The Art of Writing Soluble Copy
Old time radio — dramatic radio shows that aired from the 1940s through 1962, when the era of radio’s entertainment prominence came to an end — is a rich tapestry of words that, almost unaided, tell compelling tales of characters in love, in need, in trouble, and in action. And for me, one highlight of gems like Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar, Suspense, and Our Miss Brooks is the advertisements.
Radio doesn’t have the advantage of using pictures to tell stories, or to sell things. Words are all radio has. Which makes radio a writer’s paradise, and old radio advertisements a rich resource for inspiration for the copy writer.
I recently heard a gem of an advertising from Anchor Hocking. If the first thing you thought of after reading those words was “The most famous name in glass,” congratulations. You are proof that good advertising copy, and good presentation of that copy, can make a brand memorable long after the words have gone.
This particular ad holds rich images.
Tonight we’re nearing the end of the holiday season, and to those of you who are exhausted, here’s a suggestion: a good, hot cup of coffee, that you can prepare in an instant, without fuss, without work, and without waiting even a minute.
Stop for a moment to consider that in 1948 — this ad aired on January 1 of that year — adults were being told that the way to wind down after a stressful holiday season was with a piping hot cup of stimulant. Drown your stress in coffee! No wonder this era is now seen as a time of emotional suppression.
Now, I’m talking about soluble coffee, the amazing scientific discovery which makes really delicious coffee available at a moment’s notice.
In the late 1940s, the coffee industry was calling instant coffee for the postwar generation “soluble.” Something is soluble when it can be dissolved in water, and it is not a very appealing word. Solubility is not the highest on the list of traits I look for in coffee. Yet in prime time, on CBS radio, in 1948, during Casey, Crime Photographer, a very popular show, this company tried to make instant coffee sound appealing by stressing that it is soluble. Yummy.
While instant coffee was originally invented in 1881, mass production of it began during World War II. After the war, all that military production capabilities were released into the capitalist world of America. The industry had a product to sell, and they were going to sell it.
Now, all you need is a cup, a spoon, and a glass jar. The sanitary and convenient Anchor glass jar in which most of the better packers of soluble coffee bring you their products.
Okay, so now we know this is not an ad for coffee, it’s an ad for glass. Specifically, Anchor glass jars in which coffee makers package their soluble coffee. So, this ad seems to basically be telling the American public that in order to find a good, high quality soluble coffee, you only need to pay attention to the glass jar in which it’s sold. If it’s Anchor glass, you know it’s good coffee.
Then we get into a moment of pure copy sublimity.
The Anchor glass jar opens quickly and simply. There’s no trouble in measuring, no waste in spilling, and even more important, glass jars protect the flavor and freshness of soluble coffee against moisture long after they’re opened.
This is a beautiful description of a jar — it is made of glass; it has a lid; it keeps things fresh — and yet this copy makes the jar seem like it can open itself and measure it’s own contents. I half expect to see these jars dancing in the coffee aisle at my local grocer’s.
Most importantly, a jar that good must contain coffee that’s even more sublime.
You’ll be delighted by the delicious soluble coffees now on the market, particularly those that come to you in convenient Anchor glass containers sealed with Anchor caps. Both products of Anchor Hawking…The most famous name in glass.
Between the name of the company, and the tag line, is a beat, in the midst of which a bell chimes, like the sound a star would make if it were tapped with a tuning fork. The tag line is offset by a second of silence, to emphasize it and connect the two phrases together. It is a line that comes into my head every time I hear the words Anchor Hawking.
That last bit seals the deal. It is the perfect tag line and the perfect slogan for a company that, ultimately, is trying to sell you itself. This is not an ad for glass jars you can buy yourself, nor is it an ad for any of Anchor Hocking’s other lines of cookware and bakeware (Fire-King Oven Glass and the popular Jade-Ite are two of my favorite product names). This ad sells the company brand. What surprises me is that no specific coffee maker (Nescafe had just come onto the market) agreed to join this co-marketing opportunity. Anchor Hocking is selling Anchor Hocking.
Which, to be clear, is a company that is still in business. Anchor Hocking has been making glass in Lancaster, Ohio, for 115 years. They’ve gone through a lot of changes, and are now owned by Oneida, but they still make glass. Though they may not be the most famous name in glass anymore.
This radio ad is a perfect example of the power of words, and how well-crafted copy, along with the right voice, can sell anything. Even when it’s not selling anything at all.
