Advertising is any paid
form of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods, and services
through the mass media and with an identifiable sponsor.
What an ideal
advertising seeks to achieve is not to increase sales instantaneously but to
create awareness. This is because consumers do not immediately make purchasing
decisions upon coming into contact with an advert. The average consumer is
exposed to perhaps three thousand commercial messages a day from all sources.
From the time he gets up in the morning the consumer is bombarded with sales
messages on the television, radio, bill boards, and many more. Everywhere the
consumer turns, there are advertisements, “Buy this!”
A consumer, thus only
makes a purchase after going through many processes and if the product or
service satisfies his physical or psychological needs. Therefore the primary
objective of advertising is to first of all create awareness.
Product
Life Cycle
When a product is
introduced into the market is goes through several stages. The first stage is
the introductory stage, where the product is formally launched into the market
for business.
The second stage is the
acceptance stage where the product is adopted by consumes. Sales level as well
as profit margin can be very high at this level.
The third state is the maturity
stage. This is where the product becomes a widely recognized brand with people
becoming so familiar with the product. At this stage which is considered as
crucial if the product is not revived through advertisements, interest levels
in consumers could dwindle, and shift to other products on the market. At this stage
one could see advertisements on new brands of the same product just to
re-emphasis the continued existence of the product. Examples; New Ariel Gold
washing power, New Omo washing power wish triple effect, and New Milo with
Antigen E
The last stage is the
decline stage where the product fades away completely from the market, perhaps
due to lack of advertisement.
Why
a company like Coca Cola should continue to advertise?
The iconic brand Coca
Cola was introduced on May 8, 1886 by a pharmacist name Dr. John Pemberton. He carried
a jug of Coca Cola syrup to Jacobs’ Pharmacy in downtown Atlanta, where it was
mixed with carbonated water and sold for five cents a glass.
Over the years Coca
Cola has evolved to be enlisted among the most-admired and best-known
trademarks in the world. Studies have proved that Coca Cola is the second-most
widely understood terms in the world, after “okay.” From one product Coca Cola
now has more than 500 brands, and has grown from selling 9 drinks a day in 1886
to 1.8 billion a day. The company has expanded from one city in one country
availability to more than 200 countries around the world.
Of a fact Coca Cola
achieved all these enviable pedigree on the wings of strong, vibrant, and years
of consistent advertising. This is epitomized in the company’s track record of huge
budgetary allocations for advertising campaigns since 1887 till date. For instance,
aside many other sponsorships Coca Cola has associated and continues to
associate itself with, it is of the only brands with the worldwide presence and
ability to sponsor the two biggest sporting events in the world, for more than
80 years; The Olympic Games and the FIFA World Cup. Coca Cola has also been
sponsoring all other FIFA tournaments since 1976.
Sponsorship of the Beijing
2008 Olympic Games for instance connected with more than 500 million consumers
in China. For want of space only but few can be typed on Coca Cola’s amazing
history of advertising campaigns over the years.
Coca Cola continues
unabated to advertise because it want to emphasis over and over again the
continued existence of it iconic product, and also to create awareness for its new
brands that have been introduced into the market.
Again Coca Cola should continue
to advertise in order to maintain that bond it has established over the years
with its millions of consumers out there in over 200 countries. This helps to
maintain a very strong consumer loyalty.
Also Coca Cola should
continue unabated to advertise in order to continue to attract new markets.
Coca Cola has become a beverage not for only one group or class of persons but
for all persons, regardless; age, status, race, religion, and tribe.
Coca Cola should
continue to advertise in order to keep up with competition. Currently the brand
is the second-most understood terms in the world. In the world of FIFA World
Cup games and Olympic Games, Coca Cola is the most popular brands with no
doubts. Not to say the least; Christmas and Santa Clause have always been
associated with the brand Coca Cola. It cannot afford the luxury to stop or pulse
advertising.
The company Coca Cola
should persist advertising in order to keep updating its numerous consumers
with price changes. This is because consumers mostly feel secured and satisfied
when they become aware that what they are buying is at a standardized price.
www.thecoca-colacompany.com
Brain, T., (2006). The Psychology of Selling.
