Summary Information
Daniel Starch and Staff Papers
1938-1961
U.S. Mss 126AF
0.8 c.f. (2 archives boxes)
Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)
Records of a New York advertising research organization founded by Daniel Starch in 1923. Included are background information and a selection of the reports on media advertising effectiveness for which the firm is known. Background material consists of a brief history; several promotional items; an interrupted run of a monthly newsletter, Tested Copy, which provides highlights of Starch's research, 1938-1960; and his pamphlet, Measuring Product Sales Made by Advertising (1961). Reports divide into print and broadcast media; while the broadcasting reports focus on general audience characteristics, the magazine and newspaper sections examine reactions to specific publications such as Life and TV Guide.
English
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-us0126af ↑ Bookmark this ↑
Biography/History
Daniel Starch and Staff is one of the oldest advertising research firms in the United States. Its reports on the effectiveness of advertising in the print and broadcast media are widely used by advertisers. As founder, Daniel Starch began advertising research in 1919 while on the faculty of the University of Wisconsin and continued this work at the Harvard Business School. In 1923 while still at Harvard, he formed Daniel Starch and Staff. Three years later he moved operations to New York City, and since 1952 Starch offices have been located in Mamaroneck, New York. Since its inception, the Starch organization has been deeply involved in the evaluation of advertising in print. It has also conducted research in the field of broadcast advertising, producing the first study of radio audience size in 1928 and later entering the field of television advertising in the early 1950's. Daniel Starch retired from active work with his organization in 1968.
Scope and Content Note
The collection consists primarily of reports on the effectiveness of advertising. There is also a brief history of the Starch organization, 1960, and several promotional publications, 1938-1961. Though quite fragmentary, the papers point up the type of service provided by the Starch organization. The collection is divided into two groups: background material and reports.
The BACKGROUND MATERIAL contains a history of Daniel Starch and Staff, a publication by Daniel Starch on the measurement of broadcast sales, and several promotional items which explain Starch services. Particularly interesting are the issues of Tested Copy, a monthly newsletter which provides highlights of Starch research. Although spanning 1938 to 1960, there are several significant gaps in this newsletter coverage. The REPORTS, based on personal interviews, concern advertisements on radio and television and in newspapers and magazines in the mid to late 1950's. The former relate viewing and listening habits of audiences to both their buying habits and their demographic and personal characteristics. Notable here are studies of the television viewing of female heads of households for 1955 and 1956. The studies of advertising in newspapers and magazines consist of a summary of Starch newspaper studies from 1955 to 1957, and reports on the effectiveness of advertisements in issues of TV Guide, Field and Stream, and Life magazines, 1956-1961. The most extensive files are weekly reports on Life, 1957-1958.
Administrative/Restriction Information
Presented by Daniel Starch, Mamaroneck, New York, and the National Broadcasting Company, New York City, 1961 and 1967. Accession Number: MCHC61-82 ; MCHC67-48
Processed by R.H. Tryon, September 1978.
Contents List
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Series: Background Material
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Box
1
Folder
1
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History of Daniel Starch and Staff, ca. 1960
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Box
1
Folder
2
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Measuring Product Sales by Advertising, by Daniel Starch, 1961
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Box
1
Folder
3
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Tested Copy, 1938-1960
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Box
1
Folder
4
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Miscellaneous Publications, 1955-1960
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Series: Reports
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Radio and Television
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Box
1
Folder
5
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Characteristics and possessions of households, September, 1954
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Box
1
Folder
6
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Recent purchases of rapid turnover products, February, 1955
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Characteristics and personal habits of audiences
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Box
1
Folder
7
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January, 1955
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Box
1
Folder
8
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June, 1955
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Box
1
Folder
9
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June, 1956
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Box
1
Folder
10
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November, 1956
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Box
1
Folder
11
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September, 1957
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Viewing habits of female heads of households
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Box
1
Folder
12
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July, 1955
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Box
1
Folder
13
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July, 1956
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Box
1
Folder
14
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November, 1956
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Newspapers and Magazines
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Box
1
Folder
15
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Newspaper Adnorms, 1955-1957
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Box
1
Folder
16-17
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TV Guide, June and October, 1961
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Box
2
Folder
1
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Field and Stream, 1956
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Life
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Box
2
Folder
2-3
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1957
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Box
2
Folder
4-5
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1958
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