*t Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2007 with funding from IVIicrosoft Corporation http://www.archive.org/details/advertpshychoOOscotrich THE AU^Oi^l^.^ PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING IN THEORY AND PRACTICE A SIMPLE EXPOSITION OF THE PRINCIPLES OF PSYCHOLOGY IN THEIR RELATION TO SUCCESSFUL ADVERTISING By WALTER DILL SCOTT, Ph.D. Professor of Applied Psychology and Director of the Psychological Laboratory, Northwestern University; President of the Scott Company, Associate Director of the Bureau of Salesmanship Research, Carnegie Insti- tute of Technology, Former President of the National Association of Advertising Teachers, Colonel, U.S.R.; Author of " The Psychology of Public Speaking," *' Increasing Human EflSciency in Business," " Influencing Men in Business." BOSTON SMALL, MAYNARD & COMPANY PUBLISHERS Copyright, 1902-1903 By WALTER DILL SCOTT Copyright, 1908, 1910, 1921 By small, MAYNARD & COMPANY (incorporated) O^ «^A X y^ol. This second form is the most convenient and is the one in ordinary use, but it should be observed that our printed words are nothing but symbols of symbols. The printed word is an uninteresting thing in itself and is only used because it assists perception on account of its sim- plicity and ease of manipulation. It is easy to de- scribe a scene or a commodity and to reduce the description to printed form that will be accessible to thousands. It would be extremely difficult to deliver the scene and the commodity directly to these same people. The description and illustration are, however, not so clear, distinct, and interesting as is the original thing described The great danger with the printed PERCEPTION 11 symbol is that it will lose in perspicuity and interest what it gains in convenience. The printed word has almost no interest for us in itself. It becomes inter- esting only in so far as it symbolizes interesting things to us. The more the printed page has to say and the easier it is for us to interpret it, the more interesting it becomes. Whether fortunately or unfortunately, the advertiser is compelled to rely on symbols in exploiting what he has to offer. He cannot, ordinarily, provide the pos- sible customer with that which he has to offer and thus allow him to become acquainted with the goods in the normal and direct way. He is compelled to substitute the symbol for the thing symbolized. He has a choice between two kinds of symbols — printed words and pic- torial illustrations. The first form of writing was picture writing, but was abandoned because it was not so convenient as are the phonetic characters now in use. Picture writ- ing could not be written or read so easily and quickly as the writing in the characters now in use and it was therefore discarded. According to the standard of ease of interpretation, all forms of type must be judged. Type forms must not be regarded as a production of artistic demands, but as a product of the demands of con- venience. Hundreds of styles of "artistic type" have been brought forth, but they have not remained in use, for they are confusing to the eye and are not artistic in the full sense of the term. Those forms of type and of illustration best perform their proper functions which are so easy of interpretation that they are not noticed at all. There is no advantage in emphasizing the sym- bol, but there is a great advantage in emphasizing the thing symbolized. In using printed forms, the adver- 12 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING tiser supplies a very small part to the total idea whicli lie desires to create, and he should therefore make this little mean as much as possible. A series of experiments were carried on to determine whether white or black type made the more attractive display in magazine advertisements. Experiments were made with over five hundred persons. The background for the white type was gray in some cases, but in most cases it was black. The results show that the ordinary reader is more likely to notice display type which is black than a display type of the same sort which is white. A series of laboratory experiments were made on the same subject. Specially prepared pages were shown for one-seventh of a second. On part of the sheets black letters on white background and white letters on black background were shown. In other cases one half of the sheet had a black background, with words in wiiite type, and the other half of the sheet had a white back- ground with words in black type. Scores of cards were constructed in which all the possible combinations of white and black were made and shown to a number of persons for such a short space of time that no one could perceive all there was on any sheet. Under these circumstances the subjects s;aw what first attracted their attention and what was the easiest to perceive. The final results showed that the black letters on a white background were seen oftener than the white type on a black background. It seems quite certain that, other things being equal, tliose advertisements will be the most often read which are printed in type which is the most easily read. The difference in the appearance of the type in many cases may be so small that even persons experienced in the PERCEPTION 13 choosing of type may not be able to tell which one is the more legible, and yet the difference in their values may be great enough to make it a matter of importance to the advertiser as to which type he shall use. If the matter of the proper use of type is of impor- tance to the advertiser, it is even more important that he should make a wise use of the illustration, which is the second form of symbol at his disposal. The illustration is frequently used merely as a means of attracting attention, and its function as a symbolic illustration is disregarded. In a few cases this may be wise and even necessary, but when we con- sider the value of an illustration as a symbol, we are surprised that illustrations are not used more exten- sively as well as more judiciously. The first form of writing, as stated above, was picture writing, and the most simple and direct form of graphic representation is through the picture and not through the printed word. At a single glance we can usually read about four words; that is to say, the width of perception for printed words is about four. At a single glance at an illustration we can see as much as could be told in a whole page of printed matter. The width of percep- tion for Illustrations is very much more extensive than it is for printed forms of expression. The illustration may perform either one or both of two functions. It may be a mere picture used to attract attention or it may be an "illustration" and a real aid to perception by assisting the text to tell the story which is to be presented. In the first case it would be called an irrelevant illustration; in the second case it is relevant. There have been several investi- gations carried on to determine the relative attention 14 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING value of relevant and irrelevant illustrations. Although the results thus far reached are not so decisive as might be desired, yet it seems certain that the attention value of relevant illustrations is greater than had been sup- posed and that the irrelevant ^'picture" is frequently not so potent in attracting attention as a relevant illus- tration would be. Under these circumstances it seems that, in general, the illustration in an advertisement should have the double function of attracting attention and assisting perception. Which one of these functions is the more important might be a profitable question for discussion, but when these two functions can be united in the same illustration, its value is enhanced twofold. Irrelevant illustrations are produced merely because they are supposed to attract attention, when in reality they may attract the attention of no one except the person who designed them and of the unfortunate man who has to pay for them. Similarly there are many illustrations produced and inserted in advertisements because they are supposed to assist the perception. They are supposed to tell the story of the goods advertised and to be a form of argumentation. The designer of the illustration and one familiar with the goods knows what the picture stands for, and so for him it is a symbol of the goods and tells the story of the special advantages of the goods. To one unacquainted with the illustra- tion and with the goods advertised, the illustration is no illustration at all. When we want to teach a child the letters of the alphabet, we do not secure some "sketchy" and artistic looking letters,, but we secure those which are simple in outline and of a large size. We choose those which make a very decided sensation, for in that way we help determine the perception. When the child becomes PERCEPTION 15 more familiar with the alphabet, he can read small letters and those which are not printed so plainly. In forming perceptions there must at first be a large ele- ment furnished by sensation, whether the perception be formed from an object directly or indirectly from a symbol. Those who forget this principle are likely to construct illustrations which do not illustrate. Their symbols are only symbols for those who are well ac- quainted with the goods advertised. As an example of this sort of illustrations we reproduce herewith an illustration from magazine advertising. EP.C. WAX is the l>est and most econ- omical Laun- dry Wax sold your The kind that keeps' the iron CLEAN (aSMOOTH Put up in little wooden tubes with an automatic handle that keeps the wax in position and prevents waste The neatest and nicest •way that wax can be used for ironing purpose ^ AND for S two-cent stamps we will send you 2* sticks to try -After that they can be had from dealer 'cause Z never satisfy FLAME PROOF CO. NEW YORK No. 1 16 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING This advertisement for F. P. C. wax (No. 1) seems to be an attempt to tell a great deal about the goods by means of an illustration. It took me some time to translate it, and after I had interpreted it as far as possible, I showed it to some ladies who were maga- zine readers. None of them had ever taken the pains to figure it out. One of them thought that it was an advertisement of Bibles. When my attention was called to it, I saw the resemblance between the cut as a whole and the cover of an ordinary Bible. The white space is evidently intended to look like the bottom of an iron and the border containing the words "F. P. C Wax" is intended for a cut of a stick of the wax. None of the ladies had interpreted the cut in that way, but when their attention was called to it, they agreed with me that that was probably what the "artist" had in- tended. We were unable to interpret the white dots and the heavy black border. To those familiar with the advertisement the sensation aroused by the cut is sufficient to produce the desired perception. For all others the sensation is not sufficient to call up the necessary elements to complete the perception and it has no more meaning than a Chinese puzzle. It has nothing which it seems to be trying to tell to those who turn over the pages of the magazine, and so does not attract their attention. We notice those illustrations which have something to say and say it plainly. We disregard in general those things which do not awaken in us a perception. The sensation which does not em- body itself into a perception is of such little interest to us that we pay no attention to it at all. The advertiser desires to produce certain percep- tions and ideas in the minds of the possible customers. The material means with which he may accomplish PERCEPTION 17 this end are printed words and illustrations, which in the first instance awaken sensations; these in turn em- body themselves into perceptions and ideas. These sen- sations seem so unimportant that they are frequently No. 2 forgotten and the place which they are to take in form- ing the desired perceptions and ideas is disregarded. This second advertisement of F. P. 0/ wax (No. 2) appeared several months later than the one given above, and is inserted here to illustrate how an advertise- ment may be improved in the particular point under discussion. The newer cut is really an illustration. It 18 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING helps perception by giving a sensation which is more decided and more easily interpreted. It furthermore attracts attention and tells the story better than could be done by any text. The advertiser is so familiar with what he has to offer that he cannot appreciate the difficulty the pub- lic has in getting a clear and complete perception by means of his advertisements of the goods advertised. It is almost impossible to err on the side of clear- ness. A sketchy illustration may appear artistic to the designer, but there is danger that it will be re- garded as meaningless scrawls by the laity, and so it will not receive a second thought from them. The text and the illustration should, first of all, be clear and should in every way possible assist the mind of the possible customer in forming a correct idea of the goods being exploited. APPERCEPTION 19 III APPERCEPTION Anatomy is the science which divides the human body into its constituent parts, and is a completed science when it has all of these parts correctly described and labeled. Physiology is the science which describes and explains the different functions of the human body. It supplements anatomy by showing the function of each of the bones, muscles, and organs, and by showing their mutual relations. In anatomy we divide the body into distinct divisions, and in physiology we discover differ- ent functions. We often try to think of mind after the analogy of the body, and by so doing are led into con- fusion. The attempt has been made to divide the mind into a definite number of separate faculties (anatomy). The function of each faculty has been described as some- thing quite different from the other faculties, and an attempt was made to define these faculties exactly and to describe their functions completely (physiology). The attempt has failed and has been abandoned. The mind is not a bundle of faculties. It is not com- posed of memory, reason, association, etc., but it is a unit which remembers, reasons, feels, etc. No one function is carried on to the exclusion of all others at any one time. During all of its conscious existence the mind feels, knows, wills, etc., but at certain times it is employed in reasoning more than at others, and at one time it may be feeling more intensely than at others, but no one function ever totally occupies the field. 20 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING When the mind recognizes an event as having occurred in tlie past, it is said to remember, but feeling, atten- tion, and association of ideas may have entered into this process of memory. No one mental process is a thing existing apart and independent of other processes. The anatomical method can never be applied to the mind. The functions of the mind are not independent activities of the mind, but in every function memory, perception, suggestion, and many other functions play a more or less important part. We have no "apperceiving" faculty which is to be distinguished from all other faculties, and which carries on an independent process. The mind does act in a par- ticular and well-known manner, which we have called "apperception." The term has been used for two centuries, and is applied to a well-known process, or function, of the mind which is of great practical and theoretical importance. It includes sensations, percep- tions, assimilation, association, recognition, feeling, will, attention, and other actions of the mind, and yet is a very simple and well-known process. It can best be understood if discussed and illustrated from its various aspects. The first thing to be said about apperception is that it is the act of the mind by which perceptions and ideas become clear and distinct. I may look at my ink bottle on the middle of the table. I see it very clearly and distinctly. I can also see, at the same time, other objects on the table, and even some which are not on it at all. As long as I continue to look at the ink bottle the objects distant from the table are not visible. The ink bottle is very clear and the objects near it are com- paratively so ; those a few feet away are very indistinct or entirelv invisible. I am said to apperceive the bottle, APPERCEPTION 21 but to perceive the more distant objects. Certain parts of the bottle are not noticed particularly, while some of the objects on the table stand out plainly. It is quite evident that ^^clearness" does not draw a set line between the various objects, but there are all grades of clear- ness, from the most clear to the most obscure. We feel that the mental process connected with the ink bottle and that connected with the other objects are different and yet there is an uninterrupted gradation from one to the other. When considered from this point of view apperception is simply an act of attention, for what we attend to becomes clear and distinct to us, while that which is not attended to remains indistinct. Furthermore, there are all degrees of attention. Certain things demand our greatest attention, while others are entirely disregarded. Most things, however, are of the intermediary class. We pay a certain amount of atten- tion to them, but they might easily receive more or less. Some things catch our attention so slightly (are so slightly apperceived) that we are not aware that we have noticed them at all. I did not know that I had ever noticed the walls of the barber shop which I patron- ize, but as soon as I entered it recently I knew that changes liad been made, and I missed certain details which I had frequently seen, but to which I had paid so little heed that they were merely perceived and could not be said to have been apperceived at all. The second thing to remark about apperception is that it is more than mere attention. It is attention of a particular kind. Our attention to an object or event is an act of apperception if the attention is brought about by means of the relationship of this object or event to our previous experience. Apperception has been defined as the bringing to hear what has been retained of past ^22 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING experience in such a way as to interpret^ to give weight to the new experience. This aspect of apperception has been most clearly brought out in the following quota- tion from Dexter and Garlack : "A child who has not learned any physiology, and who has not previously looked through a microscope, looks at a drop of blood under the microscope. He probably says that he sees nothing. "Another child who has, we will suppose, studied botanical sections under the microscope, looks at the same drop of blood and says that he sees some small round bodies. "A third child who has learned a little physiology, looks through the microscope, recognizes the small round bodies as corpuscles, notes that the majority are red- dish, looks for and perhaps finds a white corpuscle, and so comes to the conclusion that it is a drop of blood that he sees. "In the three instances everything is the same except the children. The differences in the results of the acts of observation must be due to the differences in the minds of the children. The reason that the third child saw more than the other two was that he was fitted by previous training to see more. In order that we may see a thing properly it is not sufficient that rays of light should come from the object to the eye and nerve vibra- tions travel along the optic nerve to the brain. The mind must be in a position to interpret, to understand these vibrations. To sensations coming from without the mind adds imagination (i.e.^ image-making) work- ing from within. This combination of action of object on mind and the reaction of mind on object is known as apperception.^^ The third thing to notice about the process of apper- APPEECEPTION 23 ception is that it increases our knowledge by gradually adding new elements to pur previous store of experience. In the use of the microscope, as cited above, ^acli child added to its store of knowledge in proportion to the amount of previous training which could be brought to bear at this point. The first child had had no previous training in this or in any related work, and so was unable to profit by this experience. He did not focus his eye correctly, and could not direct his attention to what the third child saw. An object, event, or situation which has no relation to our previous experience fails to attract our attention, — is not apperceived, — makes no impression on us, and adds nothing to our store of knowledge. Nothing is regarded worthy of our con- sideration which does not relate itself to our previous experience. In fact, we can imagine nothing which is out of relation to all our previous experiences. Things and events are only significant in so far as they signify relationships which we know. The slight difference between the letters "O" and "Q" is immediately noticed by us, but would not be seen by any one unfamiliar with our alphabet. There are many important character- istics about the Chinese alphabet which we never observe, because they mean nothing to us. They are unimportant for us because they do not unite themselves with our previous stock of ideas. We interpret all things by our own standards (our stock of ideas) — we observe only those things which have significance for us, we increase our store of ideas not by adding new and independent ones, but by uniting the old with the new. We are not capable of forming entirely new ideas, but must con- tent ourselves with adding new elements to our stock in trade. All our so-called new ideas are composed very largely of old elements. 24 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING The practical importance of this subject for the ad- vertiser is found in the three aspects of the process as discussed above. In the first place, some advertisements- never stand out clearly and distinctly in the minds of the possible customers. We may turn over the pages of a magazine and see every advertisement there, but our seeing may be of the sort of those of whom it was said, "having eyes they see not.'' I frequently turn over £he pages of publications and direct my eyes toward advertisements and hold them there long enough to have noticed all the striking characteristics of them, and yet in ten minutes afterward I do not know that these par- ticular advertisements are in the publication at all. I had perceived them, but had not apperceived them. The designers of these advertisements had not been success- ful in concentrating my mind on any particular thing which had a special reference to my previous experience, and which would therefore be apperceived by me. We cannot apperceive a large number of things at the same time. An advertisement which is constructed upon the principle that all parts of it should be attrac- tive at the same time will so divide the attention that no part of it will stand out prominently, and so it will not be noticed at all. A superfluity of details should be strenuously guarded against in both the text and the illustration. If a single point of an advertisement is apperceived it serves as an opening wedge for the entire advertisement. If, however, there are too many details the attention may be so distracted that none of it will be apperceived, although it may all be seen (perceived). The things which we perceive do make a slight impres- sion on us, but they are so unimportant in comparison with the things that we apperceive that we may almost disregard them entirely. APPERCEPTION 25 The second point for the advertiser to consider is that the apperception value (identical with attention value in this case) of the advertisement does not depend so much on what the reader receives from the advertise- ment, but what he adds to it. Your advertisement and all other printed matter is composed of a few straight lines and" a few curved ones, of a few dots, and perhaps one or more colored surfaces. These, when seen, cause a sensation of sight, but that is the smallest part of the result of your advertisement. These visual sensations are immediately enforced by the previous experience of the reader. The value of your advertisement depends almost entirely on the number and kind of former experi- ences which it awakens. The advertisement is not a thing which contains within itself the reason for its exist- ence. In and of itself it is perfectly worthless. The aim of the advertisement is to call forth activity in the minds of its readers — and, it might be added, action of a particular sort. The advertisement which is beautiful and pleasing to its designer, and which begets activity in his mind, may be perfectly worthless as an advertise- ment. The drop of blood in the microscope brought forth no activity on the part of the first child who looked at it, as cited above. The child had nothing in its former experience which was suggested by the appearance of the drop of blood, and so it was not interpreted and was not connected with the child's former life, and so made no impression on him. That which happened to the chil- dren in looking through the microscope happens every day to the readers of advertisements. The same adver- tisement will call forth different amounts of activity from different readers. Some advertisements have a meaning to those who are well acquainted with them, and to such they tell their story accurately and quickly. 26 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISIIS^G To some readers they tell a confused or erroneous story ; to others they have nothing to tell at all. As an example of such advertisements we have reproduced the adver- tisement (No. 1) of Whitman's chocolates. No. 1 This looks like a very neat advertisement, but it fails at the two crucial points — ^it neither attracts attention nor assists in forming a correct perception of the goods advertised. As a proof of this statement it is but neces- sary to refer to the result obtained with this advertise- ment in a series of tests recently made. The magazine APPERCEPTION 27 containing this advertisement was shown to 516 yonng people between the ages of ten and twenty-five. After they had looked at all the advertisements they were asked to write down all the advertisements which they had noticed and could remember. One girl remembered that she had seen an advertisement of candy, but could not remember whose it was or what the advertisement was. One boy remembered that "Whitman^s candy'^ was advertised, but thought the advertisement had the picture of a lady eating a piece of candy. The first of the two probably referred to Huyler's advertisement (Huyler advertised in the same issue) and the second certainly confused the two advertisements. Besides these two none of the 516 persons noticed the advertise- ment sufficiently to remember that it was there at all. This second advertisement (No. 2) of Whitman's ap- peared in a later issue of the same magazine. I have made no tests of this advertisement, but feel sure that if the 516 had seen this instead of the other advertisement a very large per cent, of them would have noticed it and have remembered it. It attracts attention and tells more at a glance than could be told in many well-formed sentences. It would create a desire on the part of many of these young people to send for or to purchase a box of such desirable looking candy. It is an illustration which illustrates by helping perception, and it also attracts attention because it has something to tell. The third thing for the advertiser to observe in connec- tion with apperception is that advancement in knowledge is made by joining the new on to the old. The pedagogi- cal maxim of advancing from the known to the unknown finds its justification here. It is very difficult to get the public to think along a new line, because they cannot connect th^ new fact with 28 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING their previous experience, i.e., they cannot apperceive it. This makes it very difficult to introduce a new article on the market. Old firms find it difficult to introduce a new brand, and new firms find it difficult No. 2 to get themselves noticed at all. Frequently firms have resorted to questionable means to get the public even to notice them. It seems to be impossible for them to get a hearing for the details of their propositions until they have let the public become familiar with their APPERCEPTION 29 names and know who they are. The promoters of Omega Oil have been severely criticised for their goose, but the goose has introduced them to the public, and now they are in a position to get a hearing and to present the arguments for their commodity. It is quite possible that the expense of keeping the goose before the public was an unnecessary luxury, but they have been wise in not advancing their argument faster than the public was willing to hear it. They have taken but one step at a time. They first let the public know that there was such a thing as Omega Oil, and they took great pains to make this new fact known, and in doing this they were acting in accordance wdth the principles of apper- ception. They first gave the public some experience of Omega Oil, and then tried to get the public to interpret their arguments in the light of tha*t previous experience. It is not always necessary or even wise to attempt to present all the arguments for a commodity at a single time. It is frequently wise to carry on an educational campaign and to present single arguments. In this way the mind of the possible customer is not crowded with a lot of new and disconnected facts, but each argument has time to be assimilated and to form a part of his experience, and is called up to strengthen and impress each succeeding argument. In writing an advertisement the public to be reached must be carefully studied. In exploiting a new com- modity the writer should ask himself what there is about his goods which will fall into "prepared soil'^ on the part of the reader. The reader must first be appealed to by something which he already knows, and thus activity on his part is awakened, and this activity may be made use of for presenting the new elements, which, if presented at first, would have met with no response 30 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING whatever/ Nothing should be presented as something absolutely new, but as an improvement or substitute for something which is well known. The reader's interest can be best awakened by appealing to his past experiences. ILLUSIONS OF PERCEPTION 31 IV ILLUSIONS OF PERCEPTION If there is anything in the world that we feel snre of, it is that our senses (eyes, ears, etc.) do not deceive us, but that they present the outside world to us just as it is. Some have been so impressed with the truth- fulness of their senses that they have discredited all other sources of knowledge and are unwilling to accept anything as true which they cannot see. "Seeing is believing," and nothing is so convincing as our percep- tions. Many centuries ago it was discovered that under cer- tain conditions even our senses deceived us. This dis- covery was emphasized and the certainty of any and all our knowledge was questioned till the extremest sort of skepticism prevailed. Such a condition was abnor- mal and transient, but it certainly is a great shock to us when we discover that under certain conditions our senses are not to be depended upon. All the sense organs are the product of a long evolu- tion in which the various organs were developed as instruments of communication by means of which we might adjust ourselves to our environments. Of all the sense organs the eye is the most highly developed, and yet it was not one of the first to be developed. It is marvelously well adjusted for the functions which it has to perform, but it has certain weaknesses and de- fects which are surprising. Although each of the sense organs is a source of 32 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING illusion, this chapter will be confined to a presentation of some of the most striking illusions of the eye. One of the most glaring of the so-called "optical illusions" is the illusion as to the length of lines. We judge distances by the amount of eye movement which is necessary to look from one extremity of the line to the other. Under some circumstances this eye move- ment is facilitated and under others it is retarded. Lines or distances over which the eye moves readily are underestimated, while those over which the eye moves with difficulty are overestimated. < > >— < No. 1 No. 1 shows two lines of equal length. The line at the top seems much shorter and the explanation is as given above. The arrowheads which are turned in stop the eye movement before the end of the line is reached. The arrowheads which are turned out invite the eye to go even further than the end of the line. I have con- ducted experiments with very finely constructed instru- ments which showed that as I looked at the bottom line my eye moved further than it did when I looked at the upper line. When out walking, we are inclined to judge the dis- tance traversed by the amount of effort we have put forth in covering the distance. Any one who has had occasion to walk on railroad ties knows that the dis- tance which he thought he had covered was much ILLUSIONS OF PERCEPTION 33 greater than the distance which he had actually cov- ered. In walking on the railroad ties, every tie must be noticed and its distance from the next tie must be roughly estimated. There is a constant starting and stopping which calls for the putting forth of an exces- sive amount of energy. When we walk over a smooth and well-known path there is no starting and stopping at all, but movement is continuous and easy. In the case of these walks the distance covered is judged ac- cording to the amount of energy which the limbs must put forth to cover the distance. A similar illusion oc- curs when the eye is called upon to judge of distances which, roughly speaking, correspond to the railroad ties and the smooth path. In No. 2 the extents indicated by A and B are equal. A is an open space bounded by two dots, and the eye C l l lllllllll tiiinmiim ^ imiiiimiiii No. 2 moves over it readily and without any delays. B is a space bounded by two dots broken by three others, and, although the eye seems to run over them smoothly, there is a slight tendency to notice each dot, and this stopping and starting at each dot requires more energy than it does to move the eye over an empty space of the same size. As seen' extents are estimated according to the amount of energy necessary to move the eye over them, B is judged to be greater than A. The other illusions 34 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING shown in No. 2 are explained in the same way — C ap- pears much shorter than D, and F appears much shorter than E or G. In No. 3 the two squares are of eqjial size, but the left-hand one appears to be much the larger. As the eye passes over the left square there is a tendency to stop at each cross line, and these stoppings and start- ings cause us to overestimate the size of the square. Nos. 2 and 3 are but a few of the examples which might be given to show that filled space is overestimated and that empty space is underestimated. In every case No. 3 the cause of the illusion is found in the fact that we base our estimation of extents upon the eye movements which are necessary to look over the field or extent being estimated. All eye movements are made by means of the three pairs of muscles which are attached to each eye. They are so adjusted that they can move the eye in any direc- tion, but the pairs of muscles are not symmetrically placed, and as a natural consequence it is harder to move the eyes in certain directions than in others. If you move your eyes from right to left and from left to right, you will observe that it is much easier than it is to move them up and down. Our conclusion from this would be that if we judge distances by eye movement, ILLUSIONS OF PERCEPTION 35 we would overestimate vertical distances and under- estimate horizontal distances. Such is the case. In No. 4 the horizontal and vertical lines are equal, but to most persons the vertical line appears longer. A No. 4 square does not look to be square, but looks as if its vertical sides were longer than its horizontal ones. No. 5 combines several different causes of illusions, and the result is very striking. Measurements made along the dotted lines show the horizontal line to be about one-sixth longer than the vertical line. The ex- planation of this illusion is more difficult to find than that of the figures above given, but it is quite certain that all the explanations given above apply here, and in addition we must mention the "error of expectancy." We expect to see the horizontal arms of a cross shorter than the height of it, and so we are inclined to see it that way even when the reverse is true. The error of expectancy will be more fully discussed in the next chapter. 36 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING In certain positions straight lines look crooked and crooked ones look straight. No. 5 No. 6 shows straight lines which seem to be decidedly warped. The four horizontal lines are two pairs of straight and parallel lines. The explanation of this ^^^^^ j//^^^^^^^^^^^ ^n^^^^^mr :^^^^^^^^/ ^^^^\ No. 6 ILLUSIONS OF PERCEPTION 37 illusion is that we underestimate the size of large angles and overestimate the size of small ones. Each horizon- tal line is crossed by a number of oblique lines and each oblique line forms two acute and two obtuse angles with each horizontal line. As we overestimate the size of the acute angles and underestimate the size of the large ones, the straight lines must appear crooked to allow for these misjudgments. In certain positions figures which are the same size may appear to be very far from being equal. No. 7 No. 7 shows two identical figures, but the lower one appears to be much smaller than the upper one. The explanation of this illusion is somewhat different from the explanation of the other illusions as given above. In comparing the size of two objects we ordinarily judge by the comparative size of adjoining areas. In the figures shown the large side of one is next to the small side of the other. We involuntarily compare these ad- joining sides, and so the illusion occurs. There is another class of illusions which do not depend upon eye movement, but upon the way the different rays of light affect the retina of the eye. We "see" objects when the rays of light reflected from them fall upon 38 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING the retina of the eye. From large objects more light is reflected than from small objects. Because of this we have come to judge objects not only from the eye move- ment, but also from the size of the object as it is reflected upon the eye. The rays of light reflected from some colors spread themselves out, or "irradiate,'' and so the image of the object as it is reflected in the eye is greater than the image of an object of the same size but of a color which does not irradiate. For this reason white objects appear larger than black ones. The stock buyers of the West are often compelled to guess at the weight of animals. I am told that they always, reduce their "guess" on white animals and add to the apparent size (fl black ones. Nor is this illusion confined to white and black. Red, orange, and yellow objects look larger than objects of the same size which are green and blue. Corpulent people dress themselves in black or in the darker shades of blue or green. Small, thin people dress in white, red, orange, or yellow. Another source of errors is found in the fact which, technically expressed, is that the eye is not corrected for chromatic aberration. The result of this defect in the eye is that certain colors look closer than others. Thus red objects look closer than green ones. I remem- ber looking at a church window which had a red disk in a green background. The red appeared to stand out from the green in such a remarkable manner that I was not satisfied till, after the service was over, I went to the window and felt of it. The red and the green were in the same plane, but, as the red might have stood out, the illusion was not counteracted by my knowledge of the perspective and was very striking. Tailors and dressmakers have taken advantage of some of the sources of illusions as given above. They ILLUSIONS OF PERCEPTION 39 know how to cover defects and to produce the desired appearances. Corpulent ladies are not found wearing checks, nor are tall ladies in the habit of wearing verti- cal stripes. As far as the writer knows, advertisers have never made a conscious effort to profit by illusions in their illustrations and construction of display. It is not the function of this article to suggest how the prin- ciples here enunciated might be applied to any particu- lar concrete case, but the ingenious advertiser will find the application. The Purina Mills put up their goodc in checkerboard packages, which make the packages look larger than they really are. This illusion is illus- trated in No. 3. Ordinarily the illustration in advertise- ments of fountain pens represents the pen in a horizon- tal position. I have recently noticed some of the illus- trations in which the pen is represented in a vertical position. This makes the pen look larger, as is indi- cated in No. 4. If the designer of an advertisement desires to give the impression of bigness to an article which he is present- ing, he might make use of some or all of the illusions given above. The cut of the article might be so con- structed that the eye would move completely over it or even beyond it, as is shown in the lower figure of No. 1. It might be of such a nature that the eye would not move over it readily, as is the case with B, D, E, and G in No. 2. It might be checkered like the left-hand square of No. 3. It might have its dimensions indicated by vertical and not by horizontal lines. It might take ad- vantage of the error of expectation, as is shown in No. 5. Its size might be made to appear greater by the in- troduction of acute angles, as is shown in No. 6, in which the distance between the two parallel lines is increased and decreased by acute and obtuse angles. The cut 40 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING might be brought into contrast with some other figure which would give the impression of great size, as is done in the upper figure of No. 7. Finally, the part of the cut which is to look large might be colored red, orange, yellow, or white. If several of these principles of illusions could be employed in a single cut the effect would be astonishing. As will be seen, the cause of all illusions of perception is found in some maladjustment of our normal sense or- gans. The advertiser is perfectly justified in taking advantage of this defect of ours, and in some cases this could be done to advantage. ILLUSIONS OF APPERCEPTION 41 ILLUSIONS OF APPERCEPTION In Evanston, Illinois, two grocery firms are accus- tomed to advertise on hand-bills which are placed in the morning papers before they are delivered by the carriers. A friend of mine, who was the head of a family, had frequently noticed these bills in his morn- ing paper and, having noticed at some time the name of "Robinson Brothers" on que of the advertisements, had come to the conclusion that all these hand-bills were from Robinson Brothers. On a certain morning Winter's Grocery offered to sell several lines of stand- ard goods at a very great reduction from the ordinary price. As my friend was going down town that morn- ing his wife handed him the hand-bill and asked him to order quite an extensive quantity of the special bar- gains offered that morning. He took the advertisement, checked off what his wife wanted, and went down town. As he entered Robinson Brothers' store he held Winter's advertisement in his hand and read off to the clerk the order which he was commissioned to make. When the goods were delivered he was taken to task by his wife for ordering the goods at the wrong store and thereby failing to save the special reductions for that day. It so happened that the advertisement was still in his pocket. As he took it out and looked at it again he was very much surprised to see "Winter's Grocery" in plain type at the bottom. It was not comforting to him either to remember the w^ay the clerk had smiled when he had held the advertisement in his hand and 42 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING ordered the goods. He even believed he remembered that the cashier stopped work and scanned him and the advertisement while the order was being given. In the reduced reproduction (No. 1) of a full-page advertisement, which appeared in Everybody's Maga- ■'^SS» ELASTIC PiBBED Union Suits 1 The Muiisiiiff Indefweaf f,i\ei a mjMnjum of co-nfort jt a niininium of expense, t otibmes perfect on of fit and S-ish , * -H Tinsomblcn'if of p-K' Thf •« Is - 'o r-h.r biph r'^ic unJc atarso inc< S^r'O [ .p^ •;£i;3i 1 sWi '' ■ ':'/■ J WMBw^ ^i^liWs&Vi^OI'ftif'' 1^ No. 1 2ine, the Oneita goods occupied three-fourths of the page and the Munsing goods one-fourth. It seems that there should be no confusion about this, but such has not been the case. The Munsing people received a num- ber of letters of inquiry concerning the Oneita union suits. For persons desiring union suits this full-page ILLUSIONS OF APPERCEPTION 43 advertisement was all supposed to be an advertisement issuing from the manufacturers of the Munsing under- wear. An advertising manager of a progressive maga- zine saw^ this page and, like many other readers, sup- posed that it was all one. He wrote to the Munsing people, making them rates on the full-page advertise- ment, and enclosed the page from which the half-tone was made as shown above. Confusions often arise between advertisements which present the most dissimilar kinds of goods. It might seem surprising that the advertisements for portable houses should be confused with the advertisement of pens, but the following illustration will show how naturally such an error could occur : In the reduced reproduction of the full-page adver- tisement (No. 2) the Conklin Pen Company occupies the upper right-hand quarter page and the lower left- hand quarter page. The upper right-hand quarter is of such a nature that it arrests the reader's attention as he turns over the page. It is of such an indefinite nature that it does not direct the attention to anything in particular, but merely arrests it and causes one to look dowm. It does not draw attention .to the lower left-hand quarter more than it does to the lower right- hand quarter. Under these circumstances the lower quarter which appeals to the reader the most strongly receives the most attention. We may for the present assume that the two lower quarters are equally attrac- tive. Under these circumstances it will depend upon the reader himself as to whether he will see the port- able houses or the pens. If he has been thinking of portable houses — if he wants a portable house — ^his attention will immediately be attracted by the adver- tisement of Mershon & Morley, and he will take it for 44 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING granted that Merslion & Morley have used the entire right-hand half of the page. This conclusion is not merely hypothetical, for Mershon & Morley have positive proof as to very many such confusions and they are of the opinion that they have received as much benefit No. 2 from the upper right-hand quarter as the Conklin Pen Company has. Department store advertising lead^ to very many more illusions of apperception than are ordinarily detected. Mandel Brothers of Chicago advertised a special brand of writing paper one morning and during the day Mar- ILLUSIONS OF APPERCEPTION 45 shall Field & Company received forty orders for this brand from people who believed that Field's and not MandePs were advertising it. Field's roughly estimated that they receive as many as thirty orders weekly which are known to be due to illusions of apperception in which Field's receive the benefit of competitors advertising. Of two hat firms of Chicago one puts great emphasis on its own name and address, the other emphasizes the style of the hat sold. For convenience' sake we shall call the first firm "A" and the second ^^B." Hatter A has made his name so well known that when a possible customer sees an advertisement of hats he at once begins to think of A. Last summer Hatter B advertised a particular style of hat very extensively. His name was on all the advertisements, of course. The name, how- ever, was not the important or the emphasized thing. After they had read the advertisement through many persons still supposed that it w^as A's advertisement. Hatter A is not willing to have his name or that of his competitor mentioned, for he does not desire to see the present condition changed. His position can be appreciated when w^e learn that he sold over twenty dozen hats last summer to persons who thought they were getting tlie hat which they had seen advertised by B. I have frequently observed that people misread ad- vertisements. In some cases the mistakes are astonish- ing. After a young lady had completed "looking through" a magazine, I asked her to write down as full an account as possible of some of the advertisements in the magazine. Here is what she wrote: "What sen- sations are more agreeable after exercise than a hard rub with a towel and a rub with Armour's toilet soap, and a dash of water? Armour's soap may not be very 46 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING valuable, but it is very refreshing after exercise. Armour's soap may be bought at any store at five or ten cents a bar." What she had read was the following : "What sensations are more agreeable than those follow- ing some good, quick exercise, a rub with a rough towel, a scrub with Ivor}^ soap and a dash of cold water? . . . If the Ivory soap is not positively essential, it is at least delightfully cleansing," etc. I asked several hun- dred persons to write down a description of the adver- tisements which they had just read. This confusion of Armour's and Ivory soap is but one of scores of simi- lar confusions w^hich I discovered. At an international congress of psychologists held in Munich, in 1896, an alleged "photograph" of the human brain (No. 3) was exhibited. No. 3 All those present were much interested in the structure and functions of the brain. Many of them, at first sight, saw nothing unusual about the picture, but observed the position of the various convolutions and fissures of the brain. Later it dawned upon them that it was not a photograph of the brain at all, but was a group of naked babies. I have since that time shown the picture to various per- ILLUSIONS OF APPERCEPTION 47 sons and have noticed that those who are familiar with the brain first see a brain, but other persons are likely to see the babies at once. The first time I saw this photograph of a brain I did not notice the babies for several seconds ; then for some time I could see it as either a brain or a group of babies. Now I find that I cannot see it as a brain at all, but every time I look at it I see the babies and there is scarcely any resemblance to a brain there. The following cut (No. 4) differs from the one last discussed in this particular. I can see it equally well in two different ways. No. 4 \ If I look away from it and think how it should be to represent a duck and then turn my eyes upon it, behold — it is a duck. If I think how it should be to represent a rabbit and then look at it, it ceases to look like a duck and is the likeness of a rabbit. The figure itself may represent equally well either a rabbit or a duck, but cannot possibly suggest both to me at the same time. If I continue to look at it steadily for some minutes it changes from a rabbit to a duck and then back to a rabbit. When I see it as one it does not seem possible that it could ever look like the other, for the two things are so totally different in appearance. The following illustration (No. 5) differs from the one given immediately above in several important par- 48 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING ticulars. The one given above is seen equally well in either of two ways, and we seem to have no preference as to which way we shall see it. The one given below can be seen in at least four different ways, but we see it much more readily in one way than in any other. No. 5 The easiest way to interpret this figure is to regard it as a representation of a staircase as seen from above. It is quite possible, however, to see it as a representation of the same stairs as seen from below. This latter in- terpretation is made easier if you think just how the stairs would look if seen from below, and if at the same time you direct your eye to the point marked "a" in the cut. It is possible to interpret the cut, not as a staircase at all, but as a strip of cardboard bent at right angles like an accordion plait and situated in front of the apparent background. It is difficult to "see" the figure this way. It is still more difficult to see the figure as a plane surface composed of straight lines without any perspective. This fourth interpretation is the one that would apparently be the most natural, for it is the one which takes the cut for just what it is and adds nothing to it. It might be added that the angles in the staircase figure may be seen as right angles, acute angles, or oblique angles. ILLUSIO:&^S OF APPERCEPTION 49 No. 6 is like the previous illustrations in that it can be seen in more than one way, but it is different in that the figure seems to change under the eye more rapidly No. 6 than the others. It assumes two or three different ap- pearances in a very few seconds. These changes are assisted by moving the eye from one part of the figure to another. In looking at solid figures or bodies our eyes usually rest on the nearest edge or surface. It comes about in this way that the lines at which we look are very likely to appear to be the nearest edge or surface of the solid. No. 7 consists of a group of either six or seven blocks. If it is looked at steadily for some seconds, the blocks seem to fall and to arrange themselves in a new way. 50 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING If at first there were but six blocks, there may be seven there after they have fallen. Many people find it very difficult to count the blocks, for while they are counting, the number chiJUges. If you look at No. 7a and hold No. 7 an image of 'it in your mind while you count the blocks in No. 7 you will probably find six blocks. If, however, 3^ou first look at No. 7& and retain its image in your mind you will be able to find seven blocl^s in No. 7. If the No. 7a No. 7b desired results are not secured, turn the page upside- down and the blocks will then certainly '^fall." No. 8, at first sight, appears to most people as a book which is half opened and turned in such a way that the ILLUSIONS OF APPERCEPTION 51 cover alone is visible. To some it will appear as if the book was opened toward them and as if two of the pages w^ere visible. If we try to think how a book should look when opened and turned away from us, and if we then look at the figure, it will appear to represent the book of which we are thinking and also in the posi- tion in which we imagined it. The upper or feathered end of the arrow (No. 9) is identical with No. 8 and yet it appears to be flat, while W No. S V No. 9 that one appeared as a solid. If we cover up the shaft and head of the arrow as shown in this figure, we can then see the top of the figure as a book. If we think of it as the end of an arrow it is flat, but if we think of it as a book it immediately appears as a solid drawn in perspective. If I put on red glasses and then look at a landscape, all objects appear red to me. If I put on green glasses all objects appear green. The objects are colored by the glasses which were before my eyes. In a similar way, by apperception, the thoughts which are in my mind color all the objects at ivhich I looh. We see things 52 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING through our own eyes and with our own minds. This is equivalent to saying that all we see is changed by the thoughts which are in our minds when we look. It is also equivalent to saying that we see everything in rela- tion to our own previous experience. Although the grass is green I am unable to see it as green till I remove the red glasses. The rose may be red, but it will not appear so to me till I take off the green glasses. In a similar way I fail to see the green grass when I am thinking of the red rose and I fail to see the red rose when I am thinking of the green grass, although both are present all the time. We see most easily those things of which we happen to he thinking or of which we have had previous experience, hut we see with difficulty those things of which we have had no previous experience. For the practical advertiser the theoretical discus sion of the illusions of apperception has a special im- portance, as it assists him to discern the causes of sucli illusions and to avoid them in his advertisements. The principal cause of all illusions of apperception is found in the fact that the mind of the reader is not prepared for the reception of the case as presented. The second cause of such illusions is that the presentation of the case is not as clear and distinct as it should be. The first of these facts is the peculiar and distinctive cause of most illusions of apperception. The reader's mind may be unprepared either because it is distracted by a competing thought or because the material presented is entirely new. The presentation may be lacking in clearness because in some particular it is ambiguous. By observing the part which these two causes played in the illusions given above we are better prepared to understand and therefore to avoid such illusions. The householder who misread Robinson for Winter had his ILLUSIONS OF APPERCEPTION 53 mind preoccupied with the thought of Robinson. Winter had not succeeded in occupying a place in his mind, while Robinson had. On the other hand, Robinson's and Winter's advertisements look as much alike as two peas and neither has a characteristic feature which would help to identify it. The readers of Everybody's Magazine looked at the lower right-hand corner of the page and read "The N. W. Knitting Company, Minneapolis." With this thought in mind they looked at the Oneita goods, but failed to notice that they were not sold by the N. W. Knitting Company. The Oneita people are in part responsible for the illusion in that they allowed their advertisement to appear without an address and on a page with a similar advertisement which has an address. The more recent advertisements of the Oneita union suits have an address given and therefore are not so subject to illusions of this sort. The confusion by which readers supposed that the portable houses were presented by a full half -page ad- vertisement is a typical illusion of apperception. The readers had their minds preoccupied by the thought of portable houses, and so the attention went to portable houses, and not to "The Pen That Fills Itself." The Conklin Pen Company did not make it perfectly clear that the hand was pointing to their space. In the confusion of hats referred ta, Hatter A had made his name so familiar to the residents of this city that when they read a hat advertisement they did it with their minds preoccupied with the thought that it was A's advertisement. It came about in this way that when they read B's advertisement they read it as A's and failed to notice B's name, which was given at the bottom. It is quite possible tliat B might have greatly reduced 54 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING the number of confusions if he had put more emphasis upon his own name and address. The young lady who misread Armour's for Ivory had been influenced by extensive advertisements of Armour's which had appeared in her town. She had associated the name of Armour and soap so closely together that when she read of soap she naturally assumed that it was Armour's and failed to see Ivory, just as the inex- perienced proofreader reads the proof as he thinks it ought to be and fails to observe some of the most glaring errors. It should also be observed that the soap adver- tisement did not emphasize the name of Ivory at all. The figures given above illustrate the same principles of illusions of apperception, but they make it clearer than any confusion of concrete advertisements can possibly do. In most, if not in all, of the figures the reader can voluntarily preempt his mind with a thought and then can see in the figure that of which he is think- ing. He can in this way interpret each figure in two or more ways. By means of these figures we can see the part the mind adds to a sensation when it. interprets a written, printed, or drawn symbol. These figures also show the need of clear and distinct presentation. They ai*e extremely ambiguous, and can with equal ease be interpreted in two or more ways. With slight changes all of these figures could be remodeled so that it would be much more difficult to interpret them in any way except the one which the author desired. • That firm which does the most and the best advertis- ing is the one that preempts the minds of the possible customers and so gets the benefit of more advertisements than it pays for. The firms that advertise extensively and do not fail to put the proper emphasis on their names and addresses are the firms that profit most by ILLUSIONS OF APPERCEPTION 55 confusions. New firms and firms that put little emphasis on their names and addresses would be much surprised if they knew how many possible customers read their advertisements and still fail to notice who they are. Many advertisers believe that they should put all their emphasis on the quality of the goods. They assume that if any one wants the goods thus presented they will take the trouble to ascertain the brand of the goods, the name of the firm, and its address. Such a theory sounds well, but the instances of confusion cited above indicate the weakness of the theory when applied to specific adver- tisements. In this chapter we have confined our attention to illusions in which the reader has confused one advertise- ment or one figure for another. Ordinarily illusions do not go to this extreme, but are confined to confusions and misunderstandings as to the specific arguments of the advertisements. Since we have positive evidence that these extreme illusions are not uncommon, w^e can well believe that illusions of a less extreme but serious nature are of all too frequent occurrence. The number of such illusions would be materially decreased if the writers of advertisements would see to it that the minds of the possible customers are prepared for the argument which they are about to write and if they would present their arguments clearly and distinctly. 56 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING VI PEESONAL DIFFERENCES IN MENTAL IMAGERY Yesterday I looked in at a shop window where the current magazines were displayed. I saw the front outer cover of over a score of them. Now, as I sit in my study, miles away from that window, I can still see the magazines with my "mind's eye" ; that is to say, I can form a mental image of the window and the magazines. I can describe some of the covers accurately as to color, shape, type, etc. I know that there were several maga- zines off to the left side of the window, but all I can see of them now is the barest outline. They are so indistinct that I cannot tell what they are at all. My mental image of them is very indistinct. But recently I was talking with a friend while a com- pany of young people in an adjoining room was playing on the piano and violin and singing college songs. As I sit here I can imagine how my friend's voice sounded ; I can hear in imagination how the piano and the violin sounded ; I can hear in imagination the tunes which they were singing ; that is to say, I can form a mental image of the sounds which I had previously heard. I notice, how- ever, that my mental image is not so distinct and pro- nounced as the original perception. I cannot form a mental image of some of the notes which I heard from the violin. Only the more striking parts of the tunes seem to be plain, and even they seem to be quite low and of much less volume than the originals. Only an hour ago T ate my breakfast. The odor and DIFFERENCES IN MENTAL IMAGERY 57 taste of the coffee were at that time very pleasing to me. Now I can imagine how it smelt and tasted, but the images of it are not very vivid and are not strong enough to give me any pleasure in recalling them. Last night I was on the ice playing hockey. The exer- cise was very vigorous and exciting. At the time I did not stop to think how it felt to "put the puck/' but I must have felt the exertion of my muscles as I performed the act. Now I can form a mental image of the act ; I can feel my muscles as they make the strain necessary for the performance. I was perspiring when I left the pond and soon my woolen underwear became excessively unpleasant. I felt the unpleasant contact on my skin at that time, and now I can form a mental image of the sensation, which is so strong that it makes me want to stop writing to scratch. As is indicated by the examples given above, I can form a mental image of that which I have seen, heard, tasted, smelt, felt (in my muscles), or touched (with my skin) . In general it might be said that we can form a mental image of anything which we have ever per- ceived. There are many exceptions to this statement, as w^ill be shown later. Almost all of our dreams and reveries and a large part of our more serious thinking are composed of a succession of these mental images of things which we have previously experienced. We cannot see the images in the mind of our neighbor, but we are likely to suppose that his thinking is very much like our own. It was formerly supposed that such was the case. It was as- sumed that the normal mind could form images of every- thing which it had experienced. It was further as- sumed that there were no personal differences as to the clearness and vividness of such mental images. 58 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING In 1880 Francis Galton discovered that there was a great difference in individuals in their ability to form these mental images. He found that some persons could form mental images which were almost as vivid and strong as the original perception, while for others the past was veiled in indistinctness. He also found that certain persons could form mental images of one class of perceptions, but could form no mental images of other classes. Thus, one man could not imagine how his friends looked when he was absent from them ; another could not imagine how a piano sounded when the piano was out of his hearing. Prof. William James, of Harvard University, con- tinued the investigations begun by Mr. Galton. He col- lected papers from hundreds of persons in which each one described his own image of his breakfast table. One who is a good visualizer writes : "This morning's breakfast table is both dim and bright : it is dim if I try to think of it when my eyes are open upon any object; it is perfectly clear and bright if I think of it with my eyes closed. All the objects are clear at once, yet when I confine my attention to any one object it becomes far more distinct. I have more power to recall color than any other one thing ; if, for example, I were to recall a plate decorated with flowers, I could reproduce in a drawing the exact tones, etc. The color of anything that was on the table is perfectly vivid. There is very little limit to the extent of my images: I can see all four sides of a room ; I can see all four sides of two, three, four, or even more rooms with such dis- tinctness that if you should ask me what was in any particular place in any one, or ask me to count the chairs, etc., I could do it without the least hesitation. The more I learn by heart the more clearly do I see DIFFERENCES IN MENTAL IMAGERY 59 images of my pages. Even before I can recite the lines I see them so that I could give them very slowly, word for word, but my mind is so occupied in looking at my printed page that I have no idea of what I am saying, of the sense of it, etc. When I first found myself doing this, I used to think it was merely because I knew the lines imperfectly, but I have quite convinced myself that I really do see an image. The strongest proof that such is really the fact is, I think, the following : "I can look down the mentally seen page and see the words that commence all the lines, and from any one of these words I can continue the line. I find this much easier to do if the words begin in a straight line than if there are breaks. Example : ''Etantfait . . . ''Tons ... ' ''A des . . . ''Que fit ... ''Geres ... "Avec . . . "Un fleur ... . • ^ " "Comme . . . "(La Fontaine 8, iv.)'' Those who are poor visualizers are likely to suspect the writer of ^the above paper as exaggerating the vivid- ness of his visual images, yet there is every reason to suppose that there is no exaggeration about it. One who is a poor visualizer writes : "My ability to form mental images seems, from what I have studied of other people's images, to be defective and somewhat peculiar. The process by which I remem- ber any particular event is not by any distinct images, but a sort of panorama, the faintest impressions of which are perceptible through a thick fog. I cannot shut my 60 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING eyes and get a distinct image of any one, although I used to be able to a few years ago, and the faculty seems to have gradually slipped away. In my most vivid dreams, where the events appear like the most real facts, I am often troubled with a dimness of sight which causes the image to appear indistinct. To come to the question of the breakfast table, there is nothing definite about it. Everything is vague. I cannot say what I see; could not possibly count the chairs, but I happen to know that there are ten. I see nothing in detail. The chief thing is a general impression that I cannot tell what I do see. The color is about the same, as far as I can recall it, only very much washed out. Perhaps the only color I can see at all distinctly is that of the tablecloth, and I could probably see the color of the wall-paper if I could remember what color it was.'' Every year I ask each of my students in psychology to write out in full a description of his mental image of his breakfast table, a railroad train, and a football game. In these papers are examples of as good and as poor visualizers as those given from the papers collected by Professor James. I have found that there is not only a personal difference in the ability to form visual images, but that the same differences exi«t for the other classes of perceptions. One student who has strong auditory imagery writes as follows : ^^When I think of the breakfast table I do not seem to have a clear visual image of it. I can see the length of it, the three chairs, — though I can't tell the color or shape- of these, — the white cloth and something on it, but I can't see the pattern of the dishes or any of the food. I can very plainly hear the rattle of the dishes and of the silver and above this hear the conversation, also the other noises, such as a train which passes every morning DIFFERENCES IN MENTAL IMAGERY 61 while we are at breakfast. Again in a football game I distinctly hear the noise, but do not see clearly anything or anybody. I hear the stillness when every one is intent and then the loud cheering. Here I notice the differences of pitch and tone." I had read that some people were unable to imagine sounds which they had heard, but it had not impressed me, for I had supposed that such persons were great exceptions. I was truly surprised when I found so many of my students writing papers similar to those from which extracts are here given : "My mental imagery is visual, as I seem to see things and not to hear, feel, or smell them. The element of sound seems practically never to enter in. When I think of a breakfast table or a football game I have a distinct image. I see colors, but hear no sound." Another, in describing his image of a railroad train, writes : "I am not able to state whether I hear the train or not. I am inclined to think that it is a noiseless one. It is hard for me to conceive of the sound of a bell, for instance. I can see the bell move to and fro, and for an instant seem to hear the ding, dong ; but it is gone before I can identify it. When I try to conceive of shouts I am like one groping in the dark. I cannot possibly retain the conception of a sound for any length of time." Another, who seems to have no vivid images of any kind, writes : "When I recall the breakfast table I see it and the persons around it. The number of them is distinct, for there is only one of them on each side of the table. But they seem like mere objects in space. Only when I think of each separately do I clearly see them. As for the table, all I see is a general whiteness, interspersed with 62 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING objects. I hear nothing at all, and indeed the whole thing is so indistinct it bewilders me when I think of it. My mental imagery is very vague and hazy, unless I have previously taken special notice of what I now have an image. For instance, when I have an image of a certain person, I cannot tell his particular character- istics unless my attention was formerly directed to them.'' Another writes : "There is no sound in connection with any image. In remembering I call up an incident and gradually fill out the details. I can very seldom recall how anything sounds. One sound from the play ^Robespierre,' by Henry Irving, which I heard about two years ago and which I could recall some time afterward, I have been unable to recall this fall, though I have tried to do so. I can see the scene quite perfectly, the position of the actors and stage setting, even the action of a player who brought out the sound." Quite a large proportion of persons find it impossible to imagine motion at all. As they think of a football game all the players are standing stock still; they are as they are represented in a photograph. They are in the act of running, but no motion is represented. Like- wise, the banners and streamers are all motionless. They find it impossible to think of such a thing as motion. Others find that the motions are the most vivid part of their images. What they remember of a scene is prin- cipally movement. One writes : "When the word ^breakfast table' was given out I saw our breakfast table at home, especially the table and the white tablecloth. The cloth seemed to be the most distinct object. I can see each one in his place at the table. I can see no color except that of the tablecloth. DIFFERENCES IN MENTAL IMAGERY 63 The dishes are there, but are very indistinct. I cannot hear the rattle of the dishes or the voices very distinctly ; the voices seem much louder than the dishes, but neither are very clear. I can feel the motions which I make during the breakfast hour. 1 feel myself come in, sit down, and begin to eat. I can see the motions of those about me quite plainly. I believe the feeling of motion was the most distinct feeling I had. When the word ^railroad train' was given, I saw the train very plainly just stopping in front of the depot. I saw the people getting on the train; these people were very indistinct. It is their motions rather than the people themselves which I see. I can feel myself getting on the train, finding a seat, and sitting down. I cannot hear the noise of the train, but can hear rather indistinctly the con- ductor calling the stations. I believe my mental imagery is more motile [of movement] than anything else. Al- though I can see some things quite plainly, I seem to feel the movements most distinctly.'' A very few in describing their images of the breakfast table made special mention of the taste of the food and of its odor. I have discovered no one whose prevailing imagery is for either taste or smell. With very many the image of touch is very vivid. They can imagine just how velvet feels, how a fly feels on one's nose, the discom- fort of a tight shoe, and the pleasure of stroking a smooth marble surface. It is a well-observed fact that different classes of soci- ety think differently and that arguments which would appeal to one class would be worthless with another. A man's occupation, his age, his environment, etc., make a difference in his manner of thinking, and in the motives which prompt him to action. In appealing to people we ordinarily think of these conditions and formulate our 64 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING argument in accordance with these motives. That is to say, we address ourselves to a particular social or indus- trial class. The study of mental imagery makes it evi- dent that there are personal differences apart from dif- ferences due to environment, but which are inherent in the individual. Some well-educated persons are so desti- tute of visual images that they are utterly unable to ap- preciate the description of a scene when it is described in visual terms. Many persons find themselves bored even by Victor Hugo's description of the scene of the battle of Waterloo. To them the whole scene is unimaginable and therefore unintelligible and uninteresting. I have been interested in observing that the authors which are read with universal delight are those who appeal to all the various classes of mental imagery. Dickens, Sir Walter Scott, Tennyson, Washington Irving, and many of the authors who are universally appreciated, appeal to and awaken many auditory images as well as images of taste, smell, touch, and motion; Browning appeals most often and most exclusively to visual images. It is quite certain that a person can best be appealed to through his dominating imagery. A person who has visual images that are very clear and distinct appreci- ates descriptions of scenes. A person with auditory imagery delights in having auditory images awakened. The same holds true for the other classes of mental imagery. Of all the writings of Washington Irving "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow'' is one of the favorites. One element of strength in this is the manner in which the author succeeds in awakening the different classes of mental imagery in the reader. Take, for example, the following passages, in which the "eye-minded'' reader sees the scene while the "ear-minded" reader hears that which is being described : DIFFERENCES IN MENTAL IMAGERY 65 ^^Not far from this village, perhaps about two miles, there is a little valley, or rather lap of land, among high hills, which is one of the quietest places in all the world. A small brook glides through it, with just murmur enough to lull one to repose; and the occasional whistle of a quail, or tapping of a woodpecker, is almost the only sound that ever breaks in on the uniform tranquility. ... I had wandered into it at noontime, when all nature is peculiarly quiet, and was startled by the roar of my own gun as it broke the Sabbath stillness around and was prolonged and reverberated by the angry echoes.'' As an example of the way in which Washington Irving could awaken images of taste and of odor, examine the following, taken from the same selection : "The pedagogue's mouth watered as he looked upon this sumptuous promise of luxurious winter fare. In his devouring mind's eye he pictured to himself every roasting pig running about with a pudding in his belly and an apple in his mouth ; the pigeons were snugly put to bed in a comfortable pie, and tucked in with a cover- let of crust; the geese were swimming in their own gravy, and the ducks pairing cosily in dishes, like snug married couples, with a decent competency of onion sauce. In the porkers. he saw carved out the future sleek side of bacon and juicy, relishing ham ; not a turkey but he beheld daintily trussed up, with its gizzard under its wing and peradventure, a necklace of savory sau- sage," etc. This author is not regarded as one of the greatest^ but certainly the fascination for his writings is found in part in the fact that in his imagination he could see the wood- land, he could hear the murmur of the brook, he could taste the pies, he could smell the fragrance of the orchards, he could feel the bumps as Ichabod Crane rode 66 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING the old horse Gunpowder, he could feel the muscle con- tract in the brawny arms of Brom Bones. Having all these images distinct himself, he depicted them so well that similar images are awakened in us in as far as we are capable of imagining what he described. It is not to be supposed that Washington Irving intentionally tried to awaken in his readers these various classes of images, but he did unconsciously what it might be wise for us to do consciously. An advertiser, as well as any other author, might do well to examine his own writings to see what sort. of images he is appealing to. It is in general best to appeal to as many different classes of images as possible, for in this way variety is given and each reader is ap- pealed to in the sort of imagery in which he thinks most readily and by means of which he is most easily influenced. APPLICATION OF MENTAL IMAGERY 67 VII PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF MENTAL IMAGEEY The young men and women of to-day are accused of being poorer spellers than their parents. The reasons for this may be many, but one has direct bearing upon our subject of discussion. Formerly children in school spelled orally. They saw the word printed in their books; they did more or less writing, and then felt the movements of their hands and arms as they wrote; they were called upon to spell the word in class orally, and so heard how it sounded. They thus had three "cues" for the word — they saw it, they felt it, and they heard it. When they were called upon to spell a word they had all of these three cues to assist them in re- membering how it was spelled, i.e.^ to assist them in forming an image of it. Some years ago oral spelling was displaced by written spelling. In this way one of the cues was abandoned, — the oral one, — and it was found that pupils made more mistakes in writing than those who had spelled orally. Because of this fact oral spelling is being brought back to the schoolroom. An attempt is being made to have the scholars see, hear, and feel the word, and, in this way, their spelling will be better than if they omitted one of the three processes. The scholar knows the word better and can form a more distinct image of it if he has these three cues to assist him. In a former age the seller, the buyer, and the commod- ity were brought together. Th6 seller described and ex- 68 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING hibited his wares. The buyer saw the goods, heard of them, tasted them, smelt them, felt, and lifted them. He tested them by means of every sense organ to which they could appeal. In this way the buyer became ac- quainted with the goods. His perception of them was as complete as it could be made. In these latter days the market place has given way to the offit^e. The con- sequent separation of buyer, seller, and commodity made the commercial traveler with his sample case seem a necessity. But, with the growing volume of business, and with the increased need for more economical forms of transacting business, the printed page, as a form of advertisement, has superseded the market place, and is, in many cases, displacing the commercial traveler. In this transition from the market place and the com- mercial traveler to the printed page, the advertiser must be on his guard to preserve as many as possible of the good features of the older institutions. In the two older forms of barter all the senses of the purchaser were appealed to, if possible, and in addition to this the word of mouth of the seller was added to increase the im- pressions and to call special attention to the strong features of the commodity. In the printed page the word of mouth is the only feature which is of necessity entirely absent. Indeed, the printed page cannot appeal directly to any of the senses except the eye, but the argument may be of such a nature that the reader's senses are appealed to indirectly through his imagina- tion. One of the great weaknesses of the present-day adver- tising is found in the fact that the writer of the ad- vertisement fails to appeal thus indirectly to the senses. How^ many advertisers describe a piano so vividly that the reader can hear it? How many food products are APPLICATION OF MENTAL IMAGERY 69 SO described that the reader can taste the food? How many advertisements describe a perfume so that the reader can smell it? How many describe an undergar- ment so that the reader can feel the pleasant contact with his body? Many advertisers seem never to have thought of this, and make no attempt at such descrip- tions. The cause of this deficiency is twofold. In the first place, it is not easy in type to appeal to any other sense than that of sight. Other than visual images are diffi- cult to awaken when the means employed is the printed page. In the second place, the individual writers are deficient in certain forms of mental imagery, and there- fore are not adepts in describing articles in terms which to themselves are not significant. This second ground for failure in writing effective advertisements will be made clear by the following examples taken from good and from poor advertisements. "Good'' and "poor'' are used here in a very narrow sense. For convenience' sake these advertisements are called good which are good according to the single standard here under con- sideration. A piano is primarily not a thing to look at or an object for profitable investment, but it is a musical in- strument. It might be beautiful and cheap, but still be very undesirable. The chief thing about a piano is the quality of its tone. Many advertisers of pianos do not seem to have the slightest appreciation of this fact. As a first example of this, read the following ad- vertisement (No. 1), in which an entire advertisement of the Emerson piano is reproduced exactly, with the single exception that the word "incubator" is substi- tuted for "piano." The Emerson advertisement is not peculiar because 70 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING of its deficienc}'. In fact, the majority of piano adver- tisements are equally poor. The following advertise- ment of the Vose (No. 2) belongs to the same class. In it the word "camera" is substituted for "piano." Emerson Incubators T F any one offers you a " just as ^ good " Incubator at a lower price than an EMERSON costs, you had better buy it — but make sure it is "■ just as good." A reputation for reliable goods is better than a repu- tation for low prices. Our prices, however, must be right or there would not be to-day over 76,000 Emerson Incubators in use! Write for illustrated catalogue and our easy payment plan. EMERSON INCUBATOR CO. BOSTON DEPT. E. CHICAGO 120 Boylston St. 195 Wabash Ave. No. 1 What has been said of these two advertisements would hold true of the advertisements in the current issues of the magazines of the Gabler piano, and of many others. These advertisements apply equally well for paint- ings^ perfumes, fountain pens, bicycles, snuff or sau- APPLICATION OF MENTAL IMAGERY 71 sages, and would be equally poor if used to advertise any of them. They are not specific, and do not describe or refer in any way to the essential characteristic of a piano. They awaken no images of sound; they do not make us hear the piano in our imagination. The reproduced advertisement of the Carola (No. 3) vose CAMERAS HAVE BEEN ESTABLISHED 50 YEARS and are receiving more favorable comments to-day from an artistic standpoint than all other makes combined. I WE s ♦ Challenge Comparisons. ♦ s I f By our easy payment plan, every family in mod- erate circumstances can own a vose camera. We allow a liberal price for old instruments in exchange, and deliver the camera in your house free of expense. You can deal with us at a distant point the same as in Boston. Send for catalogue and full information. • ♦ s VOSE & SONS CAMERA CO., s 1 63 Bovl.ston Street. Boston No. 2 depicts the joy derived from the rhythm of music, but it awakens no images of tone. The advertisement rep- resents a Carola as superior to a drum because it is easier to play. The little antiquated advertisement of the Blasius (No. 4) was an attempt in the right direction. The musical scale suggests music specifically; the picture of the piano recalls the sounds of the music to a certain extent; the lady at the piano suggests music, for she is in/ ^mm the children HomCS provide their own music and amuse- ment. They can dance at any time. And how they enjoy it! CPerhaps not those highly artificial drawing room steps, but those delightful dances that are so graceful, and full of rhythm. You will remember what the great educator, Stanley Hall, said of them — "I voald hare claiicin(2 taujjht in every school, even if the school had to be opened ereninjjs for that purpose." — But you want your children to dance at home* And the Piano IS first aid and best aid. You who already have a piano of the rarely used type, have gone a long way toward owning an Inner-Player. Your instru- ment, with a few monthly payments added, would bring to your home " ..edi- atelv the Nf odem Piano— the piano which even a child can play — AND PLAY WITH EXPRESSION. The mmHAjnrnm-mmm Piano has two keyboards. On one, you play by hand, as a perfect piano. On the other, inside and out of sight, the eighty-eight flexible fingers strike with the accuracy of a trained pianist, and with the delicate touch of an artist. No other Player-Piano has this Miniature Keyboard. YOUR NAME & ADDRESS Factory Distributor Set Up Here By Your Paper No. 3 APPLICATION OF MENTAL IMAGERY 73 not turning around to be looked at (cf. an advertise- ment of Ivers & Pond pianos in the current magazines), but is intent upon her playing. The text also uses words whose sole function is to awaken images of sound. These expressions appear in the advertisement: "Excellent tone," "the sweetest tone I ever heard,'' "sweet and No. 4 melodious in tone," "like a grand church organ for power and volume; and a brilliant, sweet-toned piano, in one." The man who cannot appreciate the tone of a musical Instrument, and who can form but indistinct images of musical tones, is not a good man to write the adver- tisements for a music house. He might improve his style of writing by reading selections in which the author shows by his writing that he hears in imagination what he describes and his descriptions are so vivid that he makes us hear it too. In determining which foods I shall eat it is a matter of some importance to know how the goods are mantl- factured, what the price is, how it is prepared for the table, and whether it is nourishing or harmful to my 74 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING system. The one essential element, however, is the taste. When I look over a bill of fare I seek out what I think will taste good. When I order groceries I order what pleases and tickles my palate. I want the food that makes me smack my lips, that makes my mouth water. Under these circumstances all other considera- tions are minimized to the extreme. Lasting Tone-beauty is what one demands m a piano. The Packard tone is singularly rich and of great endurance. " Practice " will not de- stroy it. Becomes ampler and more sym- pathetic with use. Superior materials and skillful workmanship insure this perma- nence of tone-loveliness. We will send catalogue and full particu. lars upon request. Address P O. Box C THE PACKARD CO., Fort Wayne, Ind. No. 5 In advertisements of food products I have been sur- prised to note that many foods are advertised as if they had no taste at all. One would suppose that the food was to be taken by means of a hypodermic injection and not by the ordinary process of taking the food into the mouth and hence into contact with the organ of taste. The advertisers seem to be at a loss to know what to say about their foods, and so have, in many APPLICATION OF MENTAL IMAGEKY 75 cases, expressed themselves in such general terms that their advertisements could be applied equally well to almost any product whatever. The two reproduced advertisements (Nos. 6 and 7), taken from recent issues of household periodicals, are samples of such meaning- less generalities. These two advertisements are reproduced exactly with the single exception that the names of the commodities a.]?e THE BEiST Best beans only are used. Extra care exercised in blending. Corn shells and dirt are removed. Adulterations not permitted. Use of most Improved machinery. Standard ol merit— our watchword. Endless watchfulness during manufacture. Cost no more than others No. 6 have been changed in each case. I would suggest to these firms that they might improve their advertisements by leaving off the name of the goods entirely and then offer a prize to the person who could guess what they were advertisements of, or else offer the prize for the one who should suggest the largest list of goods which could be equally well presented by these advertisements. Some advertisers of food are evidently chronic dys- peptics and take it for granted that all others are in the same condition. They have nothing to say about their foods except that they have wonderful medicinal properties. To me a food which is only healthful savors 76 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING- of hospitals and sickrooms, and is something which a well man or woman would not want. There are advertisers who appreciate the epicurean tendency of the ordinary man and woman. They de- No. 7 scribe foods in such a way that we immediately want what they describe. Of all the advertisements in cur- rent magazines jjerhaps the one of the National Biscuit Company reproduced herewith (No. 8) presents their product in the most tempting manner. According to this advertisement "Nabisco'' is something to he eaten, APPLICATIO:^^ OF MENTAL IMAGERY 77 NABISCO Wafers A Fairy Sandwich with an upper and lower crust of indescribable delicacy, separated with a creamy flavoring of Lemon, Orange, Chpcolate, Vanilla, Strawberry, Raspberry, or Mint. Ask for your favorite flavor NATIONAL BISCUIT COMPANY No. 8 78 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING and it is presented in such a way that it would seem that one cannot read of it without being convinced that it is good and something that he wants — and the quicker he gets it the better. raufcf'dSIi^' DETTER leather has! *-' never been canaed than goes into Craw- ford Shoes. That s whv they wear so long. BOSTOB M Jly of pressure cause pre- mature wear at particular points, as well as serious discomfort to the feet. There is no reason why footwear should not be comfortable as well as styl- ish and have at the same time the practical value of icrviceableness The day of (he high- f)rlced, custom-made shoe is over. Modern shoe manu- ftcturine uses precisefythe same kind of materials.made up upon correct anatomical principles, and guaranteed to give comfon, together vlth fine wearing qualily. ■.CWIS A. CHOSSETT. INC. issett Shoes L particular Crossett Shoes fit the feet, instead of making the feet (it the shoes. They support at every point the series of arches of which the human fobt is composed— providing an in» oer space which the foorex- ectly fills without restraint. They go far towird seoui^ Ing a safe step, a firm Call ind a graceful carriage. They can be manurac> cured at a low price owine 10 admirable methods and perfection of machinery— in short they are a typical American product. They have an individuali Ity of design, and that cer> tain character which is the essence of good style. The workmanship and finish of each shoe is there* suit of nearly twenty yqar* of constant improvement la materials and methods.. The name and price l» woven in the strap al the back of every Crossetl Shoe. NAKEK.. NOR.TB itBINGTON. MASS* No. 10 to imagine such sensations, and to seek the pleasant and to avoid tlfe unpleasant. Some people are very deficient in imagining the sensations which we receive from the skin, and, strange to say, not a few of these deficient individuals have been put in charge of the advertisements which have to do with these very sen- sations. One of the prominent characteristics of all 80 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING clothing is that it gives us either a pleasant or an un- pleasant sensation by means of its cotitact with our bodies. Shoes are sold for different prices; therefore the price is to be considered. They are things that wear out sooner or later; we therefore must consider their dura- bility. They are things that we see with our eyes; therefore their appearance — style — must be considered. Lastly, — but not last considered by the purchaser, — shoes come into close contact with our skins, and sensa- tions that are either pleasant or painful result ; we must therefore consider the fit and comfort of the shoe. A very common deficiency in shoe advertisements is found in the failure of the advertiser to imagine the comfort of the shoe advertised, and to express it in his argu- ment. As a typical advertisement of this sort consider the advertisement of the Crawford shoe (No. 9). It might well be the advertisement of a leather pocket- book, if a few insignificant changes were made. In the advertisement of the Crossett shoes (No. 10) the text matter is most excellent. The writer is one who can appreciate the comfort of a good-fitting and easy shoe; he has been able to imagine the sensation, and he has described it so vividly that the reader feels in imagina- tion the comfort of a Crossett shoe. Omega Oil is a liniment that is supposed to increase the pleasant sensations which we receive through the skin. The writer of this advertisement seems to have been able to imagine the uncomfortable feeling of sore feet, and of the comfort which his oil would secure. The artist who drew the sore feet (No. 11) surely could appreciate the situation in a striking manner. The artist does not depict and the author does not describe what he cannot imagine. APPLICATION OF MENTAL IMAGERY 81 Omega Oil is not only a thing which can be applied to and felt by the skin, but it is also a thing that can be seen and smelt. To many it might seem a little thing Omesla Oil The avera|e man weighs ahouf 140 pounds and the aversre woman about 120. If yoii want to realize how heavy that *. pick up something about those weights and see now long your hands and arms «an bear the strain • ff- you can stand it a full minute, you are doing remarkably well. Did vou ever slop and think ll»t your feet hofd up that big weight (or hours at t time every day ? That is why your feet are sore and tired at ni^ht That IS why they ache. itch, bum and A foot-bath before retiring is helpful but it does not go far enough The strained, tired-out muscles aivl lignnients call for something strengtheninft just .is your stomach calls for food. The kind of strength needed for sorifc (ired feet is the kind of strength to bt found in Omega Oil. Give your feet a good bathing in wanil wafer, and get all the impurities out of th» pores. Then rub the feet thoroughly with On)ega Oil. The Oil will go in through the cleaa open pores, and strengthen and comfort your feet m a manner that will a-^tonil^ you I liivt b« trMbim .lib «m »n lo' ixt l»t izn lirl 1 coniullrc ..r>l.,:M,o.Om^Oll By I.. ad'icr 1 itciacd to (Ivc it i (riU |n4 foa*4 I > Icuwik utrm unct u uy su witboul uy j.tn o( Khtni l»l M» Puiiua. . ISSJ Wooft raok Art. Ba:ttliMn. MA | Oatf* OU l» pot for tvcoibisf • Molneoi a«|bi w •• -prnt h» No. 11 that Omega Oil is green, but that single advertisement, "It's Green" (No. 12), has done a great deal to help the readers to form a distinct image of the liniment. The man who cares but little for odors would not have taken so much space to say that it "smells nice" (No. 82 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING 13). In these three advertisements and others like them the advertiser of Omega Oil has shown his appre- ciation of the human mind to which he has been ap- It's Green OmedaOil One peculiar thing about Omega. Oil is its green color. Some people think it is colored green to make it look nice, but that is not so. Omega Oil is green because Nature makes it green It contains a powerful green herb that gives it its color, and it is this same herb that Wops pain in pcople',s bodies. -There are plenty of white, brown and yellow liniments, but there is only one Omega Oil, and' it is green There is nothing like Omega Oil for curing pain, just as there is nothing like the sun for fnkking rcsl daylight. ^ No. 12 pealing. It may, however, be questionable whether such minor considerations for liniment as color and odor should receive so much emphasis as is given them here. As was shown in the preceding chapter, many people are deficient in certain forms of imagery. Most people APPLICATION OF MENTAL IMAGERY 83 can imagine with some degree of satisfaction how things look. Not quite so many can imagine how things sound or feel. Very many have difficulty in imagining how things taste and smell. This would be sufficient ground Smells Nice Omega Oil is good lor ever>"tluaff a I No. 13 Omeda Oil You can tell by the smell of Omega Ofl. that it is different from any other lini- ment you ever saw. It has a peculiar and pleasant odor. Besides being the best remedy in tho world for stopping pains, it is also the nicest to use. It is not made of turpentine or ammo- nia, but the body of it is a pure vegeta- ble oil. Into this oil is put four other ingredients, one of which is, a green herb that stops paia a good deal on the same principle that a puiF of wind blows out a lamp, or water quenches a fire. I ought to b« good lot. for appealing especially to visual images if the commod- ity was primarily a thing of sight. When the objects advertised are things primarily perceived by other senses than the eye, the greatest care should be taken to awaken those more difficult images, i.e., those of sound, touch, 84 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVEETISING taste, smell, etc. The man who is blind and deaf is greatly handicapped. He cannot perceive color or hear sound, and (if always blind and deaf) cannot imagine sights and sounds. The sense organs have been called the windows of the soul. The more sensations we re- ceive from an object the better we know it. The func- tion of the nervous system is to make us aware of the sights, sounds, feelings, tastes, etc., of the objects in our environment. The nervous system which does not re- spond to sound or to any other sensible qualities is defective. Advertisements are sometimes spoken of as the nervous system of the business world. That adver- tisement of musical instruments which contains nothing to awaken images of sounds is a defective advertisement. That advertisement of foods which awakens no images of taste is a defective advertisement. As our nervous system is arranged to give us all the possible sensations from every object, so the advertisement which is com- parable to the nervous system must awaken in the reader as many different kinds of images as the object itself can excite. It might be well for a young man who expects to make a profession of writing advertisements to make a test of his own mental imagery. If he finds that he is peculiarly weak in visual imagery he should seek employment with a firm that handles goods other than those which are particularly objects of sight, e.g., pic- tures. The man who cannot imagine how a musical instrument sounds should hesitate to write the adver- tisements of a musical house. The man who cannot imagine how foods taste will be greatly handicapped in attempting to write advertisements for food products. Forms of mental imagery may, to a limited extent, be cultivated, and, by giving special attention to the sub- APPLICATION OF MENTAL IMAGERY 85 ject, one with a weak form of imagery may greatly im- prove upon his former efforts, in which he followed out his natural bent without considering the forms of mental images which could be appealed to by his particular class of goods. 86 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISI:NG VIII ASSOCIATION OF IDEAS Every one has wondered how it happens that a thought or idea has suddenly and unexpectedly entered his mind. Not infrequently the particular idea had not been entertained for years, — perhaps it had no apparent connection with the present line of thought, — and yet here it is, seemingly unaltered and as distinct as it had been years before. If anything in the world has tlie appearance of law- lessness, it certainly is the flight of thought in these minds of ours. We can go from Chicago to Peking; from the present moment to the building of the pyra- mids or the creation of the universe. We can jnck out any object or event included within the borders of space or time. We can go from any one of these objects or events to any other in an instant of time, and whole mul- titudes of them may be passed in review in scarcely more than a single second. It would be difficult to imagine anything less confined and apparently less sub- ject to laws than the human mind. Furthermore, no two minds are alike. Men differ as to facial expression in a much less degree than in the manner in which they think. However hopeless the task may seem at first sight, it ' is nevertheless true that from the time of Aristotle down to the present day great thinkers have been engaged in trying to find laws according to which the mind acts. They have not been content with the surprise which they have felt when an idea has unexpectedly entered their minds, but they have gone further and sought for the ASSOCIATION OF IDEAS 87 laws which regulate this sudden appearance. Much progress has been made, and the mind is gradually being recognized as consistent and law-abiding as are all other things in the universe. In many cases we can readily see why we are think- ing of particular things at a specified time. As I walk down a busy street, unless I am oblivious to my sur- roundings my thought is determined for me by the objects which sm^round me. My eye is caught by an artistically decorated window in which sporting goods are displayed. My mind is fully occupied for the time with the perception of these articles. The perception of one object is superseded by the perception of an- other, and in most cases nothing but the present objects are thouglit of, and this perception of present objects does not recall to my mind any objects which I liave seen at other times. It happens, however, that as I see a sweater I think of the sweater which I used to wear, and then of the circumstances which attended its destruction. My mind is next occupied with the per- ception of clothing,- millinery, etc., as these objects, one after the otlier, meet the direct gaze of my eyes. At the sight of shoes I am reminded of my need for a new pair; then of the particular make of shoes which I ordinarily wear; then of the pair which I purchased a few months ago and of the circumstances attending the purchase. So I may go on for hours, and in a large part my thoughts will be limited to the perception of objects and events which surround me, but in cer- tain cases {e.g.y sweater and shoes) the perception sug- gests a previous experience. In the case of simple per- ception the mind seems to act under the ordinary laws of cause and effect. The objects on the street affect me and the perceptions are the result. What my 88 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING thoughts shall be are determined for me by the external objects which affect my sense organs. Under other circumstances the mind seems to be in- dependent of surrounding objects and to supply the food for thought from former experiences. This is especially true in dreams, sleepless nights, and reveries. - Its working is clearly seen in all cases where we are not distracted by external objects and do not attempt to direct the thought along any particular line. Some time ago I read President Roosevelt's decision concern- ing the Sampson- Schley controversy. After retiring for the night I found that I was thinking of the Rocky Mountains, New Orleans, the Boer war, an Evanston dining-room, the siege of Peking, the recent action of the dowager empress, the American army and navy, and then of the Sampson- Schley controversy again. The interesting part of each idea tends to suggest, or to recall to the mind some previous experience with which this interesting part had been previously associated. As I thought of the Sampson- Schley controversy, the interesting thing just then was that it had been re- viewed by President Roosevelt. The interesting thing about President Roosevelt just then was that he had hunted in the Rockies. The interesting thing about that was that he had ridden a horse. In a similar man- ner the horse suggested New Orleans, where recent ship- ments of horses had been made to South Africa. This suggested the Boer war, this a conversation on war by a young lady who had returned to Evanston from China. She suggested Peking ; Peking suggested the dow- ager empress; she suggested her recent actions; these changed conditions suggested the American army and navy ; and they suggested Sampsoji and Schley, and they the controversy. ASSOCIATION OF IDEAS 89 As I walk along the street the action of my mind, even when not conlined to bare perceptions, seems dif- ferent from its action on the sleepless nighf. As far as the association of ideas is concerned, however, the action is practically identical. In the first case the perceptions of external objects (sweater and shoes) are effective in calling up ideas or experiences with which they had formerly been associated. In the sec- ond case the ideas are effective in calling up other ideas with which they had formerly been associated. The statement of the law as it applies to both cases and expressed in general terms is: "'Whenever there is in consciousness one element of a previous experience, this one element tends to bring hack the entire experi- ence.^^ Things thought together oj in immediate succes- sion become ^'associated," or welded together so that when one returns it tends to recall the others. The sight of a shoe suggested the entire "shoe experience," in which I had entered a store, purchased a pair of shoes, carried on a conversation with the proprietor, etc. The thought of President Roosevelt suggested an entire "Roosevelt experience," i.e., President Roose- velt mounted on a horse, attired in a particular costume, amid particular scenery, etc. But I had had many other "shoe experiences" and many other "President Roosevelt experiences." How did it happen that the shoe suggested the particular shoe experience which it did, and not tennis shoes which I had purchased recently, or the wooden shoes which I had examined years before? Why did not President Roosevelt suggest his trip to see his sick son, or his African exploration, or his death, or his literary pro- ductions? Each "one element in a previous experience" has been one element in many previous experiences. 90 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING Which one of these previous experiences will be sug- gested by the "one element" is the problem which is of interest to us. If we knew a person's past history completely, and if we knew the present external stimulus and the pres- ent condition of his mind, we could tell with some de- gree of certainty what the next idea would be which is to enter his mind. The laws upon which this certainty is based are the three following : The first law is that of habit based on repetition. According to this law the idea next to enter the mind is the one which has habitually been associated with [the interesting part of] the one present to the mind. The sight of a shoe, the printed word "shoe," the spoken word "shoe," and the«felt need of a shoe, each calls to my mind this particular make of shoes with which I have been familiar for years. I have perceived a shoe as a "Douglas"; I have seen "Douglas" and "shoe" printed together; I have heard "Douglas" and "shoe" spoken together; I have seen the portrait of Mr. Doug- las and a cut of his shoe appearing together; I have met my need for shoes wdth a "Douglas." All these associations have been frequent and have become so welded together with constant use that when shoe enters my mind, it draws its habitual associate, Douglas, with it. The second law is that of recency. If two things have been recently connected in the mindy when one is thought of again it suggests the other also. One day I read and thought of the exportation of horses from New Orleans. I do not know that horses and New Orleans were ever associated in my mind but this single time, but the next day as I thought of Presi- dent Roosevelt as mounted on a horse, the thought of ASSOCIATION OF IDEAS 91 horse immediately suggested its recent associate, New Orleans. The recency of this association made it ef- fective. If I had read of this exportation a month before instead of on the preceding day, it is not probable that this associate would have been suggested. The third law is that of vividness or intensity. If my present thought has been associated with a thousand different ohjects, that one will he suggested with which it has been most vividly associated. When I thought of the Boer war, war suggested the siege of Peking because the lady who had returned from China described the siege of Peking in such a thrilling manner — war and the siege of Peking were so intensely associated — that when I thought of war, war suggested this particular association. The association between war and Peking was not only vivid, but was also habit- ual and recent, even if these latter elements do not seem so prominent. Psychologists are practically agreed that these are the three special laws of the association of ideas and that the "idea which shall come next" conforms to these three simple formulae. The law; of habit is very much more important than the other two. When one element has been associated with one experience habitually, with another recently, and with still another vividly, the chances are that the habitual experience (associate) will be recalled. If, however, the one element has been associatecj with a certain experience habitually, recently, and vividly, this one element will certainly call up this particular ex- perience and none of the multitudes of other experi- ences with which it had been associated. The application of all this to advertising is direct. The merchant desires so to advertise his goods that 92 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING his particular brand or article will be the only one sug- gested whenever his class of goods is thought of. Let the reader of this article test the truthfulness of the preceding analysis. Test it and see whether the laws of habit, recency, and vividness cover all the cases of association of ideas in your own mind. Think over your possible needs in wearing appareh Where would you go to supply that need, and what quality or make would you get? As you think of tliese possible needs what names, brands, or qualities are suggested? Now analyze these ideas and see if they do not all conform to the three law^s given above. You are probably sur- prised to see how many of the ideas are those which you have habitually associated with that class of goods. Try the same experiment with articles of food, luxury, investment, etc., and you will be convinced that the advertisements which are the most often seen have a great advantage over those which are less often seen. Long years ago you formed the habit of putting your coat on in a particular way. Perhaps you put the right sleeve on first, perhaps the left. You have formed the habit of putting it on just one way and you will put it on just that way as long as you live. If you put on the right sleeve first this morning, you will put it on the same way to-morrow morning and every other morn- ing. Of course you could change and put the left sleeve on first, but you won't do it. Tlie mind forms habits of thought and when they are once established they are controlling factors in the action of the mind. As a boy I associated certain names with certain articles of mer- chandise. I saw a particular soap advertised in various ways. Perhaps it was used in my home — I am not sure about that. This name and soap were so habitually associated in my mind as a boy that when I think of ASSOCIATION OF IDEAS 93 soap this particular soap is the kind I am most likely to think of even to the present time, although it has not been called to my mind so often of recent years as other kinds of soap. As far as the association of ideas is concerned, tliat advertisement is the most effective which is most often thought of in connection with the line of goods advertised, but the associations formed in youth are more effective than those formed in later years. Their effectiveness is lasting and will still have influence as long as the person lives. Hence goods of a constant and recurrent use might well be advertised in home or even in children's papers, and the advertise- ments might be so constructed that they would be appre- ciated by children. Whenever 1 think of photographical instruments I think of one particular make of cameras. If I should feel a need of buying a camera, I would find immediately that I was thinking of this particular make. If I were called upon to recommend a camera, this one would al- ways suggest itself to me first. It is suggested imme- diately and involuntarily. In my particular case this advertisement of cameras is successful and for me has a decided prestige over all other cameras. If I try to think out the reason why this particular one is sug- gested whenever I need or think of cameras, it seems to me that it is because it complies with both the laws of habit and vividness. I do not remember to have noticed any advertisement of cameras recently, nor have I had any occasion to think of tliem for some time. I do know, however, that for several years I saw this ad- vertisement repeatedly — therefore it is with me an habitual association. I also remember that at one time I read a booklet published by this company and that it impressed me profoundly— therefore it is for me a vivid association. 94 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING If you made the test recommended above, you found that in some eases goods were suggested that were not the ones habitually thought of, but those which had been recently in the mind. Perhaps they had only been brought to your attention this single time. Although the effectiveness of habitual associations is all the more lasting the longer the advertisement is maintained, it gradually diminishes unless the repetition is continued. The recent associates are brought back to the mind with the greatest readiness, and in some cases they prevail over the merely habitual. This emi:)hasizes the necessity of keeping up the repetition to make the habitual most effective, to form the most recent associate, and thus take advantage of the prestige gained by former adver- tising. Only by frequent advertising are the habitual associations formed and the recent associates constantly made. You also noticed in your experiments that certain goods were suggested of which you had not recently thought and of which, perhaps, you had thought but once in your life. This one time you had seen a very striking advertisement, or had heard the goods highly recom- mended by a friend, or had seen and used the goods. For instance, one vivid and intense association of hats and Smith was so strong that at the very thought of hats Smith's name presented itself too. You thought of Smith and hats at the same time, and the two thoughts were so vivid that they became welded together by the white heat of the mind, and so when hats are in the mind Smith must come with them. This show.s that sometimes doing extraordinary things in advertising may succeed when it is desired to make a great im- pression and to have the associations formed under this white heat. It may be admitted that this sort of ad- ' ASSOCIATION OF IDEAS 95 vertising has been successful in some cases. The law is that the mind is in general gradually molded. Lines of thought are developed and not suddenly formed. The advertiser who attempts suddenly to take the world by storm has "to go against nature" and is consequently at a very great disadvantage. The entire subject of association of ideas may be made clearer and more definite if, in conclusion, its action in another concrete case is given. For years I have seen the statement that the Burlington Railroad goes to Colorado. I have thus thought Burlington and Colorado together, and every time they have entered my mind together they have become more tightly welded together, or associated, until now Colorado is no sooner in my mind than I find that Burlington is also there. When I analyze this association to see how it has been formed, I find, in the first place, that for years I have seen the words Burlington and Colorado together. I have thought the two ideas together repeatedly, and the association has become habitual. In the second place, I find that but yesterday I saw the words Burlington and Colorado together and thought the two thoughts together and so the association was recent. In the third place, I remember that some weeks ago I had been at- tracted by the Burlington advertisement in which a book about Colorado was offered for six cents. This advertisement impressed me, and I gave it a large amount of attention or active thought and so the asso- ciation became vivid or intense. If the merchant can make his name or brand to be the habitual, recent, and vivid associate with his class of goods^ he will have such a pfestige over all others that his success seems assured. The securing of this re- sult should be one of the aims of the wise advertiser. 96 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING IX FUSION Some years ago I was spending my Christmas vaca- tion at my old home. One morning I was sitting in the library reading short stories. While I was reading, jny sister went to the piano and began playing some of the tunes which she had played years before, and which I had particularly enjoyed. I did not notice the fact that she was playing at all, but I thought the stories were peculiarly beautiful. The next day I remarked about them and had occasion to refer to them. I was greatly disappointed upon reading them the second time to find that they were very commonplace and that ordinarily they would not have pleased me at all. If I liad paid strict attention to the short stories alone, they would have proved themselves to be very uninteresting. As it was, I paid partial attention to each and fused the music and the reading into one total impression which was extremely pleasing. On certain occasions when friends are together all have a jolly good time. A spirit of good fellowship reigns, and every one is happy and contented. The stories told are appreciated and applauded. The jokes all seem so fitting and pertinent. Even if they have been heard before, they are so well told and so apropos that they are as good as new. The next day one is often chagrined when he tries to relate the stories and jokes, and to tell why he had enjoyed the occasion so well. The stories may have been mere commonplaces and the jokes FUSION 97 nothing but old standbj^s, but tliey did not stand alone ; they were enforced and improved by the spirit of good fellowship which pervaded the company. The place, the stories, the jokes, the refreshments, the amusement, and the occasion all united their influences to make a total impression. They were fused together, and their total-product was what had so delighted us. Any one of these things taken singly would have been insufficient to produce an3\ pleasant result, but when taken collec- tively each shines in a borrowed light. If I hold a lead-pencil vertically in my hand directly in front of my nose, the name of the manufacturer printed on the pencil will be barely visible, if it is on the extreme right side of the pencil. If, however, I close my right eye, the name disappears. If I make a mark on the pencil directly opposite the name of the manufacturer and hold the pencil as before, both the mark and the name are visible. If I close the right eye, the name disappears. If I close the left eye, the mark disappears. As I look at the pencil with my right eye I get a slightly different impression than I do when I look with my left eye, and vice versa. We are not conscious of these two partial impressions, for we fuse them into one total im- pression, which gives us a better perception of the pencil than is contained in the mathematical sum of the two partial perceptions. A discussion of the result of this fusion of the two impressions made upon the two eyes would be out of place at this point, but it might be remarked that among these results are accurate judg- ments of the distance and of tlie thickness of the pencil. At any point of time we may be receiving impressions of sight through the eyes, impressions of sound through the ears, impressions of hunger or thirst from the body, and at the same time we may be thinking of former 98 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING experiences. All these impressions, sensations, ideas, etc., are fused together and have no separate existence. Each plays a part in determining the whole conscious impression or condition, but the parts do not exist alone. It is a general law of psychology that all things tend to fuse and only those things are analyzed that must he analyzed. In the beginning we perceive objects as con- crete wholes and then later analyze the wholes into parts. If the first animal which a child sees should be a dog, it would see the dog as a very different thing from what it would later appear to him. It would be a dog, but his idea of it would be so indefinite that he would not notice whether it had four or six legs, whether it had ears or trunk, nose or bill, or whether it was white or black. By later experience the child would learn that the dog was of a particular color, had four legs, two ears, that it barked, ate, and that it had certain other peculiarities and characteristics. The expert in natural history and the dog fancier each notice certain things about the dog thiat the rest of humanity never sees at all. We grasp everything as a concrete whole first, and then by later experience we analyze this whole and add to it. The point to be emphasized is that we do not first perceive' the parts and unite them to form the greater wholes, hut that we first perceive the wholes and only after the process of analysis has heen com- pleted do ice perceive the parts. There are cer- tain products of fusion which by most of us are never analyzed at all. This is the case with the sensations which we receive whenever we breathe. With every breath the diaphragm contracts and expands, the muscles raise and lower the ribs, the lungs receive and discharge a volume of air, the air passages in the nose and windpipe enlarge and contract. All these play a FUSION 99 part in making the total sensation which we call breath- ing, but we cannot with ease analyze the different parts. They are fused together, and as it would be of no par- ticular benefit to analyze the product we have never done so, and we never would have known that the feeling was the product of these elements unless we had reasoned it out first. We know of no object which is independent of all other things. In fact, the value of all objects depends upon the relationships which they have to other things. We think of things only in their relations, and these relationships fuse and constitute the object as we know it. Anthracite or bituminous coal," yellow clay and black loam, can all be thought of as pure and clean, but under certain conditions they become dirt. None of these are dirt in themselves, but in certain abnormal positions they are nothing but filth. When bituminous coal is on the face of the coal heaver it is almost impos- sible to think of it as coal. It has ceased to be coal and has become dirt because of the abnormal environment into which it has come. The manner in which the environment fuses with an article and determines its value is well illustrated by food in a restaurant. The food may be of the very best quality and the preparation may have been faultless, yet if the service is poor, — if the waiter's linen is dirty and his manner slovenly, — the food does not taste good and is not appetizing. You may reason out that the waiter has nothing to do with the preparation of the food and that his linen has not come into contact with it, but all your reasoning will do you but little good. The idea of dirty linen and this particular food are in your mind indissolubly united, and now, instead of thinking of food in the abstract, you are compelled to think of food in this 100 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING particular relationship, and the result is anything but appetizing. The same thing is illustrated in all places of business. Stores and offices have a tone or atmosphere about them, and everything they have to offer is seen through this atmosphere. I heard a gentleman say recently that he had gone to a particular store to bu}^ a certain article. The store was recommended to him and he was convinced that it was the best place to buy the merchandise desired. When he entered the store he found such a shoddy tone to the entire establishment that he could not believe that the goods which were shown him were desirable. If he could have seen the goods in another store he would have purchased them at once, but he could not convince himself that the goods shown him there were what he wanted, so he left without purchasing them. We are not able to look at things impartially and abstractly, but we judge of everything in the light of its environment — it fuses with its environment and the environment be- comes a part of it. The principle of fusion is a subject which should be carefully considered in placing an advertisement. If we could think quite analytically and see the advertise- ment just as it is, and as a thing independent of its environment, it might be profitable to place our adver- tisements on garbage boxes and in cheap and disrepu- table publications. As we are constructed, however, such a course would be suicidal, even for a house dealing in disreputable and cheap articles. The medium gives a tone of its own to all tJie advertisements contained in it. Personally I feel inclined to respect any firm that ad- vertises in a high-class magazine, and unless there is some particular reason to the contrary am willing to trust its honesty. I have always regarded handbills as Fusio:^ , \ \ _ 101 cheap and irresponsible, and usually think of tlie goods advertised in this way as belonging to the same category. In tlie course of a conversation, a very intelligent lady recently said to me that she never read the advertise- ments in any of the magazines excepting in her home religious paper. Here she read not only all the reading matter, but all the advertisements as well. I asked her why she read these advertisements, and she said that she knew they could be depended upon. She had the utmost confidence in the editor and believed that he knew every firm advertising, and that by accepting its advertisement and publishing it he thereby gave it his stamp of approval. No advertisement appearing in this periodical w^as compelled to stand on its own merit alone, so far as she was concerned, but had added to it the confidence inspired by this publication. The adver- tisement and her confidence fused and formed a whole in which the lady never suspected that any other element entered than those which were in the advertisement itself. The lady referred to did not read the advertise- ments in other magazines as a usual thing. I have seen her turn over the advertising pages of other magazines to see whether there was anything there that interested her. She reads the advertisements in her favorite maga- zine and merely looks over the others. In choosing the publications in which he should place his advertisement, the advertiser should not only con- sider the circulation and the kind of circulation, but he should also consider the tone which each publication would add to his particular advertisement. It is well to have a large number of persons read your advertisement ; it is better to have those read it who are interested in it and have the means to purchase the goods advertised; but it is still better to have a large number of the right 102 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING kind of persons see your advertisement in a publication which adds confidence and recommends it favorably to your prospective customers. Your advertisement will, to a greater or less extent, fuse with the publication in which it appears, and the product will not be your adver- tisement as it was prepared by you, but as it comes out of the mold into which you inserted it. The statement that a man is known by the company he keeps is not often challenged, and yet the statement would have been equally true if asserted of an adver- tisement. If a man is seen frequently in the company of rascals, we think at once that he has become a rascal, but do not suppose that he has reformed his associates. The honorable man loses his reputation by associating with dishonorable persons. An honest firm which ad- vertises in a disreputable sheet and brings its adver- tisement into association with advertisements of a dis- reputable character lays itself open to suspicion. The firm may be so well known that it would not be greatly injured by such a course, and it might by its presence raise the standard of the other advertisements. Such a work of philanthropy is too expensive and dangerous to recommend itself to the better known firms. If, on the other hand, a disreputable firm should place its ad- vertisement in a high-grade publication and among honest advertisers, it would for a time at least enjoy the confidence inspired by the publication and by the other advertisements. Every honest firm which adver^ tises should insist, however, that all dishonest advertise- ments be rejected, for, unless this is done, the honest men lose and the dishonest ones gain. The advertise- ments of a publication are in the mind of the public all classed together, and if it is known that one of them cannot be trusted, all are brought into disrepute. FUSION 103 Because of this principle of fusion^ it is imperative that the advertiser should see that the make-up of the publication is not detrimental to his particular adver- tisement. Your advertisement would be injured, if, in the make-up, your advertisement of diamonds was placed among advertisements of a questionable character. If I should see an advertisement of an investment scheme that guaranteed unusually large profits, I would sus- pect fraud at once and would assume a skeptical atti- tude. If the next instant I should read your advertise- ment of diamonds, I would be suspicious and would hardly know why I was so. If the next moment I should read the advertisement of a medicine that cured all sorts of incurable diseases, my suspicions would be confirmed, and I would be sure that your diamonds were paste. If, on the other hand, I should see your advertisement placed among those which I knew to be reliable, I would be inclined to classify yours with the others, and would think that it was at least worth while to investigate the matter. The cut here shown (No. 1) is a good illustration of the violation of the proper consideration of the principle of fusion in the make-up of the advertisements of a daily paper. In a Chicago daily for June 22, 1902, appeared three partial columns giving announcements of deaths and burials. Inserted in the middle column was this advertisement for Dr. Sleight's fat-reducing tablets. It might be said that this advertisement would attract attention because of its position, but the effect of the atmosphere of death and burials upon the fat-reducing tablets is too apparent to need comment. Many of those who choose illustrations for their ad- vertisements follow the philosophy of the Irish boy who said that he liked to stub his toe because it felt so good 104 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING when it stopped hurting. Many of us are unable to see how the boy had made any gain after it was all over, but he was satisfied and that was sufftcient. The philosophic disciples of the Irish boy are found in advertisers who have certain things to dispose of which will not do cer- tain harmful things. First they choose an illustration which will make you believe that what they have to sell DEATHS- BXL1,MAN--Imie 18, 1B02. Bntlim L, fcelsVM wife of Aodrew Bellm&n ftnd mother of Mrs. Hkmie fiuneilzke, £dwftrd. JohD uid Cbailet SV^^raJ to-^a; at 12 o'doeli from her lata Te9ldenc«, mis BUU It., to Gnceluid. BEST— Jacob, belofed husband of Dora Best, al Denver, Col., and bod of Uarie Best. 9aBenl to-dkj at ! p m. from 413 a Paulina et. ; intenneot at Graceland. .Member cf Vernon CouicU, S4,.Bo;aJ League. 8KE30N — Belored wife of John BeesoQ, June 20, 1802. and alster cf Frank B. Metzingar. Ura A^isflral (rota her late re^dcnce. 4150 Artesian ar., to St. Agnes' Gtarrcb. to Forty-ninth St. and Ash- land ar., tbeacaTjy can to Mount Olivet, to-day. »EBNS— Mrs. Anni M.j_840 W. Tajlor it, ^. m., to Forest Home. »»OWN^Jun» 19. WaUam Malcolm, aoD trf Bar- rlett M. Broim. ' Vuneral from family . residence, 6415 XomiKl ar., ,^to-day at 10 a. m. Interment at Mount Hope. CLARK— John 8., June 19, beloved brother of ':»■ of -Jame* W. and Marpiret ** _ L»wrenca »v., "»t New *-^- - • 2 mtutla. Dr. Sleight's Fat Reducing Tablets No. 1 is just what you do not want, and then in the text they try to overcome this false impression, and to show you that what they have to offer is not so bad after all. Most of us are unable to see how the advertiser has gained, even if he has succeeded in giving us logical proof that his goods are not so bad as we were at first led to think. We are not logically inclined, and we take the illustra- tion and the text and combine the two. The best that the text can do is to destroy the evil effect of the illustra- tion. Of course, when we read in the text that the illustration does not correctly represent the goods, we FUSION 105 ought to discard the illustration entirely and think only of the text, but, unfortunately, we are not constructed that way. The impression made by the illustration and that made by the text fuse and form a whole which is the result formed by these two elements. In No. 2 of the reproduced advertisements the adver- tiser w^ants to bring out the fact that his insect powder will not kill human individuals, but will kill insects. The line of his argument would seem to be the exhibition of a picture of the skull of a person killed by his insect powder. He then confidentially assures you that his Iham- -, ,. mer it to get the lok ^ V OownT Tbea it U not The Swan Foantaln Pen etarts wrltliig jDBtaDt U toucbei paper, w'"- - ,dyev»n flow of ink. Tbe feed ( Illy adjusted to meet the needt No. 3 powder is *'non-poisonous to human." Most people who notice the advertisement see the picture of the skull, but fail to see the ^'non^poisonous to human." The ^^ad-smith^' of No. 3 is trying to convince the pub- lic that his fountain pen will not blot. He shows us a cut of his pen doing just what he wants us to believe it will not- do. If we could look at the cut, then forget it entirely and read the text without being biased by the cut, this form of argumentation might be successful, but that is not the way in which we think. Advertisement No. 4 apparently illustrates the pro- prietor of the rug company as an escaped convict. The text makes no reference to this fact, but tries to impress 106 TPIE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING upon us the idea that this is the gentleman with whom we should deal. Advertisement No. 5 is the advertisement of a sweet- smelling cigar. The way the designer of the advertise- ment goes about it to convince us that his cigars are LEFT BEHIND. Onr plan of selling all carpets from inanafacturer to consamer leaves ooa competitors but of the race. Ingrains, Brussels, Velvets, Axmln* isters, Moqaettes, Davonnierres, ar« all on the hsb. If it's Rngs, that's onr spectaltT; la fact, we make it a point to fur^b homes complete with floor coverings that are proper, and we do not dupU' cate fine patterns. Carpet cleaning and laying, feather renovating. Rugs from old carpets. PetoskeyRugMfg. and Carpet Co. Ltd. 455 Mitchell Street,. No. 4 sweet smelling is to show us Uncle Sam smoking a cigar which evidently has a very bad odor. In small type he. asserts that his cigars are not so bad, but I would not have read that part of the advertisement unless I had had an abnormal interest in poor advertisements. Advertisement No. 6 represents the ^^restful racycle," and does so by displaying a lady on such a wheel being chased by an infuriated bulldog. One of the most un- FUSION 107 pleasant things that can happen to a bicycle rider, and one of the things which might deter some ladies from buying a bicycle, is this fact that bicycle riders are liable to be chased by dogs. The writer of this advertisement, by means of this illustration, practically tells every pos- • FOR UNCLE SAiyi'8 :BIRTHDAY annlTersary yott don't want a 'stinka- dora.. Do honor (o your country, in' a' d.eJlclouB and sweet smoke on July 4th by smoking one of odr exquisitely! flavored Billy Walton's 6c Straight iod Grand Duchesse Cigars They are tiie t)est cigars 'to be found In twwa and^ aw just what you want for a hT)lIday treat for your friends. Try thein by ftU means. tt'cmdANAV. WW. W. WAITOH. RIDE THE RESTFUL Racycle RIGID REASONABLE RADICALLY RIOHT Reduced Rates to Rest- d e n « Represenlatives. Request Rates and Re- prints of Royal Racycles. MIAMI CYCLE & MFQ. , COMPANY MIddIetown.O. No, 5 No. 6 sible customer to hesitate before she buys this wheel, because, if she buys it, she is likely to be chased by dogs. In advertisement No. 7 the author is trying to bring out the point that insects do not infest this particular brand of rolled oats. In his illustration he shows great crowds of insects swarming about it. If you examine the advertisement you see that, although the insects do have a particular liking for this kind of oats, they cannot get at them till the can is once opened. To my mind this brand of rolled oats and insects are so firmly united that I cannot think of the food without thinking of the insects. 108 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING Ordinarily the Quaker Oats advertisement has been identified by the presence of the good Quaker. He looks strong, hardy, clean, and honest. In No. 8 we have a portrait of a man who is disgusting in appearance. He THIS IS THE ORIGINAL nERA\ETlQ/lLLYSE:flLED -PACKAGE OF CEREALS Sanje^uantity ^^ cor?tair^e(( it} usual- Size ty^ojyounci Package For Sale by Grocers Everywhere The careful preparation given the contents of this package, justifies the manufacturers in claiming that it will keep indefinitely in good condition, and upon serving, present a flavor and bouquet, un- equaled by any cereal ever offered to the public Directions for Opening and Cooking on Edch Can THE GREAT WESTERN CEREAL COMPANY, Chicago, Dls. No. 7 fuses with oats, and the product is something which is not appetizing and is a food wiiich I do not care to taste. I have always thought of Quaker Oats as something par- ticularly clean and healthful, and my idea was deter- mined in part by associating the food with the Quaker. FUSION 109 When this advertisement is before me, I think that Quaker Oats are fit to eat only on condition that I ab- stract the thought of the food from that of this filthy- looking specimen of humanity. In an advertisement of food products the cut is com- Short-sighted man — lacks penetration. / He b • sJioTMfgJited man Indeed who Cinnot «ee the other end of the medical bretklut food hMtL Apjr food that coddle! digestion til the time must nealcn digestion .at last by sheer lack of exerdstkl A strong digestion iBight not be greatly weakened by a diet of rich foods, — but even the strongeit digestion cannot withstand the weakening effects of laboratory foods. j Only a short-sighted man will deny that natural digestion most be relied on after all for asslmilatiolk ef the food elements which the body demands, — and the better the digestion the better the prospect ot liealth. The way to preserve the strength of natural digestion it to offer it only natural food. The one natural food that fills every need of body and nerve and brain, — that pvea every foot clement in exactly the proportion* demanded by the human system,— i» Quaker OsLts No other food has ever been granted that ttcad&t &TOr b shicb Quaker Oati it bcU it ( aSBm well-served breakfast tables. Yoo'U see the reasoo, iinlcsi yoa sn A. SHORTSIGHTED MAN. No. 8 parable to the waiter in a restaurant. We know that the waiter does not prepare the food, yet he is the rep- resentative of the kitchen, and we will not enter a restaurant if the waiter looks repulsive. In a similar manner we know that the cut in an advertisement has nothing to do with the food advertised, but the cut is 110 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING the representative of the food, and we do not want the food if its representative looks repulsive. All the advertisements here reproduced seem to be co^nstructed in total disregard to the great principle of fusion which plays an important part in all our think- ing. In all these advertisements the cut and the text {e.g.y in the first advertisement the deaths and funerals and the tablet advertisement) fuse, and each plays its part in forming the total impression. We are not able to think of the text without thinking of or being influenced by the illustration. The ordinary man and woman are not accustomed to critical logical thinking. They are not accustomed to consider an object or argument on its own merits and independent of all other things. They are more inclined to take objects, arguments, and events in their entirety. They fuse all the impressions of a particular situation into one total impression, and are influenced by events in their totality without being able to analyze the ele- ments which have united to form the w^hole. If those who construct and place advertisements would consider this principle of fusion, they would be more careful in their choice of mediums, in the association of advertise- ments, in the make-up and in the construction of the individual advertisements. MEMORY 111 MEMOKY Impressions once received leave traces of themselves, so that, ill imagination, we can live over the same ex- periences and can recognize them as related to our past. This knowledge of former impressions, or states of mind, which have already once dropped from consciousness, is what is l^nown as memory. I can imagine how the jungles of Africa must look. This is an act of productive imagination. Yesterday I was on the corner of Fifth avenue and Lake street in Chicago. I heard the sliouts of teamsters, the rattle of passing vehicles, and the roar of elevated trains ,*^ I saw the people, the wagons, and the cars. To-day I can, in imagination, live over the same experience, and as I do so I recognize the experience as belonging to my past. I am therefore remembering my past experi- ence: As I try to recall the street scene of yesterday I find that many of the details have escaped me. I cannot re- member how the teamsters looked nor what sort of cries they were uttering. I remember that there were teamsters and that they w^ere 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 original experience, neither does it contain all the details of the actual ex- perience. Immediately after crossing the street I could 112 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING Lave 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. Professor Ebbinghouse, of Germany, was the first to try to find out exactly hoAv 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 experience has taken place. After two seconds the memory fades very rapidly, so that in twenty minutes we have forgotten more of an experience than we shall forget in the next thirty days. We forget very rapidly during the first few seconds, 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. First, how can I improve my own memory? 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 to develop a good one, but every one can improve his memory by the observance of a few well-known and thoroughly established principles. The first principle is repetition. If you want to make sure that you will remember a name, say it over to yourself. Repeat it in all the ways possible — say it over aloud, write it, look at it after it is written, think how it sounded w^hen MEMORY 113 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 ami repeat the name, then you should pay the maximum amount of at- tention 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- pelled to learn the approximate date of the fall of Con- stantinople, the application of the compass to naviga- tion, the invention of printing, the time of the activity of Copernicus, Michelangelo, Titian, Dtirer, 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 contemporane- ous and together made what is known as the Renais- sance. The details of a business or professional life which are connected in a series are not hard to learn, and 114 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING are not soon forgotten. A man may have no trouble from forgetting the details of his business or profession, yet may have a poor memory for all events not thus associated. The fourth principle is that of ingenuity. I remem- ber the name of Miss Low, for she is a short woman. I remember a friend's telephone, which is 1391, by think- ing how unfortunate it is to have such a number to remember — 13 is supposed to be an unlucky number, and 91 is seven times 13. This method is applicable only to disconnected facts which we find difflculty in remembering by the methods given before. It is, however, a method which was used by the Roman oratojs 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. We all appreciate the value of a good memory, and are willing to pay any one w^ho 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 the one by far of the most importance. The fourth principle is the one of least general appli- cation; 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 train Ing" to sell. When the question arises, — how^ to construct an ad- MEMORY 115 vertisement so that the reader cannot forget it, we find that the question is answered by the proper application of the principles enunciated above. The advertisement that is repeated over and over again at frequent inter- vals gradually becomes fixed in the memory of the Vitalized Phosphites. Brain and Nenre Food, Prom no pbM* pbold principle of the Ox Brain an^ (be Efflbry* •! Wheat. Has been used more than thirty years by thousands of active business men and women, from whom sustained, vigorous application of brain and nen*- ous power is required, promptly relieving the dc* pression from overwork, worry, nervous excite- inent, 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 J Bl&!f& Pkbparkd by S6 West 35tb streets New York atr» If not found at DrvogMX aent by maa {$lMfi- CROSBY'S COLD AND CATARRH CURB. Tb« best ^emedr In existence for cold In the head and i By mall, 60 cents. Xo. 1. — This advertisement is engraved on the memory by the expensive process of mere repetition. reader. It may be a crude and an expensive method, but it seems to be effective. This method gailis added effect by repeating one or more characteristic features, and by changing some of the features at each appearance of the advertisement. Thus the reproduced advertisement of Vitalized Phos- phites (No. 1) is frequently repeated in identical form. We cannot forget this advertisement, but it has taken too many repetitions to secure the desired results. 116 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING The reproduced advertisement of Cream of Wheat (No. 2) is but one of a series of advertisements in all of which the colored chef appears prominently. This characteristic feature causes us to associate all of the series, and hence the effect of repetition is secured. At No. 2. — This series of advertisements represents the central feature, but always in a new form. the same time, there is sufficient diversity, because the colored chef is never represented in the same way in any two of the advertisements as they appear from month to month. Similar statements could be made of a host of other excellent advertisements. The advertisement which makes an intensive impres- sion is one which the advertiser does not easily forget. MEMORY 117 The methods for securing this intensity are many, but a few examples will serve to make the method plain. Bright colors impress us more than dull ones. The bright-colored inserts and advertisements run in colors are remembered better than others, because they make a greater impression on us. In any experience it is the first and the last parts of it that impress us most and that get fixed most firmly in our memories. The first and the last advertisements in a magazine are the most effective. Likewise the first and the last parts of any particular advertisement (un- less very short) are the parts that we remember best. The back cover-page is valuable because when the magazine is lying on a table the back cover-page is likely to be turned up, but in addition to that it is a valuable page because it is likely to be the first or the last seen by most readers. The second cover-page is valuable because it is so likely to be seen first, and even to be seen by those who do not look at the advertisements in the back of the magazine — if such persons still exist! The intensity of the impression which an advertise- ment makes is dependent upon the response which it secures from the readers. The pedagogue would call this action the "motor response," even though it were nothing more than the writing of a postal card. Such action is vital in assisting the memory of the readers. An advertisement which secures a response sufficient to lead to the writing of a postal card has a chance of being remembered which is incomparably greater than that of other advertisements. The advertisement of Pompeian Massage Cream (No. 3) will not soon be for- gotten by those who are induced to send the name of their dealer to the Pompeian Manufacturing Company. 118 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING Rhymes and alliterations are rhetorical forms which seem to be of great assistance when we attempt to com- mit verses, and even when we do not want to remember them the rhythm may make such an impression that we can't forget them. The "Spotless Town'' is an illus- No. 3. — Those who answer this adver- tisement will not easily forget it. tration of a successful application of this psychological fact. There is. much poor advertising being done at the present time in a futile attempt to produce a successful imitation of the "Spotless Town." The rhythm and the' alliteration must be excellent, else they make the whole attempt seem ridiculous, and the advertisement falls flat. Anything humorous or ridiculous — even a pun — is hard to forget. But unless the attempt is successful, the result is ludicrous and futile. Furthermore, that MEMORY 119 which impresses one person as funny may seem silly to another. The reproduced advertisement of Gold Dust (ISO. 4) seems funny to some, but does not to others. The reproduced advertisement of Rough on Rats (No. 5) impresses some persons as silly, while others think it funny. Advertising is a serious business, and unless the ad- vertisement i-s extremely clever, it is unwise to attempt Gold Dust Stands Alone In the washing powder Held— It has no substitute. Yb« must either use GOLD DUST l ifrmra. pollAlnt brus woii COMPANY. CMcar>-Mabn of FAIRY SOAT. GOLD DUST makes bard water soft No. 4. — Those who laugh at this ad- vertisement will remember it. ^ to present the humorous side of life, although it is highly valuable when well done. Anything will be remembered which awakens our emo- tions, whether the thing be ugly or beautiful, whether it causes us to smile or to sympathize with the sorrows of others. That which excites an emotion is not easily forgotten, and hence is a good form of advertising, if it can convince the reason at the same time that it stimulates the feelings. The advertisement of Gold Dust (No. 4) pleases me and convinces me that the product is good. The advertisement of Rough on Rats (No. 5) 120 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING 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 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 prin- ciple of association, and ordinarily does so, even if he does it unconsciously. He should present his argument in such a form that it will naturally and easily be asso- ^ li^^§B^^^^^^^^^9^^'« tvr-^ \ '^R^^^.> C; h mffliliWMrr.i'l . rir'n 5tO( '"VV."'," ''.''""'Vr. ^ -- -r- ^^•T-r..-^'.-vT' ^^- .-'■ -, - --^ No. 5. — An evident attempt to be humorous. elated by the reader with his own former experience. This is best done by appealing to those interests and motives which are the ruling principles of the reader's thinking. Personally, I should forget a recipe for a cake before I had finished reading 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. MEMORY 121 but in connection with a Avliole 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 ThtUt IS Money IK ^TocwtleiJ — ^ ^ 5\^BU5TER BROWJI 5% O/.GOLD BOND5 itHtBUrrrKBRoNVKjTocKiMcij'roR Bd^cr ari tut BtjT 25*JTock. A 5%1NTE1?EJ'T CoOtoH LIKt THUf TKIJ CoOpONvJ-HoOjLD BE J-AVEP lACT coOpon lerpRrJTxrr^ yoOk iwE^TKtVr or 25« vXt/^ yoOhavb J20« WORTH OS COOPOKJ THETABE REDtEMABUl BVTOE HfJr*Yot}KMTHECl«(» THt PRIJ^CIPM.. Here Is the opportunity to give your boy a lesson In the value of money and the growth of interest Buster Brawa'it t tiockinn forilrli liav* Boster Brown Stocking Co. 346 Broadway, Mew Tork Notice SS,''.C»"';i'.5'^^4"""''.»'.l!i No. 6. — The wrong associations suggested. Stocking Co. (ISo. 6) is in direct violation of this prin- ciple. The advertisement was evidently written by a man, and appeals to men as being a good advertisement. It would be remembered by men, and if they were the purchasers of boys' stockings, it would be an excellent advertisement. In reality the men do not buy the stock- ings, and so the advertisement appeals to those who have nothing to do with the business — except those who pay for the advertisement. 122 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING 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 value of money and the groAvth 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 liave but an occasional application, but there are instances when it has been employed with great effectiveness. Thus "Uneeda" is a name which cannot be forgotten. It pleases by its very ingenuity, although most of the attempts in this direc- tion have been futile. 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 medi- cine 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 number 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 impressing advertisements on the minds of possible customers are capable of unlimited application, and will not disappoint any; for they are the laws which have been found to govern the minds of all persons as far as their memories are concerned. THE FEELINGS AND THE EMOTIONS 123 XI 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 define 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 effects are not sufficiently recognized and yet they are of special sig- nificance to the advertiser. For the sake of brevity we shall use the word "pleas- ure" not merely to express such simple pleasures as tasting an appetizing morsel, but also to express such pleasurable emotions as joy, love, benevolence, gratitude, pride, etc. The word "pain'' or "displeasure" will like- wise 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 effects are widespread and important. Some of these changes, even though significant, are not directly detected without the use of delicate recording instruments. Pleasures actually cause the limbs to increase in size, and, accompanying the physical change, is a feeling of expansiveness which 124 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING serves to heighten the pleasure. 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 increased 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 depression. 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 inter- feres 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 purposes. Pleasing experiences, increase our muscular strength and cause us to feel like men. We feel more like under- taking great tasks and have more faith in our ability 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 voluntary 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 shoulders 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 receiving, 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 expand. We become extremely sug- THE FEELINGS AND THE EMOTIONS 125 gestible, and are likely to see everything in a favorable light. We are prompt to act and confident of success. In pain we are displeased with the present experiences and so withdraw within ourselves to keep from being acted upon. We refuse to receive suggestions, are not easily influenced, and are in a suspicious attitude toward everything which is proposed. When in pain we ques- tion 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 men have not been slow in profiting by these facts. In ^Tickwick Papers," speaking from the viewpoint of the defendant, Dickens says : "A good, contented, well-breakfasted juryman is a capital thing to get hold of. Discontented or hungry jurymen always find for the plaintiff." Here Dickens expresses the fact that man is not pre-eminently logical, but that his think- ing 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 defendant. The modern business man does his utmost to minister to the pleasure of the customers in his store. He knows 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 desired 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 advertiser in his attempts to please those to whom his appeals are made. The methods open to the 126 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING 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 em- phasized, and suggestions will be given of concrete methods which are available to the advertiser in appeal- ing to the sense of the beautiful. To be beautiful a thing must possess certain charac- teristics 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, certain combina- tions of sounds which are universally called harmonies and others which are called discords. There are certain combinations of colors which are regarded 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 education does not possess such knowledge, but he appreciates the harmony of tones when he hears it. The colorist knows how to produce pleasing effects with colors. He has ac- quired this knowledge which others do not possess, although they are able to appreciate his work. The artist knows how to produce pleasing effects with sym- metry 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 dis- tinguish 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 THE FEELINGS AND THE EMOTIONS 127 point of division in a straight line would have anything to do with a feeling of pleasure. Such, however, is certainly the case, but, as might be expected, the esthetic feeling is not very pronounced. As an illustration, look at No. 1. Here we have a series of straight vertical 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 pleasing 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 BCD H No. 1. — A series of bisected lines. Which bisection is the most pleasing? have the division come above the middle. This is not an altogether unimportant discovery. In judging of vertical distances, we overestimate 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 128 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING exactly equal parts. Many persons would say that the line D is more pleasing than E, 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 division 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 experimentation and measurements of ar- tistic productions show that there is a remarkable pref- erence for this ratio, which is known as the "golden section.'' The exact ratio is that of 1 to 1.618, which is approximately that of 3 to 5. A line is divided most artistically, if the lower section is 1.618 times as great as the upper. Although this fraction seems very formi- dable, it is the arithmetical expression of a simple pro- portion which is this : the short section is to the longer 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 approxi- THE FEELINGS AND THE EMOTIONS 129 mates the symmetrical division (and is not quite sym- metrical) is displeasing. If you hold No. 1 sideways, the lines will 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 symmetrically and is more pleasing than D. In fact, for most persons the sym- metrical 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 section." 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 es- sential 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 straight lines w^ould be of decidedly more importance if we should find that the same ratio holds for the parts of more complicated 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 par- ticular form of a rectangle.) Men have been called on to decide this question times without number. By in- vestigating a very large number of sucli decisions we may be able to discover something of value. The archi- tect is called upon to decide this question every time he constructs a building in which the artistic effect plays 130 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISmG any part — and it always should. Think of the temples, palaces, cathedrals, cottages, museums, and all other structures 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 infre- quently bear the same ratios as the height and width of the entire building. Careful measurement of such structures has revealed a striking tendency to approxi- mate what we have learned as the ^'golden section." In fact, it was originally called the "golden section of archi- tecture'/' because it was discovered so uniformly in archi- tecture. Think of the shape of the flags of all nations, of all No. 2. — A square and a rectangle. Which is the more beautiful ? the picture frames which you have ever seen, of win- dow panes, mirrors, playing cards, sheets of paper, en- velopes, books, periodicals, and all other objects in which the shape is determined to a greater or less extent by artistic demands. In most of these objects we find a very decided tendency to make the height equal the width, or else the height is to the width approximately as 3 is to 5. 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 THE FEELINGS AND THE EMOTIONS 131 a very decidecj 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 the center of the figure divides it into two equivalent parts. The square seems to possess much symmetry but little diver- sity. The rectangle possesses both unity and diversity. A very careful investigator of the esthetic value of the different space forms gives some interesting results as the fruits of his labors. Thus, a rectangle whose base is three per cent, greater than the height is more pleas- ing than the perfect square. This is accounted for be- cause we overestimate the height of a square about three per cent. Thus the rectangle whose base is three per cent, greater than its height 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 dis- pleasing 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 rectangle exceeds the other approxi- mately 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 difference 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 132 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING effect, we are not surprised that we find exceptions to the conclusions reached in the foregoing, but the surpris- ing thing is the lack of more exceptions. Buildings 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- 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 rectangle. In choosing this space, does the advertiser take into consideration the relation of the height and width which will produce the most pleasing effect? He certainly does and the space he chooses meets the conditions of esthetic pleasure as given above, although he may be entirely unconscious of any such intention. Thus in an ordinary niagazine the full page and the ordinary quar- ter-page (the upper right, upper left, lower right, and lower left) approximate most nearly the "golden sec- tion." Next 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 matter makes this division more popular than it otherwise would be. THE FEELINGS AND THE EMOTIONS 133 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 small advertise- ments, 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, be- cause 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 equiv- alent parts by drawing a vertical line through the middle of it. Such symmetry as this is called bilateral sym- metry. As a typical example of bilateral symmetry as well as pleasing proportion in an advertisement we re- produce herewith the advertisement of the Butler Paper Company (No. 3). The line drawn vertically through this advertisement divides it into two symmetrical parts. Every subdivision of the display and of the text is centered. The horizontal divisions are strictly bilateral symmetry. Dotted lines are drawn to indicate the verti- cal divisions. In this we see that the subdivisions 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 an arrangement of the vertical subdivisions is certainly more pleasing 134 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING than equal subdivisions would be. By such subdivisions as we have here the unity of the page is not destroyed, and diversity is secured. It should be observed that this advertisement of the Butler Paper Company has employed an unusually No. 3. — An example of bilateral symmetry. large number of figures w^hich are symmetrical and many more which are arranged on the ratio of the "golden section.'^ As a reswlt, pleasing unity and diversity are both secured. The symmetry is pronounced in the twenty-four crystals or stars which are used as a decora- tion in the border.. There are twelve different kinds of THE FEELINGS AND THE EMOTIONS 135 stars, but each star has six main subdivisions and six minor subdivisions. There are enough stars to give diversity, and the stars are sufficiently alike to give unity to the border as a whole. The white rectangle on which the text is found is slightly too long to be in the exact ratio of the golden section, while the darker border is too wide to meet the conditiop, but these rectangles* are as near to the ratio of the golden section as could be produced in such a complicated figure as this. It is no accident that the conventional ellipse at the top of the advertisement is in the same ratio as the rectangles, i.e.y that of the golden section. If this adver- tisement w:ere either lengtliened or shortened, its pro- portions would vary from that of the "golden section,"' and the results would be recognized by the ordinary observer as less satisfactory. It is not necessary to exaggerate the importance of these laws of symmetry and proportion. They con- tribute an appreciable amount to the beautification of the advertising page and hence to the production of pleasure in the mind of every possible customer who sees the advertisement. Inasmuch as the pleasure of the cus- tomer is of such fundamental importance the advertiser cannot afford to neglect any element which contributes to the total pleasurable effect. There are other laws which are of importance in giving a pleasing effect to a page. Among such laws might be mentioned' ease of comprehension, ease of eye-movement, appropriate point of orientation and utility. Space will not admit of a presentation of these prin- ciples, but the purpose of this chapter has been attained if the reader has become impressed with the importance of pleasing the possible customer and with the sig- 136 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING nificance of such simple laws as that of proportion and symmetry in accomplishing -the desired result. These laws are of universal application in laying out adver- tisements and in choosing spaces, and an appreciation of their importance by the advertisers of the land would lead to a beautification of the advertising pages of our publications and hence to an increase in their value to the advertiser. APPEALS TO CUSTOMER'S SYMPATHY 137 XII APPEALS TO THE CUSTOMER'S SYMPATHY In the last chapter we saw the significance of pleas- ure and pain in inducing the proper attitude in the minds of the customers. We also saw how a pleasing effect could be produced by the judicious use of the laws of symmetry and proportion in constructing advertise- ments. In the present chapter we shall continue the general discussion of the benefit of awakening the feel- ings and emotions and will confine the discussion to a single emotion, namely, that of sympathy. By sympathy we mean in general a particular men- tal attitude which is induced by the realization of the fact that some one else is going through that particular form of experience. Thus I laugh and feel happy be- cause those about me are rejoicing, and I weep because I see my friends weep. To a certain extent we seem to imagine ourselves as in the condition actually experi- enced by those about us and hence feel as we assume they must feel. The feelings awakened sympathetically are intense enough to cause weeping, laughing, and all the ordinary forms of expressing the emotions. We are not indifferent as to the objects upon which we bestow our sympathy. I feel no sympathy with the tree that is struck by the woodman's axe nor for the stone that is crushed under the wheels of a traction engine. I may feel sympathy for the mouse whose nest is destroyed or for the horse that is cruelly treated. I sympathize with animals because I believe that they have feelings 138 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING similar to mine. I feel more sympathy for the higher animals (dogs and horses) than I do for the lower ani- mals, for I believe that their feelings are more like mine. I have a certain amount of sympathy for all humanity, JTHE WINTER .RESORT_of*i>liamers*prJDl£d.ji)atter,i»nci to Jtcure Jserlhs appl^ jo' THOS. COOK & SON ^lcw York, Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago* San Francisco, etc. No. 1. — I do not share their pleasures. but I sympathize most with those of my own set or clique, with those who think the same thoughts that I think and who are in every way most like myself. After those of this inner circle of acquaintances, my sympathy is greatest for those whom I might call my ideals. If I APPEALS TO CUSTOMER'S SYMPATHY 139 desire to be prosperous, I feel keen sympathy with the man 'who appears to be prosperous. If I am ambitious to be a well-dressed man, I feel sympathetically towards those who are well dressed. If I desire to attain a cer- tain station in life, I feel sympathetically with those who appear to have attained my ambition. In the advertisement of Thomas Cook & Son (No. 1) I do not think of the old lady and gentleman as being of 'my class. They are not my ideals and I therefore have comparatively little sympathy with them. They are en- joying themselves immensely and probably never had a better time in all their lives than they are having as members of this touring party, but as I look at them I am not pleased at all. Their pleasure is not contagious so far as I am concerned. I seem to be immune from all their pleasures. I have no desire to imitate their actions and become a member of Cook's touring party. In»contrast with this first advertisement of Thomas Cook & Son their advertisement of "Magara to the Saguenay" (No. 2) should be considered. The two per- sons depicted in this second advertisement approximate my ideals. They seem to be enjoying the trip immensely. I believe that they have good taste and if they choose this cruise for their vacation the same trip would be desir- able for me too. In every case of sympathy we imitate to a certain degree the persons with whom we sympa- thize. The action of these young people stimulate me to imitate their action by purchasing a ticket from Cooks and starting on the trip. No. 3 is a reproduced advertisement of a fat-reducing compound. The illustration is supposed to be ludicrous, but to me it is ridiculous. The fat lady in the illustra- tion does not seem to make the best of a bad situation. She dresses in plaids, which, as every corpulent person 140 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING ^ .-^^ OOK/S qilAVm SERVICE ^^^^. LOST 40 POUMDS. s^.'.- te VoT^ii?.US^ VThrte years ago 1 took a lour month** ueatment and wa»\ 'reductd 4 lbs. m weight. 1 have DOt gained any in wcighi »uice." We are giving away barrels and Barrels of Sample Boxes Free just to provf how eflccMve. plestsant ^nd 4o:«me iiid address anrt 4< to cover posi- Age. etc E^cii box is mAiled in a plain Acaled wrapper wuli no .idvertisin? on it 4o indicate what it couUms. Pnce. laige Ci'e but, SI 00 posipaid. Correspond- mce strictly confidenii it. HiU Cheniidl Co , De^i- H. M . St lK>uis, Mo, No. 3. — Ridiculous but not ludicrous. the illustration depicts, but that is no reason for me to imitate their actions and become one with them in any line of action. No. 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 142 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING 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 consequently it is easy for me to imagine myself in her stead and to feel the need WASH YOUR FAT AWAY Howard Obesity Ointment f^ External Remedy ^ikK to which 11 IS applied -restoring the natural Mooin o)f jouth.ieaMi.c; uo wtiuUksot flubbiuetrf. No iia-.-cr r-» flruj^b that nut! the -I n-iacn ; no tiiet- itikf; Hi >. ' I'l^e of habits whattv'.T. The apphcation is "^ini- ' I Mciiy Uieit. Yoii nu.r< ly .ippiy the vi'Umetil to t.ie part >ou wish rt-d'.ccl, then literallv "-rash tiu J il fi.i'rtv" vn;>lo'-r •i-uiy loilie most deh^. lie sV. ii. We Guarantee Results On receipt of k. quest we will send you oat book on ob<:'-ity, which gi%es crii.t.>. atid f.icts of the new cii=.co\,t-ry— a cure by at>sorplio!i All C^yrret'p.'Siileiii'o Contiidned (onftdciitial. THE HOWARD CO. suite •«<>.•>•>• V> 't^'- '^>d %U I No. 4. — She begets my sympathy. for relief from obesity and to take the necessary steps to secure such relief. The tragedy and the comedy are forms of literature and of dramatic representations which have always been popular. There is scarcely a tragedy without its comic parts, but frequently there are comedies without any element of the tragic. There are probably more great tragedies than comedies, but it is true that the ordinary APPEALS TO CUSTOMER'S SYMPATHY 143 men and women read more comedy (including the comic in a so-called tragedy) than tragedy, and that the same holds true for their attendance upon dramatic repre- sentations. 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 without danger of any shock to the sensibilities because of the suddenness of the introduction of the emotional element. In tragedy the reader or the spectator is usually inr troduced gradually into the emotional tone of the whole. The hero (if it be the hero who suffers) is first intro- duced, and then after we feel acquainted with him and have an interest in him, we are called upon to enter into his sorrows and to feel with him. In a political campaign the politician may relate the instances of wrong and oppression for which the oppos- ing party is responsible, or else he may tell of the pros- perity and good cheer brought about by his own party. In raising money to found a charitable institution the philanthropist may tell of the squalor and misery of the persons in the district in which the institution is to be located, or else he may tell of the joys which the institu- tion will bring into the lives of the persons concerned. In appealing for funds to carry on the missionary work in Africa the minister may describe the deplorable and' almost hopeless condition of the natives, or else he may tell of the wonderful successes of the missionaries al- ready on the field, and appeal for funds to continue the already successful work. It certainly is questionable which method the politician, the philanthropist, the minister, etc., should follow. As far as my personal ob- servations go, it seems to me that when sympathy for sorrow is successfully awakened, it is more effective in 144 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING bringing about the desired action than is sympathy for the joys of the persons concerned. It must be remem- bered, however, that the persons for whom the appeal is being made in all these cases are those for whom the hearers have more than a passing interest, and the cre- ating of this interest may be the product of a long proc- ess of education. It may also be true that these most successful pathetic appeals would be avoided in the future by the very persons who had been moved most effectively. The depiction of the darker sides 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 persons in civilized countries, and in general loud or boisterous expressions of pleasure are not regarded 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. We are not allowed to parade our sorrows before the gaze of the public. It seems to be assumed that every one 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 offended when persons seek to awaken our sympathy by any form of external mani- festation. Even in dramatic representations the expres- sions which accompany sorrow or pain are largely subordinated to apparent attempts to stifle such mani- festations. We 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 No. APPEALS TO CUSTOMER'S SYMPATHY 145 5 there is an appeal made to our sympathy in such a rude manner that we feel angry toward 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 feelings and emo- DISEASED LUNGS art the rctult o( a ncjitded coa jh .or mI^ KU a ^rave mliUke to ntjied any hnt»f chlat afTedion. You may have bW cipitnt coiuumption btfon/ you realize tt..^. . Tb* following are tiUI quattiou^ Save you caught a cold f Have you a tevere, racking amgkt Js your throat hoarte and tonii Do you cough up nueutf Are yowhaggard and losing fieth? Th«se are sAioBi coodiUoas, which, if ootpraapitr conect«d, mil aZect tou laogs asd io a ihort UiM Toa wUi be on tb« roaa to eouamptioal There ia a tare core for a coM aod all the abo««: aitmenta, erea indpieot co&auniptioii,,in Dr. Biiir» Cough STTop. Ida ksoini the world orer aa a famovi docuir's prescripUoa that haa cured thooaaada ft cues. It ia prescribed bf phyaiciasa beeaoa* tbaf ! know it haa aared many people from an earlr fnn,' Poo't delay ; gae bow before too lat« the cewmllA' Dr. Bull's Cough Syrup eapecUli; ' ( eaotbt a bsd oo14. I'^sraboadrnft.asathiabll cUliF, I »u troabled nrj badir vltn li, aod noib- vould f1>e me relief I oouiDed ap pbl<(iB anJ wu*|ued uiou righl aloDf Ploailf a tr1«o4 liiTlMi me Of IT a twiUe or Dr. BulVi C«a|b Brnip. I did mI haro tPDCb (aJth Io Itatflrvi bo« certaiolr a graod teoiedr toe VCrtpKe.ooid«aod cougba- Wid. Hildebrand.CtuatDin f. o.. Cauwba Co.W C ' I)r. Bttll'aCoagh Sn ip w.ll core yoor long trouble. It will do it wilhont faD. KootkeC i^w^AVLTk'^ eqoal.^ it ia caratife-qBaUties, aod for this ruaoa joa cannot afford (• •xportaeal with other remeJiea. AVOID SUBSTITUTES. "'^.r-^-^--^-» «»17 remedy which wiHisalj(>9fJiiPga,.Ull»UJrBggi8t«.2ic, 50c. and llA). No. 5. — An outrage upon the reader's sen- sibility. tions is to attract attention. Thus No. 6 is one of the most attractive advertisements in the current issue of our magazines. The smile is very contagious and the whole effect is so 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 146 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING good results may be secured by representations of sor- row. Thus in No. 7 sorrow is depicted in such a way that it succeeds in attracting the attention of the most casual reader of advertisements. Nos. 6 and 7 are reproductions of advertisements i I flo ?n!I be aciighl'.d if you , --os. r.t. him ConkHn's Self -Filling Pen. He knows it is the highest quality, most perfect fountain pen in tb" v/orld, a cea- tury ahead of the dropocr Clliii^ kjtids; the only fountain pen that c-.'.n be tilled autoraa'ticf Uy or that succcsbtuily feeds copyiHK lUE. Mrs. GroVer Cleveland Satfs: PriiicPtou, March 12th. 190.'V Tour pen:, would h<> pivtty -ev.r*- to Cfiv.i )artre sciIo-j hen.' IC tbt;^ were oii^e !■> ally kuowa. cm FREE HOOKS teive farther «>oriviacjn^ evKJonco. and Ufty ori>tmal i>aK'^rf>ttii>n« forcor rvctiCfj common errori U\ ha-ivdw niinijr. No. 6. — A successful appeal to sympathy for pleasure. 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 pleasure of the smiling young man more fully than I enter into the sorrow of the grief-stricken one. APPEALS TO CUSTOMER'S SYMPATHY 147 These examples are sufficient to show that appeals 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 beings, with hearts in our breasts and blood in our veins, and we Pelmaa System of Memor^Training ^.J£i^TStH:7£' The Pelman School of Memory Training, ^ 1661 Masonic Templi. CHICAPO, No. 7.-^A successful appeal to sympathy for sorrow. 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 ques- tionable, 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 148 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING carefully as the pages of the literary department. The advertising manager should not only refuse objection- able advertisers, but he should refuse all objectionable advertisements. It is quite possible that an advertise- ment which might be good for the individual 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. 1, 3, and 7 might also be questionable. 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 per- sons 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 managers to see that the advertising pages of their publications are rendered attractive. HUMAN INSTINCTS 149 XIII HUMAN INSTINCTS We are all accustomed to think of the actions of ani- mals 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 witli 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 distinguished 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 pres- ence 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 obliterate their instinctive appearance, although such actions are funda- mentally instinctive. An instinct is usually defined as the faculty of acting in such a way as to produce certain ends, without fore- sight of the ends, and without previous education in the performance. It is in this sense that the term is used throughout this discussion. 150 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING The following quotation from Professor James will undoubtedly prove of interest : ^^NoWy why do the various animals do what seem to us such strange things^ in the presence of such out- landish stimuli? Why does the hen, for example, sub- mit herself to the tedium of incubating such a fearfully 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? Why does the maiden in- terest the youth so that everything about lier seems more important and significant than anytliing 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 but because at the moment 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 why he should want to eat more of what tastes like that, instead of revering you as a philosopher, he w^ould probably 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 mind debauched by learning to carry the process of making the natural seem strange, so far as to ask for the HUMAN INSTINCTS 151 why of any instinctive human act. To the metaphysician alone can occur such questions as: Why do we smile, pleased, and not scowl? Why are we unable to talk to a crowd as we talk to a single friend? Why does a par- ticular 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, of 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 con- clude that, to the animal which obeys it, every impulse 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, 152 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING 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 directed toward some object, but the effect of the action is to bring the object into a relation which will make it help- ful toward the preservation or furtherance of the inter- ests of the individual or of the species. Thus when an animal acts according to his ^'hunting instinct" he acts ioward 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 preserva- tion and furtherance of the interests of the individual, our classification will be based upon the interests of the individual, which are preserved and furthered, rather than upon the manner of the preservation and furtherance. The first interest of the individual which is instinc- tively preserved and furthered is his material posses- sions. The individual acts instinctively toward every material thing which he may call ^^my'^ or ^^mine/^ Of all the material things to which I apply the term my or mine, there is nothing to which the term seems so appli- cable 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 stag- nant water and seek running 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 HUMAN INSTINCTS 153 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 displeases me in the eating. The lower animals probably never do anything for the sake of the preservation and further- ance 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 companions, 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, exercise, temperature, etc., and that under normal con- ditions the choice would be such as would most cer- tainly conduce 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 furthered by passively fol- lowing 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 appro- priate 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 instinc- tive desire to eat any and every thing 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 154 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING what I shall eat. In the advertisement of Karo (No. 1) is this sentence : '^ . . it makes you eat," and also this: ". . . gives a 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 are A Breakfast Treat That Makes You Eat iIUfo'Xa«ii"Sy>Bpris-ihfTmrc;»tbIden asitnccitAr con | with all the nutritive elements so chanunrn'^tif of.tbir cnrrgy.producing, Mrenph-piving crrcal rctaincd.fj.If j flavor IS so good, delicious, so djffercnt. it mairs you ca« Adds zest to Ihepnddle rakes and gives a relish yot# can't resist/no maner how poor thc.^appentc n»ay Tie, MakdB vihe^mommgVmca! mating** It's l/iergrrn» tpnad for daih breaa^^StM in au-light. Irtuoi^si^iiai CORN SYRUP «« PSOOUCTS CO.. • yon ■«« CMuo- No. 1. — An appeal to the instinct of bodily preservation. emphasizing more and more the taste of the food, and are making health qualities secondary, while price is being emphasized less. The senses (the organs of sight, sound, taste, smell, temperature, and touch) are the guardians of the body, and whatever appears good to these sentinels is in- stantly desired, and ordinarily such things tend to the preservation and furtherance of the welfare of the body, but we choose them simply because they appear pleasing and not for ulterior ends. HUMAN INSTINCTS 155 My clothes are in a special sense mine. We come to think of them almost as of our very bodies. How a small child will cry if his hat blows 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 appropriate our clothes and identify 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." We are all greatly attracted by the protection and ornamentation supplied by clothing. 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 decorated with beautiful garments, advertisements of clothing — 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 process, and not because she foresees the necessity for the honey which will come upon her during the wintry months. To say that the young bee has a prophetic insight of the coming winter is to attribute to it wisdom which is far above human wisdom. Likewise the squirrel is said to collect nuts and store 156 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING them away simply because that is the very action 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 starva- tion. 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 collect and store away articles, and in some cases — in an un- usual environment — the results are very peculiar. Pro- fessor Silliman thus describes the hoardings of a wood- rat in California made in an empty stove of an unoccu- pied 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. In- terlaced with the spikes were the following : About two dozen knives, forks, and 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 dis- posed 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 HUMAN INSTINCTS 157 girls who make collections of buttons become 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 neighborhood are making collec- tions 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. Occasionally 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 ludicrous. The fol- lowing is a description of the hoardings of a miser's den which was emptied by the Boston City Board of Health : ^^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 collections. There was noth- ing 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 woodbuck. 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 158 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVERTISING 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 his zeal to obliterate the other possible interests 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 nuisance. 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 collect. 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 stimu- lus 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 useful- ness. 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 labor- ing for money merely because of the pleasure he receives in the gathering and keeping of it. Indeed, such a state- ment would ordinarily be but partially true, for, although the proprietary instinct may play a part, it cer- HUMAN INSTINCTS 159 tainly is not a complete explanation. All persons every- where are tempted by a possibility of gain. Our proprietary instincts may be made use of by the advertiser in many ways. The irresponsible advertiser has been able to play upon this instinct of the public by offering something for nothing, as is so frequently done in the cheaper forms of advertising media. The remarkable thing about this is that the public 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 treach- ery. 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 interest in what he has to offer. The following advertisement of the American Reserve Bond Co. (No. 2) is an attempt to appeal to this instinct. Why will a man endure hardship for days, endanger his life, and incur great expense, merely for the chance of a shot at a poor inoffensive deer? It certainly is not because 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 t-he 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 be- cause 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 indifferent 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 instinct from remote ancestors. For the civilized man such an instinct is often worthless, but to our ancestors it was necessary for the preservation of life. 160 THE PSYCHOLOOY OF ADVERTISING The charm which a gun or a fishing tackle has for a civilized man is a most remarkable thing. The an- nual sale of rifles, revolvers, fishing tackle, fishing boats, A $10 Nest Egg Starts You Saving and Making Money If you have a $10.00 "nest eggr"and want to see your money grow rapidly, draw large semi-annual dividends, and earn a hand- some Surplus, our plan will interest you. > This i3 a great clearing house for savings-profits. We have taught over 200,000 people how to make savings ^rtw and yield la>ge dlVld^nds. .. Already we have distributed over three and one halt millicms ot dollars to the money-savets of this countryl ' The earning power oF Boney is so' much greater than 3% a year, that a banker who has the 'use of savings for that paltry sum, soon grows rich from the profits mat pile up on top of the amount given you iot your share. He turns it over and over, and it grows with every turn; — Because he has inside knowledge of its earning power, and ho •uses that knowledge for'his own private gain.