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Advertising may be defined as the process of buying sponsor-identified media space or time in order
to promote a product or an idea.
Advertising Effectiveness
When a child writes the examination papers, he has to see the result come what it may be, so that he
comes to know where he is wrong and where he should pay more attendance. This will help him work
better in future.
This is exactly the case of the advertisement. The work is not complete if the effectiveness of
advertise is not measured. This is the only way to know how the advertisement is performing, is it
reaching the targets and is the goal achieved.
Advertising effectiveness pertains to how well a company's advertising accomplishes the intended.
It is not at all possible to measure advertisement effectiveness accurately as there are many factors
like making a brand image, increasing the sales, keeping people informed about the product,
introducing new product, etc, which affect the effectiveness of an advertisement.
We all know that there are some companies who advertise at very low level but still their products are
a hit and some companies indulge in very heavy advertisements but they dont get desirable results.
But then, there are some traditional and modern tools to measure most of the effectiveness of an
advertisement through which the advertiser can or may get more and more information about how
their ads and product are performing in the market. According to Philip Kotler and Armstrong, the
Gurus Of Marketing, there are two most popular areas which need to be measured for knowing the
effectiveness of advertisement and they are:
Communication Effect
Sales Effect
1. Objectives of Firm:
Companys general and advertising objectives are the prime considerations in media selection. Those
media capable to meet companys expectations are likely to be selected. Advertising objectives may
be to inform, remind, convince, create prestige, or to increase sales and profits. Different media have
Media selection decision is highly influenced by media costs and firms ability to pay. Company has
to pay for buying space or time and preparing advertising copy fit for the media to be selected. TV,
radio, films are costly in terms of buying time and preparing advertising copy. Print media are
relatively cheaper in both space and preparation of advertising message. Some outdoor media are
quite low in cost. As per media costs and companys financial capacity, the appropriate media should
be selected.
It is an important criterion to choose among ad media. Reach means the number of different people
exposed to a particular medium at least once during a specified time period. Mass media are capable
to reach millions of people by just one exposure. Television has more exposure capacity compared to
Local media can expose the message to limited persons. In the same way, frequency (the number of
times within a specified time period the average person exposed to the message), and impact (the
impact created on audience by an exposure through given medium) are also key criteria to choose
among advertising media. Reach, frequency, and impact are important variables that determine cost-
Companys advertising policy and approach determine which of the media should be selected. For
example, if companys policy is not to spend more money for advertisement and to offer the product
5. Type of Buyers:
People to be influenced should be taken into account while selecting the media. Buyers can be
classified into various classes as discussed in market segmentation. Each medium has its special
viewers, readers, or audience. For the firm, it is important to know whether the target groups can be
Television is the most common medium, but can be made more particular by selecting the special
programme. Magazines are capable to appeal particular sex, age groups, or professionals. Daily
Readers/viewers mood and interest determine receptivity of message. Television is the best-fit
medium to associate advertising message when people are watching or enjoying related programmes.
For example, advertising TVS Victor motorbike on television during the live telecast of the TVS Cup
One-day Series.
However, it is difficult to determine mood or interest of readers for daily newspapers. It is relatively
easy to determine mood of people during a specific programme in radio or television. In case of
outdoors media, the place is very important to judge mood of people. For example, hoardings, posters,
7. Circulation/Coverage:
The area covered by (or number of people exposed to) the medium is an important criterion. Some
media are capable to cover the globe while some can cover only the limited locality. For example, the
local newspapers cover limited areas, the national newspapers like The Time of India and The
Similarly, certain magazines have national and international circulation. And, the same is true with
audio-visual and outdoor media. As per geographical concentration of customers, the suitable media
should be selected.
8. Repetition or Frequency:
Repetition or frequency implies the number of times within specific time period an average person is
exposed to the message by specific medium. Most of the outdoor media hold the message for
relatively long time. Magazines or periodicals publish monthly or quarterly; mostly they publish
The more is the repetition of advertising message, the more is the effect of the medium on people.
Naturally, advertisement appears frequently is more likely to read or attend than if it appears only
once. However, repetition in case of newspapers, TV, radio, etc., depends on companys ability to pay.
In case of newspapers and magazines, the factor is critical. Naturally, advertising message appears in
the reputed newspapers or magazines carry heavy impression and effect than substandard media.
People dont trust the appeal published in the lower standard media. Prestige of media becomes the
prestige of advertiser. Firms opt for credible or prestigious media to carry the advertising message.
Companys own past experience may be instrumental to decide on advertising media. For example, if
company has satisfactory experience of using a particular medium, there are more chances to use the
may try to know what other companies say about applicability and usefulness of various media. Views
Marketing experts or consultants who work on professional basis can be consulted to suggest an
appropriate medium to carry the message. These experts, on the basis of analysis of market situations
in relation to products to be advertised, can recommend the suitable media. Since they have
experience and expertise in the field, they are in better position to judge the suitability of each of the
media in relation to product and companys financial position. They charge fees for their consultancy
services.
Each advertising message needs specific advertising vehicle. If a message is simple, print media are
sufficient. If a message is complicated, and the company wants to demonstrate and explain,
14. Others:
Apart from above mentioned factors, there are certain factors that affect media selection decision.
a. Effectiveness of Media
b. Availability of Media
advertising programme, in many cases, is attributed to use of inappropriate media. Advertiser should
consider all these factors carefully and should select the most favoured or suitable media.