The dangers of common sense

This paper summarises key findings from the author’s review of IPA case histories (Binet and Field, 2007) to show that much of what is conventionally believed about how advertising works is wrong.

The dangers of common sense

Les Binet

Recently, a planner I know asked me a question: How does advertising actually work? That's a very good question, and it's not one you hear people asking much these days. Some 20 years ago, there was a lot more debate about how advertising works. These days, there seems to be much more of a consensus about the basic principles of communication, and the focus has shifted to understanding the role of the various new channels that have emerged.

But do we really understand the basic principles of how advertising works? Evidence from the...

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