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Ward - A New Mode of Advertising, British Patent 9413 of 1887

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The pattern

This still is filed under Utility premium.

Define

The free thing is kept because it works (a calendar, a tool, a template) and the brand rides along.

Mechanism

Usefulness as media. Frequency of use is frequency of exposure. Distinct from a keepable card: here the object has a job.

Verdict

We can give something people will actually use next week.

Read the pattern

Why it works

This is a literal patent for a sneaky advertising technique: hiding an ad under a generic label so the customer brings it into their home unknowingly. Once the label wears off, the ad is permanent.

Steal this when

You want to find a Trojan horse method to get your message into a prospect's environment without triggering their initial sales resistance.

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