Monday February 13, 2006

Nothing Kills a Bad Product Faster than Good Advertising

Adweek reports on a study released today by the Government Accountability Office that finds that the Bush administration has spent—through its various agencies—$1.6 billion on advertising and public relations services in the last two and a half years. Based on the GAO study and AdAge’s list of of the 100 leading national advertisers (pdf), the federal government—which, for the purposes of the GAO study, included only the departments of Commerce, Defense, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Interior, Treasury, and Veterans Affairs—was the 62nd biggest U.S. advertiser in 2004, right behind liquor marketer Diageo and right ahead of drug company Eli Lilly. Here’s where the government fits in, according to the GAO’s figures:

RANK	ADVERTISER	SPENDING
60	Deutsche Telekom	$603.6M
61	Diageo	$593.6M
62	U.S. Government	$588.9M
63	Eli Lilly & Co.	$586.8M
64	Volkswagen	$580.1M

AdAge’s own tally, which includes the Office of National Drug Control Policy (which is within the executive branch) and the U.S. Postal Service (which is an independent agency), puts the government’s total 2004 ad spend at $1.2 billion, good for 25th position, right between Merck and Viacom.

Posted by jim at 09:35 PM ||