If you have ever browsed old magazines you have certainly been amused by how these ads may seem old-fashioned. The codes of advertising have changed so much in the last decades that ads of 30 or 40 years ago, would just not fit in any magazine today. Yet, have you ever compared old vs. new ads and seen the evolution ? We did the exercise for you and prepared a slideshare (below) so that you can actually see the evolution. As you will notice some brands have not changed the codes much (Pampers) whereas other, especially in the luxury sector, have made their revolution. Vuitton and Hermes for instance abandoned completely their focus on their very activity (saddle-making and case-making) to evolve towards the evocation of their brand universes. This change is particularly radical as far as text is concerned. There is just no text anymore. Changes are also visible in the car manufacturing sector. BMW has kept (in some ads, not in all) the general layout of its ads (a picture on the top, and a text on the bottom) but other brands have changed that all. In the past (60’s-80’s) it was common to have a lot of text on the bottom of the ad to describe the technical functionalities and performances of the vehicles. Today, look at what Audi and Mercedes do. There is a car, on some mystic and emotionally loaded background and that’s all. Only legal mentions are visible on the bottom. The vehicle has become an emotional object, and has lost its utilitarian side. You may also note how similar the Audi and Mercedes layouts are … Two brands stand out because their old ads don’t seem –too- outdated. L’Oreal (expect the black&white drawing) had adopted a very modern and simple style. It all focused on the user like in Gillette’s ad. Gillette just replaced Telly Savalas by David Beckham but the way to present the ad itself hasn’t change. We hope this post has entertained you. Don’t hesitate to share with us your favorite ads and your memories of old advertising campaigns.

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Reproduction interdite
The evolution of advertising …
in pictures

2. • Brands among TOP 50 (according
to Forbes’ ranking)
• Focus on brands more than 70
years old
• Comparaison of same product
line when possible
• The ad selection is based on
order of appearance
Methodology

3. Coca-Cola
TODAY: The bottle has become the central object of attention in the ad.

4. Louis Vuitton
Today : Everything is suggested rather than explained

5. BMW
Today : the car has changed but the layout hasn’t.

6. Mercedes-Benz
Today : A massive and powerful image has replaced a leaflet-like ad.

7. Gillette
Today : Beckham has replace Kojak but the Man is still central to the ad.

8. Pepsi
Today : The product has gained in size and centrality, but the star is still
the woman

9. Nestlé
Today : No more blabla. The color identity is the central piece of the
advertising message.

10. L’Oréal
Today : except the b&w colors, the message hasn’t evolved much in its
form. Still short and the woman is the star rather than the product.

11. Audi
Today : Emotions and visual power have replaced technical explanations.

12. Ford
Today : Everything is suggested rather than explained

13. Danone
Today : Like in the past , the product is king. The message conveyed
today is more subtle and words have disappeared

14. Hermes
Today : No more words. The specialties of the house Hermes are not
mentioned anymore. It’s the Hermes universe which is evoked.

15. Pampers
Today : The ads are still functional and texts is there to reassure on the
actual “performances” of the product. The baby is nowadays the star.

16. • Marketing agency accredited by
Belgium’s federal authorities
• 50% B2B / 50% B2C
• 80% SME / 20% Large corporations
• Expertise :
– Satisfaction & Loyalty
– Market research and marketing
strategy
– Profitability analysis
• Sectors served : Hospitality, Logistics,
Retail, Fashion, IT
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