This week we’re looking at automobiles advertisements “then and now.” The photo on the left side displays an advertisement for Willys-Overland Company, a car company operating from 1908 through 1963, headquartered in Toledo, Ohio. This advertisement uses color and imagery to draw in the audience and then uses their companies production statistics to try to close a deal. Although The Willys-Overland Company hasn’t been making cars for a long time, one of their main competitors, Ford, is still active in 2020. 

In contrast to the text-heavy ad from 1913, the image on the right shows a 2020 Ford advertisement. Ford has established such a brand presence by 2020, that their tagline “Built Ford Proud” and an image of their newest cars outside in nature, is enough to tell the viewer of the quality that the company provides. To learn more about 20th century advertisements, check out Falvey’s digital exhibit “You can learn a lot from ADVERTISING”.

Jenna Newman is a graduate assistant in Falvey Memorial Library and a graduate student in the Communication Department.