Advertising

Advertising is a message designed to promote a product, a service, or an idea. In everyday life, people come into contact with many kinds of advertising. Printed advertisements make up a large part of newspapers and magazines. Poster ads appear in many buses, subways, and trains. Neon signs along downtown streets flash advertisements. Billboards dot the roadsides. Commercials interrupt TV and radio programs.

The purpose of most advertising is to sell products or services. Manufacturers advertise to try to persuade people to buy their products. Large business firms also use advertising to create a favorable “image” of their company. They want the company name to be known and respected for the products the firm makes or the services it provides. Local businesses use advertising to gain new customers and increase sales. Advertising thus plays a major role in the competition among businesses for the consumer’s dollar. It is the cheapest and fastest way to inform large numbers of people about products or services for sale and to persuade them to buy. In many businesses, the volume of sales depends largely on the amount of advertising done.

Advertising is also used by individuals, political parties and candidates, social organizations, special-interest groups, and the government. Many people advertise in newspapers to sell used cars, homes, or other property. Political parties and candidates use advertising to try to win votes. Social organizations and special interest groups often advertise to promote a cause or to influence the way people think or act. Some of their advertisements provide a public service. For example, the American Lung Association sponsors public service ads designed to discourage people from smoking. The United States government uses advertising chiefly to recruit volunteers for the armed forces.

Advertising is a multibillion dollar industry in the United States. About $125 billion-an average of about $500 per person-is spent on advertising each year. This amount represents about 2 per cent of the U.S. gross national product (GNP)-that is, the value of all goods and services produced yearly. More money is spent on advertising in the United States than is spent in any other country. Advertising pays all the costs of the nation’s commercial television and radio broadcasting. It also pays about two-thirds of the costs of newspapers and magazines.

Because advertising is so widespread in the United States, it has enormous influence on American life. Advertising encourages Americans to eat certain foods, wear certain clothes, and use certain household products. It promotes the use of work-saving appliances and then suggests ways to enjoy the resulting leisure time. In doing all these things, advertising helps shape Americans tastes, habits, and attitudes. In many countries, however, the use of advertising is more restricted then it is in the United States. In most of the countries of Western Europe, for example, the governments limit the amount of advertising that appears on television. In addition, these governments make greater use of advertising for social, political, and educational purposes.

This article deals chiefly with advertising in the United States. It mainly discusses advertising by business and industrial organizations. But much of the material applies to advertising by other groups as well.