“Advertising consists of all activities involved in presenting to a group a non-personal, oral or visual, openly sponsored identified message regarding a product, service, or idea. The message, called an advertisement, is disseminated through one or more media and is paid for by the identified sponsor”-William Stanton.
theintactone.com can define the term ‘advertising’ as Advertising is a paid form of mass communication that consists of a special message sent by a specific person (advertiser or company), for a specific group of people (listeners, readers, or viewers), for the specific period, in a specific manner to achieve the specific goals and objectives.
Philip Kotler: “Advertising is any paid form of non-personal presentation and promotion of goods, services, or ideas by an identified sponsor.”
Frank Presbrey: “Advertising is a printed, written, oral and illustrated art of selling. Its objective is to encourage sales of the advertiser’s products and to create in the mind of people, individually or collectively, an impression in favour of the advertiser’s interest.”
Objectives of Advertising
To Inform Buyers
This objective includes informing customers regarding the product’s availability, price, features, qualities, services, and performance. Besides, it also includes informing them about changes made in the existing product and the introduction of new products. The company also highlights its location, achievements, policies, and performance through advertising.
To Persuade or Convince Buyers
The company uses advertisements to persuade or convince the buyers about superior advantages offered by its product. The company communicates the competitive advantages the product offers to induce customers to buy it. Comparative advertising is used to prove the additional benefits of a product at a given price.
To Remind Buyers
A marketer uses advertising to remind the buyers regarding the existence of the company, its products, maintenance of quality, superior services, and chasing customer orientation. Mostly, the existing firms aim their advertising for this objective.
Here, the purpose is to inform that the company is still in existence and serving customers in a better way. Due to huge information bombarded by several companies, customers are more likely to forget the name of the company and/or products and services it offers.
To Face Competition
Advertising is treated as the most powerful weapon to fight competitors effectively. Advertising enables the firm to respond to the competitors strongly. It helps the firm to distinguish its total offerings from competitors.
In brief, the firm can face competition, can prevent the entry of competitors, or can remove competitors away from the market. In a competitive marketing environment, the firm cannot survive without effective advertisement.
To Achieve Sales Targets
Increasing sales volume is one of the major advertising objectives. A company can advertise its products in various media to attract customers situated in different parts of the world. National and international marketing is the result of advertising. Even, non-users can be converted into users and the usage rate can be increased. Thus, the company can achieve its sales objectives through advertisement.
To Build and Improve Brand Image
Advertising is used for brand recognition and acceptance. A company can distinguish its brand by magnifying the major benefits the product offers. Advertisement attracts customers toward the brand; they try it and accept it over time. In the same way, a bad image related to a brand can be changed by a systematic presentation of facts and scientific evidence, and by removing misunderstandings.
To Help or Educate People
Advertising is not always used only for the company’s benefit. It is meant for helping customers to make the right choice of product. It educates people about the availability of new products, their features and qualities, price, services, and other related aspects. Such information is instrumental for purchasing suitable products. Thus, it guides customers to choose the most appropriate product.
To Build Company Image and Reputation
A company opts for an advertisement to build prestige and reputation in the market. Most companies, though they are satisfied with the volume of sales, go for advertising to acquire fame in the market. Many companies advertise their policies, activities, and achievements to make a permanent place in the mind of people.
To Assist Sales Force and Middlemen
Advertising is an aid to middlemen and salesmen. Advertising also popularizes the name of dealers. Likewise, advertising provides the necessary information to buyers. Middlemen and salesmen are not required to do the same. It eases the task of sellers. In the same way, advertising encourages a sales force.
Other Objectives
There are certain minor objectives of advertising, such as:
To promote new products.
To build long-term relations.
To remove misunderstandings.
To expand of market.
To gain the confidence of buyers.
To request customers to compromise with unavoidable circumstances.
To seek apology from the buyers for any undesirable events, etc.
The company has to select one or more objectives based on its situation. It should be clarified that the list is not exhaustive. New advertising objectives may emerge as per changes in situations. However, the main objective of advertising is to increase sales and earn profits. The company must define its advertising objectives clearly and precisely.
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