Advertising by Motion Pictures
Ernest A. Dench, a journalist who specialised in motion pictures, wrote this 48-chapter handbook in 1916 (Standard Publishing Company, Cincinnati) because, he says, little definite information on film advertising existed.
What it is
Ernest A. Dench, a journalist who specialised in motion pictures, wrote this 48-chapter handbook in 1916 (Standard Publishing Company, Cincinnati) because, he says, little definite information on film advertising existed. He treats two tools: the sponsored film, from factory-tour "industrials" to comedies and dramas with selling points written in, and the lantern slide shown between reels. He prices the work, about $500 for a 1,000-foot negative and $100 per print, and estimates that one print reaches 312,000 viewers in six months. Short chapters then apply the medium to dry goods, railroads, resorts, pure food, cars, farm machinery, shoes, real estate and newspapers; to training salesmen with films; to star photographs in shop windows; and to exhibitors who refuse ad slides. He closes by naming soda-fountain drinks after film brands, then advertises his own scenario services.
Why read it now
Written before radio and television, the book sets rules that screen advertising still follows. Show, do not caption: Dench wants few titles because viewers remember what they see. Entertain first: audiences sit through a story but resent padding, so cut a film to the ten minutes it deserves. Film builds interest but does not close; printed matter and the salesman finish the sale, which matches today's split between video for reach and other channels for conversion. His warning against showing the same film to the same audience day after day fits modern research on ad wear-out. His sharpest point is the captive audience: in a dark hall no one can turn the page, which is why cinema and unskippable pre-roll still sell at a premium. What has dated: the prices, the slide trade, and his claim that film audiences are the most critical in the world, backed by a single fan interview. He also sold scenario services, so weigh his enthusiasm. One use: plan each video as a first step and name the channel that closes.
Passages worth keeping
it is what the spectator sees, not reads, that leaves the lasting impression
في الفيلم تبقى الصورة في الذاكرة لا النص المكتوب، فلا تثقل الشاشة بالكلام.
Motion-picture advertising, as a direct-appeal proposition, is ineffective.
الفيلم لا يصلح لطلب الشراء المباشر أو لعرض قائمة الأسعار، فوظيفته إثارة الاهتمام.
the motion picture ends at getting interested, and the old stand-bys must clinch the deal at the right time.
دور الفيلم ينتهي عند إثارة الاهتمام، ثم تأتي الوسائل التقليدية لتغلق الصفقة في وقتها.
It is one thing to gain attention and another thing to retain it.
لفت الانتباه أسهل من إبقائه، والإبقاء يحتاج إلى محتوى يستحق المتابعة.
It is the greatest mistake in the world to present the same film before the identical audience day after day.
تكرار الإعلان نفسه على الجمهور نفسه كل يوم يهدره، فغيّر الرسالة أو انقلها إلى جمهور جديد.
What it teaches best
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