In copywriting, specifics sell, generalities do not

In the 80s, direct-response copywriter, Milt Pierce, wrote a promotion for a book. 

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It was called 32 Ways to Save Time & Money from the Pages of Good Housekeeping. 

It ran, unbeaten by any other copywriter, for 20 years, making it one of the most successful promotions in the magazine’s storied history. 

“We tested many numbers,” Pierce said in a roundtable conversation with veteran copywriters Bob Bly and Denny Hatch. “We tested ‘28 ways,’ we tested ‘17 ways,’ we tested ‘45 ways.’ But ‘32 ways’ was the most successful.”

“Ah,” said Bly. “Why do you think numbers catch attention so well?”

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“It’s a promise,” said Pierce. 

“It’s an implied promise that you’ll be getting certain, specific information.”

“Also,” Hatch interjected, “you want specific numbers. You don’t want ‘200 ways’ to do something, you want ‘177 ways’ to do something. If it’s 200, people will think, Well, why isn’t it 201 or 199? Did you pad it? Did you leave something off? But if you have a specific number, it’s good.”

“Yes,” said Bly. “Like Claude Hopkins wrote in Scientific Advertising: ‘Generalities roll off the human understanding like water off a duck’s back.’”

“Yes,” said Hatch. “Specifics sell, generalities do not.”

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