Advertising

Mediums Used for Advertising

The types of formats/mediums used for advertising include the following:

•    Television

•    Infomercials

•    Radio Advertising

•    Print Advertising

•    Online Advertising

•    Billboard Advertising

•    Mobile Billboard Advertising

•    Covert Advertising

•    In-store Advertising

Television

This form of advertising is considered as the most effective mass-promotion advertising, it includes different kinds of commercials like voice over commercials, animated commercials etc. This is also the most expensive form of advertising. For example, “the annual Super Bowl football game in the United States is known as the most prominent advertising event on television, the average cost of a single thirty-second TV spot during this game has reached US$3 million (as of 2009).”

Infomercials

Infomercials are TV commercials, only longer. These commercials are typically five minutes or more. They have recently become very popular, as their main objective is to create impulse purchase, viewers are provided with a toll free number on the screen as the commercial plays and they can book the product instantly, unlike other TV commercials where viewers have to wait to buy the product from the market.

Radio Advertising

This form of advertising is done via radio; the advertisements are broadcasted in-between radio shows. Marketers purchase airtime from stations or networks, unlike TV commercials, radio advertising is limited to sound which is also an advantage in some cases, as it reduces the cost.
Print Advertising:

This format of advertising is basically in printed form, and is presented in newspapers, magazines, journals etc. A form of print advertising is classified advertising which has small placements of ads for private individuals and companies for a low fee.

Online Advertising

These include ads on the internet, and are usually placed on popular sites or search engine results wherever there is maximum traffic for maximum exposure. Examples of these ads are : “search engine results pages, banner ads, in text ads, Rich Media Ads, Social network advertising, online classified advertising, advertising networks and e-mail marketing, including e-mail spam.”

Billboard Advertising

Billboards are big structures located in public places; these boards display ads that are seen by all passersby’s in that location. They are usually located on main roads, stadium, and shopping malls basically at any place with immense public traffic.

Mobile Billboard Advertising

This is just like billboard advertising, but in digital form, this form of advertising uses digital screens or vehicles built solely for the purpose of the advertisement. These billboards are often lighted and have static displays which continuously change, occasionally rotating within a set of ads.

Covert Advertising

This form of advertising is also known as guerrilla advertising, it is used when a product or brand is embedded in a movie or drama, being used by a particular character etc. for example: a character in a movie using a Nokia mobile phone etc.

In-store Advertising

This requires for the advertisement to be placed in retail stores, for example the placement of the product or a cardboard replica of the product in the store is placed at eye level with eye-catching displays for the promotion of the product.

Advertised has evolved with time, though there are still some features that need working. “While advertising can be seen as necessary for economic growth, it is not without social costs. Unsolicited Commercial Email and other forms of spam have become so prevalent as to have become a major nuisance to users of these services, as well as being a financial burden on Internet service providers. Advertising is increasingly invading public spaces, such as schools, which some critics argue is a form of child exploitation.  In addition, advertising frequently uses psychological pressure (for example, appealing to feelings of inadequacy) on the intended consumer, which may be harmful.”

<!–bfb3c6da278d4ecd9110e00932e87876–>