Great Moments in Copywriting: Ogilvy and the Beggar

During one of his morning walks to work in New York City, David Ogilvy encountered a man begging with a sign around his neck.  The sign read: "I am blind," and, as evidenced by his nearly empty cup, the man was not doing very well.  Ogilvy removed the man's sign from around his neck, pulled out a marker and changed the sign to read, "It is spring and I am blind." He hung the sign back around the beggar's neck and went on his way. On his way home he was pleased to notice the vagrant had a full cap.

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