al-Darahim al-Dhahabiya lottery ad, al-Musawwar 1931
American University in Cairo, Rare Books and Special Collections Library. al-Musawwar. RBSCL believes this item is in the public domain.
The pattern
This still is filed under Direct-mail response.
Define
A physical letter or pack whose only job is a measurable reply: an order, a donation, a call.
Mechanism
Response engineering. Outer, letter, lift, reply device. Every surface earns its keep or it is cut.
Verdict
We can mail, track, and fulfill, and the unit economics survive the stamp.
Why it works
Two boxed claims open the column: the Hamburg state guarantees every prize, and one lucky hour could bring a million gold marks. Then a stacked table of prize sums turns the dream into figures the reader can count down. At the foot, three price boxes for a full, half and quarter ticket and a cut-off English order form let a Cairo reader act on the spot by post, with a dated last day for entries.
The big idea
A great fortune is waiting in a lottery guaranteed by the German state of Hamburg, where 32513 of 80000 tickets win, so a win is presented as almost certain.
The offer
Golden Dirhams lottery tickets: full 1 pound 14s 6d, half 17s 6d, quarter 9 shillings, postage and draw lists included. Order by postal order from Samuel Heckscher senr., Hamburg, by 12 June 1931.
The proof
The Hamburg state government guarantees every prize. 32513 of 80000 tickets win across six monthly draws, prizes total 11409779 gold marks, and the top prize is 750000 gold marks.
Lines from the ad
توجد هنالك ثروة عظيمة فى انتظاركThere is a great fortune waiting for you
فاغتنم فرصة اكتسابهاSo seize the chance to gain it
تضمن الحكومة دفع جميع الجوائز الرابحة المختلفة القيمةThe government guarantees payment of all winning prizes of every value
Steal this when
Use it when the whole sale must close by post or form, and the reader needs the guarantee, the price options and the reply slip on one strip of page.
The emotion
Written to Hope. It makes the Avoid mistake.
It says a great fortune is waiting and urges the reader to seize it, citing 32513 winning tickets out of 80000 beside a 750000 gold mark top prize so a win looks almost certain.
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