In the late 50s and early 60s, the car rental business was booming! Hertz was one of the earliest companies to take the market by storm, becoming the number one rental car company in the US.

Their success can be attributed to two core laws of marketing:

1. The Law of Leadership: It is better to be first in any category than to be better.
2. The Law of the Ladder: The company that is number one in a category will continue to improve, become incredibly successful, and ultimately difficult to defeat. Once you infect people’s minds with an idea and identity, your sales won't plummet. Think IBM, Gillette, Tide, and Coca-Cola.

While Hertz was establishing a monopoly over the car rental industry, Avis struggled to keep up. For years, Avis's advertising message was mundane and predictable: “Finest in rental cars.” This worked but never pierced people’s perception enough to make them leave Hertz, whose message was “The number one in rental cars.”

There is psychology at play here. People buy products they believe are the best because they want to be part of something that wins. If you are number two, you have to do something extraordinary to grab attention. Avis was playing it safe and losing money.

Then things got interesting with Doyle Dane Bernbach. Doyle was the Steve Jobs of advertising. In the early 50s, advertising was research-based, and creativity was an afterthought. Terms like ‘Unique Selling Proposition’ and the modern psychology of Sigmund Freud dominated the industry.

Doyle, unhappy with this approach, quit his job to start his own agency, Doyle Dane Bernbach (DDB). DDB quickly gained notice for its creative, risk-taking approach. At DDB, there was no “one rule." People could work as they wanted and come up with unorthodox ideas. Creativity was at the heart of DDB.

Avis approached Doyle with their problem: They couldn't compete with Hertz and would always be number two. Instead of asking, “How can I beat Hertz?” Doyle embraced Avis's No. 2 position.

He started the iconic “We Try Harder” campaign. This ad was bold and honest, and people loved it. Within a year, Avis went from losing $3.2 million to earning $1.2 million—their first profit in over a decade. From 1963 to 1966, the market-share gap between Hertz and Avis shrunk significantly.

This ad worked because people appreciate honesty and boldness. When Avis embraced their position as number two, people began vouching for the company and falling in love with its authenticity. All thanks to the creative genius of Doyle and DDB.

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