J. K. Fraser
209
Don‟t address your message to the thin air. Talk to real people. Don‟t let familiarity with your subject lead you into technical terms which the green reader doesn‟t understand. Don‟t get discouraged when the ideas fail to flow. Keep on trying. The happy thought may wake you up in the middle of the night. Don‟t exaggerate—unless you are willing to plant mistrust. Don‟t expect to get a fair-minded hearing, if you employ unfair claims and phraseology. Don‟t whine. State the facts and trust to the reader‟s sound judgment. Don‟t figure that any product of itself makes a tame subject for advertising copy. A good writer can put a thrill into the nebular hypothesis. Don‟t assume that people won‟t read long advertisements. Rather admit to yourself “I don‟t know how to be interesting.” Don‟t imagine that any combination of words will take the place of a real thought. Don‟t look down on Rhetoric textbooks. They hold many valuable practical pointers on force, clearness and precision. Don‟t fall back on the word “best.” It‟s a sign you are slipping. Don‟t consider your job finished when you have brought out the merits of the product. Make your reader like the Company which offers it. Don‟t convince your reader and leave him guessing at where he can buy. Don‟t lay too much stress on the value of a trade-mark figure. By the time it gets established, it is liable to give a chestnut flavor to the whole advertisement.