Tungate - Adland

Publishers note

Every possible effort has been made to ensure that the information contained in this book is accurate at the time of going to press, and the publishers and author cannot accept responsibility for any errors or omissions, however caused. No responsibility for loss or damage occasioned to any person acting, or refraining from action, as a result of the material in this publication can be accepted by the editor, the publisher or the author.

First published in Great Britain and the United States in 2007 by Kogan Page Limited

Apart from any fair dealing for the purposes of research or private study, or criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, this publication may only be reproduced, stored or transmitted, in any form or by any means, with the prior permission in writing of the publishers, or in the case of reprographic reproduction in accordance with the terms and licences issued by the CLA. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside these terms should be sent to the publishers at the undermentioned addresses:

Mark Tungate, 2007

The right of Mark Tungate to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

ISBN-10 0 7494 4837 7

ISBN-13 978 0 7494 4837 0

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Tungate, Mark, 1967

Adland : a global history of advertising / Mark Tungate.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN-13: 978-0-7494-4837-0

ISBN-10: 0-7494-4837-7

1. AdvertisingHistory. I. Title.

HF5823.T83 2007

659.109dc22

2007016432

AD

LAND

A GLOBAL HISTORY OF ADVERTISING

MARK TUNGATE

London and Philadelphia

Projects like this begin with hopeful e-mails and messages left on answering machines in faraway offices. Now its time to thank everyone who responded. First, thanks to all my interviewees, who devoted time they didnt have to a project that wouldnt see the light of day for months. Id particularly like to mention Alfredo Marcantonio, who shared his reminiscences about the 1970s London ad scene. Jeremy Bullmore gave me a similarly fascinating briefing.

Thanks also to Kate Wake-Walker for her networking skills. James Hamilton and Robin Hicks of Campaign provided e-mail addresses and had the grace not to laugh incredulously when I first told them about the idea. Eve Magnant of Publicis played a key role in organizing interviews with senior figures. Franois Kermoal of Stratgies provided invaluable advice on the French chapter. Christoph Berdi of Absatzwirtschaft cast an eye over the German section. Lyndy Stout of Shots gave useful tips for the chapter on production, as well as inviting me to the magazines conference. Yukihiro Oguchi and Nam Sakamoto looked after me in Tokyo. Francois Nel of the University of Lancashire provided access to the university library, and thus to invaluable tools such as WARC and LexisNexis. Heather Bowler was as supportive, practical and encouraging as ever. Andrew Rawlins and Patrick Taschler at Epica provided advice; Pierre-Edmond upstairs urged me to talk to George Lois.

And of course none of it would have been possible without Graldine Dormoy, whose patience and affection were limitless throughout.

Here, I hope, are the other people to whom I owe a word of thanks: Philippe Bernard; Sita Brooks; Emanuela Calderoni; Cheri Carpenter; Amy Cheronis; Catherine Collora; Juliet Dowsey; Roy Elvove; Meike Friedemann; Laura Green-Wilkinson; Christine Hannis; Jessica Hartley; Rosanne Leroy; Nigel Long; Abby Lovett; Annamaria Marchesini; Stephen Martincic; Erica Martinez; Eleanor Mascheroni; Feona McEwan; Jeremy Miller; Richard Morris; Bill Muirhead; Sally ODowd; Alex Parker; Wally Petersen; Sarah Pollard; Daniela Romano; Miranda Salt; Lucinda Spera; Pat Sloan; Annie Tobin; Kan Taniguchi; Leslie Williams; Barbara Viani.

AUTHORS NOTE

As far as contemporary agencies are concerned, all job titles were correct at the time of writing. If I have missed out any advertising luminaries due to lack of space or simple misjudgement, I apologize. Your egos will recover, Im sure.

Advertising is show business

Midnight on the Riviera is not about the whirring of cicadas or the sigh of waves against the shore. Not on this strip of coast. At a beach club in Cannes, the party is just getting started. A well-dressed crowd blurs on the dance floor as top DJ Gilles Peterson spins house and funk tunes. Crystal chandeliers shimmy from the ceiling of a giant black marquee, beneath which are scattered voluptuous sofas swathed in velvet. Attractive women perch on the arms of the sofas, trying to persuade suntanned men to dance. But many of the men, particularly the more senior, are content to smoke cigars and watch. Some of them huddle in trios, possibly even here talking business. Beyond the rim of the dance floor, under the magnificent night sky, a phalanx of barmen dishes out free drinks. The air is warm, perfumed and rich.

Welcome to the Leo Burnett party. Its not a particularly unusual event. Every year, at the advertising industrys week-long summer festival, major agencies like Leo Burnett throw extravagant soires along the curving beachfront promenade called La Croisette. And Leo Burnett is considered one of the industrys more staid outfits. Further up the beach, the DDB party easily competes with this one for size and volume. An agency can spend upwards of US $150,000 on one of these bashes. Its a question of pride, people tell me; a question of proving that even now, with TV audiences wavering and clients screwing the lid tight on budgets, the advertising industry can still afford to have a good time. Above all its about showing that, despite everything, an advertising agency remains a very cool place to work.

SERVANTS AND MASTERS

Sir Martin Sorrell, the chairman of marketing group WPP, commented during our interview that advertising is considered an extension of show business. Agencies are by no means court jesters, but the industrys glitz does tend to detract from its vital contribution to the global economy. It may also explain why many agencies have struggled to raise their status from suppliers to strategic advisers in the eyes of their clients.

One of the things that surprised me most during the research for this book was the sheer power that clients wield over their agencies. I was left with the impression that an advertising executive will stop at nothing to gain or retain a client. Certainly, when a client summons them they do not hesitate to cancel a meeting with a journalist, even if he has arranged to fly thousands of miles to interview them. This happened to me not once, but several times. The fashion industry, the subject of my last book, has a reputation for rudeness and inaccessibility. But nobody in the fashion business treated me with the lack of courtesy afforded me by some advertising agencies. And the client always got the blame. Perhaps this is only to be expected in a business where the clients hold all the cards. As one agency boss said, We know were only three phone calls away from disaster.