"More electricity less labor": The campaign that taught Israelis to connect to outlets

In the 1960s, a moment after the state left austerity, the electric company decided to introduce the modern introduction and comfort to homes in Israel. To that end, "Electric Holiday" was founded - a month of celebrations that encouraged the public to use different products. After the energy crisis, the trend changed, and customers were called to save as much as possible

In the second week of October 1961, Beer Sheva wore a holiday. Although the Tishrei holidays have just passed, there was now another reason for the party in the Negev capital - "Electric Month," the ads announced throughout the young city. Fireworks were fired into the sky at the People's House, artistic performances were held in front of the crowd, and residents were promised another month full of events.

"A holiday to Beer Sheva," reads the newspaper Maariv. "The 10th anniversary of connecting electricity to the national grid. And although it has not yet reached the power line for all the dark streets, Beersheba is now drowning in a lot of lights decorating large posters stretching across the streets: 'More electricity - less toil'."

The slogan that stretched along the streets of Beer Sheva was born shortly before; "More electricity less labor" was the campaign slogan of the IEC in the 1960s. It is difficult to understand this today, in an age when we are consuming electricity in quantities, and for many years the public has been referring to it, please save electricity and consume it wisely.

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'More electricity less labor' campaign from the 1960s (Photo: The Israel Electric Archives Historical Archive)

More electricity campaign less labor. Designer Dan Rezinger. Advertising Office a. Globlum. Early sixties. December 20, 2019. (Photo: Historical Archives Israel Electric Company, official website)

Israel of 1961 was a young country, which only two years before ended the policy of rationing or in the more familiar name - "austerity". A 13-year-old country that has absorbed huge waves of waves from around the world, immigrants from distressed countries, immigrants who have been deported or fled empty-handed from Arab countries, immigrants who are traumatized by the Holocaust, and at the same time the state that was in Bar Mitzvah lives in a constant sense of security threat. Modesty, low self-sufficiency and saving were the order of the hour and a way of life.

Now, with the early 1960s, you could breathe a little wide. The economic situation improved slightly, the buds of Americanization began to germinate, Israel began to launch its muscles and fired into the comet missile 2, Mossad fighters kidnapped the Nazi criminal Adolf Eichmann in Argentina and brought him to trial in Israel, in Tel Aviv inaugurated Ichilov Hospital and in Jerusalem, Hadassah Einan Hospital was opened.

In Israel, middle class was established, citizens were able to save money and the electricity company found itself with surplus production. The company decided to embark on a campaign aimed at encouraging electricity consumption and introducing electricity and comfort into private homes and everyday work. At that point, the IEC expanded its production capacity rapidly. More and more communities were connected to the electricity grid, which was stretching.

One of the campaign ads in the 1960s (Photo: Historical Archive Israel Electric Company)

More electricity campaign less labor. Designer .BIBAS & LEE 1965 I picked up. Advertising Office a. Globlum. - Photography in front of her. December 20, 2019. (Photo: Historical Archives Israel Electric Company, official website)

In December 1961, for example, in Kfar Giladi, in the Galilee finger, they celebrated "Electric Holiday", after a huge operation to connect all the Galilee localities to the national electricity grid ended. More and more consumers have become customers of the electricity company, but a newspaper in the space reported the same year a problem: "There is no demand covers all production capacity," it says. According to the report, the utilization of power plants reaches only 63.6%.

Connect minus to plus

The situation was different a few years earlier: in the War of Independence, the electric company lost the Nahariim power plant in the past Jordan. The station was the main source of electricity production until those days, and now the company had to deal with the need to supply the many customers with added electricity.

This challenge has resulted in limiting electricity use, especially in households. By the end of the first decade for the country and by doubling the production rate, excess electricity generation was created. In light of this, the electric company decided to launch a campaign in the spirit of global trends led by the United States, which linked the increase in home use with modernization, improving quality of life and easing household chores.

Electric Workshop and WIZO Cooking Workshops (Photo: Kedaru Foundation, Israel Electric Archives Historical Archive)

Cooking workshops in collaboration with the WIZO Training Department. December 20, 2019. (Photo: The Kidron Foundation / Israel Historical Archives, Israel Official Website)

The company has called on the public to propose a password that will lead the campaign to encourage consumption. Among the bedding was also Jacob Schmaltzman, an employee of Bezeq's company in Netanya. "I checked what rhymes with the word 'electricity' and the word that came to my mind was 'toil'," Shmeltzman, 83, said this week. "I minus plus and the slogan: 'More electricity - less toil'."

Advertising Office a. Galblum created a multi-dimensional campaign that included a variety of exposure channels, including: billboards and advertisements designed by the well-known graphic designer Dan Resinger, later the Israel Prize winner for design. The character identified with the campaign was a figure of hollow salute. Riesinger passed away three weeks ago. A short time ago, he was interviewed by the legacy of an electrical company, saying: "The socket logo that I designed as part of the campaign's graphic language has since become a symbol and has been used later, as well, in the context of an electrical company's publications."

The three winners of the cooking competition (Photo: Yitzhak Barz / Israel Historical Archives Archive)

The three winners of the "Israeli Cuisine Queen" contest. Shoshana Bechor, Ruth Richter and Abella Mazawi. Office 1965 Advertising a. Globlum. December 20, 2019. (Photo: Yitzhak Barz / Israel Historical Archives Archive, Official Website)

Dr. Osnat Roth-Cohen of the University of Ariel, who specializes in advertising history, says that Razinger is a very significant figure in terms of his design concept. "It is a very visual language and has made a significant contribution to the visibility of the advertisements."

The slogan that coined Maltzman won him the prize: a baking oven that was baked in the head. "The value of the oven was about 300 pounds and it worked well for about 15 years," said Schmeltzman, who also recalled giving the oven as a gift to his mother, who until then cooked on gas and wickets.

The electric company meant that, like Mrs. Schmaltzman, there would be many more women across the country and its extensive campaign was aimed mainly at women and housewives. Alongside the campaign, the company conducted cooking workshops in collaboration with "WIZO", alongside producing two cookbooks and even organizing a national cooking competition.

In addition, the company has signed partnership contracts with manufacturers of local electrical appliances such as Ampa, Cypress and Gerstel, which are intended to increase the production and sale of home appliances, while providing loans to purchasers and manufacturers grants. Wandering exhibitions around the country have revealed these electrical products to the general public and have provided tips, recipes and demos for clean, easy, convenient and fast cooking.

"Extensive public relations efforts have deepened 'electricity consciousness'"

For example, in November 1961, a large popular celebration was reported in Dimona, at the end of a month when the Israel Electric Corporation held demonstrations of cooking and baking in Be'er Sheva, in the nearby towns and in the southern Moshavim. During the month, hundreds of residents bought electric cookware at a discount. "The widespread public awareness campaign has deepened the 'electricity consciousness' among the wider strata of the population," the Guard said. It was also stated that "this consciousness has already worked for the benefit of the housewives who will streamline their work with the help of elaborate, modern and fast-moving power tools."

Another article in The Guard was titled: "Why I Cook Electric." The article seems to be marketing content for everything and along the way housewives list the benefits of cooking on electric appliances.

Tova Zimbal from the Neve Oved neighborhood of Hadera, said: "Thanks to the electric stove, I can quietly sit down with my husband and eat the first dish. I don't have to worry about cooking in the kitchen for now, as the electricity keeps the food warm for a long time."

Rabin lights power station in Hadera (Photo: Reuters)

Orot Rabin power station - Hadera (Photo: Reuters)

Malka Seligman, a doctor's wife from Haifa, said: "Surely a doctor cannot be so precise when arriving at meals, and his wife should wait for him and take care of hot foods. In this case, the electric plate is the best among all cooking methods because it 'holds' the heat." She added that "my husband comes home and sits at the table without waiting to get hot food right away."

Roth-Cohen points out that "in the big campaigns that led to those days the electricity company, the media map in Israel was pretty meager, there were not many big companies then that could compete for attention and there were few players on the advertising field, so such a campaign became prominent." "This campaign then created a very big discourse and in the years to come the IEC's campaigns continued to be highly talked about and breakthroughs. For example, the Socket and Plug, the IEC's presenters in recent years, are basically a new family - two men and a baby. Quite sympathetic. "

"Good to have electricity, save you will not be missed"

The campaign to encourage electricity changed from end to end after the Yom Kippur War and the energy crisis, which caused a steep rise in fuel prices. The hourly order was to save energy. "The state's most expensive fuel is flowing in your home," they reminded the public of a request that would reveal responsibility and save electricity. In the 1980s the slogan was "Good to have electricity, save that you will not be missed". The campaign was led by actress Miriam Fox.

Roth-Cohen mentions that the campaign opened with the call of the first channel which was also single. "Called the public to turn off the lights in homes and the cameras showed how the electricity consumption dropped in the electricity meters in the control room of the power company," she said. The slogan for the sequel campaign was "Electricity - not all at once". But we have already become tireless energy savers and unsure that today's campaigns will convince us to change our energy consumption habits.

To recall the innovation and impact of the "more electricity-less labor" campaign on changing consumer habits in the young country, the IEC decided to return to shed light on this significant point in a unique exhibition to be displayed at the upcoming Chanukah holiday at the Ben Ami Gallery in Tel Aviv's neighborhood.