By Claude C. Hopkins and Troy S. Laughren

© 2005 Troy S. Laughren All Rights Reserved
No part of this 2005 version May be reproduced in any form.

Clichés and generalities roll off the human understanding like water off a ducks back.  They leave no impression whatsoever.  To say, "Best in the world," "Lowest price in existence," etc… are at best, simply claiming the expected.  But superlatives of that sort are usually damaging.  They suggest looseness of expression, a tendency to exaggerate a careless truth and lead readers to discount all the statements that you make.

People recognize a certain license in selling talk as they do in poetry.  A person may say, "Supreme in quality" without seeming a liar, though one may know that the other brands are equally as good.  One expects a salesperson to put his best foot forward and excuses some exaggeration born out of enthusiasm.  But just for that reason general statements count for little.  And a person inclined to use superlatives must expect that his every statement will be taken with some caution.

But a person who makes a specific claim is either telling the truth or a lie and people do not expect an advertiser to lie.  They know that he can't get away with lying in the best mediums.  The growing respect in advertising has largely come through a growing regard for its truth.

So a definite statement is usually accepted.  Actual figures are not generally discounted.  Specific facts, when stated, have full weight and effect.

This is very important to consider in either written or personal salesmanship.  The weight of a statement may often be multiplied by making it specific.  Say that a tungsten lamp gives more light than a carbon lamp and you leave some doubt.  Say it gives three and one-third times the light and people realize that you have made tests and comparisons.

A dealer may say, "Our prices have been reduced" without creating any marked impression.  But when he says, "Our prices have been reduced 25 per cent" he gets the full value of his announcement.

A mail order advertiser sold women's clothing to people of the poorer classes.  For years he used the slogan, "Lowest prices in America."  His rivals all copied that.  Then he guaranteed to undersell all other dealers.  His rivals again did likewise.  Soon those claims became ordinary for every advertiser in his industry, and they became commonplace. Consumers no longer believed any of them.

Then under good advice, he changed his statement to "Our net profit is 3 per cent."  That was a definite statement and it proved very impressive to the reader.  With their volume of business it was evident that their prices must be low.  No one could be expected to do business on less than 3 percent and the next year that business had an astounding increase in sales.

At one time, long ago in the automobile business there was a general impression that profits were excessive.  One well-advised advertiser came out with this statement, "Our profit is 9 per cent."  Then he quoted actual costs on the hidden costs of a $1,500 car.  They amounted to $735, without including anything one could easily see.  This advertiser had great success with those automobiles at that time.

Shaving soaps have long been advertised as "Abundant lather," "Does not dry on the face," "Acts quickly," and so on…  One advertiser had as good a chance as the other to make an impression with those claims.

Then a new manufacturer entered the industry.  It was an extremely difficult industry, for every customer had to be taken from someone else.  He stated specific facts.  He said, "Softens the beard in one minute."   "Maintains its creamy fullness for ten minutes on the face."  "The final result of testing and comparing 130 formulas." Perhaps never in advertising has there been a quicker and greater success in an equally difficult market.

Makers of safety razors have long advertised fast shaves. One maker advertised a 78-second shave.  That was definite.  It indicated actual tests.  That company at once made excellent advances in their sales.

In the old days all beers were advertised as "Pure," The claim made no impression on the reader.  The bigger the type used, the bigger the stupidity.  After millions had been spent to impress the masses, one brewer pictured a plate glass where beer was cooled in filtered air.  He pictured a filter of white wood pulp through which every drop was cleared.  He told how bottles were washed four times by machinery.  How he went down 4,000 feet for pure water. How 1,018 experiments had been made to attain a yeast cell to give beer that perfect flavor.  And how all the yeast was forever made from that adopted mother yeast cell.

All claims were such that any brewer could have made them.  They were mere essentials in ordinary brewing.  But he was the first to tell the people about them, while others merely cried "pure beer."  He fostered the greatest success that was ever made in beer advertising.

"Used the world over" is a very flexible claim.  Then one advertiser said, "Used by the peoples of 52 nations," and many consumers were sold.

One statement may take as much space as another, yet a definite statement may be many, many times more effective.  The difference is immense.  If a claim is worth making, make it the most impressive way possible.

All these effects must be studied.  Salesmanship-in-print is very expensive.  A salesperson's loose talk matters little.  But when you are talking to millions at great costs, the weight of your claims is very important.

Remember no generality ever has any weight whatsoever.  It is like saying, "How do you do?" When you have no intention of inquiring about one's health.  But specific claims when made in print are taken at face value.