A History Lesson in Advertising

I like to keep up to date with the latest trends in advertising, as you may have noticed. But I always keep going back to the fundamentals.

If I ever need a wake-up call, if ever I find myself over-complicating things, I pick up my copy of "Ogilvy on Advertising" (David Ogilvy, 1983). This is a grass roots approach to advertising and one that, twenty four years on, is as valid as it was when written.

This is not a book review but a suggestion that as online media becomes more prevalent, try not to get caught up in the visual hype of web design and interactive media. After all, why are you advertising in the first place? Not to look good, but to increase sales or sales enquiries. Let me give you an excerpt:

"...head of marketing at Ford, inserted advertisements in every other copy of the Reader's Digest. At the end of the year, the people who had not been exposed to the advertising had bought more Fords than those who had. In another survey it was found that the consumption of a certain brand of beer was lower among people who remembered its advertising than those who did not. The brewer had spent millions of dollars on advertising which un-sold his beer."

So grab yourself a copy. $44.95 last time I checked, although mine only cost me $1 at Vinnies (there's a plethora of research books there too, highly recommended!).

I'll leave you with some of Ogilvy's predictions for post-1983:

1. There will be a renaissance in print advertising.
2. Advertising will contain more information and less hot air.
3. Billboards will be abolished.
4. Candidates for political office will stop using dishonest advertising.
5. The clutter of commercials on television and radio will be brought under control.

Ok so maybe this book is a little out of date! But trust me, the fundamentals will never change.
Ogilvy, D. (1983), Ogilvy on Advertising, John Wiley and Sons, Toronto, 1983 ISBN 0-517-55075-X (and Pan Books, London, 1983 ISBN 0-330-26985-2). (Please note any opinions expressed are my own and not that of my company or employer)