Let us now take a selection at random of various advertisements which have appeared from time to time, and endeavour to analyse from a common sense point of view the impressions they create and the degree of conviction which they carry.
The remarks which follow are not intended to be critical but merely analytical.
Referring to the advertisement of Borwick's Baking Powder (No. 1). This advertisement has appeared in its present form, or some slight adaptation of it, for many years in a great number of publications. What impression does this particular advertisement, as it stands, create ? When seen it will create an impression for an infinitesimal portion of a second of the name " Borwiek's Baking Powder." This is the sum total of its usefulness : it carries no impression of quality ; it carries no impression of price or of usefulness ; it carries no conviction whatsoever : in short, it gives no in formation of any character, either in actual words, or by impression, except that such an article exists. The reader will ask : Borwick's baking powder is an article which surely has been successfully advertised since one can obtain it anywhere. That is assuredly so. But success might have been achieved sooner or at less expense were the quality of the baking powder exploited in some form or other. The success is mainly due to the fact that Borwick's baking powder has had the field almost entirely to itself. It has had no advertised competitors. There are many such advertisements, but it is generally to be found that the goods they represent were established on the market many years ago, when competition was very slight, and they practically had the field to themselves.
The next example is that of the famous drawing by Mr. Harry Furniss for Pears' Soap, which is reproduced here, marked No. 2. What impression does this single advertisement carry ? First of all it carries, as with Borwick's baking powder, the impression of the name, but in this case to a very much greater degree of strength. First, in all probability, because it is illustrated and catches the eye. Second, because it has a witty and humorous associa tion. In all probability this advertisement was noted and remarked upon on its very first appearance, and was handed round and commented upon from one to another, which was all advertising for Pears' soap. Does it carry any other impression than that of the name only ? None whatever. If any other impression were carried by this particular advertisement it would be rather unfavourable than favourable, because the association of this decrepid dirty-looking old man with Pears' soap is not natural and not favourable. It carries no conviction at all. It does not exploit the soap ; it claims no merit for it, nor tells nothing whatever about it ; it merely creates a very strong impression of the name on account of the illustrations and the association of the illustration with a humorous and witty subject.
" Pears' Soap " are also successful advertisers, but it must be borne in mind that they use many other forms of publicity besides this advertisement. The well-known and famous advertisement of "Bubbles," for instance, was an artistic picture which excited great comment, and various other advertise ments of Pears' soap, such as " You dirty boy," and " He won't be happy till he gets it," and "The Good Morning" advertisements are well known to the whole of the English-speaking world. The impression created by the majority of this advertising was that of the name only, but that impression was a gigantic one, because of the choice of subjects by the proprietors of Messrs. Pears' soap, and because of the millions and millions of posters,
leaflets, and advertisements which gave expression to these various ideas.
The soap has rarely been exploited on its merits, i.e. the advertising was not planned to convince the people of the merits of Pears' soap. Thus you will find, if you ask a person to name the soap most prominent in his mind, he will name Pears' soap ; but if you ask him what soap he uses, in all probability you will find it is some other brand of soap altogether.
Example No. 3 is totally different from examples Nos. 1 and 2 in every way. First of all it creates no immediate impression of any kind what ever. It might be termed hidden advertising. No advertising is developed at all until it is nearly half read, and then it transpires that it is an advertisement for Worthington's Ale. If the reader, after having dis covered this, continues to read the advertisement to its conclusion, then it may be held that this advertisement will have done excellent work. It will then have impressed the name " Worthington " strongly on the mind of the reader, and will have in addition very strongly impressed the qualities of that ale on the mind of the reader, and to a certain extent will have carried conviction to the mind of that reader regarding the quality of Worthington's product. It is obvious, therefore, that this type of advertising is remarkably effective on those who actually read it ; but it is well to consider whether the public interest in ale of any kind is so strong that even the casual reader of this advertisement would continue to read it, once the name of the article had been disclosed. In all probability it will be found that the public do not take sufficient interest in the methods of brewing ale as to hold their attention to this particular advertisement right to the end. It is certain that a large proportion of readers will not continue to read the advertisement after the disclosure alluded to, and some of them would, in a measure, resent this style of advertising. What we have to consider is whether the proportion of readers of the paper in which this advertisement appears is large enough to make the expenditure entailed a profitable one. It must be borne in mind that this particular advertiser makes his appeal to the million and not to the few, and it is incumbent upon him to attract attention of the maxi mum number of readers in any publication in which his advertisement appears, so that lie might at least impress the name of his goods. Is such an advertisement likely to achieve this end ? From a common-sense point of view it would not appear so. The heading does not indicate the nature of the advertisement, and even if the public were particularly interested in the brewing of beer, there would be no indication that this advertisement treated of that subject. It makes its appeal generally, and will undoubtedly attract the attention of a certain number of readers of the paper in which it appears. These readers will read on until they come to the disclosure of the fact that it is an advertisement for Worthington's ale, and not being particularly interested in such a subject, they will not continue to read it. Therefore the advertising value is lost, or nearly so, on those readers. The small minority that peruse the article to its close will, of course, receive a favourable impres sion, and the advertisement may be regarded as having done its work, so far as that small minority are concerned ; but it must be remembered that the great majority of the readers of the paper miss that advertise ment altogether.