Business screen magazine (1947)

elsfwliere in these pajjes. Il is iin |)Liipos(.here lo concentrate (in .1 lew practical suf^gestions. a few "do's" .mil "don'ts." in connection witli some ol its aspects. We nnisi reliirn to education. Ijut ethical ion in tile lac Is 111 the .American lieni.i.ne. il nut loniuleil on the principles ol the .American heritage, is bound to lail. The most outstanding contribution ol the Ameiican Heritage Foundation's project is that it leads to a searching leappiaisal and examination ol the concepts which have made the success ol .Amcrita |)ossible. li we are to keep oui iotiiiti\ lice we mtist lecognize and act on these |iriiiciples. Great principles make many words tinnecessarv, and action based on ihcsr |iiiiuipU-, makes fewer words count. 'Ihe .-American Heritage Fotindaticm ,iiul its officials, together with the officials ol .ill cooperating organizations anil associations are to be congratulated on having taken such a long ste]j lorward in restating to the individual citi/en, the nation, and the world. the lundamental concepts which make up our priteless heiitage ol freedom. • Eutii:AMoNAi, Opportunity is discussed in "Pop Rings the Bell," the National School Senn<e hislitiite film. Wliai Tiif1ii«ti-T Can Dtt III ((ii(i/y;()ig the resiills of thousands ui ptiblic opinion polls, it has become cpiite obvious that .\mcrican industry has not been nearly so successful in selling the principles of free enterprise as it has been iti selling its prodiiits. f'he lollowing suggestions on how to sell (fur people on their heritage of Iree enterprise grew otit of a series of studies we have been making since 19-1.') in what we call "tcchnicjues of communicating ideas " as contrasted with products. .\s many are aware, some ol .\meri(as leading companies have been conducting extensive educational and achertising campaigns in defense of fiee enterprise. Our sttidies in "coimntinicat ing ideas" in\<)lvcd many tests of national and local advertising (ampaigns. tests of articles in plant anil eiiiplmee maga/ines, ol linancial statements or ads. and of pamphlets, booklets, and other promotional de\ ices. I'hese tests lonsiileied ihlee priniai\ points: I) Was the iiuiiirial interesting enough 10 lie leaiK' '1) II read, was it understooil? and .'i) II uiiileisiood, ilid it haxe the ilesired elle(t? Here are a lew of the piadical (()n( liisions 10 emerge Irom our lesearih: First, inanv aihei lisi iiienis. booklets. .111(1 ( in|)lci\(c |)iilili( .ilioiis ,irc written lar .ibme the educational level of the people addressed. In a recent labor dispute, lor example, the president ol a large company wrote a letiei lo .ill his employees, whiih. upon our anahsis, ]jro\ed to have been written to an llth giade reading level. Unloiiuiialeh we lotind that only about ild'/r ol his workers were .ible to grasp its meaning, necessitating a re-written version which was immediately unilerstanilable to yO^fc. .\liuh has been said in recent years on ilic importance ol increasing one's vocabulary; but the teal problem for many executives is icj shrink their vocabularies ,so they lan s|jeak simply and clearly enough lo be understood bv all. .Second, we loupd that siiiiph giving peo|)le the correct lacts will not necessarily correct their misunderstanding. Cloriect lacts aie certainly important, but even more important is their manner ol presentation. From the number of advertiseis bombarding the public with laits and statistics, it would seem that the academic disease which has blighted muih education, the theory that facts are the cure-all for personal and social ])roblems, has ncjw invaded indnstrv. But the belief that children, or even adults, given the unbiased lacts covering both sides of an argument, will make correct decisions, is one of the fatuous lollies of our time. The simple truth is ili.ii I.Kis. wiilioin eleiiieiuary morals or si.iiulaiils. are likeh to create conlusioM rather than understanding. I*e(»pie have hearts as ^vell as minds, passions as well ,is brains, and when they do read one ol tile in.iin ads or pamphlels ilnusi upmi iluiii, iliey inicipret the lacts in terms ol their own (motional altitudes and moral standards. f herelore. we say, emotional appeals (COM INt:M) IN COLUMN KIC.HT ABOVK) iniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiw should be used to sell free enterprise even if this means a decrease in the number of facts presented. Many companies have conducted product-advertising campaigns of prize conlesis oftering one hundred thousand dollars, 01 fifty thousand, or ten, in cash awards for the best 25-word description of a particular product. This represents one effective use of an incentive or emotional appeal. On a more modest scale, it could be used by local concerns. ci\i( ilubs. or Chambers of Commerce 111 selling I be hicls and principles of the American system. A plant-sponsored contest offering employees, their wives, and especially their school children cash prizes for the best fifty-word essay on such subjects as "What the American Heritage means to me" or "The American Heritage in my Community," would be enlirely feasible and would lead the people to an understanding of their heritage. Lm IHE PEOPi,t; Tell Their Story Instead of preaching to the public about free enterprise, why not initiate some method similar to the above suggestion and allow the public to preach Americanism to itself? Obviously, free enterprise is far more than a bookkeeping formula; far more than a matter of dollars and cents, of profits, capital, and reserves. It is as broad as .Vmericanism itself, but it remains to be identified with .Americanism in the public mind. .Another method of driving home the lull meaning of the American heritage is to point out, in your advertisements and publications, individitals or families who have made use of the opportunities provided by our system. This device is already illustrated by one of the outstanding editorial feats of our time, the Ladies' Home Journal series on typical .American families. Each month the Journal describes one of these families: how they live, what they earn, how they spend it. .All kinds of families are described, from wage workers to company executives. Naturally, when using this method, the selections have to be made so that they clearly illustrate the basic principles which make the .American opportunity possible. In this connection we must demonstrate again and again that the essence of America lies not in its material wealth, but in its spiritual heritage— not in its automobiles, refrigerators, washing machine.s, anil radios, but in its |)rinciplcs and ideals. Ot R FlindamI'Ntal Concept Spiritual loday when anyone talks about spiritual or moral \alues, people tend to shy off. as from someone impractical or perhaps slightly unbalanieil. .And vet the basii priniipli'. the fundamental concept of the .American heritage —that of the dignity of the individual— is strictly a spiritual concept. Every U. S. coin still bears the slogan "In God We Trust". What does it mean, or rather what did it mean? It says that we put certain spiritual \alues above dollars and cents. It means that we put God's moral order abo\e any economic order. • NUMBER I . VOLUME 9 • 194 21