Lecture notes// A history of Advertising

This lecture's linked to social media and communication. Exploring how large-scale color printing technology has developed since its arrival in the 19th century.

'The beginning by Wight' - Advertising, the most fun you can have with your clothes on.

-Bill Bernbach, the first person to combine Copywriters & art directors, Along with Hegarty, the pair were two creative advertising giants.

 

'Bill Bernbach, the legendary founder of Doyle Dane Bernbach, ignited the creative revolution and changed the world of communications and business forever. He was a philosopher, a scientist, a humanitarian. And his influence was felt well beyond the world of advertising. As our industry faces a new creative revolution, Bernbach's ideas and keen insights into human nature may be more relevant than ever.'

Lever - the First British Tycoon - To build a gallery & open it up for the public, it was the year of  the crystal palace exhibition.

Lever was born in 1851 & Prompted by the Promotional stimuli that surrounded him. He was born at the height of the empire, & the international exhibition prompted large scale color printing in the 1860's. 

It was during the 1860's that cereal companies figured how to; print, fold & fill boxes mechanically.

The Advertising Boom - this allowed taxes on newspapers to be abolished in 1855 + in 1861.
This made it more reasonable to advertise in the papers.

A second Boom - this consisted of a technological progress; reproduction, color printing and 
pictorial ads in the 1880s.
Lever Brothers founders: James Darcy & William Hesketh Lever (1885).

By the 1890s technology enabled contemporary paintings to be reproduced. The sunlight soap.

Target audience; Women. High feelings and emotive contexts displayed the mother daughter bond that could be achieved. Advertising transformed a local soap manufacturer in 1885 to one of the worlds leading brands

Innovative events such as Democratization caused the Royal Endorsement - meaning everyone should be able to afford soap etc.

Imperial Mission - Lewis. We needed to be civilised, 'there was no commodity needed more than this soap'. It could wash the natives and cleanse the great unwashed of Britain's working class.

The notion of imperialism was advertised through Posters and Packaging, appealing to a wide audience. This was because the Empire was celebrated on biscuits, cigarettes, soap & chocolate = Part of the working class fabric.

  Investing in Advertisement cost Lever £2 million within the first 2 decades of marketing soap. 

In 1890 Lever purchased a Philadelphia soap firm and others like it.

First Creative Advertising

Selecting & Presenting Contemporary art works communicated a more powerful desired message.

The message was told in an interesting and innovative way.

The imagery provided a spectacle.

By adding simple endlines, Lever managed to change the meanings of images to his advantage.

Art Direction 

Gross suggested 'Plantol' (Another soap company) should depict tropical climates and express the care that is exercised in refining oils. Whereas it was simply a vision to disguise the forced slavery. Palm Oil was one of the main ingredients.

Innovative ideas of getting the consumer to buy the product consecutively. For example, saving coupons to receive an advert print and in the 1890's capturing the children to receive paper dolls with interchangeable outfits.

Ad expertise = the power of truth, the trick is to tell the truth, but make it interesting. Truth can be Disarming.

Audiences - to convince peoples they did not want but need this product. 

Uni Lever now has 900 brands...