Advertising in the 50s was primarily focused on the return of traditional family values, and portraying the consumer’s role in society’s prestige. But, during the recession of 1959 to 1961, the time was ripe for some innovation in the advertising industry. Surly enough, a single ad appeared that changed the course of advertising history. The Volkswagen Beetle, a seemingly ugly car with all odds against it in the American market of huge, tail-finned vehicles of the 1950s, surprisingly prospered. The advertisement campaign broke all previous rules of using wide-angle photography, and beautiful women. These advertisements stole the American hearts with their wit and honesty.
Doyle Dane Bernbach’s (DDB) Volkswagen “Think Small,” campaign did more than boost sales and build brand recognition; It’s 1960s advertising campaign ushered a creative revolution in the advertising industry starting from the ‘big idea,’ to what consumers see in 2013.
Smiling faces, beautiful women and “American made” were the typical elements in advertisements during this decade. DDB’s first “big idea” behind the campaign was no different; The main goal was to make the Volkswagen more American by shooting Suzy Parker standing next to a Volkswagen. It wasn’t until after visiting the production line and watching the step by step production of the Volkswagen did DDB strike gold with an innovate new “big idea.” What resonated with the American advertising team the most during this visit was the incredible quality control of the German factory, thus they decided on “an honest car promoted with Honesty.”
The campaign was built on selling a single advantage of the car in each ad that was created. There was a consistent theme between each advertisement: the pict...
... middle of paper ...
...s each Volkswagen advertisement brought humor and truth into automobile advertising.
References
Bendinger, Bruce. The Copy Workshop Workbook, 4th ed. (Chicago: Copy Workshop, 2009). 21, 49, 334.
Berkman, Herald W. and Gilson, Christopher. Advertising: Concepts and Strategies, 2nd ed.. (New York: Random House, 1987). 244.
Goodrum, Charles and Dalrymple, Helen, Advertising in America: The First 200 Years. (New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., Publishers, 1990). 37.
Nelson, Walter E. Small Wonder: The Amazing Story of the Volkswagen. (Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1970). 213-220.
Rowsome, Frank. Think Small: The story of those Volkswagen ads. (Vermont: The Stephen Greene Press, 1907). 76-78.
Warlaumont, Hazel G. Advertising in the 60s: Turncoats, Traditionalists, and Waste Makers in America’s Turbulent Decade. (Connecticut: PRAGER, 2001). 184-86.
Allstate Insurance makes itself notable by employing a commercial that divulges a short story of the consequences that a distraught teenage driver can inflict while on the road. Its use of various visual and verbal elements makes the advertisement acutely effective since it seizes the audience’s attention with colorful and amusing displays, while alerting them to the dangers of uninsured vehicles in a memorable way. Moreover, the commercial’s tactful use of several fallacies serves to distract and humor the audience into being swayed by the company’s claims. In short, the advertisement combines all these tools into making an effective, persuasive, and interesting campaign.
Thus, the sixties triggered not only political change but also social and cultural reformations. Advertisers realized that they shou...
This essay is an analysis of two advertising posters, one of being a modern piece of media, the other being aimed at the previous generation. I will be reviewing posters from Coca Cola and Benetton, the latter being the modern piece of media in this comparison.
This essay is a perfect example of the importance of a thorough introduction to provide the reader with a concise synopsis of what the paper intends to covers. Had Gladwell excelled in both areas he neglected, this would be an extremely interesting, thought-provoking look into the world of advertising. Works Cited Gladwell, M. (1997). The New Yorker. Listening to Khakis.
Advertisements have become more unique and creative since the 1940’s. They not only cater to the family life, but also the single life. Automobile advertisements in the 1940’s were directed towards the modern family. Although there are still automobile advertisements that show happy families in nice cars; there are also advertisements for certain vehicles that are more geared towards single people. Marketing is constantly changing to meet what the majority population wants or needs.
Calfee, John E. "How Advertising Informs to Our Benefit." Consumers' Research Magazine. (April 1998). American Enterprise Institute. 1 Jan 2000 .
Women have been an integral part of society and culture throughout the world for the entirety of its history. This being said, women have not always been held in the brightest and most enabling of lights. With the advent of advertising, women have been portrayed in a variety of degrading tropes that repressed the freedom that many women began to publicly cry out for. The print advertisements of the 1950s have been portrayed as the worst of the offenders in objectifying women as unintelligent beings. Although I do support the thought that the advertisements of the 1950s were bad for putting forward the idea of women’s liberation, the ads of this time also helped to prepare for the second wave of feminism and the sexual revolution. It also promoted a positive look on being a woman, in addition to the negative, that promoted the gathering sense of identification throughout society in being a woman. Thus I am putting forward the additional idea that though the advertisements during this time were not all healthy views on womanhood, there were a great many that helped move women into the next 50 years, and that we could not be where we are today if we had not had the mass exposure of these ads in culture in the 1950s.
Advertising, whether criticized or celebrated, is undeniably a strong force in American society. Portrayals and images of women have long been used to sell in published advertisements. However, how they have been used has changed enormously over the decades. Women have fought to find a lasting and prominent position in their society. Only in the span of twenty years, between the 1900’s and 1920’s, did the roles of women change dramatically here in the United States.
Studebaker advertises not only to the ritzy and famous but also to the blue-collar worker. This was pulled off by strategically placing the 1947 Studebaker in the center of the advertisement. Instead of superior or inferior to an object like the people in the advertisement. It seems as if owning a Studebaker is realistic and manageable for the “average joe”. The polished, elegant machine is placed in front and is made sure to look like it was just driven of the car lot -- not a single scratch or dent is in sight. Every line is crisp and precise making the car looking like it belongs in a famous persons five car garage. Perhaps this was done to pull at the dreams of...
As a consumer of this materialistic country, I can sometimes feel overwhelmed with all of the advertisements that exist and are thrust at me constantly. While some of them can be cute or creative and occasionally put a smile on my face, the majority of them exasperate me with their stupidity. However, when an advertisement is done correctly and the quality of it astounds the viewer, something amazing can happen. People can start to talk about what they have been impressed by, and word-of-mouth creates further advertising. Advertising is a form of art that reaches millions of people at once and can affect their view on not just the product, but on the entire idea of advertising itself.
Advertisements would soon, also, become a major factor in mass media and development in America during the early 1900’s. Advertising became one Americas stepping stones to put the power of media into their control. This provided political parties, ...
The Ad and the Ego traces advertising's development from its largely descriptive 19th century origins
During the 19th and 20th century, America –mostly white collar, middle class Americans- saw a great increase in salaries and a huge rise in mass production which paved the way for the modern American consumerism which we know today. The advertising scene saw a dramatic boost during that period and tried to latch on to this growing pool of emerging consumers. Although only limited to print, advertising during this pivotal period showed panache and reflected American society
Zyman, S. and Brott, A. (2002). The End of Advertising As We Know It, Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley, Page 9, Page 10, Page 19
Advertising." Current Issues: Macmillan Social Science Library. Detroit: Gale, 2010. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 4 Dec. 2013.