Meaning and types of advertising

Hello students! Today, we are going to learn about two very important words in business: Advertising and Marketing. These words might sound big, but they are things we see and hear every day in Nigeria, from the market to our phones.

Think about your favorite soft drink or a new mobile phone. How did you first hear about it? Maybe you saw a picture on a billboard, or heard an advert on the radio. That is advertising!

Let’s start with Advertising.

Advertising is defined as “any paid form of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods, or services by an identified sponsor.”

What does this long sentence mean? Let's break it down.

“Paid form”: This means someone (a person or a company) pays money to show or tell people about their product or service. For example, MTN or Glo pays TV stations to show their adverts.

“Non-personal presentation”: This means the message goes out to many people at once, not just one person. It’s like a TV advert that everyone watching sees, not a one-on-one conversation.

“Promotion of ideas, goods, or services”: Advertising is used to make people aware of a product (like 'Dangote Cement'), a service (like 'GTBank mobile banking'), or even an idea (like 'vote wisely' or 'wash your hands').

“By an identified sponsor”: This means you know who is paying for the advert. The company or person advertising always shows their name or logo, like 'Indomie' or 'Peak Milk'.

In simple words, advertising is when a company or person pays to show or tell many people about their product, service, or idea, and everyone knows who is doing the telling. It's about letting people know what you have to offer so they can buy it.

Now, let's look at Marketing.

Marketing is defined as “the process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, promotion, and distribution of ideas, goods, and services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational objectives.”

This definition is even longer! But don't worry, it's also easy to understand.

“The process of planning and executing”: Marketing is a whole set of activities that a business plans and carries out. It's not just one thing, but many things done together.

“Conception”: This is about coming up with the idea for a product or service. What do people need? How can we make it better?

“Pricing”: This is about deciding how much to sell the product or service for. Should it be cheap or expensive? (Think about the price of gala or pure water).

“Promotion”: This is how you tell people about your product or service and encourage them to buy it. Advertising is a part of promotion, but promotion includes more things too, like sales promotions (e.g., 'buy one, get one free').

“Distribution”: This is about making sure the product or service gets to the customers. How will it move from the factory to the shops where people can buy it? (Like how Coca-Cola reaches every small kiosk).

“To create exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational objectives”: The main goal of all these activities is to make sure customers get what they need or want (satisfaction) and the business makes a profit or achieves its goals.

So, in simple terms, marketing is everything a company does to find out what customers want, create that product or service, decide its price, tell people about it, and make sure it gets to them. Advertising is just one tool inside this bigger marketing box.

Think of it this way: Marketing is like preparing a whole delicious Nigerian meal, from buying ingredients to cooking and serving it. Advertising is just one of the spices you add to make it taste good and attract people to eat it. It's a part of the bigger process.

Now let's talk about the Types of Advertising.

There are many ways companies advertise. We will look at some common ones.

1. Product Advertising: This type of advertising focuses on telling people about a specific product. For example, an advert showing a new brand of biscuit or a specific car model (e.g., 'Toyota Camry'). The goal is to make you want to buy that product.

2. Service Advertising: This type focuses on promoting a service rather than a physical product. Examples include adverts for banks (e.g., 'First Bank'), insurance companies (e.g., 'Leadway Assurance'), or telecommunication networks (e.g., 'Airtel'). They are selling an experience or a helpful action.

3. Institutional/Corporate Advertising: This advertising doesn't promote a specific product or service, but rather the company as a whole. The aim is to build a good image for the company, making people trust and respect it. For example, Dangote Group might run an advert showing how they help Nigerian communities, without mentioning a specific cement bag. This makes people think positively about the entire company.

4. Public Service Advertising (PSA): This type of advertising promotes ideas and messages for the good of the public. It is usually sponsored by government agencies, NGOs, or sometimes corporations that want to be seen as good citizens. Examples include adverts on road safety ('Don't Drink and Drive'), health awareness ('Get Vaccinated'), or environmental protection ('Keep Nigeria Clean'). These adverts aim to educate and change public behavior for the better.

5. Retail Advertising: This is advertising done by shops or stores to tell customers about their products, prices, and special offers. Think of adverts from ShopRite or SPAR announcing sales or new arrivals. It focuses on getting you to visit their specific store.

6. Trade Advertising: This type of advertising is aimed at other businesses, not the general public. For example, a company that makes flour might advertise in a business magazine to bakery owners. The goal is to get other businesses to buy from them. Sometimes called B2B (Business-to-Business) advertising.