In this lesson, you will learn how advertising affects the consumer-buying-behavior process. We will discuss advertising's far-reaching impact in addition to the ways that advertising can be used to shape the consumer's view of certain products.
Did you know that the average American child watches over 40,000 commercial ads a year? That's a lot of ads. Some companies such as Procter & Gamble, AT&T, and Time Warner spend close to $4 billion a year on advertising in the United States. The official definition of advertising is an impersonal one-way mass communication about a product or service that is paid for by the marketer.
Advertising, public relations, sales promotion, and personal selling all are essential parts of the promotional mix of a marketing plan. Advertising is everywhere and reaches consumers all day - every day! The amount companies spend on advertising is amazing. For instance, pharmaceutical companies spend double on advertising than they do on actual research! The companies that spend the highest amount overall on advertising would be the toy and gaming industries. Advertising also plays an important role in developing sales and market share.