Role of advertising on the value attached to products by consumers

Role of advertising on the value attached to products by consumers

Abstract

The seminar paper is focused on the role of advertising on the value attached to products by consumers. Advertising is the act of creating awareness of new products or already existing ones to the general public. Advertising is very vital to life span of every business organization, no matter how famous a business organization is, they need advertising to remain reliable, trustworthy and booming as well. This seminar paper briefly reviewed the concept of advertising, History of advertising in Nigeria, Roles of advertising on the value attached on the products by consumers, problems of advertising in Nigeria and way forward. From the foregoing, the paper concludes that advertising is a life wire of every business organization as it helps in educating, persuading, rein-forcing, reminding and stimulating buyers or consumers to increase sales in order to remain viable and productive and finally recommended that the products advertised by firms, companies or organizations should reflect the brand as well as deliver what it promises to the customers.

Introduction

The major objectives of new product development is primarily for the growth of the firms, as it has to do with satisfaction of customers, increase in profitability and survival. Meanwhile, firms rejoice over their effort and success in launching new product into the market, without knowing that the product survival in the high competitive market is so “link”.

Thus, effective advertising strategies are the sure way that can counteract inroads made by competitors advertising into the firm market share. This is done to attract new customers, and stimulate consumers to change from one brand to another. Anyanwu, (2000), defined advertising as a primary tool in the marketing decision variables of firms, used to inform, persuade and educate the customers about product offering by an identical sponsor with the view of developing customers’ preference on the product. In view of this, Umeh and Ude-Umunta (2002), defined advertising as a non personal message paid for by an identified person about a product, aimed at a mass audience with the objective of influencing buyers. In addition to this, Peters (2007) posits that advertising is an open mode of communication, which target and communicate to a large geographical area, using media such as television, radio, magazine, newspaper etc. in order to assist in the sales of product: enhancing brand recognition and acceptance, enhancing trial purchase, reaching accessible buyers, encouraging and adding personal selling, enhancing company image and educating the public in terms of process and qualities of product.

       Advertising can also be seen as a non-personal marketing tool used to inform, persuade and remind actual and potential buyers about the existence of company product with the sole aim of influencing buyers. Consequently, the aim and objective of advertising is achieved through: the advertiser, the person, or company that pays for the advertising, advertising agency, the person that prepares advertising proposals or message. The media owner, the person who brings the message to the consumer and the contractor, the person that helps to bring the message to the general public.

Hence, a product according to Giles, (2003) includes actual product and all peripherals factors that contribute to a consumer satisfaction, which takes variety of forms like object, place etc. Osuala (1998) defined a product as something, an organization markets that will satisfy a personal want or commercial need.

Concept of Advertising

Advertising has gained acceptance in recent times among the advertiser and their audience the modern economy with dispersed large population, interpersonal communication especially between producing units and their customers. Advertising has not only become an integral part of our social and economic system, but has also grown over the years to assume tremendous proportion both as a business activity and as a social phenomenon, this has great role in the rebranding exercise of diverse product. Malickson and Nason (2002), confirming the above assertion said, “like it or not, advertising is all around us” for every average person is exposed to hundreds of advertising messages, between the time he open his/her eyes in the morning and check off his sight at night. Anyone living and working in any modern society like Nigeria is under the influence of advertising, which can be achieved through various means like radio, television, etc. even if we don’t read a newspaper or watch television and walk around the street with our ear and eyes open, we will find it impossible to avoid some form of publicity, even if it is only umbrella phone booth around every nooks and crannies of our streets, towns and cities, hawkers selling and advertising their different brands of products.

Thus, Bovee and Arens (2006), posits advertising as an interpersonal communication of information usually paid for and identified with sponsor through various means. According to Onyebuagu (1999), advertising is any non personal form of communication about ideas, goods and services that is paid for by an identified sponsor, through mass media newspapers, magazine, television, radio, direct mail. Others are circulars, calendars, catalogue and special event and trade show advertising. In a similar view, Moemeka S.I. a past president of the Association of Advertising Practitioners in Nigeria sees advertising as “message published in newspapers, billboards, radio, television and cinema for products and services”. In addition to this, American marketing Association (AMA, 1985) views that advertising is any paid form of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas good and services by an identified sponsor. Advertising differs from other tools of promotion in that it is non personal and mass media oriented i.e. it targets large audience and uses such media as television, radio, newspaper, etc to reach its audience.

Wright and Zeigler (2003) noted that not all advertisements are paid for, example “advert promoting public services, projects like immunization, safe driving, forest preservation, hence they defined advertising as a controlled identifiable information and persuasion by means of mass media”. Thus, advertising has been of immense benefit to humanity and has contributed in no small measure to the rapid industrialization and expansion process. In addition to this Eluwa (2005), said that the major objectives of advertising is to; increase demand of a product, improve dealers relationship, extend the market to a new buyer, counteract prejudice and substitution, remind and reinforce. Peters (2007), in conjunction with this definitions, define advertising as an open mode of communication which target and communicate to a large audience widely scattered over a large geographical area, using media such as radio, television, magazine etc in order to assist in the sale of product by;

• Enhancing brand recognition
• Reaching accessible buyers
• Enhancing trial purchase

In addition to this, Eluwa (2005) said that advertising functions are grouped into;

• Marketing communication
• Education and
• Social functions.

There is no doubt that advertising has brought prosperity to different products in Nigeria and it has equally assisted in quicker circulation of products in different part of Nigeria and even beyond.

From the ongoing definitions, it is clear that the above definitions were made based on various methods and importance of advertising to business organization and society at large. Therefore, advertising is a paid non-personal communication through various media by business firm, non-profit organizations and individuals who hope to inform, remind and persuade members of a target audience for the purpose of differentiating one brand from another, inducing consumers to buy, promoting consumption and demand of a particular product etc.

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Instructional materials and students performance

Role of advertising on the value attached to products by consumers cont.

History of Advertising in Nigeria

The earliest advertising began with the formation of West African Publicity (WAP) but no progress was made in the business until 1948. The traditional method of advertising was more of personal selling. There was the practice of drum and gong beating which was followed by the ringing of the bell accompanied by verbal pronouncements, in order to attract the attention of potential customers. Many traders held their customers physically to persuade them to buy their goods. Some traders moved about with their wares and ask people to buy from them. The traveling salesman supplied music by means of loud speakers from the vans. They took along with them some acrobatic dancers, otherwise known as AJASCO Dancer. Those dancers attract a lot of passer-by who brought a few of the goods which they had for sale. Today, this type of advertising is still practiced in some parts of Nigeria especially in the local market.

West African Publicity later grew rapidly in 1965 changing into the now advertising giant, Lintas West African Ltd, following the numerous products that flooded into the market. Advertising clients continued to grow alongside Nigerian’s booming economy and they aroused the need for outdoor advertising services, which came out of need by WAP. The media in the country became all diversified. Radio came into operation, followed by television, in addition to the glowing popularity of cinema.

Today, the advertising industry in the country is on the fast lane, following the combined efforts of the firms, prints, outdoor and electronic media in the number of newspapers and magazines and the era was also associated with revolutionaries approach to communication as a result of the emergency of computer.

Role of Advertising on the Value Attached to Products by Consumers cont

Advertising plays a very important role in today’s age of competition. Advertising is one thing which has become a necessity for everybody in today’s day to day life, be it a producer, the traders, or the consumers. Just imagine television or a newspaper or a channel without an advertisement! No, no one can any day imagine this. Advertising consumers are the people who buy the products only after they are made aware of the products available in the market. If the products are not advertised, no customer will come to know what products are available and will not buy the product even if the product was for their benefit. One more thing is that advertising helps people find the best product for themselves, their kids, and their family. When they come to know about the range of products and buy so that they get what they desire after spending their valuable money. Thus , advertising plays a vital role to the consumers.

The role of advertising on the value attached to products by consumers cannot be overemphasized. For it is one of the surviving strategies by many firms. Advertising is very necessary on products for it describes the qualities of the products and the reasons why the consumers should buy them. According to Anyanwu (2000), the role of advertising in the world over has been to stimulate and sustain the vigor and momentum of economic activities through the enhancement of the consumption behaviour of the citizenry. He also added that firms’ uses advertising to inform, persuade and complement personal selling of the product.

Thus, Osuala (1998), opined the following as the roles of advertising on the value attached to products by consumers

• Introduce New Product: Many advertising messages are directed to new product as well as new models and modification of old models. It is the quickest and the most effective way to acquaint a mass market with a new product, by describing the qualities and reasons why consumers should buy the new product. Consumers attach value to advertisement, for it alerts them about the new products in the market, informs them about what the product is, what it does and why they should buy it. It also brings to their attention where the product can be bought, how much it costs or who may use it; in terms of age and the lethal effects if used improperly.
• Persuasion: Powerful visual advertising presentations compel consumers to purchase goods, services and ideas as a way to achieve emotional fulfillment. Persuasion is the core mission of advertising. Advertising tells you how the product, service or idea you are considering will improve your life. Advertising infuses images and ideas into products and services, just as the meanings of products and services are infused into images and ideas.
• Previewing New Trends: Previews about the virtues of new products, services and ideas motivate consumers to obtain them because they don’t want to be left out. Advertising lets consumers in on up- and coming trends and new markets. They offer coupons, rebates and trial offers on new products, services or ideas to recruit new customers and induce existing customers to try things. Advertisers preview new or improved products, services and ideas to consumers in order to appeal to their sense of wanting to be in the know about leading edge trends. Previewing new trend is a technique employed by advertiser that capitalizes on consumers desire to “keep up with the jones” by owing the latest and greatest product, service or idea.
• To increase demand for a new Product: Much advertising, especially for convenience goods, is intended to stimulate the consumer to buy more of the products. Firms’ brand names are also advertised to increase the demand for such new product, especially when the brand name is generally loved by the consumers. Consumers buy such new product, not minding the price and packaging.
• It increases the Number of Product Uses: Most advertising campaign try to introduce a consumer to use a product for multiple purposes, which in turn increases the total consumption of such goods and services. Example, producers of ZTE mobile coded phone suggest multiple use of the product. The consumer is informed during advertising that the product can be used for internet purposes and calls making, with other less uses like radio, recording etc.
• To communicate product information: Through advertisement one company can send its product information to the target audiences. Advertising supplies the necessary information to consumers so that they know what is available and where to buy it. It broadcast information on products, services and ideas sold on the open market through a variety of media portals. It reveals the special features being sold, what colour and size the product is and which stores carry it.
• To expand product distribution: When the market demand of a particular product increases, the retailer and distributor are engaged in the sale of that product.
• To increase brand preference: There are various products with various bands. So we are getting the preference to choose the brand of a particular product with the help of advertisement.
• To reduce overall sale cost: Advertising increases the primary demand in the market. When demand is there and the product is available, automatically the overall price will decrease.

Problems of Advertising in Nigeria

Advertising industries in Nigeria is beset with many problems. These problems are enumerated below by Osuala, (1998)

• Lack of Capital to Operate the Business: lack of capital is one of the problems hindering the successful advertising of products by business men because an adequate fund is required by one who intends to embark on advertising of his/her products.
• Attitude of Government: The federal government prices and income policy affect the operation of the advertising industry in Nigeria. Federal, state, and local government have a wide variety of laws, ordinances and status which are designed to protect consumers from activities of advertising business. Example, National Consumer Protection Agency. This law tends to discourage business and hamper its growth.
• Attitude of Business Men: Most Nigerian business men do not patronize the advertising agencies. A good number of them are ignorant of the benefits of advertising.
• Complex Society: The complexity of Nigerian society with regards to customers’ belief and traditions poses a singular problem. Nigeria society is still sixty percent (60%) rural and cannot withstand the sophistication inherent in advertising messages. His Grace, the Archbishop of Canterbury, maintained that advertising fortunately is more restrained in the diversity of languages. The high illiteracy rate means that advertising messages are incomprehensible to many consumers in the country, (1998).
• Communication Difficulties: Communication is one of the biggest problems facing advertising business in Nigeria. The country lacks an efficient telecommunication system as well as a free flow of good network of road. These services are very essential to the development of a viable advertising industry.

Advertising in Nigeria: The Way forward

       Owing to the importance attached to advertising and its benefits the national economy, solution to the above problems are enumerated below:

1. Educating of Business Men: Nigerian business men, managers and entrepreneurs need to be educated on the need and benefits of advertising towards the survival of their firms and products. This will arouse their interest and cause them to patronize the advertising industries.
2. Government should be on the supporting side towards encouraging the advertising industries in terms of subsidizing their equipment, materials and expansion of telecommunication in the country, especially rural area.
3. Training of advertising personnel: Advertising industries as a professional body should train personnel that can manage the key areas of the organization. Advertising requires skills, knowledge, understanding and creativity for successful operation of the business.

Conclusion

       Advertising is the effective and quickest way if acquainting a market with new product. This has been the secret of many going concern in our Nigerian society. To portray this further, Anyanwu (2000), said that advertising is the most noticeable among the marketing communication mix of which the basic role is to disseminate information about a product to a widely dispersed audience through a medium or combination of media with objectives of educating, persuading, reinforcing, reminding and stimulating buyers or consumers to increase.

       Moreover, Nicholl (2000) in his own view posits advertising as a dissemination of information, about specific goods, ideas and services from a sponsor who may have paid for such communication and who has chosen the appropriate medium he thinks will deliver his message effectively to his target audience.

       By and large, the roles of advertising on the value attached to products by consumers cannot be overemphasized, as it aids in creation of awareness, education of new product, bulk purchase of the products and reliability of such products for through advertising, information about product usage, location, benefits are gotten.

Advertising no doubt is the effective and quickest way of acquainting a market with new product. This has been the secret of most successful business establishments in our country. No matter how famous and successful a business organization is, they still engage in advertising of their product.

Anyanwu (2000) shared a similar view when he defined advertising as the most noticeable among the marketing communication mix of which the basic role is to disseminate product message to a widely dispersed audience through a medium or combination of media with objectives of educating, persuading, rein-forcing, reminding and stimulating buyers or consumers to increase sales.

By and large, the roles of advertising can never be overemphasized, as it helps more in awareness creation, upgrading standard of living, creation of varieties of choices of products and lot more. These roles played by advertising are reasons why there is so much value attachments to it by the consumers.

Summary

Advertising is the best way to communicate to the customers. Advertising helps informs the customers about the brands available in the market and the variety of products useful to them. Advertising is for everybody including kids, young and old. It is done using various media types, with different techniques and methods most suited.

Advertising plays a very important role in customer’s life. Customers are the people who buy the product only after they are made aware of the products available in the market. If the product is not advertised, no customer will come to know what products are available and will not buy the product even if the product was for their benefit. One more thing is that advertising helps people find the best products for themselves, their kids, and their family. When they come to know about the range of products, they are able to compare the products and buy so that they get what they desire after spending their valuable money. Thus, advertising is important for the customers. Hence, the way a product is being packaged sometimes reflects the firms cum the vision of the company and on the long run tends to affect the value customers have on them when they are advertised.

Recommendation

The paper recommended that:

1. The products advertised by firms, companies or organizations should reflect the brand as well as deliver what it promises to the customers. This has a way of attracting trust and customer loyalty as seen in the case of some brand. E.g. Nokia in mobile phones, Toyota in automobile, etc.
2. Firms should make advertising customer-centered.
3. Products should not be advertised for advertising sake, but rather should be able to give back to the firm in form of Return on Investment. This makes for continued existence of such products.
4. Spending more money in packaging than in the content brings about short term increase in profit and affects and or reduce the product value on the long run.

 REFERENCES

Anyanwu, A. (2002), Dimensions of marketing. Owerri: Avan   Global publication.

Bovee, C. and Arens, W.F. (2006). Contemporary advertising. Bostern: Richard. D. Irwin Inc.

Eluwa, E.U. (2005). Advertising Principle and Practice. Enugu; AC Global Press.

Giles, G.B. (2003). Marketing. London: MacDonald International publishers.

Malickson, C.E. and Nason, A. (2002). The discourse of advertising. Minnesota: Smart Apple Media.

Mmanulikpe, A.M. (2005). Influences of advertising on Product development in Bank, Enugu. Unpublished B.sc project Department of Marketing. Nnamdi Azikwue University, Awka.

Nicholl, D.S (2000). Educational research basic issues and methodology. Owerri: Wisdom Publishers Limited.

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