John Caples - Marketing Master
NEW YORK -- Navy officer writes the most famous ad
of all time.
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John Caples, the man who wrote the most
famous ad of all time
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John Caples believed in testing of ads, consistency in copywriting
practice, and simplicity in advertisements.
As a young copywriter at the Ruthrauff and Ryan mail order advertising
agency, Caples wrote what probably is the most famous ad of all time:
"They Laughed When I Sat Down At the Piano..."
A few months later, he also wrote another famous ad: "They Grinned When
The Waiter Spoke To Me In French".
Both ads have been "plagiarized" and satirized continuously ever since.
One year later Caples moved to BBDO (Batten, Barton, Durstine and
Osborn) where he spent the rest of his writing career. In 1941 Caples
became a vice president, and in later years he served the company as the
creative director.
Caples' career was interrupted for a short time during World War II
when he was called back into the Navy. During this time he rose to the
rank of commander.
John Caples also wrote 5 books:
Tested Advertising Methods (1932)
Advertising For Immediate Sales (1936)
Advertising Ideas (1938)
Making Ads Pay (1957)
How to Make Your Advertising Make Money (1983)
Note: Except for Tested Advertising Methods, these
books are out-of-print.
The world's best copywriters today regard
Tested Advertising Methods as one of the best copywriting "How-To"
bibles ever written -- detailing proven advertising methods that sell like
crazy. Caples himself revised the book 3 times (in 1947, 1961 and 1974).
In Making Ads Pay, Caples reveals a 7-step checklist of proven
methods that have been repeated and repeated in successful ads:
- Does you ad attract the RIGHT AUDIENCE?
- Does your ad HOLD the audience?
- Does your copy CREATE DESIRE?
- Do you prove it's a BARGAIN?
- Do you establish CONFIDENCE?
- Do you make it EASY TO ACT?
- Do you give prospects a reason to ACT AT ONCE?
In 1973 he was elected into the Copywriters Hall of Fame and four years
later into the Advertising Hall of Fame. The John Caples International
Awards were founded in his honor by Andi Emerson in 1977.
When Caples died on June 10, 1990, he was 90 years old.
Seven years later, Fred Hahn edited a 5th edition of Caples' great
copywriting bible
Tested Advertising Methods. Although it does not include much of
Caples' wit, although it does not include most of Caples' classic ad
examples, it still remains a classic marketing guide.
Since I study all the great marketing and advertising gurus
from the past for a
living, you can guess I know what works and what doesn't . But there is only
one that has made me serious money.
Click here to see who.
