Advertising is the process of persuading consumers to purchase a specific product or service. The goal of every company is to sell the items they produce, and to sell as many of them as possible. By advertising directly to the consumer, they hope to influence the consumer to purchase their products over those of their competitors. In effect, they are direct messaging the consumer, educating the consumer about their product, and creating brand awareness so the consumer will recognize the product when they see it in a store.
Advertising can be broken down into two large areas: digital advertising (social media, display ads, and search engine ads) and traditional advertising (print advertising, broadcast advertising, and outdoor advertising).
Look through the slide show below for more about the different types of advertising. Answer the question and then compare your answer to the suggested one.
Companies pay to advertise their products on social media platforms so they can reach all the users on the social networks. Consumers see the advertised products and they also see what other people are saying about those products. This information usually has a significant influence on their purchase decision.
Display ads are advertisements that pop up or appear as banners on web pages and videos on the internet; all the visitors to that site will see them. A website with a high volume of traffic will expose more consumers to the advertisements. Ads that capture consumers' attention can influence the purchases they make.
Some search engine sites are the most visited websites in the world. Whenever you do a search, the search engine puts ads related to your search in the results. Since you're searching for something specific, an advertisement for the product you are looking for—and products similar to it—are very effective in attracting your attention and influencing your purchase.
Print advertising appears in newspapers and magazines. Readers of these media see the ads, which—just like display ads on a website—are designed to capture their attention and influence their decision to purchase a product. As reading goes more digital, this advertising is reaching fewer people.
Broadcast advertising is advertising done through the broadcast media of television and radio and reaches all people watching or listening when the ad is broadcast. When people see or hear an advertisement that catches their attention, they tend to remember the product, increasing the likelihood that they will purchase it.
Outdoor advertising uses billboards to advertise products, services, or stores. These advertising messages reach the people who drive or walk by the large billboards. Repeatedly seeing a product imprints it in the mind of a consumer and can influence purchase decisions.
