David Ogilvy

You aren’t advertising to a standing army; you are advertising to a moving parade.

— David Ogilvy

Unless your campaign has a big idea, it will pass like a ship in the night.

— David Ogilvy

I admire people with gentle manners who treat other people as human beings.

— David Ogilvy

I always said that mega-mergers were for megalomaniacs.

— David Ogilvy

Never write more than two pages on any subject.

— David Ogilvy

The consumer isn't a moron; she is your wife.

— David Ogilvy

Don't bunt. Aim out of the ball park. Aim for the company of immortals.

— David Ogilvy

The more informative your advertising, the more persuasive it will be.

— David Ogilvy

Set exorbitant standards, and give your people hell when they don't live up to them. There is nothing so demoralizing as a…

— David Ogilvy

Our offices must always be headed by the kind of men who command respect. Not phonies, zeros or bastards.

— David Ogilvy

When people aren't having any fun, they seldom produce good work. Kill the grimness with laughter. Encourage exuberance. Get rid of sad…

— David Ogilvy

Try and inject into every commercial you make a touch of singularity; a bird that will hook on to the consumers mind

— David Ogilvy

In the modern world of business, it is useless to be a creative, original thinker unless you can also sell what you…

— David Ogilvy

Never write an advertisement which you wouldn't want your family to read. You wouldn't tell lies to your own wife. Don't tell…

— David Ogilvy

Develop your eccentricities while you are young. That way, when you get old, people won't think you're going gaga.

— David Ogilvy

Make sure you have a vice president in charge of your revolution, to engender ferment among your more conventional colleagues.

— David Ogilvy

Can advertising foist an inferior product on the consumer? Bitter experience has taught me that it cannot. On those rare occasions when…

— David Ogilvy

At 60 miles an hour the loudest noise in this Rolls-Royce comes from the electric clock. (1958 Rolls-Royce print ad - sometimes…

— David Ogilvy

I don't know the rules of grammar... If you're trying to persuade people to do something, or buy something, it seems to…

— David Ogilvy

We admire people who work hard, who are objective and thorough. We detest office politicians, toadies, bullies, and pompous asses. We abhor…

— David Ogilvy

“A psychologist flashed hundreds of words on a screen and used an electric gadget to measure emotional reactions. High marks went to…

— David Ogilvy

It takes a big idea to attract the attention of consumers and get them to buy your product. Unless your advertising contains…

— David Ogilvy

“Look for young men and women who can one day lead your agency. Is there any way of predicting the capacity to…

— David Ogilvy

I never assign a product to a writer unless I know that he is personally interested in it. Every time I have…

— David Ogilvy

Sound an alarm! Advertising, not deals, builds brands.

— David Ogilvy

Great marketing only makes a bad product fail faster.

— David Ogilvy

Our business is infested with idiots who try to impress by using pretentious jargon.

— David Ogilvy

Tell the truth, but make the truth fascinating.

— David Ogilvy

Advertising reflects the mores of society, but it does not influence them.

— David Ogilvy

At 60 miles an hour the loudest noise in this Rolls-Royce comes from the electric clock.

— David Ogilvy

It has been found that the less an advertisement looks like an advertisement and the more it looks like an editorial, the…

— David Ogilvy

The majority of business men are not capable of an original thought, simply because they cannot escape the tyranny of reason.

— David Ogilvy

Every advertisement should be thought of as a contribution to the complex symbol which is the brand image.

— David Ogilvy

It's the lack of ambition that cripples most people, and makes them so pedestrian in the advertising/creative business

— David Ogilvy

On the average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy. When you have written your headline,…

— David Ogilvy

To advertisers: "Do not compete with your agency in the creative area. Why keep a dog and bark yourself?"

— David Ogilvy

One half was sad because I had damaged my reputation. The other half was happy because I had damaged my reputation.

— David Ogilvy

Never write an advertisement which you wouldn't want your own family to read. You wouldn't tell lies to your own wife. Don't…

— David Ogilvy

It is flagrantly dishonest for an advertising agent to urge consumers to buy a product which he would not allow his own…

— David Ogilvy

The psychiatrists say that everybody should have a hobby. The hobby I recommend is advertising

— David Ogilvy