Over the years, the shoe industry's advertising messages have remained consistent, keeping quality, fashion and value as significant features. During this century however, advertising mediums have evolved to keep up with today's faster-paced, high-tech world. Early in the 20th century, companies used simple sketches in print formats to advertise their products. But as the number of media outlets expanded, footwear advertising campaigns adapted to new technologies in order to grab the attention of increasingly savvy customers and compete with their business rivals.

Like manufacturers, retailers worked hard to create a recognisable identity. By the 30's and 40's, stores were developing their own styles. Around the middle of the century, shoe manufacturers and stores were able to run large adverts through Co-ops, appearing in fashion magazines such as Vogue, as stores would pay for part of the advert in exchange for a mention.

In the late 60's and early 70's, fashion was the selling point. As the nature of the shoe industry changed, the need for direct consumer advertising increased dramatically. Manufacturers had to make their names known: forced to expand their marketing beyond newspapers, the big-city stores had to rethink their marketing strategies, to included advertising in newspapers, television or direct-mail as consumers moved out to the suburbs in the 1950's and began to shop in regional shopping centres

As the years progressed, manufacturers slowly began moving beyond the traditional three-quarter shot of the shoe with descriptive copy to show the product at various angles. When footwear adverts began to appear in fashion magazines, they focused on the product and concentrated less on descriptive text. Over the last ten years, consumer graphics have developed into reflections of real situations that communicate lifestyles, rather than illustrations and characterisations.

It is now usual to see footwear adverts that show people in modern environments, participating in various activities, interacting with each other, rather than focusing on the product itself.

It wasn't until the 1970's and 1980's when Nike started to develop their unique advertising campaigns that footwear was elevated to another level. In addition to creating catchy logos and image-laden print ads, Nike was one of the first shoe companies to take advantage of televised advertising. Other innovators of modern footwear advertising include companies such as Candies, Sketchers and Kenneth Cole, which all mastered the art of powerful marketing. Cole gained notoriety for his politically charged print adverts, for example one featured a condom, with the caption, "Our shoes aren't the only thing we encourage you to wear." Candie's, whose past ads - including one of a nude Jenny McCarthy sitting on the toilet - were sometimes banned by consumer magazines, has recently taken a new approach by using pop stars in both print and television commercials to endorse their products, much in the style of athletic companies. Sketchers exploded on the footwear scene just a few years ago with an campaign featuring sexy, young people.

As shoe firms launched increasingly attractive and complex campaigns, branding became the emphasis. During the 90's, campaigns have striven to turn brand names into household words. Footwear branding now parallels developments in fashion marketing as consumers recognise the branded label as the all important feature rather than the old-school qualities synonymous with style and fit. However, independent brands face the difficulties of establishing identities as they battle against the marketing presence of multi-million dollar budgets.

In the early part of the century, a customer may have been swayed by an ad in a newspaper or magazine showing an attractive pair of shoes, offering some lengthy copy explaining the product's features. Today, advertising's diverse formats include massive printed images draped from central city buildings to flashy television commercials, complete with music and celebrities, some of which do not even feature footwear products.

The explosion of new-media invites advertisers to take advantage of the new promotional tools which include the Internet. From modest-marketing to mass-movement, as technology continues to evolve, the future of footwear marketing holds countless exciting and creative possibilities.