Commercial Advertising

An Egyptian papyrus discovered at Thebes is perhaps the oldest commercial advertisement in existence. Written over three thousand years ago, it advertised a reward for the return of a runaway slave.

The public criers of ancient Greece, later identified with the town criers of European cities, were in effect mobile publicity men, attracting attention to their proclamations.

In medieval England, the symbol of three hanging golden balls, drawn from the coat of arms of the Italian Medici family of financiers, advertised moneylenders. Today, that same sign survives to identify a pawnbroker’s shop.

Over 250 years ago, London’s Dr. Samuel Johnson complained: “Advertisements are now so numerous that they are very negligently perused. . . . The trade of advertising is now so near to perfection that it is not easy to propose any improvement.” But since then, how things have changed! In the last 50 years, the trade has mushroomed into an industry.

Advertising​—The Powerful Persuader

ADVERTISING fulfills a need that can be traced back for as long as men have bought and sold. It is an art that has developed over the years.

Modern advertising really took off after World War II. The industrial growth and boom of the 1950’s spilled over into the 1960’s. ‘You’ve never had it so good!’ said Harold Macmillan, Britain’s prime minister at the time. His observation seemed to prove true.

Affluence meant greater purchasing power, which led to more production and the need for increased sales. The circle of supply and demand was complete, all revolving around the hub​—advertising.

Rosser Reeves revolutionized the advertising industry’s techniques in 1954, about ten years after he had helped to launch and develop Ted Bates & Company in Ad Alley. From a small beginning, he built a globe-encircling agency in 50 countries, worth $3 billion in 1984. Other entrepreneurs followed suit, to amass fortunes as the industry entered its postwar boom.

Until five years ago, most British advertising firms were United States subsidiaries, but that is no longer true. When Britain’s Saatchi & Saatchi purchased Ted Bates & Company in 1986, it became the world’s largest advertising agency.