Advertising is a paid form of communication that conveys information about commercial products or services for promoting sales. It is a method to attract the attention of the public. According to the American Marketing Association (AMA), “Advertising is any paid form of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods and services by an identified sponsor”. Advertising is necessary to create awareness about the different products that are available in the market. At present a large amount of capital is spent for advertisements as it has become a part of marketing strategy of a business. Due to competition it is important to create awareness of the existence of the product and to establish contacts between buyers and sellers for the success of a business. Advertising is carried out not only for commercial purpose but also for political and ideological messages. The different aspects of advertising are discussed below.
TYPES OF ADVERTISING
Advertising have been in existence even during ancient times. Drummers, different signs, pictures to pass on information and town criers were the different modes of advertising in ancient times. In earlier times advertising was done mainly through Newspapers and magazines. Technology in the present times has made advertising easier as it reaches a large audience within a short time. Innovative advertising strategies are employed by organizations to persuade and convince potential buyers. Modern advertising is done with the use of print media, electronic and Digital media. Print media consist of magazines, newspapers, brochures, journals, etc. Electronic media is radio, television, and documentaries on social issues. The latest technology is the internet and the multimedia. Some advertisements are mailed directly with the help of leaflets, pamphlets, letters, and return cards .Outdoor advertising is done on hoardings, on vehicles, air balloons and neon sign boards. The most appropriate media of advertising should be planned depending on the requirement and the target audience. There are professional advertising agencies which gives guidance for choosing the correct media for advertising. Production of advertisements is done by firms who are experts to transform the ideas and complete the requirements of the advertiser. The cost of advertising, the nature of the product, and the target audience are considered for choosing the media for placing advertisements. Advertisements are regulated by the government .Different laws and regulations are adopted by the government and they have a direct or indirect bearing on advertising. Advertising can broadly be categorized into four types, product advertising, service advertising, public service advertising and Institutional advertising.
Product Advertising- It is the most common type of advertising which creates identification of products without any detailed information about the product. The products can be anything from fruits, vegetables, vehicles or any other household items. This has great impact on the target audience as it is done in a simple manner. This kind of advertising is useful for the introduction of new products.
Service advertising – In this type of advertising the services provided by a company is focused. For example, services by the bank, railways, or any other public services. Timely advertisements are issued to familiarize the changes in the services and also to provide information about the introduction of different schemes. People can avail the facilities that are provided as awareness is created through advertisements.
Public service advertising -The main focus of this advertising is on issues that affect the society. It is to create public awareness through direct messages. Examples for such advertisements are messages on polio eradication, national integration, family planning and environmental protection. Attention is drawn to different social issues with this type of advertising.
Institutional advertising- This is done to create a positive image of a company by focusing on the social work and the other activities like research, quality control and development done by it. It is to create awareness about an organization and not on the products manufactured by it. The message focuses on establishing an identity for the company.
Advertising has become important for modern business enterprises .The objective of advertising is to create interest and persuade prospective customers to buy the product. Continuous advertising for some products is necessary to keep the people reminded of its existence. As there are many products available with close substitutes, the need for advertising is inevitable. It helps to support salesmen as the customers are aware of the products. Advertising supports dealers for selling and is helpful to reach people even in remote areas. Distribution and personal selling costs is reduced considerably (Dominick, 2013). New customers are added and sales promotion is possible. As people have knowledge about the products they cannot be cheated with similar products of lower quality. As advertising has become competitive, the firms do more research and try to develop their products to differentiate it with the substitutes. Advertising widens the knowledge among people about present trends which helps to improve their standard of living by adopting new ways of living. It provides revenue to magazines and publishers. For TV network also it is a source of revenue.
Some of the bad effects of advertising are that it often persuades people to purchase things they don’t need. New products are presented very attractively which creates a desire to buy .Lack of resources to buy can disappoint people, so it is said that social values are undermined. Sometimes when the information in the advertisement is not correct it creates confusion .some advertisements use bad language and obscene pictures which can be insulting. Sometimes it gives a negative impact on young people by persuading them to do unwanted things. People are often interrupted while watching television programs and are forced to view advertisements even if they are not interested .As large amount of money is spent for advertising therefore the cost of production increases .This leads to a rise in price of the product.
CONCLUSION
Advertising plays a crucial role in in our lives and in the trade and commerce of the world. It is a dynamic business process which has gained a lot of importance in the present times. It creates brand awareness and accelerates demand. Advertising is advantageous to manufacturers as awareness of the products promotes sales and creates higher demand resulting in cost efficient mass production .For consumers it helps to make their choice and also be aware of the different products and prices available in the market. Advertising industry creates economic growth as it creates more employment and also generates income for the different media houses. Though it can be argued that there is many advantageous for advertising, the weaknesses like, exaggeration, misleading, manipulative, higher price, etc. cannot be ignored. Currently advertisers have to change their strategies creatively as the new media is a source of communication which can meet the needs of the present generation.
Works Cited
Dominick, J. The Dynamics of Mass Communication, New York: McGraw-Hill, 2013.
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