Reality in Advertising

Rosser Reeves was a dynamic and powerful copywriter one of the few in 1960 inducted into the Copywriters Hall of Fame. There's a reason for that: He knew and practiced reality in advertising. He stripped away the myths that were long held and that are still held today. He provided his clients with the practice of good principles that you'll read in this book.Any copywriter or advertiser who is not fortunate enough to own a copy of this book is a sad character indeed. It is a gem. If you have to pay $300 for it, buy it. In your hands you'll own the most dynamic truth ever written about selling your clients products and services and writing great copy, making advertising pay major dividends.You say this book was written in 1960. How valuable could it be today? Perhaps more valuable than many books being offered up by contemporary writers. What you discover in this book are practices that most people no longer use. That's sad because they're taking money, profits, off the table. They're losing market share. Advertisers are paying for sales copy and ad campaigns that will never work because big egos are involved.While many of the books written today about advertising on the Internet, for example, will be outdated in a few years, this book, I venture, will never be outdated. While many copywriters today attempt to be great writers who are admired by their peers; writers who are puffy and more interested in selling their own skills than their client's products, Rosser Reeves was interested in one thing --- selling every widget he could for his clients. That's what this book is all about. That's why I love it and value it. That's why it is indeed a classic.In the book, Reeves shoots down many of his contemporaries. He shoots down myths. Yes, he talks about the unique selling proposition, which he helped make famous. The USP is remarkably important. Yet few copywriters even bother to discover their client's USP. They're not salespeople. They want a showcase for their own so-called talent and not a tool with which to sell products. Trouble with all this is, you simply can't sell without having a handle on the USP.Reeves wrote copy to sell. He didn't write to win awards. He knew that awards were unimportant. He gives the example of two television commercials that the advertising community said were terrible. They laughed about them and explained how they would make them better. And yet, these two commercials made their advertisers rich --- they outsold all other commercials that the ad people thought were so great. You see, ad people are not good judges of what's good. The consumer is the ultimate and most effective judge. The consumer is the only award that counts.I've read some unkind reviews about this book. I challenge anyone to find a greater book for the advertising professional. I have some four decades of advertising experience under my belt and I learn each time I read this book. I value the words as if they were freshly found gold coins. If I had a choice of being a copywriter like Rosser Reeves and one of these "gurus" of today who is so in love with his own words and style and wants to showcase his own talents, I'll choose to model after Reeves.For in the end, advertising and copywriting is about selling the client's product or service to as many consumers as possible. And that's what Reality in Advertising is all about.VERY highly recommended.- Susanna K. Hutcheson

I got this in a set of what I've been told are good primers on advertising and I was pretty pleased with the amount of new information in it - and I've been a copywriter for a while (with a bachelors degree in marketing).I also started watching Mad Men after reading this and noticed three or four nods to things mentioned in this book in the pilot episode. I haven't gotten into the Ogilvy books yet, the anecdotes might be in there as well, but I'm convinced the writer possibly read this book before writing the episode.

No none sense or BS. Straight up facts, data and what REALLY works in advertising (for past, present and future).A book to read over and over (and apply).Anyone involved in advertising, growth hacking, CRO, marketing etc. and is interested in finding out how to move the needle of their campaigns should pick this up.The chapters are super easy to read. The author did a great job distilling it to its essence and stripping it out of all the fluff and fillers (as ALL books should be!)The only thing that's missing, which would've made this my favorite book of all time, is actual marketing collateral and ads.That said, the examples are good enough to give you directions.

What is interesting about this book is the principles still hold true even in the age of digital advertising. I found connections between the words of the author and my day to day advertising efforts in search and social media. I'd love to hear the author talk about digital advertising today in comparison to his writings from years ago. I found it amusing how the author called out other authors by name. Almost as if he was jealous.

Unknown today, but by a few, Reeves is more important than ever. More important to understanding the fundamentals of advertising than even David Ogilvie! It's the only book that focuses on the mythic USP ... unique selling proposition. He also re-introduces two critical advertising metrics: penetration (the percentage of people who remember an ad vs the total number who saw the ad), and usage-need (the percentage of people who actually bought the product vs those who saw the ad). Reeves writes one to one-and-a-half page (very) short chapters, so it's an easy and enjoyable read with very, very sharp and understandable messages growing-out of a good USP, and effective advertising practices. Plenty of good, real examples. MUST READ!

Get another, more modern book.

I found Rosser Reeves' book a thoroughly enjoyable read with plenty of stimulating ideas and strategies in advertising that should stand the test of time. Media, marketing, and the means of transmitting advertising messages will surely continue to change as time goes by but the concepts that drive clear communication and start conversations around brands I believe will remain fairly consistent. Reeves gives the reader lots to think about, and what's more, implement in the real advertising world. I plan on reading it again and seeing it as a constant companion and would definitely recommend it highly as a must-have for any creative person's library.

A summary of the ways that advertising needs to be more like a science experiment than based on personal opinion. Good read with short chapters.

Un libro imprescindible para conocer la principal aportación de este gurú del marketing que fue Rosser Reeves.

Rosser preceded Ogilvy, Bernbach, etc. He discovered the obvious nut of our business...the USP! If you don't know what USP is, then buy the damn book. And obviously you are under 50.

a bible for marketing. Glad I got a copy!