If you watch Madmen you’ll notice that people dressed impeccably in the 1950s. You’ll also realize that things have changed a lot in the world of advertising over the past 50 years. The branding industry has moved leaps and bounds into the modern age rather quickly, paving the way for the trends we see in everyday life. Today, we’d like to send you on a #ThrowBackThursday to take a look at some of the practices that were the norm then and seem rather humorous to us now.
“Best Before” dates ran long
The 1950s were a simpler time when kids still played outside and we didn’t think in hashtags. Creatives would fashion one ad that would be circulated for six months before a new one was created. However once TV’s and later the internet made things instant and easy to share, those ad execs needed to get their creative juices flowing because consumers were expecting consistently fresh content on every medium.
Paper Cuts Galore
Even as early as 20 years ago, cutting and pasting wasn’t just a simple move of the fingers. Ctrl+c / Ctrl+v was a chore where designers had to literally cut huge sheets of paper and intricate designs while gluing them down to a bristol board. If they didn’t wait the standard allotted time for the images to dry, they’d all go flying to the ground and it was back to the drawing board.
The Library is Open
Have you seen an ad from six decades ago? They were word heavy and read like narratives. Nobody’s got the time to read a novel about some new detergent now so we rely on creative visuals paired with short, innovative copy.
1 Degree of Separation
With Google, we have the world at our fingertips and researching anything is as simple as typing it into a search engine. Odds are, that Indonesian café you heard your aunt say she visited in the 90s now has a Facebook page so connecting with them is a breeze. Yet imagine the research employees had to do before the internet. No less than five interviews and even more trips to the library were in order before you could even begin to think of an idea.
While technology has allowed ad agencies to complete work more quickly, the demand is higher than ever. However with a group of creative team players trained in the business, they make innovative projects possible with their passion and expertise. That’s one thing we don’t think has ever changed.
Let us know your thoughts on the changing face of the advertising industry or share some of the funny vintage ads you’ve found with us on Twitter at @52PickUpInc or on Facebook with the hashtag #NowVsThen
More News
