The most notable was the 1959 campaign for Maxwell House coffee --"Good to the last drop".
At first, I was stunned that the slogan was a half-century old (it's actually older than that I've learned). I thought it was new when I was a kid in the 1980's!
The initial campaign was strong by the time it first hit television in the 1970's..
And so it was with more modern TV ads 30+ years later ..
So what can we learn from its longevity? That a simple idea can make a great 'connection' as long as people -- in this case the customers -- are kept in the forefront of the campaign.
Wikipedia and others claim the slogan itself dates back to World War I and may have been shared with Coca-Cola before Maxwell House took the lead and America firmly embraced the brand. (Note: sources differ on whether President Theodore Roosevelt deserves credit for the phrase as well.)
Still, from a campaign perspective, Ogilvy's 1959 approach, which included product placement in TV shows and eventual broadcast commercials in the 1970s, creates a solid message that I feel was certain to connect with audiences because of its simplicity.
Even non-coffee drinkers understand the spin of the slogan. "Good to the last drop" sends the message that "you're getting your money's worth out of every sip!"
That's the connection!
An ad campaign that shows all types of people drinking the coffee solidifies the sell, but maintaining a brand like Maxwell House took a simplistic approach that connects.
By the way, Ogilvy & Mather kept the account for 50 years, until losing it to a Chicago firm in 2009.
A second all-time ad that struck a nerve with me was Volkswagen's "Think Small" campaign, which is credited with a 1959 launch from Doyle Dane Bernbach (DDB).
Fifty-two years later, this concept still resonates. Just think about every time you see a VW bug out there on the road. They're small!
No need to sell the idea with talk of gas mileage, comfort, or "0-to-60 MPH in ..."
All of those questions are givens if the connection can be made that "small is good," and "good is right for you."
That makes sense to me as a consumer, and it also shows how DDB didn't over analyze or out think himself on this one. The concept stayed strong in the accompanying broadcast campaign:
In the end, what I take away from the VW campaign is that the ad team probably showed pictures of the product to people on the street and asked them what comes to mind.
"Think small" came 40 years before "Got Milk?" but sets up the same premise -- simple sells. So keep it simple.
