How things haven't changed!

During the course of attacking a case analysis for our marketing class I chanced upon a treatise on effective frequency of advertising written in 1885 - yes 125 years ago; which seems more to mock the way our industry plans for brands in this day and age rather than lend it credit for having learned much. Any nay-sayers have merely to watch one whole Hindi movie on a mainstream channel and count the number of ads that're repeated, and those that're repeated in a single break! So have we learned much, or have we not...you decide.

Thomas Smith, a successful London businessman, wrote a guide called "Successful Advertising" in 1885. His recommendations regarding advertising frequency are still being cited today - as defense for a barrage of commercials that a viewer is subjected to. My favourite is #18. And those weren't gender neutral times, so pardon Mr. Smith for being 'sexist'.

1. The first time a man looks at an advertisement, he does not see it.

2. The second time, he does not notice it.

3. The third time, he is conscious of its existence.

4. The fourth time, he faintly remembers having seen it before.

5. The fifth time, he reads it.

6. The sixth time, he turns up his nose at it.

7. The seventh time, he reads it through and says, "Oh brother!"

8. The eighth time, he says, "Here's that confounded thing again!"

9. The ninth time, he wonders if it amounts to anything.

10. The tenth time, he asks his neighbor if he has tried it.

11. The eleventh time, he wonders how the advertiser makes it pay.

12. The twelfth time, he thinks it must be a good thing.

13. The thirteenth time, he thinks perhaps it might be worth something.

14. The fourteenth time, he remembers wanting such a thing a long time.

15. The fifteenth time, he is tantalized because he cannot afford to buy it.

16. The sixteenth time, he thinks he will buy it some day.

17. The seventeenth time, he makes a memorandum to buy it.

18. The eighteenth time, he swears at his poverty.

19. The nineteenth time, he counts his money carefully.

20. The twentieth time he sees the ad, he buys what it is offering.

So was 3+ was just us (including me) flattering our learning curve? Seems so, doesn't it?