Discussion Questions
1-11. Many industry experts feel that Apple’s “1984” commercial is the best
television commercial ever made. Watch it online on Youtube.com and analyze how it
works. How many of the basic advertising practices and concepts that we introduced
in the historical timeline of Figure 1.1 does it demonstrate? Why do you think the
experts are so impressed with this ad?
This ad is an excellent example of the principles that accompanied the Creative
Revolution, a period marked by the resurgence of art, inspiration, and intuition.
Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO at that time, wanted to launch the Macintosh with an
inspiring commercial that was as revolutionary as the product itself. Unlike most
advertising, it was neither the most heartwarming spot nor a big laugh getter.
1-12. In class, Mark tells the instructor that all this “history of advertising” stuff is
irrelevant. The instructor asks the class to consider why it is important to understand
the historical review of advertising definitions and practices. What would you say
either in support of Mark’s view or to change his mind?
One side: History can teach us some important lessons in advertising. For
thousands of years, advertising has been about creating a message and sending it
to someone in the hope that he or she will react in a certain way. If the consumers
react as the advertiser intended, then the ad is presumed to be effective. This
The other side: Although history is always relevant, society and technology have
changed so much that we live in a different advertising world today. The
components of modern advertising found in this chapter (advertising strategy,
Take-Home Projects
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1.13. Leo Burnett, a giant of the advertising industry, always kept a file he called “Ads
Worth Saving,” ads that struck him as effective for some reason. This was his
portfolio of ideas. He explained that he would go through that file, not looking for
ideas to copy, but because these great ads would trigger thoughts about how to
solve some problem. So throughout this book, we will invite you to start your own
portfolio. In some cases the assignments will ask you to find good (or bad) work
and explain why you evaluate them as you do. In other cases, we’ll ask you to
actually do something—write, design, propose—or create something that you
could take to an interview that demonstrates your understanding of the principles
we talk about in this book.
Students should be encouraged to begin their own portfolio, based upon their
individual understanding of what makes an advertisement effective, as opposed to
A Facebook Profile: For this first assignment, choose one of the people from the
historical discussions in this chapter, someone you believe influenced the
development of modern marketing communication. Research this person on the
Historical personalities that could be profiled by students include John E. Kennedy,
1.14. Mini-Case Analysis::Every chapter in this textbook opens with an award-winning
case. For this assignment you will be asked to analyze why it was effective and, in
many cases, come up with ideas for how that campaign could be extended to
another year or another market.
Reread the Old Spice campaign that was introduced at the beginning of this chapter
and wrapped up at the end of the chapter. Go online and see if you can find any other
information about this campaign. What are the strong points of this campaign? Its
weak points? Why has it won awards and why was it deemed effective? If you were
on the Old Spice team, would you recommend that this campaign be continued or is it
time to change it? In other words, what happens next? Is there a spin-off? Develop a
one-page analysis and proposal for the next year.
There are numerous articles about this ad campaign on the Internet. In addition to a
Grand Effie, it has amassed many awards and heaps of critical acclaim. P&G has
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For insight into the strengths of this campaign from the perspective of some of its
agency’s executives, suggest that students visit
http://www.dandad.org/learning/case-studies/old-spice-response-campaign. While
there have been a few contrarians who bashed aspects of “The Man Your Man Could
Smell Like” campaign by labeling them as nothing more thana series of clever social
TRACE North America Case
Read the TRACE case in the Appendix before coming to class.
1.15. In class discuss the following:
a. In what ways does the TRACE case reflect the expanded definition of what
advertising is?
b. How does the case illustrate the various roles that advertising campaigns can
perform, as well as the role of advertising in the broader area of marketing
communication?
1.16. Write a one page explanation of the campaign.
ADDITIONAL MATERIAL
WEB REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. Is advertising a simple or a complex endeavor? Why?
It can be viewed both ways. From one standpoint, advertising is a complex form of
communication that operates with objectives and strategies leading to various types of
2. Do you believe that advertising is ancient or a modern practice? How so?
Although the advertising industry as we know it was spawned in the early 20th
century, its roots are ancient. Advertising in the form of a sign dates back thousands
of years. The invention of moveable type in 1455 made it possible for advertisers to
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3. Define modern advertising according to your textbook authors.
This definition of advertising includes the following basic elements:
Advertising is usually paid for by the advertiser, although some forms of
Although advertising began as one-way communication, digital media has
Advertising generally reaches a broad audience of potential consumers, either as
a mass audience or smaller targeted groups. However, direct response
Traditionally, the message is conveyed through many different kinds of mass
media, which are largely non-personal messages. This, however, is changing with
the introduction of more interactive types of media. A great deal of emphasis is
4. Define and discuss one major role of advertising.
Here is a brief definition for each one:
Marketing Role:In its marketing role, advertising transforms a product into a distinctive
Communication Role: Advertising communicates to the consumer information about
Economic Role: Advertising extends beyond a primarily informational role to create a
demand for a particular brand. Because it reaches large groups of potential consumers,
Social Role:Advertising also mirrors fashion and design trends, thereby adding to our
aesthetic sense. It may also expose social issues, help us shape an image of ourselves by
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5. What is public service advertising? Who produces it? Provide at least one
example of this type of advertising.
Public service advertisingcommunicates a message on behalf of some good cause,
such as stopping drunk driving (as in messages from Mothers Against Drunk Driving)
6. Describe the different types of agencies that exist within the advertising industry.
Full Service Agencies:Afull-service agency includesfour major staff functions —
account management, creative services, media planning, and account planning, which
includes research. A full-service advertising agency also has its own accounting
In-House Agencies :An in-house agency produces ads and also places them in the
media. The difference is that the agency is a part of the advertiser’s organization,
Specialized Agencies:Many agencies do not follow the traditional full agency
approach. Instead they specialize in certain functions, audiences, industries, markets,
Creative boutiques:Theseare ad agencies, usually small, that concentrate entirely on
preparing the creative execution of client marketing communications. They usually
Media-buying services: These agencies specialize in the purchase of media for
clients. They are in high demand because media has become more complex as the
number of choices has grown, and the cost of maintaining a competent media
Agency Networks and Holding Companies :Agency networks are large
conglomerations of agencies under central ownership that operate under one agency
name. Examples include DDB Worldwide and BBDO Worldwide. Holding
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7. Discuss the emergence of consumer society in the late 19th century, and how it
influenced the rise of the modern advertising era.
By the end of the 19th century, advertisers began to give their goods brand names,
such as Baker’s chocolate and Ivory soap. The purpose of advertising during this
period was to create demand for these new brands, and to distinguish them from
ASSIGNMENTS
Individual Assignments
1. Search magazines and newspapers to find examples of ads that fill each of the four
primary roles of advertising. Create a portfolio of these ads and caption each ad with
a description of how it fulfills each role.
2. Research the Web to locate information about recent winners of various award shows,
such as the Effie Awards, the Clios, and the Cannes Lion Award. Upon what was
receipt of each award based and what are qualities within each ad you think led to its
being selected as winner? Use your findings to prepare a 500-word paper that could
be presented to your class.
Think-Pair-Share
1. In pairs, research and discuss the concept of Integrated Marketing Communication
and its significance to the advertising industry. In particular, what does it mean to
achieve “synergy” in an advertising campaign? Have the students discuss their
findings with the class.
OUTSIDE EXAMPLES
1. Go online and view “Emergence of Advertising in America: 1850-1920,” a
presentation by DukeUniversity. The website can be found at:
http://scriptorium.lib.duke.edu/eaa/index.html
Explore the entire website and concentrate on areas that are most interesting to you.
Then, assemble a brief PowerPoint presentation contrasting your findings with the
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2. Locate and interview an advertising or marketing professional who specializes in
Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC). If possible, do the interview in person
Then, write a 1,000-word report addressing the concept of IMC and how it is used in
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