The Post below is a what is known as a “Public Domain” rewrite.  I have taken the Public Domain Essay by Herbert Kaufman which was originally copyrighted in 1908 and 1912.  The copyright has since expired and so now the work may be used in any way, including making derivative works and calling them your own.  This is perfectly legal, however I am not one to take the work of another man and call it my own, these words were in their original form, penned by Mr. Kaufman.  All I did was take his ideas and transform them into twenty first century concepts.  The Basic Truths are still the same.  Enjoy.

The Clock that Had no Hands, By Herbert Kaufman

Rewritten by David T. McKee

Internet advertising is to business, what hands are to a clock. It is a direct and certain means of letting the public know what you are doing. In these days of intense and vigilant commercial contest, a dealer who does not advertise is like a clock that has no hands. He has no way of recording his movements. He can no more expect a twentieth century success with nineteenth century methods, than he can wear the same sized shoes as a man, which fitted him in his boyhood.

His father and mother were content with the shopping malls or local shops; nothing better could be had in their day. The were accustomed to print or direct marketing over the radio or television, or perhaps they shopped around the corner in local stores which depended upon the immediate friends of the dealer for support.

So long as everything was within driving distance or could be mailed without too much expense using catalogs or mail-order it was possible for the proprietors of these establishments to exist and make a profit. Local Radio or TV ads informed the public of a multitude of products.

But as technology moved forward things changed, as they always do.

As in the past when transit facilities spread, sections of the city became specialized. Block after block was entirely devoted to stores, and mile after mile became solely occupied by homes. The purchaser and the storekeeper grew farther and farther apart. It was necessary for the merchant to find a substitute for his direct personality, which no longer served to draw customers to his door. He had to have a bond between the commercial center and the home center.

In the same way the Internet has connected customers and merchants around the world and provided this bond in a global way. And the connection is made through Direct Marketing.

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While interconnected computers eliminated distance, advertising was still necessary to inform people where he was located and what he had to sell. It was a natural outgrowth of changed conditions–the beginning of a new era in trade which no longer relied upon personal acquaintance, or newspapers, or radio and TV for success.

Something more wonderful than the fabled philosopher’s stone came into being, and the beginnings of fortunes which would pass the billion dollar mark and place tradesmen’s daughters upon Oriental thrones grew from this new force.

Within twenty years it has become as vital to industry as communications is to commerce.

Advertising is not a luxury nor a debatable policy. It has proven its case. Its record is traced in the skylines of cities where a hundred towering buildings stand as a lesson of reproach to the men who had the opportunity but not the foresight, and furnish a constant inspiration to the young merchant at the threshold of his career.

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 15th, 2009 at 8:52 pm and is filed under Copywriting, Internet Marketing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.