Some of TV's All-time Greatest Adverts

It was in September 1955 that the first ever TV advert was shown in the UK: Unilever's Gibbs S.R. toothpaste had a one-minute slot on ITV on the first day of the channel's broadcast. Since then, TV advertising has seen a boom in frequency, cost and popularity - in November of each year, for example, the public eagerly awaits the arrival of the big brands' Christmas adverts to decide which is best.

Some television ads make more of an impression than others though! We've pulled together our top five campaigns since TV advertising began, all of which are instantly recognisable and incredibly memorable.

First aired in 1995, for many, it's not time to start thinking about Christmas until this ad has appeared on our screens! Every year, the soft drink giant creates a new ad that shows Christmas lights being lit as they are passed by Coca-Cola's iconic red trucks, accompanied by a jingle that's instantly recognisable. It's such an iconic ad that it was voted by the public as the most memorable Christmas TV ad ever in 2014.

2. Smash: Martians

In the 1970s, Cadbury created a series of adverts for their Smash instant mashed potato brand, starring blue-faced aliens who mocked the humans who still made mashed potato the old-fashioned way. Why spend ages mashing potatoes when you could just use a packet mix and water?

3. Ferrero Rocher: Ambassador's Reception

Even now, the phrase "Monsieur, with these Rocher you are really spoiling us" garners memories of the inimitable Ferrero Rocher adverts, first aired in 1993. Depicting a footman carrying trays of the gold-wrapped chocolates around a fancy party for guests to enjoy, it's an ad packed with pure cheesiness – and it is truly memorable.

4. Cadbury: Gorilla

Aired in 2007 and the newest of our choices, the advert for Cadbury chocolate was unusual in that none of the brand's products were actually mentioned or shown. Starring a CGI gorilla drumming along to In The Air Tonight by Phil Collins, it boosted the brand's sales by 9% compared with the previous year, and was voted 2007's best TV advert.

5. Yellow Pages: J. R. Hartley

J. R. Hartley is a fictional author, but after the screening of this Yellow Pages advert in 1983, he became a household name. The ad shows a man asking various second-hand bookshops if they have a copy of Fly Fishing by J. R. Hartley, with no success. His daughter comes to the rescue, handing him a copy of the Yellow Pages - one of the shops contained within its pages comes up trumps. It was such a popular ad that writer Michael Russell penned three books under the pseudonym: Fly Fishing, Memories of Angling Days, by J. R. Hartley in 1991, followed by 1992's J.R. Hartley Casts Again-More Memories of Angling Days and then Golfing by J. Hartley in 1995. All three were best-sellers.

Advertising is just one part of the marketing mix: you may not have the budget for a large-scale TV ad campaign, but there are many ways in which you can get your brand message out to your customers and prospects, raise awareness of your store and let people know what you're all about.

To ensure an amazing experience for your customers, a key part of successful marketing is making sure that your store layout is well-considered and that the space is properly furnished. At KAS Shopfittings, we've been selling a huge range of shop fittings and display equipment since 1984 – we have everything you could possibly need to create the wow factor. Contact us to find out how we can help.