HOW ADVERTISING WORKS

Strong theory
AIDA : Attention, Interest, Desire & Action Advertising strong enough to increase peoples knowledge and change their attitudes Conversion theory of advertising Influence of advertising depends on the product Drawbacks of the theory

How Advertising Works (Contd.)

Weak theory
Decision making steps for a consumer are awareness, trial and reinforcement Advertising much less powerful Major objective of advertising in FMCG products is to defend brands Strong theory applicable in high involvement products and weak theory in low involvement products

DEVELOPING THE ADVERTISING STRATEGY

IDENTIFY AND UNDERSTAND THE TARGET AUDIENCE

Comprise the best prospects that would buy the product Define the target audience with clarity and precision Advertisement must be intended only for the target audience

Identify and Understand the Target Audience (Contd.)

Understand target audience well In industrial markets, different members of DMU (decision making unit) use different choice criteria. Different ads may be needed. Consumer decision making involves different stages and multiple roles being played by different people Advertisers should be clear about who it targets and why, and frame appeals suitably

DEFINE ADVERTISING OBJECTIVES

Position the offering
Product characteristics and customer benefits Price-quality Product use Product user Product class Symbols Competition

Define Advertising Objectives (Contd.)

Create awareness Stimulate trial Remind and reinforce Provide support for sales force Correcting misconceptions

ESTABLISH THE ADVERTISING SPEND

Percentage of sales method Affordability method Matching competition Objective and task method

MESSAGE DECISIONS
A creative advertisement is the one which increases sales Effective advertisement (one that enhances sales) requires research about the product that is going to be advertised, the competitors offerings and the target customer

Message Decisions (Contd.)

Big idea (ad that sells more product for several years) is always the outcome of a lot of research Understanding the advertising platform Advertising used to build brand image Marketer who builds the most sharply defined image of his brand wins the maximum market share Can advertising be standardized? Choose the right advertising appeal

The print advertisement

Headline, body copy and illustration Readers first see the illustration, then read the headline and then the body copy Headline should promise a benefit, deliver news, offer a service, identify a problem, or quote a satisfied customer Headline should contain brand name noticeably

The print advertisement (Contd.)

Appeal should be important to target audience, should be specific and provide evidence to support claims Black in white space Longer headline has better chances of being read Should not be too cluttered Avoid using outlandish fonts as they obstruct reading

TV commercials
Of short duration Communicate single minded proposition Three creative approaches Benefits approach No overt benefits, using storyline Salience advertising

Advertising formats
Slice of life Testimonials Product demonstration Comparative advertising Providing solutions Rational reason Musicals News Emotions Pitchman extols the virtues of the product Celebrity endorsements Humorous Cartoons Use of character

Making television advertising more effective

Brand name Package Appetizing food Close-ups Emphatic opening Jingles Voice-over Supers Avoid visual banality Scenes Mnemonics Product in use Miscomprehension

Radio commercials
Draw customers to listen Remember the brand and its promise Surprise and arouse curiosity Listeners have to be involved Identify the brand early in the advertisement Identify the brand often Promise a benefit early Repeat the benefit often

Celebrity endorsements
Must be planned thoughtfully Celebrity values and personality must match those of the brand Celebrity should not be overexposed Long term association with the brand Should not endorse brands whose values and personality conflict with the companys brand

Advantages of celebrity endorsements

Viewership increases Talkability of the ad increases Have immense potential to shape brand identity Customer affiliation towards celebrities Inclination to believe celebrities high

Disadvantages of celebrity endorsements

High price Overexposure of celebrities No real association between the brands values and personality, and the celebrity Celebrity gets more exposure than the product / brand, which stays in the shadows

Business advertising
Advertising pre-sells the product before personal selling in business markets Advertisements generate inquiries from business customers Techniques: Promising the customer a benefit, news, testimonials, or / and useful information Testimonials from experts in reputed companies useful in business markets Demonstrations are useful Information in the form of news credible

Business Advertising (Contd.)

Feature prominently in technical journals Layout of business ads should be simple Headlines and captions below photographs an absolute must Color ads can attract more noticeability than black and white ads Can differentiate commodity industrial products Put toll free numbers, and other means of contact in the ad prominently

MEDIA DECISIONS
The media class decision Creative factors Size of advertising budget Relative cost per opportunity to see Competitive activity Views of retail trade

Media Decisions (Contd.)

Various media: Television Press Posters Cinema Radio

 The media vehicle selection

Media Decisions (Contd.)

Choice of the particular newspaper, magazine, TV spot, poster site etc. Cost per thousand customers reached is dominant criteria Requirement of readership and viewership figures Media buying: A specialized skill Lot of money can be saved by skilled and powerful buyers

EXECUTE CAMPAIGN

EVALUATE ADVERTISING EFFECTIVENESS

What should be measured
Depends on the objective the advertising campaign Set targets for each objective Best measure of effectiveness of advertising is its ability to generate sales (while post-testing) or cause a change in brand preference (while pre-testing)

Evaluate Advertising Effectiveness (Contd.)

When and how to measure

Measurement can take place before, during and after campaign execution Measurement can take place before, during and after campaign execution and part of creative process Pretesting: Use of focus group - Inexpensive but realistic portrayal Measures attitudes to the brand, copy comprehension, and measurement of interest created in the brand by the advertisement

Evaluate Advertising Effectiveness (Contd.)

Press advertisements are pre-tested using folder techniques Post testing: Used to assess effectiveness after campaign has been run Can measure image/attitude change (indicative of behavioral change) Recall is also popularly used though it may only indicate effective media planning and execution May not be possible to measure the real effectiveness of advertisements

IMPROVING ADVERTISING RESULTS

Understand customer mindset to improve advertising results Customer goes through several processes before making his decision to purchase or not

Improving Advertising Results (Contd.)

First barrier: Expose customer to communication Then, customer must understand the message correctly, store it in memory, and buy on the basis of such store information Advertiser must understand these selection processes correctly

Improving Advertising Results (Contd.)

Customer more likely to select advertisements that conform to his existing attitudes Customers who are already predisposed to receiving communication about certain products are more likely to notice the advertisements and remember them Then can advertising persuade customers to change? If yes, how, and when is this possible?

Improving Advertising Results (Contd.)

Changes in customer attitudes and behavior easier to achieve when: Such attitudes and behaviors are inconsequential to the customer Some factors act as mediators in customer attitude formation and his behaviors When mediating factors themselves are willing to change, and they are important to the customer

Improving Advertising Results (Contd.)

Advertisers must understand the triggers for various customers Different groups of customers hold varying attitudes and behaviors for the same product They are also influenced by the mediating factors differentially Same product may be satisfying the same needs for various customers, they may not be influenced by the same appeals

ORGANIZING CAMPAIGN DEVELOPMENT

Four options: Small companies develop the advertising in cooperation with people from the media Advertising function is conducted in-house Company opts to work with an advertising agency Use in-house staff for some advertising functions and use specialist agencies for others

Organizing Campaign Development (Contd.)

Agency selection Clearly defining requirements Selection procedure of agencies Checklist for briefing agencies Analysis of agency presentation Agency payment system Commission based system Fee based system Payment by results Innovative, new methods of agency payments