Advertising Objectives

Without objectives, it is nearly impossible to guide and control decision making. Good performance occurred in the absence of objectives can rarely be sustained. The challenge today is to bring effective management to the advertising process in such a way as to provide simulation as well as direction to the creative effort. The solution is the meaningful objective. Advertising objectives, like organizational objectives, should be operational. They should be effective communication tools, providing a line between strategic and tactical decisions. A convenient and enticing advertising objective is immediate sales or market share. However, an increase in immediate sales is not operational in many cases for two reasons: Advertising is one of many factors influencing sales, and it is difficult toContinue reading

Advertising Planning

The advertising management is mainly concerned with advertising planning and decision making. The advertising manager will be involved in the development, implementation, and overall management of an advertising plan. The development of an advertising plan essentially requires the generation and specification of alternatives. Decision making involves choosing from among the alternatives. The alternatives can be various levels of expenditure, different kinds of objectives or strategy possibilities, and kinds of options with copy creation and media choices. Thus, the essence of advertising planning is to find out the feasible alternatives and reduce them to decisions. An advertising plan reflects the planning and decision — making process and the decisions that have been arrived at in a particular product and market situation.Continue reading

Case Study: Advertising Strategies of The Times of India

The Times of India (TOI) is one of the leading newspapers in India. It is the largest circulated English newspaper in India. It represents the growing influence of Indian middleclass and the value of English education in the country. The Chief Manager of advertising at The Times of India was evaluating effectiveness of its campaign in building The Times of India as a national brand. Most of the advertising in the past has been functional in nature. It has concentrated on promoting Times of India as a brand with functional elements like ‘largest circulated‘ English newspaper; most upmarket newspaper; the newspaper with a grip on future and other relevant functional attributes which are common for a newspaper. Recently they haveContinue reading

Steps Involved in Advertisement Planning

Advertisers and advertising agencies believe that customers have needs and desires, which can be fulfilled through the purchase and use of products and services. Advertising works largely through appeal of emotions of envy, fear, anxiety, about one’s appearance and lack of status. It is widely assumed that advertising works if the AIDCA formulas are followed. The formula sums up the principles of advertising. The name of the formula is derived from the initial letters of the words: Attention, Interest, Desire, Conviction and Action. The formula suggests that the attention and interests of the customers must be gained first before the process of stimulating desire, imparting conviction and urging action in advertisements can bring about a change in the buying behaviors.Continue reading

Publicity – Meaning, Areas and Vehicles

Public relations are often confused with publicity, which in simple terms mean making things public or bringing things to the public notice. Many tools including word of mouth to the mass media to advertising to the Internet are used for publicizing information. However, publicity is only one part of public relations. Many marketing experts put public relations under publicity. Thus, publicity is an important part of public relation. Many tools are used for publicizing information and facts. The major and most effective ones are the mass media. Publicity coverage could be in the form of news stories, news analyses, interviews, features, articles, and editorials in printed media and in news bulletins, interviews, discussions or special programmes on radio and television.Continue reading

History of Advertising in India

Indian Advertising starts with the hawkers calling out their wares right from the days when cities and markets first began. Concrete advertising history begins with classified advertising. Ads appear for the first time in print in Hickey’s Bengal Gazette, India’s first newspaper (weekly) . To ‘advertise’ meant merely to ‘inform’ until the end of the eighteenth century, and the early newspapers and periodicals announced births, deaths, arrivals of ships from England, sale of household furniture, etc. some journals like the Bengal Journal (first published in 1785) even offered to print government advertisements free. The front page of most such journals carried only advertisements. But before long persuasive copy began to replace mere information. This is evident from the appearance ofContinue reading