101 Contrarian Ideas About Advertising

by Bob Hoffman

Many have a hard time understanding that "we answer on the first ring" is a more powerful promise than "world class service."

Many have thought that the bigger and more ambiguous the promise, the bigger the payoff. It is usually the opposite. The more specific the promise, the more salient the proposition.

The best advertising is strategically wise, creatively pleasing, and specific.

Good creative has certain characteristics. - It is the stuff that is beautiful, or outrageous, or funny, or interesting. - It is the stuff we wish we had done. - It is advertising we would volunteer to watch.

Strategies are not written by God. They are written by planners, researchers, account execs, clients and other mildly retarded mortals. Good creative people often have a better feel for the problem than the committee that wrote the strategy. When you are evaluating a campaign idea, it’s not enough to say ‘this is off strategy’. You must also ask yourself, ‘is this a better strategy than the one we have?’

One of the biggest mistakes a marketer can make is taking too seriously what consumers say about a product in the development stage. When consumers are exposed to it, they will tell you it's a good idea. But what they can never tell you is whether it's a good enough idea to eclipse the inertia of their habits. The most powerful force in marketing is not price, quality, distribution, advertising, or branding -- it's the resistance to change.

You don't sell someone something by engagement, conversation and relationship. You create engagement, conversation and relationships by selling them something.

we don't get them to try our product by convincing them to love our brand. We get them to love our brand by convincing them to try our product.

Top 10 Bullshit Professions: 1. Career Counselors: If they knew anything they'd find themselves better jobs. 2. Clergymen: God-bothering bullies masquerading as holy men. 3. Psychotherapists: Practitioners of the world's most advanced form of pseudoscience. 4. Politicians: Insufferable egotists pretending to be "public servants." 5. Branding Consultants: Why didn't I think of this scam? 6. Art Critics: Thankfully, no one pays attention except rich twits. 7. Actors: We tell them where to stand. We tell them what to say. They win awards. 8. Ad Executives: You can build a career by memorizing 10 cliches. 9. Financial Advisors: Monkeys throwing darts. 10. Third Base Umpires: One call a game if you're lucky.