NEW AGE OF ADVERTISING: COMPARING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE INTERNET ADVERTISING WITH TRADITIONAL MEDIA
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. Introduction
II. The World Wide Web as a New Medium for Trade
III. Traditional Advertising
IV. Internet Advertising: Conquering the Web
V. Conclusion
I. Introduction
Reaching a target market is one of the most important elements in the context of marketing. A sure way of reaching the market is though advertising. Getting the consumers to become aware of the product and the brand that it carries contributes more to the process than it meets the eye. Brand loyalty and consumer behavior is often dictated by advertisements. However, the means of reaching the target market tends to be rather complicated as the entrance of a new medium comes to play. The internet has become one of the most recent additions to the marketing sphere. Known also as the information superhighway, businesses have exploited the potential of this medium to boost their advantage over its competitors. However, there is still a lingering issue as to whether advertising trough the internet is as effective as it purports. A bigger question lies on whether it could go head-to-head with the more traditional means of advertising. This paper intends to look into this matter. The primary objective is to provide an analysis of the effectiveness of internet advertising in general. A secondary objective is to establish as to whether the effectiveness is as compelling as that of the more traditional media. In any case, this paper is going to be a welcome addition to the scarce materials on the subject of internet advertising and web marketing.
II. The World Wide Web as a New Medium for Trade
The emergence of the internet has considerably changed the way companies handle their business. This also offered the key for companies to other markets and medium of transacting with both clients and partners in the industry. There are several academic articles that have indicated the effects of the internet in international businesses. (2001) claimed that the emergence of the internet as a business tool created a “new economy.” (p. 641) Other authors have also indicated that the appearance of such technologies online have triggered the “death of distance” and even “end of geography.” ( 2004) Though these claims may appear to be rather ominous, international businesses have used these situations to their advantage. The internet has given the modern business a chance to tap into new possibilities of transmitting messages through ICTs. (2001) This means that a company is able to operate in opposite sides of the world without any significant risk of loss. Today, manufacturing companies tend to have a headquarters in a specific area and operational plants in other locations. ( 2001 ) This need even made a new form of industry. This is manifested in Dot.com companies, providers, and developers that offer their services to those who have access to the web and those who intend to use this medium as their primary conduit to success.
A number of companies have used the internet as a means to take international market by storm. One example would be the case of Amazon.com who has dominated the online retailing industry. They have initially started as an online bookstore, but they eventually expanded their market. Other companies like Apple Inc have also been successful in expanding their market using the internet. Aside from offering their gadgets and computers in stores and online, they have also created a new culture. (2005) refer to this as the iPod Phenomenon. Specifically, the wide distribution of Apple of its famous player has triggered other companies to launch their own brand of mp3 players. And as versions of the mp3 players constantly improve, it still leaves the fact that it is essentially a means of listening to records, albums, and music. In some cases, they use it for educational purposes. (2006) Other industries use the internet as a means to secure a clientele that would use the services they offer. In the airline industry, the internet has become one of the major factors in the sale and bookings of airline tickets. The internet has been considered as among the low cost medium to which bookings and ticket sales among airline companies employ. (1997) The use of the internet has also enabled these companies to easily tap the international market given the range on which internet access is able to provide. Moreover, the connected industries like tourism have similarly benefited in the use of the internet as a medium for travel access. (2001)
III. Traditional Advertising
Advertisement campaigns are among the most basic form of marketing used by companies. One good example is the move made by Addidas. The Adidas advertising campaign in Germany for the World Cup employed the very essential device to control consumer behaviour. The advisement campaign used the reputation and distinguished status of the World Cup Series. Since it is basically done once every four years, it has been consistently pursued by football supporters ever since its inception in the 1930s. , 2002, 134) Thus, there is essentially an unconditioned stimulus from soccer fans to actually witness the matches, either live in the arena, via live TV programmes, or live radio broadcasts. There is a recognised fan base that similarly associates to the viewers of the games.
The advertisement made up a fresco painted in the ceiling of the Hauptbahnhof train station in Germany essentially pointing a reference to the one in Sistine Chapel. Together with the nuance of the said event implanted in the painting, reminders embodying world renowned players are also seen supporting the unconditioned stimulus held by the ad. ( 1996, 32) This is similarly seen in the other ad where a viaduct is enclosed by the picture of well-known goalkeeper saving an attempted goal. Using signals on the event and the employment of well-known people in the said sport manifest an efficient employment of classical conditioning.
Another traditional medium of advertising is seen in mass media. The power of mass media to society has been debated unremittingly in literature. Media has the ability to supply information to the public, whether they call for it or not. The predicament in this situation is that this information could shape a social awareness that could well have an implication on the wellbeing of society. From political campaigns to ridiculous advertisements, mass media has the clout to sway the thought of society. (2004) This indicates that mass media could be employed as a tool to subscribe to either development or breakdown of the established principles of a particular society. As (2004) claimed in their work, mass media could double as an intermediary to the consciousness of society. Though they pointed out that media is just a conduit, it could still supply both direct and circuitous effects on the existing circumstances in society. The study of (2000) pointed out that long-term studies have documented a series where responsiveness with or even keenness for cigarette advertising does allow adolescents on engaging to smoking. This emphasises that argument of n (2004) stated that media has without a doubt an influence on the social setting.
IV. Internet Advertising: Conquering the Web
Past studies indicate that the internet is considered as a vital standalone advertising medium. ( 1997) Based on the year that the study is made, the matter of internet advertising is yet to flourish and have been interpreted as an item with full potential yet to be discovered. This study was made a decade ago, thus depicting that even then web marketing is showing promising outcomes for the common business folk.
The effectiveness of web advertising has been recognised by scholars and academics as manifested in the recent splurge of articles on the subject. In a recent study made by (2004) even maintained that there is a possibility for internet advertising to “displace” the more traditional kinds of advertising. However, they have indicated that this will only happen in the more foreseeable future and not at the present. They indicated that internet advertising is currently considered as an alternative advertising medium and a rather welcome addition to other reinforcement mediums like billboards and print media.
On another study, (2003, 34) concentrated their work on the Chinese market with the use of web advertising. They found out that the form of internet marketing called “banner advertisements” tend to work for companies in terms of brand building endeavours of a company. In the same manner, they have concluded that the effectiveness of internet advertising would be rather dependent on a market’s level of internet development. Such presence of IT infrastructure and other means to support the web industry will thus spell the capabilities of internet advertising.
V. Conclusion
The study has provided an in-depth analysis of the modern day circumstances surrounding advertising, both in terms of traditional and through the internet. The fact remains that both media tends to be rather effective in conveying the message across the target markets. However, the answer on whether what is more effective still hangs in the balance. Based on the discussions above, traditional advertising does have an influence in society and have entrenched itself as one of the existing realities in modern life. However, the trend towards the use of web technologies has been slowly reaching the heights achieved by traditional advertising mediums. In a sense, the effectiveness on the specific medium to be employed rests on the actual target market. Seasoned marketers should be cognizant of this reality that in order to reach a particular market, then the medium used should also be specific. The growing number of individuals with access to the internet tends to show potential on internet advertising and web marketing. To this end, the effectiveness of advertisement in the web is just a matter of appropriate placement and proper marketing strategy.
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