Advertising sells the product. Do you agree with the statement?

Advertising sells the product. Do you agree with the statement? Give reasons for your answer and explain the functions of advertising.

Ans.

Advertising Sells the Product

The main function of advertising is to increase the sales of the product by attracting prospective buyers Advertising is real selling. Advertising creates certain public attributes towards the products (e.g. Making the product appear glamorous or comfortable). Advertising persuades the reader on the usefulness of the product and second, that only the advertised product would satisfy and fulfill the want. Advertising creates that small persisting voice whispering in the consumer’s mind at the reaction point. Good and efficient advertising is capable of moving the prospective customers into the shapes and thus in fact selling itself. Advertising not only attracts new customers but also reminds and maintains the old customers.

Advertising sells the Product, Reasons in Favour

In the present business world advertisement is beneficial for manufactures and marketers. Advertisement plays an important role in sales promotion. Following are the causes of it –

1- Psychological Weapon – Advertisement plays a significant role in increasing the sales because it is a psychological weapon which is used by the businessmen to achieve the entire commercial goals.

2. It Widens the Market of the Product – Advertisement tells customers about the use of product and its features. Advertisement pursues customer to buy the product of the producer by giving preference. Thus the market of product increases.

3. Demand Generation – Advertisement increases the demand and sale of product as producers improve their distribution system along with advertisement, and increases their workman’s capacity. Advertisement brings pace in the seasonal demand of the product and thus increases sales.

4. Quick Turnover – Advertisement generates high responsive market which ensures rapid as well as more sales of the goods.

5. Repetition – When advertisement is appeared frequently, manufacturer maintains present sales and also increases the sales of production because new user are suggested by the advertisement.

6. Greater Dealer Interest – Advertisement helps dealers in increasing the role of dealers. Advertisement increases demand without doing any expenses by the retailers. Dealer shows more interest in selling the goods advertisement of which is appeared.

7. Price Control – Advertisement can control wholesale prices and retail prices to a great extent and greedy wholesalers and retailers cannot charge more price. Availability of goods at fixed price increases the sale.

Functions of Advertising

The functions of advertising may broadly be classified into three groups:

(I) Psychological Functions – The psychological functions of advertising relate to the methods of inducing consumers to go in for goods. These functions are important for successful selling because sales takes place in the minds of the customers. The psychological functions are:

(i) To draw the attention of the readers of the advertisement to the message contained in the advertisement.

(ii) To induce the readers to think that they may gain by using the things advertised.

(iii) To lead the readers to the shapes where goods are available.

(II) Economic functions – These activities of advertisement which affect the economic activities like production, exchange and consumption can be called as economic functions of advertisement. The economic function of advertisement can be divided into two categories:

(a) Major functions,

(b) Minor functions

(a) Major Functions: Following are the major functions of the advertisement –

(i) To give information regarding existence.

(ii) To create new demand.

(iii) To maintain the created demand.

(iv) To instruct about the use.

(v) To remove competition successfully.

(vi) To remove doubts and confusion.

(vii) To encourage consumers.

(viii) To assist salesman.

(ix) To make cautions.

(x) To reach to those people to whom salesman cannot reach.

(xi) To increase the goodwill of advertiser.

(xii) To reduce the production and sales cost.

(xiii) To make the selection of commodity easy.

(b) Minor Functions:- Besides the above major functions the advertisement performs the following subsidiary functions:

(i) Quick Industrialisation: By increasing the demand and consumption of commodities, advertisement increases their production. Thus, industrialization grows at a faster pace.

(ii) To bring Stability in Prices: In advertisement prices are also quoted. This forces the competitors to determine their prices near the quoted price. Thus, price stability is established.

(iii) To increases the Sense of Responsibility: The advertisement increases the sense of responsibility of the business institution. This sense develops among the employers that the qualities of the commodity maintained, in the advertisement must be maintained, so that the goodwill of the business institution may not be lost.

(iv) To Secure Efficient Employees: One of the subsidiary functions of the advertisement is that it helps to secure efficient employees. Advertisement increases the goodwill of the firm, efficient employees are attracted towards it.

(III) Social Functions: Advertisement performs the following social functions:

(i) Increases knowledge in Society: Advertisement makes people aware of the qualities and methods of use of commodities. Not only this, these days advertisement is done with the help of small stories related to science and knowledge. For example the manufactures of panama cigarettes, while advertisement them, presented a brief history of tobacco. Again, the manufacturers of swis blade have based their advertisement on the travel of man to moon.

(ii) To make Consumers Ambitions: Advertisement attracts the customers and inspires them to purchase a commodity. Thus advertisement of new commodities makes the consumers ambitions to increase consumption more and more: For increasing consumption they work hard to acquire more purchasing power.

(iii) To make Life Happy: By making people aware of the utilities of new commodities, advertisement makes a human life happy. For example, people purchase rations, television.. refrigerators, fans, coolers. etc. after going through advertisements and, by using these goods, they make their lives happy.

(iv) To increase the Standard of Living by increasing Consumption: Advertisement introduces new commodities to the consumers and this increases their consumption with the increase in consumption, the standard of living of society goes up.

(v) To increase Employment Opportunity: Advertisement increases employment opportunities in society directly for printers assists etc. and indirectly for other employees by encouraging more production.

(vi) Other social functions:

(a) To increase healthy competition.

(b) By giving information about prices it reduces the possibilities of being cheated in purchase.