History of Advertising Agencies

The first advertising agency in the world

For a long time all advertising was carried out only orally. People informed each other the latest news, told about new products and inventions and thereby advertised a particular product or service. Changes followed only after the creation of the media (mass media). This was the necessary environment, thanks to which the profession was born as an advertiser, and then the first advertising agencies were created. It all started with paper newspapers and until the beginning of the 20th century they ended. And at that time they were not bright and intricate visually attractive pictures, but black and white text with rare drawings.

At the origins of the newspaper business was Benjamin Franklin. He became famous not only in political and scientific fields, but also in publishing. In 1784 in Philadelphia began to publish a daily newspaper, whose name indicated its advertising component - The Pennsylvania Packet and General Advertiser. The "Advertiser" in the title of this newspaper can be translated both as "the person placing the ad" and as "the newspaper with the announcement". Thus, it is obvious that the first meaning of the modern word "advertising" was "announcement" or otherwise - information. With the increase in the circulation of newspapers, the profitability of advertisements increased , both for publishers and advertisers.

So who created the world's first advertising agency? Controversy is still taking place on this score. The main question remains as follows: can a newspaper agency with advertising space be considered an advertising agency?

Such a newspaper agency was established in 1842 by Warney Palmer, a native of Pennsylvania. He began his journey in the newspaper, and then founded the American News Agency. It is considered the first in the States (and even in the world) advertising agency. Palmer, of course, made a great contribution to the development of the advertising business. He promoted advertising products in newspapers and created an advertising department in the print media even then, and not just sold the newspaper area to everyone who wants to buy it.

But the more widespread is still the version that the first advertising agency was NW Ayer & Son. He was founded in Philadelphia, and it lasted more than 100 years (closed in 2002).

Prior to the creation of specialized advertising agencies, the role and functions of agents were performed by space brokers - "brokers who sell publishing space". Agents bought advertising from the business, and then sold it to newspapers, which then had big problems associated with obtaining advertisements from other cities or rural areas.

Four years later, a new favorite of the young advertising business - James Thompson. He bought an agency from his former employer, who used to work as an accountant. This agency also pretends to be the first. It was created in 1864 in New York, five years earlier than the agency NW Ayer & Son. James Thompson bought the business for $ 1,300. He renamed it J. Walter Thompson and brought it to the top of the advertising business. The agency originally specialized in magazine advertising. It was ahead of all in many modern innovations: they were the first to compile a financial plan for an advertising campaign, began to employ women and were the first to produce a television program. Now Thompson agency is the largest American advertising agency and is one of the four largest advertising agencies in the world.

The first agencies of this type were limited only to intermediary functions. The agency staff, as a rule, was very small, since it did not create advertisements itself. Such an agent was engaged only in the direct placement of advertisements in the newspaper. And only in 1891 in New York the first advertising agency with full service was founded. George Batten, the director of this agency, invited to work and compilers of texts, and trained illustrators. As a result, the agency offered services in the compilation of texts, design, preparation for printing advertisements and placing them in newspapers or magazines. The company Batten was a huge success. And this agency deservedly became one of the most successful advertising agencies of the XX century.

The first advertising agency in Russia


Advertising business in Russia began its development only after the abolition of serfdom. If before that advertisements were printed in state newspapers, now it became quite real to publish newspapers at the expense of advertisers.

One after another, various publications began to open, and in 1878 the first advertising agency in Russia was created - the Central Bureau of Declarations. Its founder was Ludwig Metzl (he was a Czech born in origin). The functions of the first advertising agency were: reception of ads of a different nature and their placement in newspapers. At first, Metzl worked with provincial publications, but as it developed, he embraced the Moscow newspapers market. And by the beginning of the XX century, the branches of this advertising agency existed already in Warsaw, and in New York, and in Berlin, and in Paris.

This was the first agency in which the ad texts were created by professionals. Prior to Metzl, the Russian press did not receive such revenues and existed with money from subscribers. Metzl's activity quickly revived the trade in remote corners of the country, this had a very positive effect on the Russian economy as a whole.

Metzl's agency promoted not only foreign companies, but also promoted its business, attracting new customers to the advertising space. Over time, the advertising office was transformed into the Russian Joint Stock Company of Declarations and, accordingly, expanded its range of services. Now the agency employees made advertising texts, worked on the development of slogans, translated into other languages, as well as the decoration of newspaper ads. The special department developed full-scale advertising campaigns and promotion strategies. All of you probably know the phrase "advertising - the engine of trade" - this is also the invention of the first advertising agency Metzl. This phrase, as they say, was invented by the company's executive director VA Polyakov.