7 People Who Changed the History of Advertising

Johannes Gutenberg

left behind a priceless gift, the printing press, which allowed people to spread knowledge around the community faster than ever before. Before this invention, advertising was mostly word-of-mouth.

Benjamin Franklin

He published the first magazine that contained an advertisement in 1741: The General Magazine.

Phineas Taylor Barnum

known professionally as P.T. Barnum - was a clown even before he founded the Barnum & Bailey Circus.

F. Wayland Ayer

He developed the "open contract" in 1875, which guaranteed that his clients would get the lowest possible rates, while the agency would make its money with a 15% commission.

Helen Lansdowne Resor

was an advertising executive with J. Walter Thompson Co. and is considered the greatest copywriter of her generation.

William Bernbach

changed advertising by breaking the rules and writing his own. For example, instead of the extended copy that every other advertiser was using, he believed that copywriting should be as short as possible to make the messages memorable and clear.

David Ogilvy

is known as the father of modern advertising.