Advertising Insights

What economists reveal about advertising’s complex pricing effects Does advertising raise prices unjustly? Like most sweeping generalizations around such a multifaceted topic, the truth resists simplicity. Key Takeaways Renowned Harvard Business School professor Neil Borden once conducted an exhaustive study on advertising’s price impacts. He concluded that among a maze of factors, determining excessive profits…

The century-long truth crusade reforming ads from within Advertising invites endless attacks as our most conspicuous business activity. Like any system, it deserves thoughtful criticism. But blanket condemnations echoing down decades grow wearisome. Key Takeaways Back in the 1700s, Samuel Johnson carped that ads seduce people into wasting money on unneeded gewgaws using false promises….

The marketing mechanics behind motorized mobility The auto industry and advertising are intertwined from inception. In 1895, just four hand-built vehicles existed in America. Yet by 1900, 8,000 autos traversed roads here, nearly all foreign. Ten years later, domestic production neared 200,000 units annually. Key Takeaways Pre-Depression peak output approached 5 million in 1929. Though…

From razors to radio stars, the admen who changed how America shops Contrary to metaphorical depictions, advertising seldom pioneers entirely new inventions or ideas. Visionaries like Whitney, Fulton, Edison and Bell revolutionized technologies largely without aggressive promotion. Most focused on perfecting inventions over marketing them. Edison himself didn’t instantly advertise the 1878 phonograph he patented….

The wild adolescence that launched an industry Pioneer advertisers lacked today’s abundant resources. Pre-Civil War media directories didn’t exist. When adman George Rowell received a request to place ads in obscure Canadian papers, his only recourse was dispatching staffers to quiz Boston’s Nova Scotian printworkers on provincial publications from memory. Key Takeaways Rowell’s subsequent 1869…

The covered wagon era that unleashed American advertising A century and a half ago, American business struck advertising gold. The California Gold Rush expanded westward settlement just as surging industrialization, railroads, and newspapers forged a nascent national market. New print outlets enabled coast-to-coast branding. Key Takeaways By 1850, over 2,000 papers and 500 magazines existed….

How ads evolved from ancient banners to modern-day clickbait Thousands of years ago, merchants realized advertising’s power to attract customers. Ancient retailers used symbolic signs to showcase their wares since most people couldn’t read. These point-of-sale symbols were likely the earliest forms of sales promotion. Use of iconic storefront symbols persists today – from barber…