Reading rank 136
The Man Who Sold America: The Amazing but True Story of Albert Lasker and the Creation of the Advertising Century
, subject: Albert Lasker biography and the development of modern advertising, 2010
Albert Lasker’s insight was that an industry leaves money on the table when its practitioners miss its true potential. This book shows what he built on it in advertising.
103
Coverage Score
8
Scored evidence
About the book
The biography follows Lasker's work at Lord & Thomas, including his use of reason-why advertising, while also covering his wider business, political, and philanthropic career.
Why read it
Best if you want to see how conviction about an overlooked market can be paired with testing, lean costs, and focus on a winning product.
Key themes
- Find the potential practitioners miss
- Test to learn what customers actually do
- Concentrate behind a winning product
Evidence and original sources
Sources: official Founders episodes — #206, #208, #216, #218, #256
David calls the book's story fantastic and recommends it to interested listeners.
- Albert D. Lasker (the creation of the advertising industry) — David introduces The Man Who Sold America as the book he is discussing in this episode.
- Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Michael Dell, Bill Gates, Andy Grove, Bill Hewlett — David references recently covering this book about Albert Lasker while comparing recruiting approaches.
- Paul Van Doren (Founder of Vans) — David names The Man Who Sold America as the Albert Lasker biography covered a few episodes earlier.
- Johan Cruyff (A Life of Total Football) — David names the book alongside Albert Lasker's core advertising insight.
- Edward L. Bernays (Public Relations, Advertising, & Persuasion) — David says he and listeners discussed Albert Lasker via this book on episode 206.