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Lory Pongpol
IEP Level 7
Prof. Barbara Anello-Adnani
Sep 16, 2013
David Ogilvy
The father of advertising
“The consumer isn't a moron; she is your wife.” Or “Never write an
advertisement which you wouldn’t want your family to read. You wouldn’t tell lies to
your own wife. Don’t tell them to mine.” These quotes still are the timeless principles
that have been followed and widely applied in modern advertising firms today. Ogilvy
believes that advertising companies should not insults their consumer’s intelligence
by provides only some catchy slogans or hilarious jokes. These methods are not be
interested or convinced enough for consumers. He suggests we should be sensitive
with consumers by providing valuable product information that helps consumers to
decide whether they will buy our product or not. As much as we can, integrating all
information with the smart idea will leads the advertising to efficient delivers through
final consumer. From David Ogilvy’s perspective, he showed his brilliant intelligence
in marketing expertise and understands the way to positively approach advertising
strategy through his consumers.
“The father of advertising” David Ogilvy was born in West Horsley, England,
on June 23, 1911. He was educated at Fettes College in Edinburgh and at Christ
Church, Oxford. When he was 17, he started work as an advertising manager in
employ of the fabric shop in London (Hays, 1999). In 1935, Ogilvy switched his
career to be an Aga Cookers salesman. His number of stoves sales was astonishing,
and then company commissioned him to write a manual for the instruction of the
other salesmen. This Aga salesmen guidebook was the significant step of Ogilvy’s
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move into advertising, when Fortune Magazine called it "probably the best sales
manual ever written” (Ogilvy & Mather, 2013).
Ogilvy immigrated to the United States in 1938. One year later, he worked at
the Gallup's Audience Research Institute in New Jersey. Ogilvy once mentions Gallup
as one of the major inspirations on his thinking, enhancing scrupulous research
techniques and adherence to reality (Danzig, 1998). At age 37, with $6,000 start-up
funding, he founded his own advertising agency on Madison Avenue in New York.
Afterward, the agency named Hewitt, Ogilvy, Benson & Mather regard to the
financial supported by Mather & Crowley from London (Danzig, 1999).
In 1953, his company’s work direction created a great impact on advertising
industry. He invented the new concept of brand image. This concept reflected that
advertising was a long-term investment in brand building, not only a temporary
attempt to increase the sale. While most of companies in 1950 adopted the hard-sale
strategy, Ogilvy focused on building brand awareness, benefit-oriented copy and eyecatching people or symbols. This advance vision of Ogilvy made his company fly
over from others, even the most giant agency in industry. He also developed his
agency on principle that the function of advertising is to sell and that successful
advertising for any product is based on information about its consumer. His style of
communication was focused on consumer-based, which aim to communicate with
consumers with their own language. Not only what company want to say, Ogilvy
suggests that company need to understand target preference and deliver the
advertising in the way that consumer want to see.
“You cannot bore people in buying: in order for an
advertisement to be effective, it must make the consumer
want to read what it has to say.”
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The key factors that driving each Ogilvy and Mather advertising to be a
successful campaign is the unique process: research the product, position the brand,
strategic planning and create a brand image. Moreover, Ogilvy also outlined the
concept of “big idea”, a strong creative idea that can easily develop and apply on
many executions, in order to attract the attention of the consumers (McDonough,
1998). Without a big idea, Ogilvy insisted that consumers would merely ignore the
advertising. For example, some magazine ads those were full of long factual
information people often overlooked and swiftly flipped to skip those pages. One of
Ogilvy & Mather’s most successful campaign for Rolls Royce emphasizes the “big
idea” of quiet ride with an ad headline: “At 60 miles an hour the loudest noise in this
new Rolls-Royce comes from the electric clock.”
Figure 1. Rolls-Royce Print Ad, Smashingmagazine website. (2012)
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Not only Ogilvy’s capability on creative thinking and marketing intelligence,
he had always been so meticulous about client selection. He only advertises for firms
whose products he is happy to work with. And sometime he rejected client accounts
just because he was not confidence in product. This account screening shows how
greatly he valued his contribution and respectful into client product (Ogilvy, 2004).
His agency major clients are American Express, Ford, Shell, Pond’s, Dove, IBM,
Kodak, Gillette and more. Yet the most important goal of his company is ensuring
both parties make money in the advertising campaign.
According to his lifetime achievement, he was chosen to the US Advertising
Hall of Fame in 1977 and to France's "Order of Arts and Letters" in 1990. Finally,
David Ogilvy died in 1999 and is memorized as one of the most influence people
who shaped a modern advertising industry (Ogilvy & Mather, 2013).
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Bibliography
Danzig, Fred. “From failed farmer to advertising legend.” Advertising Age; Vol. 69
Issue 38, pc25-c25, 1p, (1998). <www.ebscohost.com>
Danzig, Fred. “David Ogilvy: The last giant. (cover story).” Advertising Age; Vol. 70
Issue 31, p1-46, 4p, (1999). www.ebscohost.com
Hays, Constance L. "David Ogilvy, 88, Father of Soft Sell In Advertising,
Dies - Obituary; Biography - NYTimes.com." The New York Times - Breaking
News, World News & Multimedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Oct. 2010. Retrieved from
< http://www.nytimes.com/1999/07/22/business/david-ogilvy-88-father-ofsoft-sell-in-advertising-dies.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm >.
McDonough, John. “Ogilvy & Mather at 50.” Advertising Age; Vol. 69 Issue 38, pc1-c1,
4p, (1998) <www.ebscohost.com>
Ogilvy, David. Confessions of an Advertising Man. New Ed ed. New York: Southbank
Publishing, (2004) Print.
Ogilvy & Mather. Ogilvy & Mather David Ogilvy. (2013)
Retrieved from <http://www.ogilvy.com/About/Our-History/David-OgilvyBio.aspx>.
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