may be attractive to such persons as need the cough syrup, but it may be so dis- gusting to all other persons that it renders them an- tagonistic and unsympathetic to all the advertisements seen for minutes after they have looked at this one. It might be a very profitable advertisement for Dr. Bull, but the advertising manager, by accepting it, has reduced the value of all other advertising spaces. The effect which would be produced on adjoining spaces by such advertisements as are shown in Nos. i, 3 and 7 might also be questionable. 50 CUSTOMER'S SYMPATHY If you knew that one magazine carried advertise- ments which were pathetic in their illustrations and descriptions and that another magazine carried only bright and cheerful advertisements, which one would you pick up and look through? I believe that most persons would choose the magazine advertisements that present only the more cheerful aspects of life. If such is the case, it is the duty of advertising man- agers to see to it that the advertising pages of their publications are rendered attractive. V HUMAN INSTINCTS WE are all accustomed to think of the actions of animals as instinctive, but we are inclined to object to the application to human actions of anything which would obliterate the distinctions between human and animal actions, and we do not usually speak of the actions of man' as being instinctive. No one can carefully observe the actions of animals without being impressed with both the similarities and the differences between human and animal actions. In his native and ordinary environment the animal shows a cleverness of action which is hardly to be distin- guished from that of a man. In a new environment and in the presence of unfamiliar objects, on the other hand, the animal, displays a stupidity which is most astounding. The animal has but few instincts, and these few are sufficient for his ordinary environment, but in the presence of environments unusual to his species he is at a loss as to his actions. Man possesses many more instincts than the animal and in addition has reason, which can control his instinctive actions and thus ob- literate their instinctive appearance, although such ac- tions are fundamentally instinctive. An instinct is usually defined as the faculty of act- ing in such a way as to produce certain ends, without foresight of the ends, and without previous education 52 HUMAX INSTINCTS in the performance. It is in this sense that the term is used throughout this discussion. The following quotation from Professor James will undoubtedly prove of interest : " XOK; ivliy do the "carious animals do what seem to us such strange things, in the presence of such out- landish stimuli? Why does the hen, for example, submit herself to the tedium of incubating such a fear- fully uninteresting set of objects as a nestful of eggs, unless she has some sort of a prophetic inkling of the results ? We can only interpret the instincts of brutes by what we know of instincts in ourselves. Why do men always lie down, when they can, on soft beds rather than on hard floors? Why do they sit around the stove on a cold day? Why do they prefer saddle of mutton and champagne to hard-tack and ditch- water? vWhy does the maiden interest the youth so that every thing about her seems more important and significant than anything else in the world? Nothing more can be said than that these are human ways, and that every creature likes its own ways, and takes to following them as a matter of course. Science may come and consider these ways, and find that most of them are useful. But it is not for the sake of their utility that they are followed t 15ut because at the mo- ment of following them we feel that that is the only appropriate and natural thing to do. Not one man in a billion, when taking his dinner, ever thinks of utility. He eats because the food tastes good and makes him want more. If you ask him zvhy he S3 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING should want to eat more of what tastes like that, in- stead of revering- you as a philosopher, he would prob- ably laugh at you as a fool. The connection between the savory sensation and the act it awakens is for him absolute and needs no proof but its own evidence. It takes, in short, what Berkeley calls a mine} debauched by learning to carry the process of making : the natural seem strange, so far as to ask for the why of any in- stinctive human act. To the metaphysician alone can occur such questions as: Why do we smile, when pleased, and not scowl? Why are we unable to talk to a crowd as we talk to a single friend ? Why does a particular maiden turn our wits so upside-down ? The common man can only say, ' Of course we smile, of course our heart palpitates at the sight of the crowd, pf course we love the maiden, that beautiful soul clad in that perfect form, so palpably and flagrantly made from all eternity to be loved ! ' " And so, probably, does each animal feel about the particular things it tends to do in the presence of par- ticular objects. To the lion it is the lioness which is made to be loved ; to the bear, the she-bear. To the broody hen the notion would probably seem monstrous that there should be a creature in the world to whom a nestful of eggs was not the utterly fascinating and precious and never-to-be-too-much-sat-upon object which it is to her. " Thus we may be sure that, however mysterious some animals' instincts may appear to us, our instincts will appear no less mysterious to them. And we may 54 HUMAN INSTINCTS conclude that, to the animal which obeys it, every im- pulse and every step of every instinct shines with its own sufficient light, and seems at the moment the only eternally right and proper thing to do. It is done for its own sake exclusively." Every instinctive action is concrete and specific, and is the response of an individual directed toward some object. There is a great diversity in the methods of classifying instincts, and any method is justifiable if it is true and if it is helpful in making clear the nature of instincts, or is of service in any way. The classifica- tion we propose is justified in that it is true to the facts, and that it groups these actions in such a way that they may be better understood, and that the knowledge thus secured may be utilized. As was said above, every instinctive action is di- rected toward some object, but the effect of the action is to bring the object into a relation which will make it helpful toward the preservation or furtherance of the interests of 'the individual or of the species. Thus when an animal acts according to his " hunting in- stinct " he acts toward his victim in such a way that he makes the victim serve his interests in providing food for himself and, perhaps, for others of his species. If instincts may be classified according as they tend toward the preservation and furtherance of the inter- ests of the individual, our classification will be based upon the interests of the individual, which are pre- served and furthered, rather than upon the manner of the preservation and furtherance. 55 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING The first interest of the individual which is instinc- tively preserved and furthered is his material posses- sions. The individual acts instinctively e ns me towar( j everv material thing which he to Preserve M > r\c n , _ , may call my or mine. Of all and Further the Material the material thin S s to whlch Possessions t ^ le term m y or m ^ ne there is nothing to which the term seems so applicable as to my body. This is so intimately mine that the distinction between it and myself or me cannot be definitely drawn. I avoid extremes of temperature, not because I think that thus I can preserve and further the development of the body, but because it is pleasant for me to act that way. I do not refuse to drink stagnant water and seek run- ning water because I think it is best for my bodily health to do so, but because I like the taste of running water and not of stagnant water. I do not refuse grass, green fruit, and decayed vegetables and seek beefsteak, ripe fruit and fresh vegetables merely or principally because the former are injurious and the latter beneficial to my bodily health. I decide on what I shall eat and drink according as it pleases or dis- pleases me in the eating. The lower animals prob- ably never do anything for the sake of the preserva- tion and furtherance of their bodies, but their instincts guide them so accurately that it seems to us they must do some of these things with that in view. They choose the right food, the right drink, the right com- 56 HUMAN INSTINCTS panions, etc., etc., because these things seem pleasant to them. Herbert Spencer was of the opinion that mankind could follow instinct in the choice of food, drink, rest, p , exercise, temperature, etc., and that un- T der normal conditions the choice would Instincts be such as would most certainly con- duce to the highest preservation and development of the body. He believed that our instincts are so strong and so true that, when not perverted, they will act wisely in the presence of the appropriate stimuli, and that the bodily interests will best be fur- thered by passively following such instincts. He would hold that if that which is good for the body be presented in the proper light, we shall, of necessity, choose it and make the appropriate effort to secure it. If I think anything would taste good, I cannot keep from desiring it. I do not stop to consider whether it would be good for me or not. If it tastes good, that is sufficient. Nature has provided me with an instinctive desire to eat any and everything that tastes good, and, in general,, such an instinct works wholly good. I am a reasoning creature, and it might be\ supposed that I would select from the different foods | those which were best for my health, irrespective of ! their tastes. I find that my instinct is stronger than my reason in choosing what I shall eat. In the ad- vertisement of Karo (No. i) is this sentence : ". . . it makes you eat," and also this: ". . . gives a 57 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING relish you can't resist." I should buy Karo at once if I believed it would be so enticing that it would make me go contrary to my reason and eat it even if my better judgment told me I should not. If I had been afflicted for years with indigestion I might do otherwise, but most persons have not yet been thus afflicted, and I feel confident that food advertisements have greatly improved during recent years, for they A Breakfast Treat That Makes You Eat K*o Com Synip a the pure, golden essence o con with all the nutritive elements so characteristic of thir eiwrgy.producing. strength-giving cereal retained. Its flavor is sognnd. deliuous. so different, it main you cam Adds zest to the gnddle cakes an,l gives a relish >oi n't resist, no matter how poor the appente may he. ikd the mornmg meal inviting It's ///< frnt cad fo'daih bread. S"UI m air -tight. Irwtion-top tins CORN SYfil/P tSZlSFZfSiZ No. 1. An appeal to the instinct of bodily preservation. are emphasizing more and more the taste of the food, and are making health qualities secondary, while price is being emphasized less. The sense organs (the organs of sight, sound, taste, smell, temperature and touch) are the guardians of the body, and whatever appears good to these sen- tinels is instantly desired, and ordinarily such things tend to the preservation and furtherance of the wel- fare of the body, but we choose them simply because they appear pleasing and not for ulterior ends. 58 HUMAN INSTINCTS My clothes are in a special sense mine. \Ye come to think of them almost as of our very bodies. How a small child will cry if his hat blows Clothing -r . off or is taken ! In our modern forms of civilization this instinct is weakened by the fact that we have so many clothes and change them so often that we hardly have time to become at- tached to any article of raiment before it is discarded. The close personal attachment which we have for our clothing is beautifully brought out by Professor James: "We so k appropriate our clothes and iden- tify ourselves with them that there are few of us who, if asked to choose between having a beautiful body, clad in raiment perpetually shabby and having an ugly form always spotlessly attired, would not hesitate a moment." \Ve are all greatly attracted by the protection and ornamentation supplied by clothing 1 . The amount of time which most women and some men spend on the subject of dress might seem absurd to a critic, but such are our human ways, and they seem good to us. Magazines devoted to fashions, shop-windows deco- rated with beautiful garments, advertisements of cloth- ing all these have an unending attraction for us. Clothing advertisements are read with avidity, and it has been discovered that all forms of clothing can be advertised with profit by means of the printed page. The most careful observers of the actions of bees assure us that the little industrious bee gathers and stores away the honey simply because she enjoys the 59 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING process, and not because she foresees the necessity for Hoarding the honey which will come upon her and during the wintry months. To say Proprietary that the young bee has a prophetic in- Instinct sight of the coming winter is to at- tribute to it wisdom which is far above human wisdom. Likewise the squirrel is said to collect nuts and store them away simply because that is the veiy ac- tion which is in itself more delightful than any other possible action. The squirrel does not store the nuts so that he will have them to eat during the winter, but when the winter comes on and nothing better is at hand of course he will eat them. If he had not stored them he would have starved during the winter, but he did not store them in order that he might not be reduced to starvation. As far as the individual squirrel is concerned, it was purely accidental that his storing the nuts provided against starvation. There are many species of animals which thus col- lect and store away articles, and in some cases in an unusual environment the results are very peculiar. Professor Silliman thus describes the hoardings of a wood-rat in California made in an empty stove of an unoccupied house: " I found the outside to be composed entirely of spikes, all laid with symmetry, so as to present the points of the nails outward. In the center of this mass was the nest, composed of finely divided fibers of hemp-packing. Interlaced with the spikes were the following: About two dozen knives, forks, and 60 HUMAN INSTINCTS spoons ; all the butcher's knives, three in number ; a large carving-knife, fork and steel ; several large plugs of tobacco, an old purse containing some silver, matches and tobacco; nearly all the tools from the tool-closets, with several large augers, all of which must have been transported some distance, as they were originally stored in different parts of the house. The outside casing of a silver watch was disposed of in one part of the pile, the glass of the same watch in another, and the works in still another." There are very few persons who at some time in their lives have not made a collection of some sort. The little girls who make collections of buttons be- come exceedingly enthusiastic in their endeavors to make large collections, and, of course, if possible, to secure the most beautiful. If all the girls of the neigh- borhood are making collections too, the interest is greatly heightened. It is rather remarkable how all the children of a neighborhood may become interested in collecting such things as cancelled postage-stamps. Such a thing would hardly be possible if the children did not have an instinctive desire to make collections. Making collections and hoarding is not confined to children, but is common to all adults? Occasion- ally some individual becomes absorbed in the process more than others and the results seem to us to be ludicrous, but they are instructive rather than ludi- crous. The following is a description of the hoard- ings of a miser's den which was emptied by the Boston City Board of Health: 61 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING " He gathered old newspapers, wrapping-paper, in- capacitated umbrellas, canes, pieces of common wire, cast-off clothing, empty barrels, pieces of iron, old bones, battered tinware, fractured pots, and bushels of such miscellany as is to be found only at the city ' dump.' The empty barrels were filled, shelves were filled, every hole and corner was filled, and in order to make more storage-room, ' the hermit ' covered his store-room with a network of ropes, and hung the ropes as full as they could hold of his curious collec- tions. There was nothing one could think of that wasn't in that room. As a wood-sawyer, the old man had never thrown away a saw-blade or a wood- buck. The bucks were rheumatic and couldn't stand up, and the saw-blades were worn down to almost nothing in the middle. Some had been actually worn in two, but the ends were carefully saved and stored away. As a coal-heaver, the old man had never cast off a worn-out basket, and there were dozens of the remains of the old things, patched up with canvas and rope-yarns in the store-room. There were at least two dozen old hats, fur, cloth, silk and straw, etc." The man who could make such a collection as this is a miser, and he is despised for being such. He had too great a zeal for collecting and hoarding, and he allowed this zeal to obliterate the other possible inter- ests of life. We all seem inclined to keep bits of useless finery and pieces of useless apparatus. The desire is often not yielded to, and the objects are thrown away because their presence becomes a nuis- 62 HUMAN INSTINCTS ance. We all like to collect money, and the fact that it is useful and that others are making collections too merely tends to increase the instinctive desire to col- lect. The octogenarian continues to collect money with unabated zeal, although he may be childless, and the chief dread of his life is that his despised relatives may secure his money when he is gone. He does not desire that which money will secure, but the obtaining and holding the money is sufficient stimulus to him, even if every acquired dollar makes his difficulties greater by adding new responsibilities. No miser is aware of the fact that he collects for the pleasure he gets out of the collecting and the keeping. He imag- ines that he collects these things because of their use- fulness. He may think that each thing he collects will come handy in some emergency; but that is not the ground of his collecting, although it may increase the tendency, and also make it seem reasonable to himself. It might be insulting to a business man to tell him that he was laboring for money merely be- cause of the pleasure he receives in the gathering and keeping of it. Indeed, such a statement would ordi- narily be but partially true, for, although the propri- etary instinct may play a part, it certainly is not a complete explanation. All persons everywhere are tempted by a possibility of gain. s< Our proprietary instincts may be made use of by the advertiser in many ways. The irresponsible adver- tiser has been able to play upon this instinct of. the public by offering something for nothing, as is so fre- 63 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING quently done in the cheaper forms of advertising me- dia. The remarkable thing about this is that the pub- lic should be deluded by such a pretense. The desire to gain seems to overcome the better judgment of the more ignorant public and they become the victims of all sorts of treachery. The reputable advertiser should not disregard this instinct, and might often make it possible to minister to it with great profit, both to himself and to the public, which he might thus in- terest in what he has to offer. The following adver- tisement of the American Reserve Bond Co. (No. 2) is an attempt to appeal to this instinct. Why will a man endure hardship for days, en- danger his life, and incur great expense, merely for the chance of a shot at a poor inof- The Hunting . V Instinct * ensive deer? It certainly is not be- cause of the value of the venison or of the hide. It is not uncommon for a sportsman to give away his game as soon as he has killed it. What he wanted was the pleasure of killing the game. Why will a man wade in streams from morning till night, or hold a baited hook for hours in the burning sun? It certainly is not because fish are valuable; neither does he do it because he believes that it is good for his health. While engaged in the act he is perfectly in- different to his health, and such a thought would be incongruous to the whole situation. We like to hunt and to fish because we have inherited the hunting in- stinct from remote ancestors. For the civilized man such an instinct is often worthless, but to our an- HUMAN IXSTIXCTS cestors it was necessary for the preservation of life. The charm which a gun or a fishing tackle has for A $10 Nest Egg Starts You Saving and Making Money If you have a $10.00 "nest egg"and want to see your money grow raftiJly, draw large semi-annual dividends, and earn a band- some turplus, our plan will interest you. This is a great clearing house for savings-profits. We have taught over 200,000 people how to make savings grow yield la,ge dn;bnJs. Already we have distributed over three and one kalf millifu of rt to the money-savers of this country! The earning power of .coney is so much greater than 3% a year, that a banker who has the "use of savir.es for that paltry sum. soon grows rich from the profit* tnat pile up on top of the amount given you iorjour share. He turns it over and over, and it grows with every turn. Because he has inside knowledge of its earning power, and he uses that knowledge for his own private gain. By our plan, you get your full share of dividends. 5% guaranteed/ you get all of the principal and a share of the Surplus earnings of the company. We have assets of over three and a half millions of dollars, with the largest Slate Deposits of any Bond Company in the World. We are guided by the experience of yer fourteen year* in the handling of ivings investments. Our business is under the direct control of various state More Dollars s and subject to periodical official If you honestly want to save, we stand ready to start you on the right road to financial independence. Write us and full informatio will be furnished by return mail. Drop a postal toda for free book "MORE DOLLARS." ^ _ American Reserve Bond Co, Dept 14 Chamber of Commerce. LaSalle and Washington Su., Chicago. No. 2. A successful appeal to the hoarding instinct. a civilized man is a most remarkable thing. The an- nual sale of rifles, revolvers, fishing tackle, fishing boats, etc., is beyond anything which could be attrib- 65 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING uted to their practical need. The hunting instinct shows itself in our fiendish desire for conflict. The more ferocious the animal and the " gamier " the fish, the greater is our delight. The conflict may be with a man, and then the fiercer the struggle the better we like it. A street-brawl never fails to attract a crowd. The prize-fighter is always accompanied by the admir- ing glances of the populace. The accounts of atro- cious crimes are read by those who are ashamed to confess it. The advertiser of guns, revolvers, fishing tackle, etc., meets with a ready response from the youth be- cause he appeals directly to his powerful instincts. The following advertisement of Stevens Rifles (No. 3) is a good illustration of an appeal to the hunting instinct : No. 3. A successful appeal to the hunting instinct. The constructive instinct shows itself in a well- known manner in the bee and the beaver. The same 66 HUMAN INSTINCTS instinct is common to man, but the results are not so uniform. We all like to construct The Con- ., . things; if they are already constructed structmg j . then we want to remodel or .improve them. There is hardly a man who at least once has not been conscious of a strong desire to build a house. If he purchases one already con- structed, then he is not content till he has remodeled it in some way. Indeed, if he has built it himself he may make improvements upon it annually. If it is not so that he can make more changes the home loses interest, and is likely to be abandoned. As soon as the possibility of improving a home has passed it seems that both the host and hostess seek excuses for going north or south or traveling abroad. In our urban civilization the men are deprived of one of the great pleasures of life. We are shut in as children, and are not allowed to " make a muss " by our attempts at construction, and in our maturity the instinct is held in check by lack of exercise. If we had some opportunity to make things with our hands we should secure the best possible form of recreation and diversion from the anxieties of business life. The women have all sorts of fancy-work with which they may amuse themselves. Manual-training and do- mestic science are offering an opportunity to school- children to use their hands and give expression to this instinctive desire to construct things. The advertiser can appeal in many ways to this instinct, and is sure to find ready attention and a wil- 67 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING lingness to pay for the opportunity to exercise this much-neglected instinct. The following advertise- ment of Golden Fleece yarn is such that it makes a woman's 'fingers tingle with a desire to crochet. Knitting and CrocHeting Made Easy The Golden Fleece Yams struction Book explains and il- lustrates every possible kind of stitch for beginners or skilled kni rs; and tells sort of garment from a baby's sock to kimono, in words as simple as A, B, C. Over 100 pages at the merely nominal price of 15c, by mail or at dealers. If your dealer does not keep it send us his name GOLDEN FLEECE YARNS are best in wool, best in spinning, best in colors No. 4. A successful appeal to the constructing instinct. One of the most striking instincts in the entire ani- mal kingdom is that of maternal love. The mother of one of the higher ani- mals or of the human infant is willing to sacrifice all for her infant. The description which 68 , The Parental . HUMAN INSTINCTS a German by the name of Schneider wrote of this in- stinct is clearly German, but is an excellent description of the facts : " As soon as a wife becomes a mother her whole thought and feeling, her whole being, is altered. Un- til then she had only thought of her own well-being, of the satisfaction of her vanity; the whole world ap- peared made only for her; everything that went on about her was only noticed so far as it had personal reference to her ; she asked of everyone that he should appear interested in her, pay her the requisite atten- tion, and as far as possible fulfil her wishes. Now, however, the center of the world is no longer herself, but her child. She does not think of her own hun- ger; she must first be sure that the child is fed. It is nothing to her that she herself is tired and needs rest, so long as she sees that the child's sleep is disturbed ; the moment it stirs she awakes, though far stronger noises fail to arouse her now. She has, in one word, transformed her entire egotism to the child, and lives only in it. Thus, at least, it is in all unspoiled, natur- ally bred mothers, and thus it is with all the higher animal mothers. " She does not herself know why she is so happy, and why the look of the child and the care of it are so agreeable, any more than the young man can give an account of why he loves the maiden, and is so happy when she is near. Few mothers, in caring for their children, think of the proper purpose of maternal love for the preservation of -the species. Such a 69 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING thought may arise in the father's mind ; seldom in that of the mother. The latter feels only that it is an ever- lasting delight to hold the being which she has brought forth protectingly in her arms, to dress it, to wash it, to rock it to sleep, or to still its hunger." (Condensed from James' Psychology.) Anything that will administer to the needs of the child is a necessity in the eyes of the mother. The matter of expense has to be considered by many moth- ers, but as men think lightly of expense when satisfy- ing their hunting instincts, so the mothers look upon expense as of secondary importance when supplying the needs of their children. An article which in any way administers to the appearance or comfort of children needs but to be brought to the attention of mothers and it is sure to be desired by them with a desire which is much more than a passing fancy, for it is enforced by the maternal instinct as inherited from countless gen- erations. Advertisers are very successful in appealing to this instinct. The advertisement of Cream of Wheat (No. 5) is but one of many advertisements which thus appeal most forcibly to all mothers. No one chooses solitude for a long period of time. \Ye prefer the best of companionship, but in the ab- sence of the best we accept the best The Instincts .. , . r> u- r- . available. Robinson Crusoe took Affecting the " Social Self " reat corn i rt m tne companionship of his man Friday. Solitary confine- ment is a severer form of punishment than any other 70 HUM AX IXSTIXCTS employed by civilized nations. We are gregarious and want to be able to see other human beings. Not No 5. A. successful attempt to appeal to the parental instinct. only do we want to see others, but we want to be seen and noticed by them. \Yhy should I care for myself THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING as I appear in the minds of other people? It is not necessary for me to explain the origin of such a re- gard for the opinion of others, but it would hardly have been possible for the race to have developed with- out such a preference. Indeed, if an individual should become wholly oblivious to the opinion of others, it is doubtful whether he would be able to survive for any considerable period of time. The young man seems compelled to attempt to be at his best before the young lady, but he does not know why. The young boy always tries to " show off " in the presence of young girls. It is often ridic- ulous that he should do so, and he does not know why he is doing it. When he comes into the presence of the young girl he seems compelled to undertake some- thing bizarre which is sure to attract her attention. We are all afflicted as the young man and the boy. We consult not only our preference but also the opin- ion of others in purchasing our clothes and our homes, and in choosing our friends and our professions. We seem compelled to strive for those things which will make us rise in the estimation of others, and in pur- chasing and choosing we select those things which are approved by those whose esteem we most covet. If a particular style of clothing is preferred by the class of society whose esteem we court, that is a great argu- ment in favor of such goods. It is possible for the advertiser of all classes of clothing to take advantage of this characteristic of human nature and to present his garments as if they were being worn by this pre- 72 HUMAN INSTINCTS ferred set. Indeed, at the present time, there are many classes of goods which are being presented as the preferred of the " veritable swells." When, on the 1