Eugene M. Schwartz career in advertising and marketing was a rapid succession of events. He had started in mail order as a delivery boy in 1949. Before the end of the year, he had graduated to the level of junior copywriter. In 1951 he was a copy chief. Three years later Schwartz had become the president of his own million-dollar mail order firm. This alone was a major accomplishment. Yet, since that time he has sold tens of millions of dollars worth of almost every conceivable product in mail order, both in his own firms and as one of the world's highest-paid consultants. His book, Breakthrough Advertising, has been considered a mail order classic by some and its reputation had led to frequent thefts of the book from library shelves across the nation. During his life, Schwartz lectured and taught extensively.

Few dispute the fact that Eugene Schwartz was an outstanding copywriter and marketer. The man had a grasp of his role as a copywriter that very few who practice the craft today can compare to.

Breakthrough Advertising was published in 1966. Initially, it failed to generate adequate sales so it went out of print for a time. In his book, Schwartz expressed that it is not the copywriter’s job to try to persuade people to do something they don’t want to do or are not ready to do. Rather it was the copywriter’s job to identify and comprehend clearly what he desires of the populace were and develop and write copy that gives voice to these desires. This involved really listening to the public and finding the voices of the people at large. This could be most effectively accomplished by examining the media.

It could be said that the secret to Eugene Schwartz’s success was his ability to listen carefully and hear the desires of the people. He then wrote headlines and ads that used this understand to create a desire for a particular product. An amazing talent, that still remains touchstone for successful copywriters today.