Scientific Advertising was written by the renowned advertiser Claude C Hopkins in 1923. Hopkins is known by many as the father of advertising. Through a lifetime of revolutionary work, Hopkins developed unprecedented strategies to advertise effectively without taking huge financial risks. He lists out his most important strategies for advertising in a scientific and reliable way. In Scientific Advertising Hopkins shares his secrets to advertising success with the world.
Why read this book?
As the end of my college career is in sight, I am preparing to dive into the workforce. As a marketing major with an interest in advertising and copywriting I am struggling to identify and focus on coursework that will help me excel in my career.
“The man who wins out and survives does so only because of superior science and strategy.”
– Claude Hopkins
Marketing literature and college courses will flood you with a lot of information, but it is often difficult to see the bigger picture and use this information in practice. Scientific Advertising helped me set a solid foundation of advertising knowledge to build off of.
Hopkins neatly organizes the book by chapters that briefly but thoroughly explain each strategy that he feels are essential for effective advertising. This spares you the task of trying to identify what’s important in your marketing textbooks.
Scientific Advertising is not just important for people starting their careers. No matter where you are in your career in marketing or advertising, this book is a valuable asset. Even if you are an experienced advertiser, it can only help to go back to the main principles that advertising is based on.
What are Hopkins’ strategies, and why should I care about them?
I have praised the advertising strategies in this book enough, it’s about time I tell you what they are.
The book’s twenty-one chapters each focus on a strategy or principle of advertising Hopkins deems essential. He shares short anecdotes about his most successful campaigns and how he discovered which strategies worked and which didn’t. He ties off each chapter by summarizing why each strategy matters.
Here are three of the strategies I think are the most important. The rest you will have to discover yourself.
#1. Advertising is data- and results-driven
The main overarching strategy is using data and results to guide advertising
When Hopkins first entered the field, advertising was new and mostly based on gut feelings and guesswork. Hopkins revolutionized the field by using testing and data to see which advertisements led to sales and which ones flopped.
This, as he repeatedly states, can save companies millions. By testing advertisements instead of coming up with something clever and running it, you can see how consumers will react. This means you can run a campaign when tests show a positive public response and not run it when consumers were tested and there isn’t much excitement.
#2. The importance of samples
Hopkins explains how using samples has helped him save companies on the verge of bankruptcy, and how no matter the cost of sampling, it will probably still be the cheapest method of advertising.
Hopkins rules for samplings are as follows: Give samples only to interested people who have heard your story, and create an atmosphere of respect, a desire, and an expectation before giving your sample.
#3. Advertising is just salesmanship
Hopkins doesn’t let you forget that the point of advertising is to sell products and services. In his mind, the only difference between advertising and salesmanship is the audience. The audience of a salesperson is one person, the audience of an advertisement is thousands or millions.
Hopkins states that there is one way to answer many advertising questions. That way is to ask yourself “Would this help a salesman sell goods?” and “Would it help me sell them if I met a buyer in person?”
In conclusion…
I hope this post gives you a good idea of what Claud Hopkins discovered throughout his career, and how it is applicable to advertising today, but I urge you to still read the book yourself. There is no mathematical formula for coming up with a great advertisement, but the contents of the book are close to it. If you are interested in advertising or looking to enhance your advertising skills this is the book for you.
About the author
Colin Young is a copywriter at Copper Sun Creative. He specializes in writing advertising and branding content. When he is not blogging or working to complete his bachelor’s degree in Marketing he enjoys doing anything outdoors.