Notable quotes about advertising: Difference between revisions

{{Insert quote panel | image = steuart-henderson-britt.jpg | {{Quote | text = Doing business without advertising is like winking at a girl in the dark. You know what you are doing, but nobody else does.<ref>{{cite bookencyclopedia |last=Britt |firsttitle=SteuartStewart Henderson |last2=BoydBritt |first2encyclopedia=HarperOxford W.Reference |titleurl=Marketing Management and Administrative Actionhttps://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780191826719.001.0001/q-oro-ed4-00017262 |edition=4th |publisher=McGrawaccess-Hill |location=New York |date=1978 |isbn=97800700792362025-12-21}}</ref> | author = {{Steuart Henderson Britt/attribution}} }} }}

| text = In good times people want to advertise; in bad times they have to.<ref>{{cite web |title=2009The 2ndBruce QuarterBarton andLetter First|publisher=SOFII Six Months Internet Advertising Revenue Report|date=1925 |url=https://wwwsofii.iab.comorg/wpcase-contentstudy/uploads/2015/05/2009the-bruce-Midyearbarton-RevenueReport_IABMaster_FINAL.pdf |website=Interactive Advertising Bureau |publisher=Interactive Advertising Bureau |date=2009letter-the-classic-long-copy-letter-from-1925-that-pulled-a-100-per-cent-response |access-date=2025-12-21 December 2025}}</ref>

| author = {{Bruce Barton/attribution}}

| text = A good advertisement is one which sells the product without drawing attention to itself.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ogilvy |first=David |title=Confessions of an Advertising Man |publisheryear=Atheneum1963 |datepublisher=1963Atheneum}}</ref>

| author = {{David Ogilvy/attribution}}

| text = Make it simple. Make it memorable. Make it inviting to look at. Make it fun to read.<ref>{{cite webbook |title=The100 LEO's: Wit and Wisdom from Leo Burnett Story |url=https://leoburnett.com/about |publisher=LeoNTC BurnettBusiness WorldwidePress |access-dateyear=December1995 19, 2025|page=47}}</ref>

| author = {{Leo Burnett/attribution}}

| author = {{LeeLeo ClowBurnett/attribution}}

| text = People screen out a lot of commercials because they open with something dull...When you advertise fire-extinguishers, open with the fire.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ogilvy |first=David |title=ConfessionsOgilvy of anon Advertising Man|year=1983 |publisher=AtheneumCrown |date=1963Publishers}}</ref>

| author = {{David Ogilvy/attribution}}

| text = Nobody reads ads. People read what interests them. Sometimes, it's an ad.<ref>{{cite book |last=Gossage |first=Howard Luck |title=The Book of Gossage |year=1995 |publisher=Copy Workshop |date=1995}}</ref>

| author = {{Howard Gossage/attribution}}

| text = Marketing is no longer about the stuff that you make, but about the stories you tell.<ref>{{cite book |last=Godin |first=Seth |title=TribesAll Marketers Are Liars: WeThe NeedPower Youof toTelling LeadAuthentic UsStories in a Low-Trust World |publisheryear=Portfolio/Penguin2005 |datepublisher=2008Portfolio}}</ref>

| author = {{Seth Godin/attribution}}

| text = Tell the truth, but make the truth fascinating.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ogilvy |first=David |title=Confessions of an Advertising Man |publisheryear=Atheneum1963 |datepublisher=1963Atheneum}}</ref>

| author = {{David Ogilvy/attribution}}

| text = NobodyNo whoone boughtwakes aup drillexcited actuallyto wantedsee amore drill.advertising, Theyno wantedone agoes holeto sleep thinking about the ads they'll see tomorrow.<ref>{{cite bookweb |last=MarshallKoum |first=PerryJan |title=80/20Why Saleswe anddon't Marketingsell ads |publisher=EntrepreneurWhatsApp PressBlog |date=2012-06-18 |url=https://blog.whatsapp.com/why-we-dont-sell-ads |access-date=20132025-12-21}}</ref>

| author = {{PerryJan MarshallKoum/attribution}}

| author = {{JanDavid KoumOgilvy/attribution}}

| text = Advertising tries to be a pyromaniac, igniting conflagrations of desires for instant gratification.<ref>{{cite booknews |last=Will |first=George F. |title=The MorningMadison AfterLegacy |publishernewspaper=FreeThe Washington PressPost |date=19861981-12-07}}</ref>

| author = {{George Will/attribution}}

| text = Much of the messy advertising you see on television today is the product of committees. Committees can criticize advertisements, but they should never be allowed to create them.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ogilvy |first=David |title=Confessions of an Advertising Man |publisheryear=Atheneum1963 |datepublisher=1963Atheneum}}</ref>

| author = {{David Ogilvy/attribution}}

| text = If dogs don't like your dog food, the packaging doesn't matter.<ref>{{cite book |last=Denny |first=Stephen |title=Killing Giants: 10 Strategies to Topple the Goliath in Your Industry |publisheryear=Portfolio2011 |datepublisher=2011Portfolio}}</ref>

| author = {{Stephen Denny/attribution}}

| text = Every single element in an advertisement must be put there because testing has shown that it works best!<ref>{{cite book |last=Caples |first=John |title=Tested Advertising Methods |edition=5th |year=1997 |publisher=Prentice Hall |datepage=1997Chapter 2}}</ref>

| author = {{John Caples/attribution}}

| text = Dishonesty in advertising has proved very unprofitable.<ref>{{cite bookweb |lasttitle=BurnettQ&A |first=Leo |title=100with Leo's: TheBurnett AdvertisingStrategy PhilosophyHead ofJoy Leo BurnettSantos |publisher=LeoJosiah BurnettGo Company|url=https://josiahgo.com/qa-with-leo-burnett-strategy-head-joy-santos/ |access-date=19612025-12-21}}</ref>

| author = {{Leo Burnett/attribution}}

| text = Never write an advertisement which you wouldn't want your own family to read. You wouldn't tell lies to your own wife. Don't tell them to mine.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ogilvy |first=David |title=Confessions of an Advertising Man |publisheryear=Atheneum1963 |datepublisher=1963Atheneum}}</ref>

| author = {{David Ogilvy/attribution}}

| text = 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.<ref>{{cite book |last=Della Femina |first=Jerry |title=From Those Wonderful Folks Who Gave You Pearl Harbor: Front-Line Dispatches from the Advertising War |year=1970 |publisher=Simon & Schuster |date=1970}}</ref>

| author = {{Jerry Della Femina/attribution}}

| text = InThe best advertising, notis todone be different isby virtuallysatisfied suicidalcustomers.<ref>{{cite book |last=BernbachKotler |first=BillPhilip |title=BillMarketing BernbachManagement Said...|edition=15th |publisheryear=DDB Needham Worldwide2016 |datepublisher=1987Pearson}}</ref>

| author = {{WilliamPhilip BernbachKotler/attribution}}

| text = Content is king, but engagement is queen, and the lady rules the house!<ref>{{cite bookweb |last=Smith |first=Mari |title=TheWe NewLong Relationshipto Belong – Why Community is the Last Great Marketing Strategy |publisher=WileyBG5 Business |url=https://bg5business.com/we-long-to-belong-why-community-is-the-last-great-marketing-strategy/ |access-date=20112025-12-21}}</ref>

| author = {{Mari Smith/attribution}}

| text = A brand is no longer what we tell the consumer it is — it is what consumers tell each other it is.<ref>{{cite newsweb |title=Building A Brand Campaign For Success: What Marketing inPros theShould AgeKnow of|publisher=Forbes SocialCommunications MediaCouncil |date=2023-10-13 |url=https://hbrwww.orgforbes.com/2011councils/12forbescommunicationscouncil/2023/10/13/building-a-brand-campaign-for-success-what-marketing-ispros-dead |work=Harvard Business Review |date=December 2011should-know/ |access-date=December 19, 2025 |author=Scott Cook-12-21}}</ref>

| author = {{Scott Cook/attribution}}