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Rating: 
Summary: The leading thinker
Review: There are very few books in the field of communications that bridge the gap between marketing theory and the realities of creative development. This is one of the few, and it is John Philip Jones' best book yet. The author has the advantage of having worked in the industry, on both sides of the Atlantic, plus he has the inclinations of an academic so he digs deeply into the theory of consumer behavior and markets. He challenges much of the established dogma of the industry and does so concisely and convincingly. I have a couple of niggles. One is that the author sees advertising as being the way to build a brand image whereas promotions is synonymous with discounting, which of course erodes brand value. This is a simplistic perspective that was advanced by ad agencies in the 1970s and 80s. Promotions if well-conceived are invaluable at generating trial and can build brand image. (Early marketers like Claude Hopkins never recognized a distinction between advertising and promotion). The second niggle is with the discussion of creative research. This subject is a minefield because most testing of creative is done clumsily. The testing methodology that Jones claims to work needs to be explained more completely and the evidence for it being effective should be laid out. Jones is a leading thinker in the field and this book is his best - so if you want to make your advertising work harder - you should get it.
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