Sell Back Your Copy
For a $1.64 Gift Card
Trade in
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
The Art of Writing Advertising : Conversations with Masters of the Craft: David Ogilvy, William Bernbach, Leo Burnett, Rosser Reeves,
 
 
Tell the Publisher!
I'd like to read this book on Kindle

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

The Art of Writing Advertising : Conversations with Masters of the Craft: David Ogilvy, William Bernbach, Leo Burnett, Rosser Reeves, [Paperback]

Denis Higgins (Author)
4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)


Available from these sellers.


Sell Back Your Copy for $1.64
Whether you buy it used on Amazon for $34.98 or somewhere else, you can sell it back through our Book Trade-In Program at the current price of $1.64.
Used Price$34.98
Trade-in Price$1.64
Price after
Trade-in
$33.34

Book Description

Advertising Age Classics Library January 21, 2003

A McGraw-Hill Advertising Classic

"What makes a great advertisement?" Nearly four decades ago, an unmatched group of five advertising pioneers first answered that question in The Art of Writing Advertising.

Their entertaining and historically compelling answers will provide advertising professionals with valuable techniques for applying breakthrough creativity and innovation in the workplace.



Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Five pioneer advertising writers reveal the secrets to great advertising and great writing

Four decades ago, five of the original giants of advertising copywriting--William Bernbach, Leo Burnett, George Gribbin, David Ogilvy, and Rosser Reeves--discussed their writing techniques with Advertising Age magazine. Fascinating and enlightening, these interviews were so popular with writers everywhere that they were compiled into the book you now hold.

The Art of Writing Advertising allows history's greatest advertising copywriters to freely discuss what they know best--writing and creating. The classic primer for professional copywriters, it has over the years become equally prized as a hands-on idea-starter for writers of every stripe from all walks of life.

"To the reader who has any interest at all in advertising, in advertising writing, or indeed in writing or expression of any kind, the five interviews in this volume are certain to be of absorbing interest. Here are the masters of their craft, talking--not writing--informally, freely, and cogently about their craft, their skills, their ideas, their notions, and their ideals. Let's join the conversation."
--From the Introduction

About the Author

Denis Higgins was a senior editor with Advertising Age.


Product Details

  • Paperback: 128 pages
  • Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (January 21, 2003)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0071410937
  • ISBN-13: 978-0071410939
  • Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.4 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #912,594 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

 

Customer Reviews

3 Reviews
5 star:
 (2)
4 star:
 (1)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.7 out of 5 stars (3 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars What do five legendary copywriters say about advertising?, September 11, 2006
This review is from: The Art of Writing Advertising : Conversations with Masters of the Craft: David Ogilvy, William Bernbach, Leo Burnett, Rosser Reeves, (Paperback)
The Art of Writing Advertising is a unique collection of interviews conducted about forty years ago by Advertising Age magazine editor, Denis Higgins. Legendary copywriters William Bernbach, Leo Burnett, George Gribbin, David Ogilvy and Rosser Reeves candidly discuss their craft, their writing processes and their lives in this fascinating book.

The interviewer initially set out to find if these pioneering copywriters had any tricks or gimmicks for the difficult task of writing, but ended up with revealing and at times very personal glimpses into the lives of these five men. The interview with David Ogilvy is particularly poignant and enlightening. This book also includes a few example ads from each copywriter and pictures presumably taken during the interviews.

These great ad writers give some useful advice and share their thoughts on copywriting, but this is not a step-by-step guide for copywriting. If you are familiar with these copywriters and you would like to know a little more about their views on advertising, then I highly recommend The Art of Writing Advertising.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Some very serious insights that I believe are timeless, April 20, 2008
This review is from: The Art of Writing Advertising : Conversations with Masters of the Craft: David Ogilvy, William Bernbach, Leo Burnett, Rosser Reeves, (Paperback)
"You know, only advertising men hold seminars and judge advertising. The public doesn't hold seminars and judge advertising. The public either acts or it doesn't act." Rosser Reeves

The men in this book cut straight to the point of advertising and they don't mind going against the grain of art director clubs and guilds. I have learned to like that because I now subscribe to their point of view. The success of an advertisement cannot be measured by its pleasing aesthetics or its award winning status. It has to be measured by how successfully it met its objectives - which most of the time is to move product.

I think this is a must-read for young designers as many have a very mis-guided view of what advertising is all about. I cannot find a single design graduate who has learned the principles of good advertising from college. This book sets any print, web or such communications designer on the right path if they ever want to create effective ad's--no matter the medium or technique.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


4.0 out of 5 stars A Range of Answers for a Subjective Craft, April 3, 2010
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: The Art of Writing Advertising : Conversations with Masters of the Craft: David Ogilvy, William Bernbach, Leo Burnett, Rosser Reeves, (Paperback)
Five interviews with figureheads of advertising-Bill Bernbach, Leo Burnett, George Gribbin, David Ogilvy, and Rosser Reeves. They all get drilled with the same questions about their start in the business, qualities they look for in writers, use of figures of speech, etc. The answers don't vary much. They all think good ads must be fresh and original to fight being ignored, and copywriters should have an understanding of people stemming from an everyman background. They stress that copywriting is different from other types of writing (duh), and that writers should be widely read. Bernbach reads philosophy, whereas Ogilvy has no interest in it. This highlights differences in styles and backgrounds. On one spectrum, you see a copywriter who's into art and philosophy, then another who comes from research and thinks he's a better editor than writer. The book is good for putting together common traits of copywriters and getting a feel for the range of styles out there. If you just want entertainment, skip to the Rosser Reeves interview for an ad man intensely defending the business side. He says certain accounts are pure copy operations that force an understanding of the business.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Only search this product's reviews



Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
In a recording studio in the offices of Doyle Dane Bernbach on New York's 43rd St. sits William Bernbach. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
good copywriter, writing advertising, advertising men
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New York, Erwin Wasey, Leo Burnett, David Ogilvy, Claude Hopkins, George Gribbin, Madison Ave, Puerto Rico, Raymond Rubicam, Hall of Fame, Art Kudner, The Widow
New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats
Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:





Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 

Your tags: Add your first tag
 

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   
Related forums





Look for Similar Items by Category


Look for Similar Items by Subject