Notable quotes about advertising
A good advertisement is one which sells the product without drawing attention to itself.[1]
— David Ogilvy, Founder of Ogilvy & Mather David Ogilvy, Founder of Ogilvy & Mather
Advertising is fundamentally persuasion and persuasion happens to be not a science, but an art.[2]
— William Bernbach, Co-founder of DDB William Bernbach, Co-founder of DDB
Marketing is no longer about the stuff that you make, but about the stories you tell.[3]
— Seth Godin, Author and Marketer Seth Godin, Author and Marketing Executive
Dishonesty in advertising has proved very unprofitable.[4]
— Leo Burnett, Founder of Leo Burnett Worldwide Leo Burnett, Founder of Leo Burnett Worldwide
Stopping advertising to save money is like stopping your watch to save time.[5]
— Henry Ford, Founder of Ford Motor Company Henry Ford, Founder of Ford Motor Company
There is no advertisement as powerful as a positive reputation traveling fast.[6]
— Brian Koslow, Author Brian Koslow, Author
A brand is no longer what we tell the consumer it is — it is what consumers tell each other it is.[7]
— Scott Cook, Co-founder of Intuit Scott Cook, Co-founder of Intuit
Tell the truth, but make the truth fascinating.[8]
— David Ogilvy, Founder of Ogilvy & Mather David Ogilvy, Founder of Ogilvy & Mather
Content is king, but engagement is queen, and the lady rules the house![9]
— Mari Smith, Social Media Strategist Mari Smith, Social Media Strategist
Creative without strategy is called 'art.' Creative with strategy is called 'advertising.'[10]
— Jef I. Richards, Professor of Advertising Jef I. Richards, Professor of Advertising
If dogs don't like your dog food, the packaging doesn't matter.[11]
— Stephen Denny, Business Strategist Stephen Denny, Business Strategist
Doing business without advertising is like winking at a girl in the dark. You know what you are doing, but nobody else does.[12]
— Steuart Henderson Britt, Professor of Marketing Steuart Henderson Britt, Professor of Marketing
An ad is finished only when you no longer can find a single element to remove.[13]
— Robert Fleege, Creative Director Robert Fleege, Creative Director
Advertising brings in the customers, but it is your job to keep them buying from you.[14]
— Chet Holmes, Business Growth Strategist Chet Holmes, Business Growth Strategist
Advertising must respect the intelligence of its audience and if it does not prompt them to think, it will be dismissed.[15]
— Maurice Saatchi, Co-founder of Saatchi & Saatchi Maurice Saatchi, Co-founder of Saatchi & Saatchi
Nobody who bought a drill actually wanted a drill. They wanted a hole.[16]
— Perry Marshall, Author Perry Marshall, Author
Every single element in an advertisement must be put there because testing has shown that it works best![17]
— John Caples, Vice President of BBDO John Caples, Vice President of BBDO
An ad should be an appetizer, not a buffet.[18]
— Lee Clow, Chairman of TBWA\Media Arts Lab Lee Clow, Chairman of TBWA\Media Arts Lab
In good times people want to advertise; in bad times they have to.[19]
— Bruce Barton, Co-founder of BBDO Bruce Barton, Co-founder of BBDO
No one wakes up excited to see more advertising, no one goes to sleep thinking about the ads they'll see tomorrow.[20]
— Jan Koum, Co-founder of WhatsApp Jan Koum, Co-founder of WhatsApp
There is a great deal of advertising that is much better than the product. When that happens, all that the good advertising will do is put you out of business faster.[21]
— Jerry Della Femina, Chairman of Della Femina Travisano & Partners Jerry Della Femina, Chairman of Della Femina Travisano & Partners
Nobody reads ads. People read what interests them. Sometimes, it's an ad.[22]
— Howard Gossage, "The Socrates of San Francisco" Howard Gossage, Advertising Executive
In advertising, not to be different is virtually suicidal.[23]
— Bill Bernbach, Bill Bernbach Said... Template:Bill Bernbach/attribution
The best advertising is done by satisfied customers.[24]
— Philip Kotler, Marketing Management Philip Kotler, Professor of International Marketing
Advertising tries to be a pyromaniac, igniting conflagrations of desires for instant gratification.[25]
— George Will, The Washington Post George Will, The Washington Post
References
- ↑ Ogilvy, David (1963). Confessions of an Advertising Man. Atheneum.
- ↑ "The Creative Revolutionist". The New York Times. October 3, 1982. Retrieved December 19, 2025.
- ↑ Godin, Seth (2008). Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us. Portfolio/Penguin.
- ↑ Burnett, Leo (1961). 100 Leo's: The Advertising Philosophy of Leo Burnett. Leo Burnett Company.
- ↑ Forbes, B.C. (1968). The Forbes Scrapbook of Thoughts on the Business of Life. Forbes Inc.
- ↑ Koslow, Brian (1998). 365 Ways to Market Your Business. Dutton.
- ↑ Scott Cook (December 2011). "Marketing in the Age of Social Media". Harvard Business Review. Retrieved December 19, 2025.
- ↑ Ogilvy, David (1963). Confessions of an Advertising Man. Atheneum.
- ↑ Smith, Mari (2011). The New Relationship Marketing. Wiley.
- ↑ Richards, Jef I. (2002). "Refining the Definition of Advertising". Journal of Advertising. American Academy of Advertising.
- ↑ Denny, Stephen (2011). Killing Giants: 10 Strategies to Topple the Goliath in Your Industry. Portfolio.
- ↑ Shapiro, Fred R. (2006). The Yale Book of Quotations. Yale University Press.
- ↑ Baker, Stephen (1965). The Art of Writing Advertising. Benjamin Company.
- ↑ Holmes, Chet (2007). The Ultimate Sales Machine. Portfolio.
- ↑ Fallon, Ivan (1988). The Brothers: The Rise and Rise of Saatchi & Saatchi. Hutchinson.
- ↑ Marshall, Perry (2013). 80/20 Sales and Marketing. Entrepreneur Press.
- ↑ Caples, John (1997). Tested Advertising Methods. Prentice Hall.
- ↑ Fast Company Staff (2012-08-28). "The Creative Mind of Lee Clow". Fast Company. Retrieved 2025-12-19.
- ↑ Barton, Bruce (1955). "Bruce Barton Classic Quotations" (PDF). The Superlist. Christer Sundqvist. Retrieved 2025-12-19.
- ↑ Koum, Jan (2012-06-18). "Why we don't sell ads". WhatsApp Blog. WhatsApp Inc. Retrieved 2025-12-19.
- ↑ Della Femina, Jerry (1970). From Those Wonderful Folks Who Gave You Pearl Harbor. Simon & Schuster.
- ↑ Gossage, Howard (1995). The Book of Gossage. Copy Workshop.
- ↑ Bernbach, Bill (1987). Bill Bernbach Said... DDB Needham Worldwide.
- ↑ Kotler, Philip (1999). Marketing Management: Millennium Edition. Prentice Hall.
- ↑ Will, George F. (1986). The Morning After. Free Press.