How Modern-Era Advertising Influences Consumer Behaviour - Term Paper Example

RUNNING HEAD: HOW MODERN ERA ADVERTISING INFLUENCES CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR How Modern Era Advertising Influences Consumer Behaviour Name Institution Date Introduction Advertising is a fundamental marketing tool for every organization in the contemporary era. In fact, advertising has been recommended as a compulsory cost for creating customer awareness of the product. In addition, advertising plays a crucial role of increasing market share competition amidst other competitors. Advertisement can be defined as a communication process through which organizations and businesses or even individuals use various medias to persuade or inform members of certain audience. Consumer behaviour on the other hand refers to the totality of the consumers’ decisions with respect to selection, acquisition as well as the use of goods or services for the satisfaction of their wants. It involves the mental, the emotional and the physical activities that consumers undertake before and when they purchase a product. Many forms of media are used for advertisements in the modern business environment this include the internet such Facebook and twitter, TV, radio advertisements. With the existence of the many forms of persuasive advisements, research findings have revealed that consumer’s behaviour is an aspect that is difficult to actually predict. The big question that arises therefore concerns how advertising influences consumer behaviour. This particular report seeks investigate the how modern era adverting influences consumer buying behavior. Research Questions Investigating how modern advertisement can influence consumer behaviour To examine the communication process in adverting and how it influences consumer behaviour To explore the theories that relate to advertisement and consumer behaviour To investigate how advertisement influences consumer buying behaviour through the use of selected research methods Literature Review / Method The study considered a number of data collection methods to used in the research process with due regard to the objectives of the research, source of information targeted and nature of the process at hand. Based on the nature and objectives of the study and the existing available sources of information relating to such topic the study adopted the secondary data collection approach of documentary analysis as the key data collection method. According to Angus, (2008) the primary objective of advertisers is usually to communicate or reach out to a potential consumer and then influence their attitudes, awareness, perception and then their buying behaviour. As a result many contemporary organizations strive to ensure that by undertaking advertising as a marketing strategy; the business will be able to attract customers’ attention and building positive relations to entice customers to purchase the product. Adeolu (2005) however argues that in order to for advertisers to succeed and get the consumer to purchase their products they need to understand what makes consumers behave in a certain way. Adeolu (2005) proposes that before creating and advert, advertisers should understand the factors that influence consumer behaviour and thereafter integrate them in their advisement. These factors include social factors, personal factors and psychological factors. Shabbir and Javaria (2012) highlight that; advertisement is an effective strategy of enhancing consumer behaviour. According to Shabbir and Javaria (2012) advertising develops emotional response to a consumer’s capability to recall the brand consequently the consumer is bound to purchase certain product brand. Shabbir and Javaria (2012) undertook a study to examine how effective advertising can influence consumer behavior. The major area of investigation was whether customers buying behaviour is influenced by emotional response or environmental response. The method of study involved the use of questioners on a sample of consumers in Pakistan who use various types of telecom services. A total amount of 200 questioners were provided to consumers after which their reliability was analyzed and the finding indicated that the reliability was 0.71. According to Shabbir and Javaria (2012) the reliability of 0.70 gives an indication that the instrument displayed positive reliability. The findings of the study indicated that there is a positive relationship between consumer buying behaviour and emotional response as opposed to environmental response. Most of those interviewed acknowledged the fact that they purchase a product not because they have seen it on display, but rather they usually recall a product based on the emotional feelings such as pleasure, arousal, dominance and brand recall that they gained from advertisement. The study therefore concluded that consumers usually buy products through emotional response which is influenced by effective advertisement which gives the consumers the capability to remember the brand. Doss (2010) also argues modern day adverting approaches such as celebrity endorsements have also increasingly assisted in influencing consumer behaviour. Celebrity endorsement entails matching various celebrities with a certain brand for instance finding the appropriate celebrity to endorse a particular brand. Doss (2010) highlights that; celebrity endorsement can effectively influence consumer behaviour. This is due to the fact that consumers view the brand to posses’ superior quality owing to the fact that they have been endorsed by a reliable source. This makes celebrity endorsement as one of the major indicators of brand quality. The credibility of the celebrity therefore plays a key role in influencing consumers’ attitudes towards particular brands and the advertisement in that order. Alternatively, according to Doss (2010), celebrity over popularity may sometimes overshadow the brand especially if that celebrity is involved in more than one product endorsement. This tends to bring out confusion among the consumers and therefore negatively affecting the perception of the advertisement and that given brand. Doss (2010) argues therefore that it is not clear to say whether the practice of celebrity endorsing positively or negatively impacts on the consumer behaviour. O'Guinn et al (2008) reveal that advertisements are cultural products, and culture usually provides the context in which the interpretation of an advertisement is done. In a scenario where advertisers integrate the concept of culture within their advisements, they are bound to influence consumer behaviour. As highlighted by Shah (2010), various consumers possess particular cultural beliefs and attitudes towards various products. Through purchasing and learning about a product, consumers acquire various beliefs and attitudes towards that particular product. Such beliefs and attitudes have an effect on the brand image of various products; as a result, affecting the buying behaviors of consumers. O'Guinn et al (2008) therefore proposes that advertisers should not overlook the aspect of culture when making advertisement this is because advertisements of brands that display high cultural meanings appeal more to consumers. Trehan and Ranju (2009) highlights that advertisement is an effective strategy of creating brand awareness which is a crucial aspect in influencing consumer behaviour. Trehan and Ranju (2009) further highlight that consumer’s usually buy products to satisfy their wants however there is need for the consumer to have an awareness that a certain brand exists in the market. In addition they need to be aware that a particular brand can satisfy their needs as they desire. Trehan and Ranju (2009) therefore argue that advertising is an effective way of creating brand awareness. For instance companies such as cola-cola have continued to advertise their product predominantly on TV in order to influence the brand awareness of their target market. Silva, (2010) also reveals that organizations have currently adopted modern advertisement approaches such as social media like as Facebook which has facilitated an increase brand awareness. According to Silva, (2010) when people get connected through social media, the impact on advertising is immense; this is because brand awareness can quickly be shared by people across the globe. Advertisement as a communication Process that influences consumer behaviour Establishing Goals/objectives of the communication Campaign According to Sliburyte (2007) advertising is a communication process that entails six stages. The first stage involves the advertising specialist setting the objective of the advertising campaign. According to Sliburyte, (2007) the objectives of adverting include persuasion that is convincing consumers that the advertised product is superior to other products that are offered by competitors. Another objective is reinforcement which involves enabling a customer to effectively evaluate a product. Reminder is another objective which gives the consumers a suitable opportunity remembers the product .The fourth objective is acceleration of purchase which gives the encouragement to obtain the product as fast as possible (Sliburyte, 2007). Planning the Advertisement Campaign Sliburyte, (2007) highlights that at this particular stage; the adverting expert begins to plan the adverting campaign. This particular stage involves encoding the information that is supposed to be delivered to the customers. The expert must make a decision concerning the type of message that is to be delivered to the consumer. Sending the Information The advertiser at this particular stage sends the message or information to the consumer. However before sending the message to the consumer he/she has to decide which means of advertisement should be used in order to deliver the information to the consumer. Sliburyte (2007) highlights that; a technical gap may arise during the process of sending the information to the consumer. Sliburyte (2007) refers to the technical obstacles as interruptions that may occur during TV broadcasting, noise and the existence of wrong colors on the advert. These aspects may disturb the conveyance of the message to the consumer also further negatively influencing consumer behaviour. The Consumer receives the information At this particular stage the consumer gets to see or hear or read about the advert. A Psychological process of perception begins to take place. Sliburyte (2007) asserts that in the process of obtaining and perceiving the information conveyed by the advert certain problems do come up. These problems therefore create the fourth gap within the communication process of advertisement. The problem that arises involves how a consumer may understand the symbols and language that is used or displayed by an advert. Sliburyte (2007) highlights that sometimes consumers experience difficulty in interpreting and even understanding the symbols and language used in advert. Consequently the advert may not be well perceived therefore leading to negative consumer behaviour towards the product. The consumer Records the Information Received According to Vakratsas and Ambler (1999), this particular stage is referred to as the intermediate stage that exists between the reception of the advert or information and the behaviour of the consumers. Sliburyte (2007) highlights that consciously or unconsciously the information provided by the advertisement should awaken the psychological aspect of the consumer in terms of feelings, thinking and remembrance. In a scenario whereby the consumer does not retain the information the advert can not bring about a favourable impression to the consumer about the advert. This therefore forms the gap or problem that exists at this particular stage. Consumer Behaviour Displayed At this particular stage, consumer behaviour was already reinforced by the advert. According to Sliburyte (2007) at this particular point, consumer behaviour can be termed us successful in the event that accordance occurs between all the stages of the advertising communication process. In general consumer behaviour should be displayed when consumer can be able to receive the information, understand the information about the product being advertised, and then they can be able to perceive the information and then record it and lastly recall the information which will enable them to purchase the product. Figure I.0 Below demonstrates the adverting communication process Theories that relate to advertisement and consumer behaviour The perception theory is one of the relevant theories that can be used to link relate advertisement and consumer behaviour. According to the perception theory, consumers have to be triggered in a certain way in order for them to have the desire to purchase a certain product (Cohen, 2012). Leon et al(2008) also argue that perception also influences consumer behaviour. Perception is the process by which people give meaning to incoming stimuli. The process of giving meaning to stimuli therefore influences an individual’s perception and choice of products and services. Cohen (2012) therefore highlights that according to the perception theory, in order to influence consumer behaviour marketers should appeal to the exceptional perceptions that consumers have. Berlo’s model of communication is a relent model of communication that can be used to examine the aspect of effective advertisement and its influence on consumer behaviour. The model basically focuses on the specific characteristics of communication and emphasizes the relationship that exists between the receiver and the source as a significant variable in the process of communication (Suresh, 2012). Berol’s model proposes that the more advanced the communication skills of the receiver and the source, the more effectively the message will be decoded and encoded. In relations to advertisement, if advertisers present their message in an appropriate manner using effective communication skills, then they are bound to influence consumer behaviour. Results/discussion From the above presented literature several findings can be drawn. The review has presented studies that have given the indication that effective modern era advertisement can actually influence consumer behaviour. However when an in-depth analysis is undertaken in evaluating the concept of consumer behaviour, two contracting conclusions can be draw. One of the conclusions is grounded on the fact that advertisement has the capability of positively influencing consumer behaviour and this is majorly drawn from the psychological perceptive. According to Adeolu (2005) advertisements mainly attract the psychological aspects of a consumer. This is by influencing the perception, awareness and emotions of the consumer towards the product. Whereby Perception is the process by which people give meaning to incoming stimuli. Advertisements can also influence believes and attitudes of consumer towards a product. Also the aspect of learning for instance; if a consumer gains long-term information and experience of a certain product they may develop loyalty towards the product. A contrasting view on the other hand is that although advertisement can actually influence consumer behaviour through influencing the psychological aspects of consumers, it can not entirely be concluded that effective advertising can fully influence consumer behaviour. This is because consumer behaviour is influenced by other factors that may influence the buying behaviour of consumer even when the advert exists to communicate information about the product. For instance, one of the aspects that influence consumer behaviour is personal factors. People exhibit different personal characteristics which are influenced by various aspects such as Age and family cycle, lifestyle, occupation economic circumstances, self concept and personality. For instance the economic circumstance of a person greatly influences their buying behaviour. For instance; a person’s economic circumstance greatly affects their choice of product. There are people who have spendable incomes, their people who prefer to save as opposed to spending and there are those who live on fixed budgets due to their economic circumstance. Consequently in despite of what an advert presents or communicates, if it does not suite the economic circumstance of the person, then they are bound not to purchase the product being advertised. Also when analyzing advertising as a communication process that influences consumer behaviour, gaps did exist in the process for instance there are scenarios whereby the consumer can not understand the advert. Also receiving and remembering the advert can sometimes be difficult. On the part of the advertiser, sometimes the message may be disrupted for instance on TV when technical hitches occur or in a scenario whereby the colors or information were not well presented. Due to the existence of such gaps it can be stated that advertisement does not always at all times positively influence consumer behaviour. This is because disruptions may occur that hinder effective communication of the product to the consumer. It is however essential to take note of the fact that advertisement is indeed a key element in influencing consumer behavior. Consequently organizations should ensure that they devise adverting strategies that integrate all the factors that influence consumer behaviour. For instance in the context of personal factors that influence consumer behaviour such as income, advertisers should ensure they their adverts can fit both low and high level income consumers in society . Conclusion The above report has presented various views concerning how modern era advertising influences consumer behaviour. One of the dominant ways that has been identified by the report is based on the fact that advertisement influences the psychological aspects of consumer and thus influencing their consumer behaviour. The report also identified various psychological areas in which advertisement that influence consumer behaviour. Some of the areas include perception, awareness, attitude and emotions. The report concludes that advertising does have a positive influence on consumer behaviour, however based on the fact that there are other factors that also influence consumer behaviour; organizations should aim at integrating those aspects when communicating their adverts. References Adeolu, B, Taiwo, A and Matthew A.(2005). The Influence of Advertising on Consumer Brand Preference. Journal of Social Science. 10(1): 9-16. Angus, D.( 2008). Theory and Measurement of Consumer Behaviour. Cambridge University Press. Cohen, G.(2012.) Marketing Consumer Behavior Theories. Demand Media. Doss, S.(2010).The transference of brand attitude: the effect on the celebrity Endorser, Journal of Management and Marketing Research. 4(2). Leon G, Håvard, H and Leslie, L.( 2008).Consumer Behaviour: A European Outlook, Prentice Hall/Financial Times, Shabbir , K and Javaria , S.(2012). Effective advertising and its influence on consumer buying behaviour. In formation Management and Business Review . 4(3), pp 114-119. O'Guinn, T, Allen, C and Semenik, J.(2008).Advertising and Integrated Brand Promotion. Cengage Learning. Shah, A.( 2010). Factors Affecting Consumer Behavior .Sage . Silva, I.(2010). Facebook's impact on marketing, advertising. Marketing Media. Suresh, K. (2012). Theories of Communication. Sliburyte, L. (2007).Communication process: A case Study of Lithuania Consumers. International Journal of Human and social sciences. 2(6),p331-367. Trehan, M and Ranju T.(2009). Advertising and Sales Management. FK Publications Vakratsas, A and Ambler, C. (1999).How adverting Works, What do we really know ? Journal of Marketing . 45, p26-43. Read More