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10 David Ogilvy Quotes that Could Revolutionize Your Blogging

Posted By Darren Rowse 2nd of February 2011 Featured Posts, Writing Content 0 Comments

This week, I’ve been reading The King of Madison Avenue—an interesting biography of ad man David Ogilvy (aff).

I’ve always been fascinated with Ogilvy and see a lot in what he’s done as relevant to bloggers. So here’s some of his more famous quotes, with a few thoughts on how they relate to our medium.

1. “The consumer isn’t a moron; she is your wife.”

How appropriate—both for internet marketers (who are often known for tactics that treat those they target as morons) and bloggers (who can at times talk down to readers).

The idea of treating your reader as someone who you value, as someone incredibly special to you, will take bloggers a long way.

Another Ogilvy quote that relates: “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 them to mine.

2. “The best ideas come as jokes. Make your thinking as funny as possible.”

I’ve been pondering this one a lot over the last 24 hours and it’s true—some of my best blog posts and projects have emerged out of light-hearted tweets or comments in conversations to friends.

31 Days to Build a Better Blog came about as I laughed with a friend about how bloggers needed a daily devotion (similar to what I grew up with as a good Christian boy reading Every day with Jesus) to keep their blogs on track.

7 Digital Camera Predators and How to Keep them at Bay started as a friend and I joked about things that conspired to kill our cameras.

It’s often the crazy little ideas that we have that first make us laugh that do best. If they get some kind of reaction in us (even one that makes us giggle at how silly they are), they’re likely to also get a reaction from others.

3. “Don’t bunt. Aim out of the ball park. Aim for the company of immortals.”

Think big! While there’s also something to be said for having realistic expectations about what you can achieve with a blog, there’s nothing wrong with having big dreams and aiming to make them a reality.

It can be a bit of a balancing act, but if you aim a little higher you might just find yourself achieving things with your blog that you might not have thought possible.

4. “I have a theory that the best ads come from personal experience. Some of the good ones I have done have really come out of the real experience of my life, and somehow this has come over as true and valid and persuasive.”

If there’s one quote in this selection that most rings true for me it is this one. The posts that I’ve written that have emerged out of real experience, pain, excitement, heartache, and life are the ones that time and time again hit the mark with readers.

Tell stories, share your successes and failures, be yourself, and let your own personal voice come out. You’ll find readers respond in a personal way, too.

5. “I don’t know the rules of grammar… If you’re trying to persuade people to do something, or buy something, it seems to me you should use their language, the language they use every day, the language in which they think. We try to write in the vernacular.”

This might get up the noses of those of you who are a little more particular about grammar (and I do thank you for your continued daily emails pointing out my mistakes), but I think there’s something powerful about this.

Write your blog posts in the way that you’d actually speak to them if they were in the chair opposite you. Use language that communicates most clearly with them—even when it might not be the Queen’s English.

Of course there comes a point where grammar and spelling errors can and do get in the way of communicating clearly with readers. Don’t be lazy—the point is to know your readers and communicate in a way that’s relevant to them.

6. “Good copy can’t be written with tongue in cheek, written just for a living. You’ve got to believe in the product.”

I’m not sure I agree 100% with this as I do know bloggers who make good livings from writing about things that they have no real interest in or passion for. However, most successful blogs (and by that I mean more than profit, and am looking at blogs that connect with readers and help build a blogger’s reputation) are written by people who have something genuine to say about a topic they believe in.

While it’s possible to create a profitable blog on something you have no interest or belief in (by gaming the search engines for example), those kinds of blogs are never going to create a connection with readers or do much to raise your profile in an industry.

Conversely, bloggers who create blogs that come from genuine interest and passion for topics create connections with readers that have flow-on effects that lead to all kinds of wonderful opportunities.

7. “If you ever have the good fortune to create a great advertising campaign, you will soon see another agency steal it. This is irritating, but don’t let it worry you; nobody has ever built a brand by imitating somebody else’s advertising.”

There’s nothing more heartbreaking for a new blogger when you see your content being scraped onto another blog or your intellectual property being used by others without credit.

I still get upset by this from time to time, however there’s one thing that I’ve noticed despite hundreds of sites each day republishing my work without permission and/or credit. Nobody actually seems to read those blogs.

The key to successful blogging is unique and useful information. People who simply regurgitate what you write, or even repost it word for word, either eventually give up (because nobody reads it) or get caught out (and stop in disgrace).

While there are times when I’ve chased down others who blatantly steal my stuff without credit (there is a line) I find it much more beneficial to spend my time creating more great content than policing how people use what I’ve already produced.

Focus the bulk of your time upon producing and being the best you can be. This will have more positive impact upon your business than the negative tasks of stopping spammers and thieves stealing your old ideas.

8. “First, make yourself a reputation for being a creative genius. Second, surround yourself with partners who are better than you are. Third, leave them to go get on with it.”

This one might be a little more appropriate for advanced bloggers who’ve established themselves and are looking to take things to the next level.

There does come a time in most businesses where a solo entrepreneur needs to think about how to expand and grow beyond their own capacity to give their business personal attention.

There are only so many hours in the day. Expanding your team and/or partnering with others is one option to consider. If you do it, look for people whose skills complement and exceed yours, then get out of their way.

9. “Never stop testing, and your advertising will never stop improving.”

David was big on testing, and his effectiveness as a communicator improved dramatically as a result.

It’s amazing what you learn when you test different elements on a blog: simple tweaks of headlines, changes in calls to action, different placements of ads, tracking how design changes improve conversion of your objectives … the list could go on.

Great bloggers don’t just write content—they watch to see how people interact with it (and their blog) and use what they learn to improve their future efforts.

10. “On the average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy. When you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your dollar. “

The headline or title of your blog post is the most effective way to get people to read the rest of your post. If you don’t understand—and more importantly, implement—this principle, you’re going to miss out on a lot of readers.

Headlines draw people in, whether they see them in search results, on Twitter, in RSS feeds, or on your blog itself.

Ogilvy is famous for his advice on this: the purpose of your headline is to get people to read your first line. The purpose of your opening line is to get people to read the next one. So invest time and energy into your titles (and opening lines).

Here’s a related quote: “The headline is the ‘ticket on the meat.’ Use it to flag down readers who are prospects for the kind of product you are advertising.”

What’s your favorite Ogilvy quote?

There are a lot more David Ogilvy quotes. Do you have a personal favorite?

Here’s one more that I personally don’t live by, but which I know for a fact a couple of other well-known and quite successful bloggers live by.

“Many people—and I think I am one of them—are more productive when they’ve had a little to drink. I find if I drink two or three brandies, I’m far better able to write.”

 

About Darren Rowse
Darren Rowse is the founder and editor of ProBlogger Blog Tips and Digital Photography School. Learn more about him here and connect with him on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
Comments
  1. This is a really nice post with some nice quotes as well. I particularly liked the quote about testing because i really enjoy doing some good old split tests on my blog. There is no way to know what your visitors will like best unless you show them loads of different types of adverts, sign up boxes etc

    • Since I am blogger hence my second favourite is

      “When you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your dollar.“

      Our blog post always demand killing title.

  2. Read This: Very Very Interesting!

    Just trying my hand at number 10! Did it work? Did I fullfill no.5 at the same time?

  3. “First, make yourself a reputation for being a creative genius. Second, surround yourself with partners who are better than you are. Third, leave them to go get on with it.”

    That’s my favourite, I remember John Lasseter from Pixar was quoted something similar to that…

    David Edwards

  4. “Direct Marketing was my first love… then it became my secret weapon.”

  5. “Don’t bunt. Aim out of the ball park. Aim for the company of immortals.”

    That’s my number 1 favorite. I believe that the only limitation I have is the one I put on myself. My second favorite quote is the same as David’s:

    “First, make yourself a reputation for being a creative genius. Second, surround yourself with partners who are better than you are. Third, leave them to go get on with it.” <- this is what smart people do.

  6. “On the average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy. When you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your dollar. ”

    As a freelance writer and blogger, I know the importance of headlines. They are also the toughest part of the copy. And no matter how big your swipe file gets or how many headline writing exercises you do, if it doesn’t come naturally to you, you’re always going to spend more time on your headline than on your copy. Which isn’t necessarily bad – just irritating!

  7. “I don’t know the rules of grammar… If you’re trying to persuade people to do something, or buy something, it seems to me you should use their language, the language they use every day, the language in which they think. We try to write in the vernacular.”

    I like this one. For a grammatically perfect text you have books and newspapers… although I have my doubts about newspapers these days.

    I also love the last one: When you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your dollar.

  8. I love this one…“Many people—and I think I am one of them—are more productive when they’ve had a little to drink. I find if I drink two or three brandies, I’m far better able to write.”

    Personally, I think the world is divided into two kinds of people: a) those who get more creative and productive when they drink; and b) the ones who bask in a deluge of creativity with the first drink; see brilliant ideas forming with the second; the whole divine plan is mapped out (but only in their head) with the third…and then…they’re pissed!

    Sadly, I fall into the latter category…but happily I no longer drink! ;-D

    Thanks for a great post Darren

  9. I was skeptical when I saw this headline on Facebook, but these quotes are amazing! Thanks Darren.

    Tom

  10. Expanding on the “jokes” idea, can you ever be too personal with your blog posts.

    I try and keep mine mostly factual but what happens if I’m ill for example or if there are family problems and I can’t blog? Should I post and explain the real reason why I can’t post or just not post at all?

  11. I’d have to say the first one is quite pricelss Darren.

    It might be because I’m a woman … but I like the humour. This is from a guy who was living in an era where there was little respec for women … I just love it!

    Thanks for this great post!

    Krizia

  12. I especially like the first quote, I won’t recommend anything I don’t like. I wish more bloggers were like me it would make it easier to figure out which hosting company is superior or which products are good.

    Quite frankly if all I see are good reviews of products I won’t buy from that blogger…

  13. Hey what a brilliant post, very readible I know of several marketers who have read his biography and like you rave about it. Just very plain, simple information that we can all learn from -thanks

  14. When in doubt, turn to the masters. There’s more we can learn and apply from Rosser Reeves, Bill Bernbach and Howard Gossage, as well. Not to mention Edward Bernays. It’s worthwhile to go back and study the knowledge they left behind.

    • all good names Rusty – I’ve been working my way through some of these classics of late as a bit of a refresher – find them very inspiring.

  15. I love all this! Some of them apply even to my main job of preaching sermons. I will print this off and put by the side of my computer alongside a vital sheet of information about how to make boring scripts interesting comics. Now, my weakness is I’m rubbish at writing headlines. I’ve considered doing a journalism course to strengthen my blogging especially in this area. Or are there any good online resources?

  16. #2: “The best ideas come as jokes.”

    I used to be stuck in a writing style appropriate for the speeches I wrote for CEOs in a previous incarnation. Then I noticed how much I enjoyed the irreverent styles of other bloggers such as Penelope Trunk. Taking that a step further, I discovered how much easier it was to get into the flow when I let my inner Maxine (crabby cartoon character) out for a walk now and then. The posts I’ve written that had this voice have been more successful in overcoming lurkers’ reluctance to comment. Although like you, Darren, I was raised a good Christian girl, so I tend to ratchet back the snarkiness. It’s just more authentic to be nice. Here’s one where I’m self-deprecating:

    http://scrollwork.blogspot.com/2011/01/my-first-poached-egg-more-than-flash-in.html

  17. A fun read – and still really, really relevant. Re: #6, “You’ve got to believe in the product,” this is true, but can be difficult. I’ve been in advertising/PR for a while, and have never worked on a product I wholeheartedly hated, but have had to psych myself up about products like butter-flavored sprinkles and battery-operated grout cleaners.

    I couldn’t do a good job for these products until I really, really saw the value of them for the customers, and sounded excited when I talked about them. MUCH happier to work on stuff where I believe in the product from the start.

  18. My favorite, “Great advertising only makes a bad product fail faster.”

  19. Diana says: 02/02/2011 at 4:17 am

    I love #5! “I don’t know the rules of grammar… If you’re trying to persuade people to do something, or buy something, it seems to me you should use their language, the language they use every day, the language in which they think. We try to write in the vernacular.” This can’t be said enough!

    I admit that I laugh when I read blogging job ads that require a masters in English. I think the best writers out there (especially bloggers) are the ones that come from tv and advertising. We learn pretty quickly how to write like people talk, which is how people think. A great blog reads like conversation, not a novel or white paper.

    • Any novel that doesn’t read like people talk is a load of crap.

      There is a somewhat artificial divide between “proper grammar” and “how we talk” that I think of more as a continuum, but I get Ogilvy’s point. I spent my formative years mastering brilliantly intricate constructions of phrases and clauses, and have spent all my time since then unlearning them.

  20. I don’t have a fav Ogilvy quote, and I’m not even a professional blogger, but even as a hobby-blogger I appreciate the words of advice in here! First time I’ve felt prompted to comment, too!

  21. Hi Darren,

    Great quotes. #9 is my favourite: “Never stop testing, and your advertising will never stop improving.”

    It’s important to keep testing different strategies and tactics so you can know what’s working well and tweak accordingly and then build on what’s giving you more results.

    Thanks for sharing this.

    All the best,
    Mavis

  22. I think I understand the point of the quote about writing better while drinking a brandy or two – even though I don’t drink and write. Sure, the rules of grammar and spelling fly out the window so there’s more to proof later, but a drink to relax can help you get out of your own way.

    As an editor, I often write with my own critical, self-editor blathering away in my head. It can stifle creativity if I let it. (Granted, I normally write whatever I feel like writing and worry after I publish whether everyone will think I’m nuts.) Perhaps that first drink or two is what it takes for some people to silence their inner critic and create the truly honest – and sometimes brilliant – content they’re meant to create.

    • Jen – good thoughts. I think blogging while drinking might not be the best advice if you actually publish… but for me its more about blogging when slightly hyper/happy/in a silly mood. Capturing ideas and working in a more ‘playful’ and less inhibited state is great for fresh ideas and new ways of thinking and communicating.

      • I used to do a pretty good job of writing while drinking, then self-editing while sober. But drink too much and you’ll find it easier to shout opinions at whoever’s in the room than to write them down, so now I do it all sober. But it obviously worked for Ogilvy, so good on him for finding that out.

  23. Number 6! While it has been the bane of my advertising career that I can’t and won’t write about products I don’t believe in, it has meant I can always sleep at night. That goes double for blogging.

  24. There is a lot of good wisdom here, but thank you most for #7. That brings a lot of comfort to my fears about sharing my work & ideas online as an artist. Best wishes from germany, tj

  25. I really like number one as well. It’s a good one for many things we do in life. I also think number 5 is important. I think many people start out thinking they have to try to remember and follow all that grammar stuff they learned way back when. This just adds to and stress or tension they’re feeling about writing and often it’s not necessary. As mentioned, there’s a point where too many mistakes becomes an issue, but in general writing like you talk is just fine because people want to read your voice, not the dictionary or grammar textbook.

  26. I love #5 about writing the way you’d speak to someone if they’re in the chair opposite to you. I do this all the time. I think it gets the point across much better than fancy sentences. Plus, it’s a whole lot more fun to write that way.

  27. Another excellent post. Thank you! Also, per #5, one of my favorite quotes is:

    “I prefer to be criticized by the grammarians rather than not to be understood by the people.”
    – St. Augustine of Hippo

  28. Gotta love Ogilvy on Advertising book. I still implement his tactics in my own Accelerator for Success program.

  29. Great things to think about. I am still finding my voice as a newbie blogger, and it is encouraging to know that I am on the right track. Being myself is harder than I expected :) Starting a blog feels like a long and overwhelming process, but posts like this remind me that it is also a fun, creative, and purpose filled journey. I feel like I need to just sit with these quotes for a while because each had such value. Thanks for posting, and it looks like I will be adding another book to the wish list!

  30. “Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted, and the trouble is, I don’t know which half.” – David Oglivy. (Book: Confessions Of An Advertising Man.) That’s my favourite quote. I am not too sure if David would have said this in today’s age of Adwords. But the quote still holds true for a lot of business activities, not just blogging, and it is my favourite Ogivly quote.
    About grammar, I think what he meant was that the copywriter should use reader-friendly language, but not at the expense of grammar.
    About drinking and creativity, I had a colleague – a photojournalist – who thought who took great pictures after a few drinks. And his pictures (photos I took) would be on the front page of the next day’s newspaper.

  31. Wow great post with fabulous quotes and I really liked the last one and all the quotes are really very cool and well mentioned…

  32. Excellent Post! This definitely makes me want to read the bio. But even if I can’t get to it for a week or so, you have given me some great words to words to chew on.

  33. I had the pleasure of briefly working with in Australia a chap many people consider down here to be like David Ogilvy in my 20 years of being a graphic design boss.

    Australian advertising guru David Mattingly says

    “If you want to be noticed you must create a disturbance. Only the unusual gets seen, understood, remembered and talked about because the usual, no matter how tarted-up or elegantly contrived, is easily ignored, passed by, little noted and soon forgotten.”

  34. Great info, just sucking it all in, I’m a new blogger with a lot to learn.

  35. hi
    as a complete newbie to the internet it was a nice piece of luck to find your blog, plenty of very useful information and advice. my main issue is trying to get my website http://www.join-gdi.ws ranked by the search engines. this is proving a very expensive business with so many companys promising so much but delivering very little.

  36. My favourite quote is –

    “I don’t know the rules of grammar… If you’re trying to persuade people to do something, or buy something, it seems to me you should use their language, the language they use every day, the language in which they think. We try to write in the vernacular.”

  37. Some great quotes from one of the masters in advertising, brought smack up to date by one of the masters in blogging. An inspiring post, Darren. Regarding plagiarism and blogging … in Confessions of an Advertising Man by David Ogilvy (Southbank Publishing) he talks about a poem by Rudyard Kipling who was writing about a self-made shipping tycoon. On his death bed the old man reviews his life and says about his competitors “They copied all they could follow, but they couldn’t copy my mind, And I left ’em sweating and stealing, a year and a half behind.” Too true, eh?

  38. Yesterday, I almost commented on the fifth quote about writing in the vernacular and I didn’t but after last night I have come back to comment. When I write, I write as though I am speaking to an audience. I try to write in simple, jargon-free language. As a member of Toastmasters International, I have got used to writing speeches by creating them in my head first in spoken language and then writing down the words. For years I have had a writers block and in fact my blog stood dormant for six months after it was set up. The first post I wrote was converted from a speech I had done. I have been encouraged by the comments I have been getting about my articles which in turn have spurred me on to writing more. This year my target is three posts a week.
    Last night, we had a slightly different night at my speakers club, all the roles were pulled out of a hat. I drew a speech. With only minutes to come up with a five minute speech, I started to panic and then remembered the blog post I wrote yesterday. I delivered it as a speech and everyone loved it. In the eighties a professor wrote on my essay that my writing showed signs of “linguistic malnutrition”, I am just pleased that writing styles have eventually caught up to the way I like writing.

  39. Man, that picture of Ogilvy looks so bad-ass…

    Anyway, back to the topic; people like David Ogilvy, like Seth Godin, like the team at 37Signals, realise that you need to do things differently. Run your own race, find your Unique Selling Point. And quotes are an excellent way for others to realise the wisdom of these front-runners.

    I love quotes, they contain so much wisdom distilled down into a catchy slogan. They’re like fortune cookies ;-)

  40. I like his second idea. it is perfectly true because people like to gossip and get entertained.:) it is like that saying that one of the most successful site categories are those related to scandal topics

  41. I like number 5. Because It’s Very Important.. It’s make me feel That people feels.

  42. Wow – how cool! I love the part about speaking the language of the people rather than something grammatically correct – how human!

  43. Here is the Brass Ring: ‘It’s the HEADLINE, Stupid!’ The power is in the headline…

  44. Great post, thanks for sharing the quotes and giving us your commentary! My favorite quotes in your article are #1 and #5 – speak to your audience like they were your audience, someone special to you and on their level. As a marketing professional, I advise my clients to be “real” and to use their “authenticity” in their marketing. No one likes a phony, and in today’s open and informative atmosphere online, people can see through the BS – so approach your blogging, your social networking, your marketing, your clients, authentically – as though you knew them – get on their level and talk their talk. Love it!

    Sandy

  45. The first sentiment seems like a joke – a bad joke.

    “The consumer isn’t a moron; she is your wife.”

    — certainly the wording is a product of it’s time.

    I’ll have to read the book… but out of context that quote comes off as an insider joke — not as serious words of wisdom. And knowing how sexist ads were back then — it makes me doubt his ethical stance.

  46. John Philipp says: 02/03/2011 at 11:15 am

    My favorite Ogilvy quote is: “Only 50% of advertising works. And if I knew which 50% I wouldn’t spend the other half.”

  47. I like your post and being a former O&M’er, I can really appreciate the thought that went into it. I’m currently building a book on the 12 greatest AdMen/Women based on their quotes. I’ve been posting their quotes now daily on Twitter for the last month. My first choice was David Ogilvy because, lets face it, the man liked to quote and has more than anyone else I could find. This month, we are looking at Leo Burnett and there are many from what some consider, The Father Of Advertising. I think the idea of having a coffee table book of ad greats quotes is fun and interesting. I really like the idea of having a quote for every day of the year on a calendar. This is our goal and I hope you join us at http://twitter.com/MidnightOilInk. Take care and keep up the great blog.

    Sincerely,

    Patrick Kronin
    Midnight Oil & Ink Advertising/Design
    Chief Creative Officer/Senior Partner

  48. I don’t drink but have often wondered how alcohol would affect me. I know that chocolate helps on occasion! I have to agree about the headline quote and why I often go with my instincts rather than write it for SEO, if I can do both, even better. And writing grammatically correct is something I need to get over. I worry too much about getting it right. Thanks, Darren!

  49. Good post. I’m a big Obilvy fan, he’s the father of modern advertising.

  50. I love this post! Number 10, about headlines, is something I need to work on a lot. I preach about it but don’t give it my all, and that quote was the wake up call I needed!
    I also love your point about testing things out in blog design, etc and seeing reactions, and going from there. I haven’t experimented that much but I definitely will now.
    Great collection! Thanks!

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