• North Americans in 60s were better educated, younger and influenced by rapid technological change
• Consumer was interested in novelty and individual self-expression
• President Kennedy in the US represented a new youthful ideal that anything was possible
• Youth joining the peace corp, civil rights movement and the American Moon Landing
• Pierre Elliott Trudeau Prime Minister of Canada from April 20, 1968 to June 3, 1979 and from March 3, 1980 to June 30, 1984 represented this new younger more affluent group in Canada
• In 1964 Beatlemania hit North America bringing the British Invasion and influence
• Fast food chains like McDonalds, Burger King and KFC grew and new appliances and technologies became commonplace and affordable
• Workers were losing jobs to technology, cold war tensions continued, threat of nuclear war, conflict in Vietnam and the assassinations of Kennedy and Martin Luther King seemed to mark an end of an age of innocence
• Social change was sparked by activists- civil rights, anti-war and feminists

Power to the People: Civil Rights, anti Establishment

• Civil rights movement forced Americans to confront the oppression of African Americans
• Marches, sit ins and freedom rides became common
• Martin Luther King one of the leaders adopted non violent protests
• see civil rights photos at http://www.kodak.com/US/en/corp/features/moore/mooreIndex.shtml
• An emerging counter-culture challenged the "establishment"
• Young people flocked to social movements and causes ( in 1960 1/2 population was under 25)
• Enrollment in colleges and universities doubled; campuses became centers for protest and demonstration

ANTI WAR

• as the Vietnam war increasingly became a part of the news and the realities of war were in the living rooms of the nation, youth groups mobilized in protest
• see the Vietnam photos that shocked the world -Vietnam photographs (inside link)

Women burn Bras- Gays and Lesbians rise up at Stonewall

• Women also demanded equality; gays in 1969 fought back at the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village read more and see photos at http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/eresources/exhibitions/sw25/case1.html and http://www.stonewallvets.org/Stonewall_Era_Club_People_Rebellion.htm

Kent State

• With Richard Nixon in power in 1970 National Guard gunned down students at Kent State (see photos at Kent Tragedy here and eye witness account http://www.history.com/audio/eyewitness-account-of-kent-state-shootings) in Ohio and Jackson State in Mississippi - student strikes resulted and mass demonstrations in Washington
• Unemployment was rising

Watergate

• what began as a small news item on a break in at Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Watergate Hotel turned into a drawn out televised investigation bring down Nixon and many members of his party ; Nixon resigned in 1974; Americans pulled out of Vietnam a year later - The word Watergate entered the political lexicon as a term synonymous with corruption and scandal. Read more on Watergate at http://www.watergate.info/http://www.watergate.info/
• large deficits from the war contributed to deficits and inflation- post war boom was over

Gas Shortage

• from 1973-1974 OPEC raised prices creating an oil crisis; American saw reduced speed limits, car pooling and more fuel efficient foreign cars enter the market
• the American auto industry cut production and laid off workers affecting all related industries
• these turbulent times created a need for change; people were becoming empowered, behavioral norms were changing- advertisers recognized a need to change

The Creative Revolution

• Youthful revolutionaries were joined - by the advertising industry and the men's clothing business
• Pillars of fifties conservatism postwar consumerism was smashed by a new breed of admen and manufacturers who openly addressed public distrust of their industries, recognized the absurdity of consumer society, made war on conformity and settled on youth rebellion and counterculture as a symbol for a new marketing vision
• Audience had changed- large group of baby boom youth- advertisers began focusing on them
• the new goal was to be under 30 slim, youthful and attractive
• Puritan ideals were dropped- it was the time of birth control and liberation
• Alfred Kinsey's published Sexual Behavior in the Human Male in 1948 (sold 200,000 copies in the first two months and on the top of bestseller list by June).and Sexual Behavior in the Human Female in 1953. Read about him at PBS site http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/kinsey/
• the world was being televised, information was rapid; a shift from literary to visual culture
• generation gap was widening- attention span shortened

Alienated Youth- Counterculture- Express Yourself!

• hippies formed the counter-culture who followed Timothy Leary's "Tune in, Turn on Drop out "
• Doing your own thing was the norm- musical groups popularized eastern mysticism

Neo-art nouveau became visual of hippie movement- see Peter Max Posters to right "Life is so beautiful" anti-smoking ad 1972 By mid 70s marketing of design was visible and influential in mass culture People expressed themselves in what they wore and surrounded themselves with- often outrageous tackiness (think Austin Powers) Widespread counter culture spawned health foods, tie dye , throw away furniture, streakers everything geared to the young See Hippie Look (inside link) In 1969 John Lennon and Yoko Ono brought their peace campaign to Montreal and Toronto In Ottawa, they meet with Prime Minister Trudeau for 45 minutes. Clearly impressed after the meeting, Lennon says, "If all world leaders were like Mr. Trudeau, we would have world peace." War is Over If you want it Merry Christmas from John and Yoko

Peter Max anti-smoking ad "Life is beautiful"

• by 1970s economy was in recession; alternative ideas of 60s had become mainstream

Inspiration, Intuition and Creativity

• Fantasy filled ads and old rules didn't apply
• The times brought a new smarter more skeptical audience who needed something else; more emphasis on creative in agencies was made
• Scientific methods gave way to inspiration, intuition and creativity
• Art directors and writers were working together as teams; agencies recruited more diverse people
• Blue jean was in- suit was out in creative department

The New Advertising

• Emphasis was shifted to the product (leaders were Leo Burnett (folksy credibility), David Ogilvy (classicism) and Bill Bernbach (humour)- product was central to ad

Leo Burnett

• Leo Burnett has been called "the lowly genious of the heartland's subconscious"; his work was truly creative and strikingly visual and he had a "penchant for employing a range of masculine archetypes"
• Burnett believed" — to the public mind — visual form is more persuasive than carefully reasoned argument. "
• Leo Burnett's Marlboro Man in 1964 became one of most successful in history "Come to where the flavor is. come to Marlboro Country"
• When cigarette ads were banned from TV in 1971 campaign transferred to print, sponsorship of sports, events, billboards- by 1975 it was top selling brand
• Burnett and his agency created cartoon characters such as Charlie the Tuna, Pillsbury Dough Boy, Morris the Cat and the lonely Maytag repairman
• read about Burnett http://www.time.com/time/time100/builder/profile/burnett.html

David Ogilvy

• To promote Shell he wrote "Shell recommends 21 ways to make your car last longer'
• Ogilvy loved copy and it's said he even bragged about having used 3000 words in an ad.
• "Tell the truth, but make the truth interesting."
• "Big ideas! That's what advertising is all about"
• He published Confessions of an Advertising Man in 1962 and Ogilvy on Advertising in 1983
• read more http://www.prnewswire.co.uk/cgi/news/release?id=22165

Bill Bernbach

"Think small. Our little car isn't so much of a novelty any more. A couple of dozen college kids don't try to squeeze inside it. The guy at the gas station doesn't ask where the gas goes. Nobody even stares at our shape. In fact, some people who drive our little flivver don't even think 32 miles to the gallon is going any great guns. Or using five pints of oil instead of five quarts. Or never needing anti-freeze. Or racking up 40,000 miles on a set of tires. That's because once you get used to some of our economies, you don't even think about them any more. Except when you squeeze into a small parking spot. Or renew your small insurance. Or pay a small repair bill. Or trade in your old VW for a new one. Think it over. © 1960 Volkswagen of America, Inc."

 

• Bernbach's Volkswagen campaign is considered one of best all time
• The campaign took an offbeat approach to the vehicles short comings
• Ads featured a simple picture, a single selling advantage, straightforward copy telling why to buy and used humour see more Volkswagen Ads http://www.superbeetles.com/vintage_ads/vintageads.htm
• Bernbach also worked on the Avis campaign that openly admitted they were number 2, but they tried harder- see and read about their Avis is only No. 2
• In 1982 Harper's wrote about Bernbach after his death
  • "William Bernbach has certainly had a greater impact on American culture that any other writer or artist honored by this magazine over the last 133 years. He invented a new style in advertising, a style which today has become dominant, but at the time was a real revolution. Its' qualities rely on irony, understatement, intelligence, using a tone which inspires conviviality, understanding and affection rather than aggression."
• Bernbach Quotes: "Advertising isn't a science. It's persuasion. And persuasion is an art." "In advertising not to be different is virtually suicidal." "Safe advertising is the riskiest advertising you can do."
• Bernbach's Principles Principle N°1 : « Be Alive!; Principle N°2 : « Soyez Différent » (Be Different); Principle N°3 : " Be Relevant! "Principle N°4 : &" Advertising is an intrinsic part of the product! ";Principle N°5 : " Be Credible! " (Be Credible);Principle N°6 : " Advertising is not a science, it's an art! ";Principle N°7 : " Don't be a follower, be a leader! "; Principle N°8 : " Be Provocative! "; Principe N°9 : " Take a stand! "

Creative Boutiques

• New boutique agencies opened up as some advertisers moved away from the larger agencies
• Ads focused on being outrageous, unique -using collages, psychedelic images, pop art and parodies
• Many wanted to emulate the Bernbach style

Canadian Advertising in the 60's

According to Susan Krashinsky in Meet the Don Drapers of University Avenue,( Globe & Mail Mar 17, 2012) University Avenue was Canada's version of Madison Avenue. The creative revolution in advertising was slower to come to Canada. Canadian agencies were often controlled by the stiff upper lip wealthy class. Canada had two distinct cultures and was often influenced by the US. Many companies forced agencies to adopt American campaigns, but Quebec was different. They adopted their own campaigns and used their own celbrities. Canadian ads were often a cross between British Wit and American- Brashness. While American spent wildly on television, Candain ad business did not have the money. ( Ad spending in US 1964 was $73 per capita compared to $31 in Canada.)

Women and minorities did not fair well in the the ad business in the 60s. If women got ahead in Agencies it might have been as media buyers under the watchful eye of men. If they did succeed in copywriting, they may not have been invited to meetings, and if they were silence could be expected. Sometimes if the client was for a male dominated product, the client did not even know that a woman was at work on "important' parts of campaigns. Jerry Goodis was one of the first in Canada to bring the creative revolution to Canada. He created the slogan, "At Speedy you're a somebody." raising sales by 30% in six months

Loss of Creative Momentum -70s return to Hard Sell

• Recession of the 70s caused advertisers to use a harder sell for the tighter economy
• TV commercials now were 30 seconds versus 60 sec or 120 second spots
• Some agencies disappeared; magazines folded

Minority Groups- Include me in

• Civil rights movement enlightened people and led to more cultural diversity on TV and in ads
• Change was slow; one study notes that from 1947-1965 blacks appeared in fewer than 1% of ads
• Most advertisers did not create ads for a specific group but rather replaced whites with an ethnic group
• Some of the previous black characters disappeared or were altered- Uncle Ben's chef disappeared and Aunt Jemima slimmed down got rid of her head scarf and became more modern looking
• Demographic information and research was done on many groups but African American tended to all be seen as the same
• Frito Bandido a gun toting Mexican was retired in 1970 due to pressure from National Mexican-American Anti-Defamation Committee

• Thomas Burrell was an exception. He stated, "Blacks are not just dark-skinned white people." and in 1971, founded Burrell Communications to reach the African-American market. Burrell had started in the mailroom of Chicago’s Wade Advertising. He was the first to show Blacks in ordinary situations in everyday life rather than the former portrayal of caricatures

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