The Waterbury Democrat., 1931-07-27
Bank Copy, Adopting Modern Tempo Shifts From Fear To Thrift Talk
Savings Institutions in Nationwide Campaign to Combat Subscriptions" Attacks Deposits-Tradtional
 Conservatism Overcome in Advertising

cial loans which was caused in large measure by the fact that business houses built up thrift ac- counts against which they drew for resources instead of borrowing from the bank. Instead of paying interest to the bank on loans, these firms actually drew interest from the bank on longtime deposits.
 But while this condition Is working itself out, commercial banks and trust companies have joined the ranks of newspaper ,ad- yertisers with a view to attracting new loan business from the small merchant and big estate manage ment business from wealthy patrons.
 A review of current bank ad- vertising reveals not only the trend of the banking business, but also a well-defined new technique which In many instances Is widely at va riance with the old idea of con servative bank announcements Historical themes vie to-day with sales talks and testimonials.
 The late David Belasco, dean or the American stage, wrote some of lifc's greatest dramas are writ ten in savings bank passbooks' for the first of series of testimonial advertisements placed by the nut tual savings banks of Manhattan, the. Bronx and Westchester county. Subsequent copy featured an inter view with Dr K. l.. Ditmars, cura- tor of the Bronx Zoo, In which he declared, "Everybody knows that financial worry Is about as poison- ous as a snake bite."
 Breaking still further away from tradition, the Central Savings Bank of New York city ran copy on the book page of a New York news paper, picturing man reading "The Book of the Month" It Was labeled quite plainly - Bank Book"-and the text ventured: Before long it reads like a fairy tale! All that money plus interest Is yours! Yours with which to build d home to send your children to college.
 Sixty-five newspapers in Massa- chusetts are publishing a series oi educational advertisements placed by the Mutual Savings Bank asso- citation of Massac chusetts. The f1rst copy invited prospects for savings bank life insurance, which 2o members of the association sell, The names of the 20 banks appear ed on the copy.
 one of the earliest and now one of the most extensive cooperative savings bank advertising cam paigns In the country Is that Of the Six Savings Banks of Albany. N. Y. Since January, 1880, these hanks have subscribed to a plan devised by the DeRouville Adver- Using Agency of Albany. On an average of three times each month the banks are represented in space that Is usually five columns by 10. inches. The second oldest savings hank in New York state. the Al bany Savings bank. founded In 1920. Is q member of the co-opera- five group, It also Is interesting to note that these Albany savings banks have announced they will continue an interest rate of four and one-half per cent. compound ed quarterly. Few banks In New York pay this rate of interest
 Throughout the campaign the idea has been to popularize bank ink and talk thrift in everyday terms. For instance. in April this year the copy featured flower garden and a watering can under the caption. "sprinkled with inter est-that's why savings bank dol lars grow so fast" At the first sign of warm weather in June, the banks ran very plain copy which showed a girl diving in the inter est pool" Across the top was the caption, "The Thrill of Thrift.
 Alternating with these ideas oi saving, the cooperative copy stres the habit of wise spending also. "Spend Some" was the cap ton of q series which attracted attention last fall
 Aside from being a consistent advertising campaign. the coop erative idea has been most advan- tageous to the banks in eliminat- ing requests for program space and other "charity" advertising. George s. DeRouville, president of the agency, told Editor X Publisher.
 These six saving banks" Dr DeRouviile said. Fare now spending nearly all of their advertising funds in the newspapers Before w~'