Maximum Overdrive

skibinskipedia:

I rediscovered one of my favorite advertising bloggers this evening, Copyranter, via a post of his today reminding all of us about an epic, 40-year-old trade advert from David Ogilvy.

Copyranter writes:

It’s a 1,909-word trade ad, by David Ogilvy, that brought in millions in billings. Sure, it’s a hideous layout and some of the copy is laughably dated. But, 40 years later, it can still teach a few lessons to today’s new clueless ad “gurus.”

Like: “Headlines that promise a benefit sell more than those that don’t…it pays to inject genuine news into headlines.” Also: “Be suspicious of awards. The pursuit of creative awards seduces creative people away from the pursuit of sales.” Punch your digitally-shortened attention span in the face, and read it all.

Click through for the entire text.