I'm studying for my Practice Management ARE and I highly doubt this will be on the test, but I keep reading that it was considered unethical to advertise decades ago. Why was this? If anyone on here has been around long enough to have seen that, I'd be really curious to hear some stories.
quizzical
Dec 20, 20 3:30 pm
The basic concept was that, as professionals, we should compete on the basis of skill and competence ... not on the basis of either price or hype.
citizen
Dec 20, 20 3:41 pm
^ Yes. See also: doctors, lawyers.
caramelhighrise
Dec 20, 20 3:48 pm
Those were examples I've seen elsewhere, but I still have law firms and all sorts of dentists, physicians, and the like spamming me with ads all the time. Though I can't say I've ever seen a commercial for an architecture firm. I get the idea that our work should speak for itself, but couldn't the same be said for nearly any field? I could argue that a restaurant shouldn't have to advertise because their high quality service and food should speak for itself. So I get the reasoning, but I don't understand why it could be considered unethical. Unnecessary? Maybe. But not unethical.
citizen
Dec 20, 20 3:54 pm
I'm not sure when professional associations' rules changed... back in the '70s or '80s for law, I think. That's when the Jacoby & Meyers tv commercials started here in Calif.
atelier nobody
Dec 21, 20 2:19 pm
The origin of the idea of capital "P" "Professionals" was that Professionals were "gentlemen", while "tradesmen" were commoners. It was assumed that gentlemen didn't need the money and would never do anything as sordid as advertising or competing with one another on price. (Tangentially, this is also why the UK and some Commonwealth countries still have separate Barristers and solicitors - Barristers are gentlemen cannot be hired to take a case, so you must first hire a solicitor who then solicits a Barrister to take your case based only on the merits.)
mightyaa
Dec 21, 20 7:12 pm
I also think it used to be in the AIA code of ethics (as well as the engineers, and attorneys professional organizations)... Not sure if it is related to the anti-trust lawsuits they lost.
caramelhighrise
Dec 30, 20 1:44 am
atelier nobody - thanks for sharing, that's fascinating.
apscoradiales
Dec 20, 20 5:38 pm
Closed shop atmosphere...we don't want competition; it's bad for the image, and waters-down profits.
Chad Miller
Dec 21, 20 2:38 pm
You are one ornery and bitter old man . . .
randomised
Dec 21, 20 4:46 pm
it is expensive to advertise, it doesn’t make sense to do so as an architect, at least not to me. who are you trying to reach? everybody needs a dentist, more or less, lots of people require lawyers, but how many people will ever be in need of an architect?
thisisnotmyname
Dec 21, 20 7:38 pm
The residential architecture firms around me advertise a lot in the local shelter and lifestyle
magazines.
randomised
Dec 22, 20 6:17 pm
Makes sense, your target audience is right there buying the magazine...didn’t think of those as I never read them
thisisnotmyname
Dec 29, 20 11:02 am
In the early 1980's a corporate firm near us tried an ad campaign in business and financial magazines. It didn't seem to catch on. I do, however, see a lot of commercial contractors today advertising design-build services to commercial clients. Most of these arrangements have
the architect relegated to the role of a minor subcontractor.
SneakyPete
Dec 21, 20 4:48 pm
Want advertising without someone calling you out? Become a donor for an artistic event that has a donors page in the take-home playbill.
apscoradiales
Dec 21, 20 4:54 pm
Even better, play golf every Wednesday with people that matter.
SneakyPete
Dec 21, 20 4:55 pm
I'd rather cut off my own arm than work for anyone who picks their architects on a golf course.
apscoradiales
Dec 21, 20 4:58 pm
lol, be careful of what you say...want to a fire station? bet you money the fire chief plays golf...want to do a rec centre? the mayor plays golf too...!
SneakyPete
Dec 21, 20 5:01 pm
I'm not the boss, so my opinions don't need to survive the real world.
apscoradiales
Dec 21, 20 7:23 pm
You have an ambition to open up your own practice one day?
SneakyPete
Dec 21, 20 7:29 pm
I take it a day at a time. In general I do not. I like architecture. It's a fine profession. I also have a lot of aspirations outside of the profession, and the architects of quality I know do not have the time to do all of the things I enjoy doing.
apscoradiales
Dec 21, 20 7:25 pm
atelier nobody,
knows his shiet!
randomised
Dec 22, 20 6:15 pm
lots of architects pay money for award nominations.
thisisnotmyname
Dec 30, 20 9:07 am
My local AIA chapter has totally been turned into an advertising scheme for the board members' practices.
x-jla
Dec 23, 20 1:28 am
because architects are too prideful, and that’s why they are losing territory.
I'm studying for my Practice Management ARE and I highly doubt this will be on the test, but I keep reading that it was considered unethical to advertise decades ago. Why was this? If anyone on here has been around long enough to have seen that, I'd be really curious to hear some stories.
The basic concept was that, as professionals, we should compete on the basis of skill and competence ... not on the basis of either price or hype.
^ Yes. See also: doctors, lawyers.
Those were examples I've seen elsewhere, but I still have law firms and all sorts of dentists, physicians, and the like spamming me with ads all the time. Though I can't say I've ever seen a commercial for an architecture firm. I get the idea that our work should speak for itself, but couldn't the same be said for nearly any field? I could argue that a restaurant shouldn't have to advertise because their high quality service and food should speak for itself. So I get the reasoning, but I don't understand why it could be considered unethical. Unnecessary? Maybe. But not unethical.
I'm not sure when professional associations' rules changed... back in the '70s or '80s for law, I think. That's when the Jacoby & Meyers tv commercials started here in Calif.
The origin of the idea of capital "P" "Professionals" was that Professionals were "gentlemen", while "tradesmen" were commoners. It was assumed that gentlemen didn't need the money and would never do anything as sordid as advertising or competing with one another on price. (Tangentially, this is also why the UK and some Commonwealth countries still have separate Barristers and solicitors - Barristers are gentlemen cannot be hired to take a case, so you must first hire a solicitor who then solicits a Barrister to take your case based only on the merits.)
I also think it used to be in the AIA code of ethics (as well as the engineers, and attorneys professional organizations)... Not sure if it is related to the anti-trust lawsuits they lost.
atelier nobody - thanks for sharing, that's fascinating.
Closed shop atmosphere...we don't want competition; it's bad for the image, and waters-down profits.
You are one ornery and bitter old man . . .
it is expensive to advertise, it doesn’t make sense to do so as an architect, at least not to me. who are you trying to reach? everybody needs a dentist, more or less, lots of people require lawyers, but how many people will ever be in need of an architect?
The residential architecture firms around me advertise a lot in the local shelter and lifestyle magazines.
Makes sense, your target audience is right there buying the magazine...didn’t think of those as I never read them
In the early 1980's a corporate firm near us tried an ad campaign in business and financial magazines. It didn't seem to catch on. I do, however, see a lot of commercial contractors today advertising design-build services to commercial clients. Most of these arrangements have the architect relegated to the role of a minor subcontractor.
Want advertising without someone calling you out? Become a donor for an artistic event that has a donors page in the take-home playbill.
Even better, play golf every Wednesday with people that matter.
I'd rather cut off my own arm than work for anyone who picks their architects on a golf course.
lol, be careful of what you say...want to a fire station? bet you money the fire chief plays golf...want to do a rec centre? the mayor plays golf too...!
I'm not the boss, so my opinions don't need to survive the real world.
You have an ambition to open up your own practice one day?
I take it a day at a time. In general I do not. I like architecture. It's a fine profession. I also have a lot of aspirations outside of the profession, and the architects of quality I know do not have the time to do all of the things I enjoy doing.
atelier nobody,
knows his shiet!
lots of architects pay money for award nominations.
My local AIA chapter has totally been turned into an advertising scheme for the board members' practices.
because architects are too prideful, and that’s why they are losing territory.