Bernbach Rocks!

Upon graduation from the Art Institute of Dallas in 1995, I landed a job at a small design firm called McMann & Tate (Yes, they got their name from the advertising agency that Darren Stevens worked for on the TV show Bewitched.) Here I learned the art of production; that is, how to prepare artwork for the press and/or the Internet. I did very little design at M&T but I did learn the ins and outs of the printing process and how the Internet worked. After a year and a half of production training a co-worker informed me of a job opening in the new media department of a large advertising agency called DDB Needham. They had the Pepsi account and were going on their second year of managing the Pepsi website. We had a mutual friend at DDB on the Pepsi web team who was contacting all AID alumni to apply. I applied immediately and got the job.

Working at DDB was a major milestone in my career. The experience that I gained was invaluable and in many ways more influential than the education I received at AID. During my tenure at DDB I worked solely on the Pepsi website. I’ll write more about Pepsi at a later time.

After a few weeks as an employee I began to do research on the agency, DDB Needham. I was not familiar with any advertising agencies or with the advertising industry in general for that matter. I must admit, my attraction was with the client and not the employer. When I heard “Pepsi” I thought, “Yes!” When I heard “DDB Needham” I thought, “Who?”

The first thing that I learned was that DDB stood for Doyle, Dane, and Bernbach; the surnames of the three men that started the firm in 1949. I didn’t find any information on Doyle or Dane but it became obvious right away that the creative force behind the organization was Bill Bernbach (1911-1982). The ‘Needham’ part was added to the name in 1986 when Needham Harper Worldwide acquired DDB after Bernbach’s death.

During my in-house research I came across a book titled Bill Bernbach's Book: A History of the Advertising That Changed the History of Advertising. This large coffee table book is an overview of the creative and innovative work of Bill Bernbach and his team at DDB. To this day I continue to look to this book for inspiration. Another gem that I discovered was a small hardcover book of Bernbach quotes called Bill Bernbach Said.... This collection of thoughts and ideas is another inspiring resource that I return to on occasion. These two resources alone helped me to understand the significance of the DDB name and to appreciate the company that I had hired on to.

Besides the sporadic article here and there, these two books have been my only source of information about Bernbach and DDB. However, last year a book was written about Bernbach that is said to expose his shortcomings and bring to light the skeletons in his agency closet. It seems that the author is capitalizing on the now popular Mad Men; a cable show set in the early 1960’s about a fictitious advertising agency. The show frequently references Bernbach and DDB. I have yet to read this book or see an episode of Mad Men.

Regardless of what happened behind the scenes, the fact is that the creative work that came out of the DDB office was groundbreaking and it revolutionized the advertising industry. Today, Ad Age Magazine still lists Bernbach as the most influential person in advertising history.

Watch the embedded videos below to catch of glimpse of Bernbach’s creative philosophy. Warning: If you are not much into advertising (or the creative process), this interview might bore you :)

Bill Bernbach on Advertising 1/2



Bill Bernbach on Advertising 2/2




 Related Articles:
The Advertising Century: No 1 of 100 – William Bernbach (1911-1982)
The Advertising Genius of Bill Bernbach
Bernbach's Fatal Flaws: A book about the legendary adman lays bare his mistakes
Bill Bernbach Said... (PDF, 209 kb)

Jew or Not Jew: Bill Bernbach 

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