ADVERTISING
It is a paid non personal communication from an identified sponsor using mass media to
persuade or influence an audience.
Advertising is always present, though people may not be aware of it. In today's world,
advertising uses every possible media to get its message through. It does this via television, print
(newspapers, magazines, journals etc), radio, press, internet, direct selling, hoardings, mailers,
contests, sponsorships, posters, clothes, events, colours, sounds, visuals and even people
(endorsements).
The advertising industry is made of companies that advertise, agencies that create the
advertisements, media that carries the ads, and a host of people like copy editors, brand
managers, researchers, creative heads and designers who take it the last mile to the customer or
receiver. A company that needs to advertise itself and/or its products hires an advertising agency.
The company briefs the agency on the brand, its imagery, the ideals and values behind it, the
target segments and so on. The agencies convert the ideas and concepts to create the visuals, text,
layouts and themes to communicate with the user. After approval from the client, the ads go on
air, as per the bookings done by the agency's media buying unit.
Types of Advertising
Brand advertising:
The most visible type of advertising is national consumer advertising. Another name for this
brand advertising is brand advertising which focuses on the development of a long term brand
identity and image. It tries to develop a distinctive brand image for a product.
Retail or Local Advertising:
Retail advertising is local and focuses on the store where a variety of products can be purchased
or where a service is offered. The message announces products that are available locally,
stimulates store traffic, and tries to create a distinctive image for the story. Retail advertising
emphasizes price, availability, localtion and hours of operation. For example think of Green
Valley or Al Fateh advertising about their departmental store and how one can shop for a variety
of products under one roof.
Political Advertising:
Politicians use political advertising to persuade people to vote for them, so it is an important part
of the political process in United States and other countries that permit candidate advertising.
Although it is important source of communication for voters, critics are concerned that political
advertising tends to focus more on the image than on the issues.
Business to Business Advertising:
This type of advertising includes messages directed at retailers, wholesalers, and distributors, as
well as industrial purchases and professionals such as doctors and lawyers. Advertisers place
more business advertising in business publications or professional journals. The ads by a
pharmaceutical company will be targeted towards hospitals or medicine facilities, pharmacies.
Likewise a manufacturer of tires would also advertise for a car manufacturers.
Institutional Advertising:
It is also called corporate advertising. The message focuses on establishing a corporate identity,
or winning the public to the organization’s point of view. Institutional advertising focuses on
touting the benefits, ideas, or philosophies of your business, or its entire industry, to enhance or
repair its reputation rather than selling a product or service. Since institutional
advertising attempts to build a positive image, it's closely related to public relations.
Public Service Messages:
Public service announcements communicates a message on behalf of some good cause, such as
stopping drunk driving, or campaigns on using seat belts while driving, preventing child abuse,
not using mobile phones while driving. These advertisements are usually created by advertising
professionals and the media often donate the space and media.
Interactive Advertising:
This kind of advertising is delivered to individual consumers who have access to a computer and
the Internet. Advertisements are delivered via Web pages, banner ads, and so forth. In this
instance, the consumer can respond to the ad, modify it, expand it, or ignore it.
We see, then, that there isn’t just one kind of advertising. In fact, advertising is a large and varied
industry. All types of advertising demand creative, original messages that are strategically sound
and well executed.