How to Win Friends and Influence People market the book, Shimkin decided to send 500 copies of the book to former graduates of the Dale Carnegie Course, with a note that pointed out the utility of the book for refreshing students with the advice they had learned. The 500 mailed copies brought orders for over 5,000 more copies of the book and Simon & Schuster had to increase the original print order of 1,200 quickly. Shimkin also ran a full page ad in the "New York Times" complete with quotes by Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller on the importance of human relations. Originally published in November
How to Win Friends and Influence People the start, going through 17 editions in its first year alone. In 1981, a revised edition containing updated language and anecdotes was released. The revised edition reduced the number of sections from six to four, eliminating sections on effective business letters and improving marital satisfaction. The book has six major sections. The core principles of each section are explained and quoted from below. Before "How to Win Friends and Influence People" was released, the genre of self-help books had an ample heritage. Authors such as Napoleon Hill, Orison Swett Marden, and Samuel Smiles had enormous success with their self-help books