Leo Burnett

Leo Burnett believed that the word is always empty. As for the story about the things worthy of attention, they can not use. Need a vivid image. So he invented the Marlboro cowboy and the Green Giant. But at the same time and the principles of modern advertising.
Shining glasses, not tall man strode through the hall meetings he was deeply annoyed. Sitting at the table artists, designers and so-called generators of ideas openly, as if on cue weakened ties and unbuttoned the collar of shirts.

- It is impossible, Leo. You do not know what you want.

- It's no good, - repeated Burnett .- Institute of meat - respectable clients. We can not impute to him chippie.

- Do you call tuftoyN! - Art Director Polak pointed at the wall, hung with sketches. Green, blue, orange background - and the letters, the letters, the letters ... "The Institute for meat for more than a dozen years, he defends the interests of the largest U.S. producers of meat and meat products". Further details: the Institute is engaged in what his affiliates, in which cities. And in the end just too limp a word about that vegetarians should not believe: Beans is good, but quickly tired, and the meat is always tasty and useful.

. - Disgusting! - Exploded Burnett .- This is not advertising! This is disgusting! How much can be repeated: in each product to look for something from which to grow its success
. Very reason for success. Let it be buried deeply, it must find and show the buyer. In our case the most important - is explosive mixture of imagination, knowledge of consumer psychology and logic. We need to hypnotize them, tell stories, make us dream, to improve their tone, improve the mood ...

First arose, and saying good-bye out of the room Polak. Was followed by other. Leo Burnett was left alone with thumbnails. But the next morning, the meeting resumed. And Burnett started from the place where he was interrupted yesterday:

Imagination -... excite only images, faces, heroes, even fictional. The idea to play as good performance. All these silly tekstovki - complete nonsense, mediocrity. In short, I forbid you to write promotional copy. Word instincts do not awaken And advertising must awaken instincts.

After graduating, Burnett sat in the corner. In the air hung heavy silence. Many people thought that profitable orders, and at the agency can put a cross. But a minute later Burnett broke out again and ran across the room:

- Red on red! Meat! Raw meat on a dark burgundy background! Chunks of raw meat!.. And the bottom of the small black inscription: "National Institute of meat". All. Free.
Nobody budged. From the hall he went Burnett. A week later, on the central streets of New York hung liberally drawn panels depicting raw meat. Exactly how would Leo. The press was a scandal: to portray raw meat is not accepted. Many turned up their nose. These billboards were discussed on every corner, in every park and shop. It seems there was nothing more popular in New York in February 1945. The customer was happy. Leo Burnett, too.
October 21, 1891 nurse, writing the name of the newborn Geo Noble Burnett, accidentally messed up one letter, and got: Leo Burnett Noble. Parents have noticed the error did not immediately and did not bother wasting - Leo because Leo.

Burnett owned a grocery shop, where the future father of modern advertising and was the first practice. Liberally slobbery pencils, 10-year-old Leo painted price tags and labels. Father liked the artistic imagination son, and he was weighing out to him for 100 grams Mints for every fifty labels. In high school, Leo had worked as a freelance correspondent of three regional weeklies. He wrote lively coverage of the school holidays, young baseball players about games, about juvenile delinquency. Editor of its value and paid a few dollars for a note.

In 1910, Burnett joined the faculty of journalism at Michigan State University. Parallel to his studies he worked part time night editor of the Michigan Daily "and drew the label for the nearby supermarket. After graduation, Burnett became a reporter for the then-known magazine "Peoria, Illinois. His salary was modest ($ 18 per week), but Leo really liked the live work. However, a year later he was exhausted. But not from lack of money, but primarily from the empty chatter, which were filled with pages of newspapers.

. And then at an opportune moment Obi Winters, a university friend of Burnett, told Leo that the company "Cadillac" is looking for talented young journalists to create your own journal
. "Auto - the future of mankind, there is a first sight" - decided to Burnett and his friends rushed to Detroit. There they were interviewed with glitter, writing on a flaming article about the virtues of cars in general, and cars "Cadillac" in particular. Leo Burnett, owning, as appear on the record of the interview, "an elegant and a polished style, tasked to conduct an advertising campaign" Cadillac. "
. With what rapture Burnett composed odes "Cadillac" in verse and prose! With what inspiration talked about two Divarovskih Awards, . obtained by Cadillac in 1908 and 1912! With what delight explained the power and compactness of the V-shaped eight-cylinder engine! Fervor with which argued the charms of water cooling! All this is very fond of his leadership,
. With a wall of misunderstanding Burnett ran only when scribbled sketch of the ad, where there was almost no text. There was only a woman in a hat and a long silk scarf. She sat behind the wheel and smiling. And beneath laconic slogan: "Cadillac" - the standard of the Year ". When the director saw the sketch, he frowned: "I miss nothing, and the romance of blows, but something in this sense is not enough. Not written a damn thing. Olden, and you're not pereutomilsyaN "

Burnett is not overtired. He just was not thinking about cars. And not even on advertising.

Once, returning from work, Leo popped in the snack bar. Putting on a tray a couple of sandwiches with ham and tomatoes, he moved to the counter, behind which discovered the enchanting red-haired creature with the head now dim reading some plump and frayed knizhentsii. A few minutes later, he already knew what her name is Naomi Geddes, and she - that henceforth it should be read only by Jack London, and not rubbish. The next morning, Naomi found on the threshold of dives package: there were books of London and a postcard with the question "What are you doing today vecheromN.

A year later they married, and even a few months later, Leo was called up. It was the first world war, but Burnett did not get to the front. Six months he spent in the vicinity of Lake Michigan, engaged in the invention of breakwaters and other pleasant for a young man with imagination works. So what about the war in Burnett were the warmest memories.

After the war, Burnett went after several employees "Cadillac" create a new company in Indianapolis, Lafayette Motors - American Rolls-Royce. The issue was tight, the competition in this area was brutal, and succeed from the ground turned out not many. The names of the kings of the automotive market, as Henry Ford, the Dodge brothers, Uorter Chrysler, speak for themselves. In general, the failure. Naomi was pregnant, the time for experiments was inappropriate, in 1919, Leo signed a contract with an advertising agency "Hommer McGee". While working there, he became the father of three children and the breadwinner of their dignity.

Has come in October 1929. Securities market collapsed. Business inoperable. "Hommer McGee" burst like a soap bubble. Then began the Great Depression. But Burnett, already famous for his unconventional views on advertising, is easy to find a new job. Large advertising agency in Chicago, Erwin Vesey "offered him the post of" president for ideas ". The proposal was extremely flattering, but very quickly became clear that advertising ideology "Vesey" in no way different from the ideology of other advertising agencies - text, text, and another text. The problem is that and how this text is. Tosca and boredom - repeated Burnett .- Why should these slovesaN No one has read them will not! " And executives wondered: what is the dawn of the Tien Shan, in the case of new varieties chayaN In the end, Burnett slammed the door.
It was in 1935. Burnett was 44 years. His children grew up, and he already had the right to do what he thought was necessary.
In the history of advertising business, uploaded August 5, 1936 written in red letters. On this day in Chicago hotel "Palmer House" was an office of advertising agency Leo Burnett ". Despite the rather impressive share capital ($ 50 thousand), office was a tiny small room, a conference table was a little more than a card. At the table in a small shopping were always five fresh red apples, which customers can treat themselves by viewing the brochures the agency (a basket of apples is in the office of Leo Burnett, and to this day). According to Burnett thought the apples were to symbolize the new principles of advertising and confidence. Confidence in the midst of the Great Depression.

Press immediately began ironic: "Not far off the time when Leo Burnett will start selling its red apples on the street and not give them for free, as now". But first, the client made the critics become silent. Burnett got the money to continue the case, and the client - has existed for 60 years, the image. It Pillsbury Company. She asked Burnett to develop a promotional campaign peas. Completely - from a new label on the bank to billboards. Representative Pillsbury brought plump folder - the company's history, the history of breeding legumes and t. n. Burnett did not take anything, and a week later handed over to the client to another folder. The first page depicted a Green Giant, now known to every child.

The success grew rapidly. Criticism also. Press and guardians of good taste at every opportunity to remind Burnett that he always "goes beyond" (especially after he was invested as on the streets of New York there are the same boards with a piece of bright red meat). Success Burnett, of course, delighted, criticism - embittered. He has the heart to play tricks. In 1942 he bought a farm in Illinois, not far from Lake Michigan, where his own started to plant trees, began to study botany (say, knew how to recognize the hundreds of varieties of herbs and flowers).

. In the evenings on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays at the farm gathered director - to discuss the most important projects
. That farm Burnett was born in 1955, the Marlboro Man. Burnett smoked cigarettes, produced exclusively Philip Morris. And when the company invited him to come up with advertising for a new brand, he agreed with pleasure. They were quite strong, typical male cigarette, but with the filter. The problem was that then, in the 50's, filtered cigarettes were considered exclusively feminine product. To break this stereotype was very difficult. Then Burnett suggested the image of a real man - strong, then sniffy guy with a one-day stubble, which soon became world.

Burnett was born in my head and other great living and still images. In 1951 he came up with a strong and cheerful cub Tony, which still advertises the company's corn flakes Kellogg. In 1965, a boy was born, Pillsbury dough-boy. Cheery and plump, he quickly fell into the category of women's favorites. When Burnett left the farm, to appear in the office, preferring to do it early. Between 8.00 and 8.30, before the working day, he inspected the offices of art directors. This allowed him to keep abreast of all the ideas swarming in the minds of employees, and to avoid tedious reports. He went into the study, examined the sketches on the walls, studying papers on the table. At first, art director tried to attend these trips, but then took up the desire to sleep. Moreover, the spacing after turning Leo has never been an option for them.

June 7, 1971, 79-year-old Leo Burnett also had a favorite office. In the evening he came home, ate, walked around before going to bed, went to bed and died. The next day at his advertising agency, where they worked for more than 4 thousand. man, was mourning. At the funeral of permanent clients - Kellogg, Philip Morris, Procter & Gamble, Pillsbury, Nestle, and Maytag - pronounced boring solemn speech. But they all ended with a lively phrase: "I think this guy lives a success"