SECURING FAVORABLE ATTENTION

You would find it an interesting study in human nature to stand in front of different shop windows and record the types of people whose favorable attention is drawn by each. Select, for example, a book-store window, a jewelry display, a window full of tools and instruments, an offering of meats and groceries, and a traction engine. You will find a description of various types in the first few chapters of this book. Suppose you took fifty, one hundred, one hundred and fifty, two hundred observations before each display and then analyzed the records to find the percentage of each type whose favorable attention was called to each window.

THE PHYSICALLY FRAIL

These results show that the individual of the physically frail type, as described in Chapter 2 of this book, is chiefly interested in books, in beauty, ideas and ideals, elegance, and luxuries. His favorable attention is caught by that which is beautiful. If the thing offered him has in it or about it any elements of beauty, elegance, luxury, or idealism, this should first be presented, even if the true value of the article lies in its utility. In the same way, this individual will respond most quickly with his favorable attention to that which is intellectual, educational, literary, scientific, or philosophic, unless he is also of the strictly financial type which is sometimes, though not often, true of the physically frail. Then his attention may be readily secured by an apt quotation from a price list.

Because the physically frail man does not like manual labor and cannot do it well, his attention may be gained by any contrivance for saving labor, making life easier physically, and substituting mental work for physical.

“Let the Gold Dust Twins Do Your Work” is a headline which no doubt attracts the favorable attention of many of this class, who might utterly ignore “Let the Gold Dust Twins Save You Money.”

THE FAT MAN

The favorable attention of the fat man is very evidently gained most readily by that which appeals to his physical senses and appetites. This is because the keynote of his nature is enjoyment. He is always on the alert for anything which may contribute to his enjoyment. He is not fond of physical or mental work, but he is interested in food products, labor-saving devices, comforts, luxuries, finances, politics, merchandizing, and, in fact, everything which contributes to his enjoyment either directly or indirectly through his ability to command the mental and physical services of others.

He who would gain the favorable attention of a fat man, therefore, might be most successful by beginning with inviting him to luncheon or dinner. In the absence of this, he might begin conversation by a discreet question or comment upon the political situation. The headline, “Let Me Show You How To Make More Money” might appeal to the impractical man, but it is not likely to gain the favorable attention of the fat man. The fat man’s natural feeling about a request of that kind is: “If you know how to make more money, why don’t you use that knowledge for yourself?” Financially, his favorable attention is much more likely to be secured by asking him whether he believes real estate prices are going to advance or railroad stocks are going to decline or interest rates are going to hold firm. Unless he is of the highly speculative type, he is more than likely to be suspicious of any financial proposition which offers large returns at the outset. He usually has a shrewd way of unearthing propositions which will pay him large returns; but, as a general rule, he would rather unearth them himself than to have some interested party come and offer them to him.

THE MAN OF BONE AND MUSCLE

The favorable attention of the man of bone and muscle is always most quickly gained by something that moves, some piece of mechanism, or, perhaps, by an object suggestive of outdoor sports. Many a salesman has secured the favorable attention and gained his way into the good graces of a man of this type by talking to him about hunting, fishing, golf or baseball. If you take the fat man to luncheon with you, take this man out to play golf or tennis or have a motor ride.

A salesman of our acquaintance once determined to sell a full line of school supplies to the superintendent of schools in a large western city. The contract was a considerable one and meant a large commission to the salesman. As he studied the situation, he learned that one of his competitors had been furnishing all of the supplies for the schools in this city for a number of years and that it was very difficult for the salesmen from other business houses to get a hearing. The superintendent’s usual manner of rebuff was to say: “No, I do not care to look at your line. We are being excellently served now, sir, and have no desire to make a change.”

This salesman proceeded to the office of the superintendent early in the morning, before that official arrived, and was waiting in the ante-room when his prospective customer came in. Observing the man quickly, as he walked through the ante-room into his private office, the salesman noted that he was tall, square-shouldered, with a square face and jaw, wide forehead and a slow, elastic, graceful stride. In other words, he was distinctly a man of the bony and muscular type. A few minutes later the salesman was ushered into the superintendent’s office. He carried with him, instead of a huge sample case this he left in the ante-room an ingenious little mechanical pencil sharpener. Stepping up to the superintendent’s desk, he set the machine down squarely in front of the official and, without a word, picked up a pencil from the desk and sharpened it.

“How much by the dozen?” asked the superintendent.

“Twenty-five dollars,” replied the salesman.

“Send me five dozen,” said the superintendent, drawing towards him a requisition blank.

While the superintendent was writing the requisition, the salesman quietly slipped out and brought in his sample case. When he returned, the superintendent was sharpening a pencil for himself with much evident enjoyment.

“What else have you?” said he, without looking up.

Of course that question opened up the salesman’s sample case, and when he left the office, he had at least broken down that ancient barrier and had secured an order for considerably more than one-third of the year’s supplies.

In our story of the railroad man who was induced to buy an automobile without even suspecting that his patronage was being solicited, observe how skillfully the salesman drew his customer’s attention to the mechanical features of the machine. The colonel, being a railroad man, was, of course, of this bony and muscular type.

THE IMPRACTICAL MAN

The impractical man lives in a world of dreams, theories, hypotheses, and philosophies. His favorable attention is immediately attracted to an ingenious idea. If he is of the fine-textured, delicate-featured type, he will give his favorable attention readily to that which is artistic, poetical, musical, dramatic, or literary. Financially, he is far more likely to give attention to a proposition which promises immense returns quickly than to one which is safe, solid and substantial, but promises only small returns. His favorable attention cannot for long be sustained by mere recitation of facts. He does not care much about facts and they are likely to prove dry and uninteresting to him. Give him the theories; show him the philosophy of the thing; appeal to his imagination, his sense of beauty and his ideals, and he is ready to listen further.

THE PRACTICAL MAN

The practical man demands facts. Theories and abstractions worry him. Even if you had his favorable attention and were to try to go too much into the reasons for things, you would probably lose it. He is the kind of man who wants to be shown, who demands that you place the actual object before him, if possible, so that he can see it, taste it, smell it, feel of it. His principal concern about any proposition is not, “Is it reasonable?” or “Is it in accordance with theories?” but rather “Will it work?” “Is it practical?” If you can show him the facts and can convince him by demonstration, if possible, that the thing will work, you will secure his very immediate attention.

THE VAIN

Those who are hungry for fame, who are eager for the limelight, whose ears itch for the sound of applause, are, of course, quickly responsive to flattery. If they are fine-textured and have delicate features, small hands and feet, flattery must be of a refined and delicate nature. If, on the other hand, they are of coarse texture, large, coarse features and big hands and feet, they will, if their vanity be a ruling motive, eagerly swallow the most atrocious and fulsome praises. Look for the extremely short upper lip, for an excess of jewelry, a tendency to over-dress and extreme foppish methods of arranging the hair. Where you find one or more of these indications, you find the easiest road to favorable attention through the appetite of the individual for praise. If he is of the intellectual type, praise him for his smartness. If he is a fat man, praise him for his popularity, his political astuteness, his financial acumen, his artistic ordering of a dinner, for his impartiality. If he is of the bony and muscular type, praise him for his mechanical ability, for his strength, skill and agility, for his love of freedom and independence. If he is of the literary and artistic type, praise him for his art. If he shows a fondness for dress, flatter him on his personal appearance. Watch any man of this type carefully and you will soon discover his pet vanity, and when you have discovered it, you have found an easy road to the citadel of his desires.

THE MATTER-OF-FACT

If an individual has a long, straight upper lip, a keenly practical, matter-of-fact type of forehead, long, severe lines of countenance and a high crown, do not attempt flattery. Such a person is instantly suspicious of anyone who flatters him. He keeps his feelings well under control. He has very decided opinions and convictions of his own and it is difficult to induce him to act except in accordance with them. Such a person gives his favorable attention to fact and, usually, only to facts germane to the proposition in hand. He does not care much for comments upon these facts and is quite likely to refuse to listen to all appeals to his emotions. He has, however, as a general rule, considerable love of power. He likes to dominate, to rule, not so much for material personal advantage as for the sake of imposing his opinions and convictions upon others and the satisfaction of feeling that the power is in his hands. Show him facts that will convince him that your proposition will increase his power and you appeal to one of his strongest motives.

THE SOCIAL AND FRIENDLY

There is a very large class of people who are distinctly friendly and social in type. A leading characteristic of this type is, as we have stated already, the full, round back-head. The best, easiest and quickest way to gain the favorable attention of such people is to develop your relations with them upon a friendly and social basis. Indeed, a capacity for making friends and keeping them is one of the most valuable assets of any human being, no matter what his ambitions and desires. As a general rule, we can more easily persuade those who feel friendly toward us than we can those who are indifferent. Observe the successful salesman and the successful politician, those whose professional success depends upon the power to persuade; they are nearly all of the social, friendly type.

THE VALUE OF FRIENDLINESS

For some men it comes natural to make friends with everyone with whom they come in contact. Others make friends with few, but their friendships are powerful and lasting. Still others are very social; they meet people easily and are fairly successful in dealing with them; but they make few, if any, intimate friends. Still others are neither social nor friendly. They do not particularly care for people but rather enjoy solitude. No matter which type a man may be, he will do well to cultivate true friendliness. Our friends turn business to us. They give us important information at the right time. They influence people in our favor. They warn us of disasters. They come to our rescue in times of trouble and help to protect us against our enemies. Finally, but perhaps most important of all, they give us an opportunity to do all these things for them, and in this service we find our highest and truest pleasure.

COMBINATION TYPES

We have suggested arbitrarily in this chapter a few of the types you will meet and the best ways to gain the favorable attention of each. Naturally, these types may overlap. For example, a man may be a fat man and also of the exceedingly practical type. He is, therefore, approachable upon either one of the two lines suggested or with something which appeals to both elements in his nature at once. Plain, simple, easily recognized facts about a sound financial proposition, for example, would combine the two factors.

There are, of course, many other types and combination types. To treat each one of them exhaustively would require, not a volume, but a library. Yet there are certain fundamental principles by which all of them may be known and in accordance with which each may be successfully persuaded. A thorough scientific study of human nature will reveal them.