Potential of Advertising in Influencing Peoples Life

INTRODUCTION
Advertising has a huge impact on any individuals life. Advertising surrounds an individuals life and is omnipresent (Hovland, 2010). Advertising has a strong influence what an individual eats, what he wears and how he lives. The main purpose of advertising is to get the message across to the target consumer in order to sell or promote a product or a service. It is a very powerful tool which can influence a consumers buying pattern (O'Guinn, Allen, & Semenik, Advertising and integrated brand promotion, 2009). All the major corporations spend huge amount of money on this medium of marketing in order to have positive implications on the consumer. The advertising field is highly competitive with the participants of this area trying to outdo each other as much as possible. This research proposal aims to study the influence of advertising on consumers life and product sales. The reason for selecting this topic is to understand this highly competitive area and the fact that it is always visible in our day to day life. A detailed study of this subject should yield useful information about the impact of advertising on consumers lives and their buying pattern. Advertising is an important means of communication between the organization and the customer (O'Guinn, Allen, & Semenik, Advertising and integrated brand promotion, 2009). What factor ensures that there is a desired impact on the consumer? The consumers are surrounded by advertisements in various forms which compete for an individuals attention and our money. It is advertising and marketing that influences an individuals knowledge about the world and how to behave (Lamb, Hair, & McDaniel, MKTG4 : student edition, 2011). An individuals actions towards buying products, recycling, alcohol consumption, and smoking are all influenced by advertising (Hoyer & MacInnis, Consumer behavior, 2008). The primary aim of this dissertation is to study the relation between advertising and consumer behavior. This should provide answers as to how the tool of advertising is used to influence consumer behavior.

RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
To analyze the various aspects of advertising and consumer behavior in order to establish a relationship between them To investigate into the influence of advertising on peoples life in order to ascertain the importance of influential power of advertising. To assess the impact of advertising on children and how it effects their choices and moulds them. To study the relation between advertising and cultural factors in an environment and how they impact each other.

LITERATURE REVIEW
In keeping in line the aims and objectives of the proposal, literature review proposes to explain the background of advertising, how it works and the issues related to the influence of advertising on the consumer behavior. Listed below are some of the key areas to be covered: 1. Understanding advertising and consumer behavior. 2. Impact of advertising on consumer behavior. 3. Impact of advertising on children, individuals behavior pattern, their food preferences. 4. Cultural impact on advertisement.

ADVERTISING AND CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR

Advertising

The main objective of any advertisement is building consumer awareness and to ensure that the target audience remembers the product or service being advertised (Clow & Baack, 2007). This project aims at understanding the influential power of advertising. Advertising can have the power to influence consumer behavior thereby impacting their buying decisions. It can be defined as a form of presentation which is non-personal which is paid and a way by which an identified sponsor to promote ideas, goods or services (Shimp, 2010).
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Advertising enables a consumer to participate in the economic cycle actively rather than passively. Advertising can be classified into two broad components information and persuasion (O'Guinn, Allen, & Semenik, Advertising and integrated brand promotion, 2009). The researcher needs to find if the advertiser strives to have a proper mix of these components, which can be essential to ensure the success of any advertisement. It is important that one should measure the effectiveness of any advertisement. But this step is also very difficult to undertake. Measuring the effectiveness of an advertisement can be possible only if the purpose for which the advertisement is made is known (Kurtz, 2011). Also there is a need to know other factors such as the existing habits of the customers relating to purchasing and habits of usage. So this project aims to find how advertising changes the preference of the consumers. There are two models of advertising which can be followed in order to measure the consumer responses. The first is the AIDA model. It stands for Attention, Interest, Desire, Action model (Lamb, MKTG, 2010). The second one is the DAGMAR model which stands for Defining Advertising goals for measured advertising results (Belch & Belch, 2004). Under the DAGMAR model, with the help of before and after surveys, a consumers change in the responses can be shown.

AIDA Model

Attention
Interest Desire Action
Fig 1.Source: made by Author (2011)

I
D A

According to Andersen and Gray, (2008) the major aim in advertising, apart from creating new users, is to see that the existing consumers are persuaded enough that they do not change their existing preferences Consumers are continuously induced through various messages to change their attitudes and behavior. The researcher aims at studying and analyzing the major role of advertising which can be listed as follows: The ability to create awareness amongst the consumers regarding the industry, company o a particular brand. The capacity to educate, notify and create an entertainment for the consumer. The capability to change the opinions and attitudes of consumers by reinforcing and reminding a particular idea. The potential of advertising to create a favorable image about the brand among the minds of the existing as well as potential consumers. The ability to manipulate the behavior of the consumer and thus persuading the consumer. The capacities to induce the consumers repurchase decision.

Consumer Behavior

A major reason for undertaking advertising is that advertising can have a major influence on the behavior of the consumer and effecting the decision making process of the consumer (Jobber & Lancaster, 2009). There is a huge variety in the demographics of a consumer according to age, education, income, sex, culture etc. There is a huge increase in the number of consumers as well as the number of products. So before undertaking any form of advertising there is a need to understand the market through market research (Lamb, MKTG, 2010). The researchers aim should be in understanding how a consumer will respond to various marketing ideas. Any company in order to have a competitive advantage should have to understand this. The decisions of a consumer can be influenced by various factors, which are social, cultural, psychological and personal (Lamb, Hair, & McDaniel, MKTG4 : student edition, 2011).

Factors influencing consumers decision

social

psychol ogical

factors inluencing consumers decision

cultural

personal

Fig 2: Source: Made by author (2011)

Social factors such as family, peers, social role and status of an individual have an influencing effect. Cultural factors like language, religion, beliefs etc.. A consumers age, occupation, personality, economic circumstances etc are some of the personal factors that can impact a persons wants. The psychological factors like the need for a product, the urgency of need etc.

The research aims at understanding these factors so that advertising can have the desired effect on the consumer.

INFLUENCE OF ADVERTISING ON CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR Advertising and Children

Consumers can be segmented into various categories (Bennett, 2010). Advertising is undertaken by keeping this segmentation in mind. Due to the increased segmentation advertisers can reach the target audience more successfully. One of the segments that offers a major attraction for the advertisers are children (Frith & Mueller, 2010). Children are a major target audience for the advertisers. In order to understand the influence of advertising on consumers the researcher needs to study of this segment and advertisings influence on this section is essential oyerus & Riddle, 2009). Because the segment is very lucrative advertisers come up with new ways constantly to target the young audience. Advertising can have a great persuasive effect on children. So there is a need to have a careful control on them as the effects can prove to be harmful (Mueller, 2011). There is a need to study the regulation imposed by various countries on advertisements targeted on young audience as this can have an effect on the influencing power of advertisements. Children do not possess the ability to process information. Some of the advertisers are not concerned about the impact of the product or their message on children. Though advertising targeting children creates huge business there should be restrictions on the content and the age of targeted audience (Frith & Mueller, 2010). One of the biggest areas of concern about advertising on children is the promotion of junk foods which are un-healthy oyer- us & Riddle,

2009). It can have a direct effect on the nutrition and the physical and mental well being of a child. There is a need to study how a childs exposure to commercials of alcohol and smoking will shape their attitudes towards drinking and smoking. This dissertation aims in studying such impact of advertising. There has been a growing awareness about the negative impact of advertising on the young audience. This has resulted in creating certain strict practices regarding advertising (Frith & Mueller, 2010). The researcher needs to study the measures taken to reduce the negative impact of advertising.

Impact of advertising on smoking and drinking habits

Tobacco and alcohol companies use advertising to influence the attitude of both teens as well as adults. Hoyer and MacInnis (2008) point out that most advertisements showcase young people drinking or smoking and how it helps in making an individual attractive and sophisticated.
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According to Frith and Mueller (2010) many teens take up smoking and drinking influenced by their friends and in order to gain a status amongst their peer and thus gain social acceptance which is fueled by advertisements. The youth feel better about drinking because their perception is influenced through advertisements. The project aims in understanding how advertisements can influence the smoking and drinking habits in an individual. Tobacco companies spend billions of dollars per year in order to make their presence felt (Hoyer & MacInnis, Consumer behavior, 2008). Their major area of concentration is to manipulate the minds of teens.

Influence of advertising on food habits

The tastes and preferences of an individual keep on changing over a period of time. And this applies to individuals eating habits as well. According to Shepherd and Raats (2006) one of the reasons which can induce transitions in the tastes and eating habits of individuals can be attributed to advertising. Today the market is abuzz with a lot of food products which are ready to eat or which can be made easily available to the consumer. For a time starved individual this usually comes as a boon but sometimes at the cost of his/her health. There is a need to scrutinize the influence of advertising on eating habits. This research project aims at evaluating this particular aspect of advertisings influence.

There is a strong viewpoint that commercial advertising of foods is a contributor to the cause of obesity amongst kids and adolescents (Frith & Mueller, 2010). The basic idea behind this is that food advertising will influence people to adapt unhealthy food choices which are detrimental to their health. There is still no evidence which shows a direct link between food advertising and obesity in children. Children and adolescents are the primary target of any food advertisements and they influenced by such advertisements develop unhealthy eating habits which they carry over even when they become adults (O'Guinn, Allen, & Semenik, Advertising and integrated brand promotion, 2009). The researcher will have to explore the possibility as to the negative impact on the health of an individual due to exposure to food advertisements.

Children because of their lower understanding ability can be easily molded by what they are exposed to in an advertisement. Children specifically demand the products whose brand name they easily recognize through advertising, when they go shopping oyer- us & Riddle, 2009).

Advertising and culture

Globalization has created an environment where marketing activities are becoming more complex. Mooij (2010) states that the environment factors, especially the cultural factors, differ from country to country. They create opportunities and threats to corporations in relation to marketing and advertising their products. The cultural diversity can have an influence on the impact of advertising on the consumers (Hovland, 2010). The researcher needs to find out the impact of the different cultural elements on the advertising process. The most important cultural elements seem to be language and religious differences. They seem to have a great effect on how people adapt to advertising. The researcher needs to analyze if the advertising reflects the prevalent culture.