The headline is the 'ticket on the meat.' Use it to flag down readers who are prospects for the kind of product you are advertising.
David OgilvyRead
Can advertising foist an inferior product on the consumer? Bitter experience has taught me that it cannot. On those rare occasions when I have advertised products which consumer tests have found inferior to other products in the same field, the results have been disastrous.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Advertising cannot successfully promote a poor-quality product; consumers will reject it.
David Ogilvy emphasizes the powerful role of consumer judgment in advertising. He argues that no matter how compelling an advertisement may be, it cannot mask the inherent quality of a product, and promoting an inferior product will ultimately lead to failure. This highlights the importance of honesty and product quality in effective marketing strategies.
Themes
AdvertisingConsumerQualityProductMarketingFailure
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a presentation about the importance of product quality in marketing strategies.
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Experience has taught me that advertisers get the best results when they pay their agency a flat fee. It is unrealistic to expect your agency to be impartial when its vested interest lies wholly in the direction of increasing your commissionable advertising.
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