| 80 years ago, Claude Hopkins had a problem you | | | | pulp, and then watched how every pump and pipe |
| probably faced at some point during your business | | | | was cleaned twice daily to avoid contamination. Even |
| career. | | | | the bottles were washed four times by machinery. |
| The advertising writer had just landed a campaign with | | | | Although the brewery sat on the shores of Lake |
| a struggling company. But the fact that the company | | | | Michigan, Hopkins saw how Schlitz tapped artesian |
| had trouble attracting the customers they wanted was | | | | wells to collect pure water from 4,000 feet below the |
| only a minor issue. | | | | ground. He was also shown vats where beer aged for |
| The primary problem was the product -- it was | | | | six months before it went to users. |
| anything but unique. Several companies shared what | | | | A stop in the laboratory revealed how the yeast used |
| essentially was an identical product. In fact, the product | | | | in Schlitz beer was developed from an original cell that |
| was so common that it was already in homes and | | | | required 1,200 experiments before the finest taste was |
| taverns throughout the United States. | | | | discovered. |
| The new client was Schlitz and the product was beer. | | | | Once back at the office, Hopkins asked, “Why |
| At the time, Schlitz held fifth place in its industry. The | | | | don’t you tell people these things? Why do you |
| strategy you’re about to read propelled the | | | | merely try to cry louder than others that your beer is |
| Milwaukee brewer into a tie for first after only a few | | | | pure? Why don’t you tell the reasons?” |
| months. | | | | “Why?” was the response. “The |
| Schlitz’s rise to prominence has been called the | | | | processes we use are just the same as others use. |
| greatest success in beer advertising. Not only do you | | | | No one can make good beer without them.” |
| see beer’s biggest brands using the same | | | | Hopkins had a hunch people would respond to reading |
| strategy today, but it’s also something you can | | | | how Schlitz achieved “pure” beer. So he |
| apply to any business. | | | | used print ads to tell stories that gave purity meaning. |
| When Hopkins began studying other beer companies, | | | | Here are a couple of those ads: |
| he noticed they all announced the same claim in their | | | | Notice how Hopkins supported his claims with specific |
| advertising -- “pure.” In his book, | | | | facts and didn’t assume prospects knew |
| “My Life in Advertising,” Hopkins | | | | information his client believed was common knowledge. |
| explained how brewers would publicize the word in big | | | | Too often, we’re so close to our companies |
| letters. Some would even buy double-page ads so | | | | that it’s difficult to realize what prospects truly |
| “pure” was displayed as large as | | | | understand. |
| possible. | | | | Also, Hopkins was a master at educating his readers. |
| Hopkins recognized the claim had little effect on | | | | When you walk away from reading one of his ads, |
| prospects. So he went to a Schlitz brewery in search | | | | you feel a little wiser. |
| of a solution … | | | | And, finally, Hopkins wasn’t hesitant about using |
| Once there, he saw plate-glass rooms filled with | | | | long copy. He understood prospects crave as much |
| filtered air where beer dripped over pipes. The | | | | information as possible before making a purchase. |
| process allowed the beer to cool in purity. | | | | After all, who would ever handicap a salesman by only |
| Next, he saw large filters packed with white-wood | | | | allowing him to speak a certain number of words? |