I am the Chief Creative Officer, Ogilvy & Mather North America.
David Ogilvy had it right when he put it in his typically succinct way: “Every advertisement must contribute to the complex symbol which is the brand image.” A lot of people have made a lot of money tricking out the same idea, but it is really not much more complex than this. Do nothing without knowing who you are, or who you intend to be. No one-offs. No random acts. No art for art’s sake.
While his agency has evolved in countless ways, David would be pleased to see it has held to this disciplined commitment to brands, perhaps better than any firm in the world. IBM and AMEX, I’d suggest, are only the two most obvious cases in point.