Since its onset, advertising has remained an every-changing industry. Though Madison Avenue once wasn’t a place for women, that paradigm continues to change. The anti-feminist culture behind old advertising tactics is no more.
Women continue to bring new ideas and perspectives to what was once thought of as a man’s world. Confident women are now spearheading digital marketing firms and pushing cultural boundaries.
However, if it weren’t for the pioneering women of the past, we may have been doomed to be “damsels in distress” forevermore. So without further ado, we celebrate a few of the women who helped shape advertising into what it is today. Here’s to a future of endless innovation.
Helen Lansdowne Resor
Resor was determined to change things from her work environment to her life. She was active in the suffrage movement and fought to push boundaries that men had placed around her. Resor confidently led an entire department of women copywriters at J. Walter Thompson’s firm. She used sex and feminism in her work, and was the first woman to be successful in national ad campaigns. Modern digital marketing firms admire the footprint she left in the industry.
Caroline Jones
Living in a nation that was still in turmoil over racial boundaries, Miss Jones did everything in her power to break race and gender barriers. She started as a secretary and copywriting trainee who worked her way up to the position of Creative Director. Jones started her own agency. As the executive vice president and Creative Director, she saw success with campaigns for McDonald’s, Kentucky Fried Chicken and American Express.
Jane Maas
Mass is considered to be one of the founding mothers of advertising. If it weren’t for her work, digital marketing firms wouldn’t be what they are today. Maas was the brains behind the “I Love New York” tourist campaign that has grown to be legendary. With over 47 creative awards and five published books under her belt, she continues to inspire new generations of women to take on the challenges of the world of advertising without fear.
