50+ Famous David Ogilvy Quotes on Copywriting and Advertising

In my last blog post, I covered quotes from Seth Godin that will inspire you to be a better marketer and entrepreneur.

Well, today, I want to talk about another legend; David Ogilvy.

Below you’ll find quotes from Ogilvy on copywriting, advertising, branding, and more.

Enjoy.

David Ogilvy Famous Quotes

1. “The best ideas come as jokes. Make your thinking as funny as possible.”
2. “Don’t bunt. Aim out of the ballpark. Aim for the company of immortals.”
3. “The consumer isn’t a moron. She is your wife. Don’t insult her intelligence, and don’t shock her.”
4. “Good marketing is the same as good storytelling. It’s about telling the story of your product in a compelling and relatable way.”
5. “Never stop testing, and your advertising will never stop improving.”
6. “A good advertisement is one which sells the product without drawing attention to itself.”
7. “If it doesn’t sell, it isn’t creative.”
8. “The more informative your advertising, the more persuasive it will be.”
9. “When you advertise fire extinguishers, open with the fire.”
10. “What really decides consumers to buy or not to buy is the content of your advertising, not its form.”

David Ogilvy Quotes on Copywriting

1. “On the average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy. When you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your dollar.”
2. “The best headlines are those that promise the reader a benefit.”
3. “When you have written your headline, you have spent 80 cents out of your dollar.”
4. “Good copywriting is plain speaking.”
5. “What you say in advertising is more important than how you say it.”
6. “The most important part of writing an advertisement is the first sentence. So spend time on it.”
7. “Never use jargon words like reconceptualize, demassification, attitudinally, judgmentally. They are hallmarks of a pretentious ass.”
8. “Unless your advertising contains a big idea, it will pass like a ship in the night.”
9. “Write the way you talk. Naturally.”
10. “Tell the truth, but make the truth fascinating.”

David Ogilvy Quotes on Advertising

1. “The consumer isn’t a moron; she is your wife. You insult her intelligence if you assume that a mere slogan and a few vapid adjectives will persuade her to buy anything.”
2. “The best ideas come as jokes. Make your thinking as funny as possible.”
3. “A good advertisement is one which sells the product without drawing attention to itself.”
4. “Never stop testing, and your advertising will never stop improving.”
5. “If it doesn’t sell, it isn’t creative.”
6. “Advertising people who ignore research are as dangerous as generals who ignore decodes of enemy signals.”
7. “I do not regard advertising as entertainment or an art form, but as a medium of information.”
8. “The more informative your advertising, the more persuasive it will be.”
9. “Don’t bunt. Aim out of the ballpark. Aim for the company of immortals.”
10. “When you advertise fire extinguishers, open with the fire.”

David Ogilvy Quotes on Creativity

1. “The best ideas come as jokes. Make your thinking as funny as possible.”
2. “Unless your advertising contains a big idea, it will pass like a ship in the night.”
3. “Big ideas come from the unconscious. This is true in art, in science, and in advertising. But your unconscious has to be well informed, or your idea will be irrelevant.”
4. “Diversity of viewpoints, experiences, and backgrounds is critical to creating innovative and effective campaigns.”
5. “You can’t bore people into buying your product; you can only interest them in buying it.”
6. “An idea can turn to dust or magic, depending on the talent that rubs against it.”
7. “The best and most original artists steal their ideas, but they do it brilliantly.”
8. “Creativity is not a science. It’s the coalescence of different ideas, experiences, and knowledge.”
9. “Every advertisement should be thought of as a contribution to the complex symbol which is the brand image.”
10. “Advertising is only evil when it advertises evil things.”

David Ogilvy Quotes on Branding

1. “Every advertisement should be thought of as a contribution to the complex symbol which is the brand image.”
2. “The personality of the brand is an essential part of its positioning.”
3. “Any damn fool can put on a deal, but it takes genius, faith, and perseverance to create a brand.”
4. “A brand is not just a product, it is the sum total of all the impressions a customer has, based on every interaction they have had with you, your company, and your products.”
5. “What really decides consumers to buy or not to buy is the content of your advertising, not its form.”
6. “A brand should strive to own a word in the mind of the consumer.”
7. “Unless your campaign contains a big idea, it will pass like a ship in the night.”
8. “Brand image is more important than you think. People see a brand as a kind of promise. It is the sum total of their perceptions and feelings about the product’s attributes and how they perform, about the brand name and what it stands for, and about the company that makes it.”
9. “You now have to decide what ‘image’ you want for your brand. Image means personality. Products, like people, have personalities, and they can make or break them in the market place.”
10. “In the modern world of business, it is useless to be a creative, original thinker unless you can also sell what you create.”

Featured image: Flashbak