Transcript
Page 1: The Simple Truth About Advertising

Simple truth about advertising

DUVAL GUILLAUMEwww.duvalguillaume.com

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People love ideas. I certainly do. That is why I

like good advertisements like those that Duval

Guillaume makes for our airline, Virgin Express,

once again voted best short-haul airline in

Belgium. The creative advertising agencies

of the world have made it possible for global

brands like Virgin to continue to capture the

attention of our customers–a tough act, I can

tell you. They have turned what could be grey

company messages into great entertainment.

Whether you are in the marketing business

or just interested in advertising, this amusing

little book will not teach you how to become a

great advertiser–but at least it should help you

understand why you’re not.

Sir Richard Branson

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It was the end of the century.

The end of the millenium.

Earth had turned into a village of five

billion people. Everybody could talk to

everybody, no matter where they were.

Companies sold their products all over the

world, and in order to stay familiar to their

customers, they had to advertise in such a

way that people believed they lived next

door. Oh, life became complicated.

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And then, suddenly something happened.

Out of nowhere, written on the back

of a beer mat,

came...

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Duval Guillaume's

Simple truth about advertising

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BRIEFINGS SHOULD HELP YOU SEE, NOT MAKE YOU BLIND.

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About

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THE THICKER THE STRATEGY, THE THINNER THE IDEA.

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THERE IS NO WAY TO FEEL SAFE ABOUT A BIG IDEA.

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IT IS GOOD FOR YOUR BUSINESS IF THERE IS A LINK BETWEEN THE AD’S IDEA AND

THE BRAND’S PROMISE.

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A BRAND IS A PROMISE. IT CREATES THE EXPECTATIONS THAT THE PRODUCT HAS

TO DELIVER.

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TO TURN A BIG BRAND INTO A GREAT BRAND, YOU NEED A HUGE IDEA.

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OVERESTIMATING THE MARKET POTENTIAL IS AS DANGEROUS AS UNDERESTIMATING IT.

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RESULTS AREN’T RESULTS UNTIL YOU SEE THEM.

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YOU’RE NOT ALONE OUT THERE.

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IT HELPS IF YOU CAN TAKE A POSITION THAT NO-ONE ELSE HAS TAKEN.

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WHEN YOU LOOK AT AN IDEA, PRESENTED TO YOU BY ONE OF THE WORLD’S GREATEST

AGENCIES, DEVISED BY THE WORLD’S GREATEST CREATIVES, SUPPORTED BY YOUR ENTIRE MARKETING DEPARTMENT AND YOU

DON’T KNOW WHAT TO THINK ABOUT IT... GO HOME AND ASK YOUR WIFE.

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IT IS HARD TO INVOLVE EVERY LOCAL MARKETING DIRECTOR AND STILL APPEAL TO

THE CONSUMER.

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UNLIKE MOST OF YOUR EMPLOYEES, CONSUMERS DON’T DO THINGS “BECAUSE

YOU TELL THEM TO”.

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THEY’RE THE RIGHT WAY TO ATTRACT PEOPLE FOR THE WRONG REASONS.

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YELLING ISN’T SELLING.

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CONSUMERS ARE ATTRACTED TO THE MEDIA BECAUSE OF ITS ENTERTAINMENT AND

INFORMATION VALUE, NOT BECAUSE THEY ARE DYING TO SEE YOUR LATEST AD.

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BRANDS THAT FEEL SMALL TEND TO SIGN OFF WITH A BIG LOGO.

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THEY WATCH TOO, DON’T MAKE THEM FEEL TRAPPED.

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FIRST DO WHAT THE CLIENT WANTS. THEN DO WHAT THE CLIENT NEEDS.

IF THE TWO HAPPEN TO BE THE SAME, YOU CAN GO HOME EARLY.

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A CAMPAIGN IDEA IS AN IDEA THAT GIVES IDEAS.

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IT IS EASIER TO SELL AN AD TO A BOARD OF DIRECTORS

THAN TO THE MAN IN THE STREET.

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GREAT DANCERS AREN’T NECESSARILY GREAT LOVERS.

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MOST AGENCIES AGREE THAT AWARDS HAVE NO IMPORTANCE. (A PERCEPTION

THAT CHANGES BRIEFLY AFTER THEY’VE WON ONE.)

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WHEN YOUR AGENCY IS A BIG SUCCESS AND YOU’RE NOT,

BOY DO YOU HAVE A PROBLEM.

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LET’S PUT IT THIS WAY: THEY’RE AFTER YOUR BUSINESS.

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NO COMMENT.

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About the role of Advertising

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THERE’S A THIN LINE BETWEEN GAINING A CLIENT’S CONFIDENCE

AND KEEPING HIS RESPECT.

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THEY’RE STRANGE.

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INDEX:

About AWARDS ............................................................. p 52

About BIG BRANDS ...................................................... p 18

About BRANDS ............................................................. p 16

About BRAND POSITIONING ..................................... p 26

About BRIEFINGS ........................................................... p 8

About BUSINESS FORECASTS ................................... p 22

About CALL TO ACTION ............................................ p 32

About CAMPAIGN IDEAS ........................................... p 46

About CLIENT’S EXPECTATIONS .............................. p 20

About CLIENT SERVICE .............................................. p 60

About CREATIVE COMPETITIONS ............................ p 50

About CREATIVE PEOPLE ........................................... p 62

About DEBRIEFINGS .................................................... p 44

About EXISTING CLIENTS .......................................... p 42

About GLOBALISATION .............................................. p 30

About HARD SELL ........................................................ p 36

About MARKETING ...................................................... p 24

About PRESENTATIONS .............................................. p 48

About PRIVATE LABELS .............................................. p 56

About PROMOTIONS ................................................... p 34

About RELEVANCE ...................................................... p 14

About RESEARCH ......................................................... p 12

About SUCCES .............................................................. p 54

About THE DECISION PROCESS ................................ p 28

About THE MEDIA ....................................................... p 38

About THE ROLE OF ADVERTISING ......................... p 58

About THE SIZE OF THE LOGO ................................ p 40

About THE STRATEGY ................................................ p 10

Copyright ©1997 by Duval Guillaume. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher

Published by: Duval GuillaumeWritten and illustrated by: Guillaume Van der Stighelen

Copies may be ordered from: Duval Guillaume ([email protected])

ISBN: 804230

Printed in Belgium, at Gillis nv/sa - BrusselsPaper: Bioset 115 gr/m2 ✒ by GPG Papier, tel. 02/755.12.11 - fax 02/757.05.11 e-mail [email protected]

First edition: March '1998Second edition: March '2001Third edition: May ‘2004