| David MacKenzie Ogilvy (June 23, 1911–July 21, 1999) has been
often called 'The Father of Advertising'. He was known for a career of expanding the bounds of both creativity and morality. His
first ad showed a naked woman, something he later admitted he was ashamed of. He reiterated in his book, "Ogilvy on Advertising",
that nudes should be shown only they serve a functional purpose, not irrelevently. He mentions in his book about a serious of
three ads in 1981 in France. (This was not done by him.) The first ad showed a beautiful
woman in a bathing suit and the caption said "On September 2, I will take off my top". On September 2 a second ad showed the same
woman wearing only the thong from her bathing suit and the caption said "On September 4, I will take off the bottom". By
September 4th the buzz was intense. Every man was eager to see if she
would keep her promise. She did. (If you wish to see the three ads they are in (Ogilvy, D 1983 : page 26 - 27) Ogilvy was a
staunch believer in Research.
His book "Ogilvy on Advertising" is a commentary on advertising, and not all the ads shown in the book are his.
Timeline
The Early Years (1911–1938)
At Gallup (1938–1948)
In 1938 Ogilvy came to America and joined Gallup.
The O&M Years (1965–1973)
He retired in 1973.
Life with WPP and afterwards (1989–1999)
In 1989 The Ogilvy Group was bought by WPP, a British holding company, for US$864 million. The purchase made WPP, which also
owned the advertising agency J.Walter Thompson and a number of other companies, the largest marketing communications firm in the
world. Ogilvy served as WPP's non-executive chairman for three years.
External links
References
- Ogilvy, D. (1983), Ogilvy on Advertising, John Wiley and Sons, Toronto, 1983 (and Pan Books, London, 1983).
- Ogilvy, D. (1985), Confessions of an Advertising Man, Atheneum, Revised edition, 1988, ISBN 0689708009
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