Ogilvy on Advertising

Why reinvent the wheel when you have the soundest principles in advertising at your fingertips? Although Ogilvy's book is almost 25 years old, it's jam packed with timely instruction, insight, and examples. Or perhaps because it is 25 years old. Ogilvy quotes colleague Bill Bernbach:"It is fashionable to talk about changing man. A communicator must be concerned with unchanging man ... The creative man with an insight into human nature, with the artistry to touch and move people will succeed. Without them he will fail."Ogilvy had insight in spades, practical experience, common sense, a passion for research as well as creativity, and above all, a relentless focus on selling. Pick any few paragraphs at random and all those qualities will shine through. Among the many ideas I found really helpful--1. Branding means giving your product personality. (For example, the man in the Hathaway shirt wore an eyepatch.)2. Facts sell better than hype.3. The principles of direct response apply to all forms of advertising.4. Creativity is worthless unless it sells.5. Copywriting is the heart of advertising.6. Use the brand name in your headline. Otherwise 80% of readers may never see it.7. Long copy sells.8. Analogies, big words, and naming the competitor confuse people.9. Pricing cannot be determined scientifically.10. Excellent graphic design is simple graphic design.11. Corporate advertising is worthwhile.12. Always include a promise in your headline.13. The era of the blockbuster brand is ending. (Ogivly detected the "Long Tail" 20 years before most of us!)14. According to Ogivly, "...advertising is no more and no less than a reasonably efficient way to sell."But this summary doesn't do the book justice. He makes solid points nonstop. Not surprising for a master copywriter and former door-to-door salesman, he writes in plain English. He offers "big picture" reflections on the advertising industry, including an impassioned defense of advertising against charges of hucksterism. He offers detailed tips that are just as important, mainly on print advertising, direct response, and dealing with clients.Educational, authoritative, fun to read. A+

If you are responsible for advertising or promoting a company, a product or a cause, this is a superlative book to read. David Ogilvy, founder of Ogilvy & Mather advertising agency, was one of the most successful advertisers of the 20th century.In the 21st century it is easy to get caught up with blogging, social media and email campaigns and think that somehow advertising methods of the past won't work here. Although written before the internet was something that everybody uses, the principles of advertising and his methods couldn't be more appropriate.He was a great believer in market research and good, simple communication. His book is a perfect example - it is extremely easy to ready, very entertaining, and wonderfully useful. There are tried-and-true ways to advertise that work and Ogilvy explains them well with examples of advertising you'll instantly recognize (if you were around in the second half of the 20th century). This book is more than worth its price if you need to advertise.

I like the content of the book itself, however, the end of each line is cut off from the way the book is bound which has become annoying line after line and page after page.I’ve included a photo for reference.

This book is amazing! Not only does Ogilvy write in a very clear and straightforward manner, but he has examples of everything he advises you to do. There are dozens of excellent examples from throughout his career and I'm so grateful. He even includes plenty of ads that he doesn't like and explains why.Other authors expect you to figure out how to implement their advice. Not only does Ogilvy have the best advice but he shows you exact examples of it. Exceptional!

I will keep this simple and concise. The reasoning behind the purchasing decision of this book is easy to understand. Mr. Ogilvy was a advertising pioneer and was willing to share his experiences in the industry to up-and-coming talents like myself.I had doubts about the book because if the book was to be a "how to" for advertising, how would it stack up to the advertising world of 2012? To my surprise and delight, the book is extremely relevant for any copywriter, art director, account executive or higher executive level who wishes to learn to become better at their trade in todays age. If you are a freelance worker, it will help as well. If you wish to find advice on digital media, there is no mention of that but the principles still apply to any medium of advertising and Mr. Ogilvy maps them out perfectly.It is a great book and will benefit any who wish to learn from an idol. Enjoy.

Great book for a newbie learning about marketing! This book doesn't have all the answers you may ask about marketing, but it answers a lot! He gives good basic guidelines that you should follow, not just as a marketer, but as a marketing firm and company. This is an old school book, so it doesn't include anything about digital marketing. But if you do any marketing outside the digital world, this is a great guide! Some chapters are better than others, depending on what you want to get out this book. I found the information for large marketing firms,TV ads, ads for travel, and ads for international firms to be boring, because that doesn't relate to me, but everything else was well worth my time! You might feel the same way, but remember,the marketing industry is big, with so many roles to play in it!