Customer Reviews

Tested Advertising Methods

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

First read Claude Hopkins's "Scientifc Advertising," then read this. Any modern-day advertisers and copywriters who don't follow the teachings of Caples and Hopkins are doomed to failure.

Caples picked up where Hopkins left off, expanding upon Hopkins's work and breaking new ground with his work. Far too many advertisers today fail to heed the advice of Caples and it shows both in their advertisng and the results they achieve.

"Tested Advertisng Methods," together with "Scientific Advertising," form the Bible of Advertising. If you are a serious student of advertising and/or copywriting, this has to be on your bookshelf.

This book is a jewel that every marketer or member of an ad agency should have as a reference. It does not lose time in trying to be creative. It's quite the opposite, with the author defending what he defines as "scientific" advertising, the type of advertising that wins sales as opposed to ad awards. It provides clear explanations on concepts of written copy and tests every different type of ad you can imagine - short copy x long copy, ads with picture x ads without picture, etc - to provide the reader with a quite good idea on the types of ads that really work in generating sales.

The only caveat of this book: it does not mention techniques that work better in radio and TV.

Well, maybe not quite, but this volume and Bob Bly's "The Copywriter's Handbook" would make an excellent base from which to launch a career--provided you mastered everything contained therein.

A classic, this book goes into what sells and what doesn't; the role of headlines-- what makes one good or bad; and other techniques of selling.

If you are curious about what does and doesn't work in advertising, you need this timeless, yet timely resource. And if you are a copywriter, this is required reading and belongs on your book shelf!

Even though this book is based on data from direct mail advertising, almost everything can be applied to writing copy for broadcast media such as radio and television.

Mr. Caples clearly outlines the steps to take in writing, and most important, testing advertising copy. Starting at the top, with the headline, Mr. Caples walks the reader through example after example of how to, and how not to, build an effective ad.

Four of the eighteen chapters in this book deal with the writing of headlines. According to Caples, if you don't grab them with a strong headline, a headline that offers the prospect something of value, they will never get sold by the copy. Caples approach to this task is both straightforward and fact-based, leaving no detail in a headline unexamined. The result is a process that maximizes advertisng pull, and acordingly, revenue.

This is one book that anyone focused on building a carrer in advertising, whether it be print or broadcast, should not be without.

As a pro writer who reads all he can digest, i can truly say this the single most valuable book i've ever read related directly to effective writing.

All of John's advice is transferable - from direct mail to the ad your boss wants written for the local paper.

Simply great stuff; a true gem. Thanks Mr. Caples!

I have read this book twice cover to cover and refer to it almost everyday. If I could have given this book 6 stars I would have done it without reservation.

I have ordered and read at least 4 different books on copywriting and advertising in the last year. Most of the books have good ideas, but none of them describe the methods of writing headlines the way Caples does. He spends 4 chapters on it and let me tell you when he is finished you will know it cold! Personally that would have been enough to sell me on the book, but he doesn't stop there. He talks about scientific advertising to make sure you are writing ads that sell and not waste money. In addition, he talks through how to write the first paragraph and how to structure the copy. Finally, he spends time to talking about how to improve the selling power of copy.

Since I have read this book my ability to write copy has reached a whole new level. If you are in this field or responsible for writing copy I would advise you that this is a book you MUST own.

There's a reason why David Olgilvy calls this the most useful advertsing book he's ever read! I hold a Ph.D in Sales/Marketing and they simply DO NOT teach this money producing stuff enough at our colleges and universities! Instead, most of them opt for creative mush that's clever and makes for good awards and 5 minute speeches....but doesn't sell anything! If you want simple, brass tacks, powerful advertising advice, this book will be the most delapidated marketing resource in your library!
Is you're serious, RUN, don't walk to the checkout and pickup this incredible book. You'll pay guys like Dan Kennedy hundreds and even thousands of dollars for this advice...but it's all right here! Good stuff!

Not only the how, but what is shared in a simple easy to use way. Very useful especially the section on how to test your marketing (your ads), much more available than I could find searching around the net. Great how-to, and how-not-to examples.

As a newly annointed Product Manager I found this book to be a no-nonsense approach to analyzing copy. I used many of the ideas to help re-write some of the headlines and sub-heads while leaving the central theme the creative agency came up with alone.

Excellent tactical tool.

Eighteen "time-tested" chapters that will get your blood pumped, and heart jumped. Much of the book's advice are geared towards the mail order industry. Since mail-order is all about testing, tracking, analyzing. (Caples stresses the importance of testing, so you don't waste your dollars)

It's taught me a lot on

* Starting your copy strong, maintaining interest, and ending with definitive action.
* Improving headlines for better response.
* Recommended tone of voice, and pacing to use
* The right and wrong emotions to appeal to... and much more.