Why don't ad agencies advertise themselves?

Quality doesn’t advertise?

I would imagine that if you’re in an industry that needs advertising (technology, TV, movies, clothing), you’re more aware of who does what, and who to turn to.

The average consumer doesn’t need an advertising agency, thusly they aren’t being advertised to them.

Wouldn’t any company benefit from a great ad campaign? How can you trust someone who doesn’t use their own product?

Well It’s a simple answer, what would the ad for an Ad be? Lol Hi I sell your stuff. end.
:D Lol

In all Seriousness It’s a good question but the answer is because it would just make it more of a money spending project than it is gaining. make money selling your stuff. make nothing advertising ourselves… but you need to spend it anyways.

The best agencies don’t need to advertise.
xkcd: always relevant (sort of).

@Jayne Yeah… that’s exactly why

@sferik Jiffy Baking Company has never run an ad, in print or on television. and they’re quite successful. people find what they need.

And, certainly, Chiat/Day has a certain clientele. Not everyone needs a PC v. Mac ad or a talking dog in need of a taco fix.

They do advertise, just not to the general public, since Joe or Flo Blow doesn’t need an ad campaign. Believe me, ad agencies are constantly tooting their own horns within the industries they wish to get clients from.

Though if Don Draper were a real person, he’d have free rein to give me a personal consultation at any time.

i think it is because it is not really necessary.
in company-consumer relationships, it is necessary because consumers don’t tend to inform themselves about all available options and the quality of the available products.
in company-company relationships it is not as necessary, as companies DO tend to research all available options, what they offer, what they cost.

How closely do you follow business-to-business marketing? Ad agencies promote themselves through targeted campaigns to businesses who in the market for a new agency. There is a business development person/team/process in every agency.

They advertise all the time in business journals and newspapers. They also are prominent with their booths at trade shows and places where their services will be useful.

the ads that ad agencies create are in themselves ads for their services.

I see them all the time.. they say “your Ad here”.

There are trade magazines that non ad people seldom read, but the people who buy advertising do.

The ads they produce are also advertisements for themselves. Any company’s maketing department that likes an ad they see can contact the advertised company and find you who does the ads for them.

Their advertisment is the quality of the ad they produce.

I wrote an article about this years ago titled, Why Advertising Agencies Don’t Advertise. The answer is, they don’t know what to say. The reason is, as you cited, barefoot cobbler syndrome. The source of it is creative people have broad interests and resist focus or any public declaration of expertise. It’s driven by a desire to do everything and a fear of limits. It’s the cost of creativity and in large part what makes business success difficult for many creative firms.

Agencies advertise by claiming work. The most straight forward example is web design agencies, they all have open portfolios and many of the sites they build retain paths leading back to the originator. Usually through links, hosting (Whois), flat out putting their name at the bottom of the site, etc.

It is a secret world in which they travel, marketing their talent. They have clubs and gatherings and chat rooms and blog-o-spheres – all very cryptic cloak and daggery little communications networks mind you. And those in the know, know those who are in need, and knowing everyone and everything within the mix, which is frothing at the mouth as it lurks seductively down the darkest hallways of the tallest skyscrapers, becomes a necessary element when propelling a client towards the most potent seconds of airtime on a Super Bowl. It means, in truth, somebody has to die. And if you killed somebody to simply sell the most bags of corn chips in the world, you would not advertise your talent in doing that! You would secure a clandestine corridor down which you would whisper your tale to the next salivating sloth who would pay you even more money to do it again. For them. And you would do it. Wouldn’t you? $$$.

Because they don’t want you to know the dirty little secret that advertising is mostly about the advertising agency making money