"Sensation must be the keynote of all advertising," Mercator told his readers in the November 1892 edition of Saddlery and Harness.
In other words, go big or go home.
Tiny, timid ads don't pay off.
“A small everyday poster is not worth the cost of fixing," Mercator says. "Exactly the same may be said of advertisements in newspapers. A small one amongst hundreds of other small ones is not seen at all; only the large and showy ones draw any attention."
But why gamble on outdoor and print, Mercator asks, when you can use direct mail?
"The best and only sure and safe system of advertising is by addressing circulars from a directory of the town to every inhabitant at all likely to be a customer, and sending them through the post," he says.
"Advertisements on walls, and in newspapers, periodicals, and directories are what we may term promiscuous or indiscriminate. They are issued in thousands with the lottery chance of reaching or being seen by the hundreds or possibly only the tens; whereas the directly addressed missive goes like a faithful messenger at once and without fail to the person intended, and every message is seen if be not read, whilst the carriage of it by post does not cost a tenth part of the amount wasted by the indiscriminate method."
Sound too quaint?
According to Demand Gen Report, "Traditional direct mail is still an important means of communication among B2B marketers, and industry experts are seeing signs of its resurgence as a lead gen tool. This is due to marketers seeing better response rates to mail pieces, and leveraging it with other channels and disciplines such as account-based marketing for a targeted and integrated approach."
