Advertising and Marketing. Is it becoming less effective?

BunnyKillBot

BunnyKillBot

BunnyKillBot

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I don't think I have ever, ever clicked through an on-line banner ad and made a purchase. Nor do i believe banner adds have ever affected my purchasing decisions. Right now OcUK is telling me about their 'Bigger than ever sale!'.... I don't care, i am so disinterested. The same can be said of other advertising media, junk mail goes straight in the bin, television ads can be skipped, bill boards ignored.

There may be a certain subconcious element to it. For instance, if i need some DIY stuff and a page I viewed today happened to have a B&Q ad, i may be more likely to go to B&Q than Homebase. But beyond general brand recognition, I believe marketing has little to no affect on me, and I believe its probably generational.

Do you think you are susceptible to 'marketing'? Have you ever been so 'wowed' by an advertisement you have clicked through? If age matters, do you think we are generationally becoming immune to the effects of marketing?
 
I have done a fair bit of PPC and other online advertising and I can tell you for a fact that it works.

You might feel you are not being affected but I would bet that if we were to look closely at your buying patterns we could find some strong links to advertising that was running at the same time.
 
Advertisement, especially online no longer works as a click through lead on. It's more of a brand awareness. Next time you want to buy oak flooring and start googling it up, a week later when it comes to purchase time you will think of B&Q and Homebase because you saw their names with SALE sign next to youtube videos based on your previous google searches. Or at least that's what google thinks happens.
In reality, you probably googled it up, found the cheapest price and within half an hour ordered it from The Mums And Pops Flooring Store in Lallundwrwrwrw in Araf, Cymru and already forgot about it, but the stupid advert engines that don't can't see your purchase will keep pestering you with adverts of stuff you already purchased till next Xmas.

TV adverts are pure brand awareness exercise. There is no commercial sense in advertising bolognese pasta sauce for 15 seconds, the margins and market is too small, even if majority of the tiny fraction of 50 million UK adults that crave and want to cook pasta that week actually gone to shop straight away and bought that pasta sauce at 50 pence margin, it probably wouldn't pay for the weeks worth of advertising on all channels. So the only reason is brand awareness. Next time you go to buy any sauce for any lazy food and see - let's say - Dolmio, you'll instantly recognise it as "better brand" over some other sauce brand based not on your actual experience of its better taste, but because it's the logo you see all the time.

Given enough resources and advertisement time several brands will then corner the shelves of your local Tesco or Asda in pretend competition - you'll pop into frozen section and choose from a nice selection of ready made pizzas - you'll look past supermarkets own brands and pick from a nice premium pizzas from Dr. Oetker or Chicago Town, without realising both belong to the same group, therefore no matter what choice you make today. Don't get Mars bar, get Snickers, or Twix, or Galaxy. So much choice. Same thing - the mothership always wins.
 
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I guess he means that only those of low intelligence are swayed directly by advertising. Those that possess higher IQs are more likely to research purchases instead of blindly trusting adverts.

I really need to start looking into online marketing as I need to get some exposure for a product I have out there. Not a clue where to start, though. :(
 
I discovered OcUK via a full page custom PC mag advert. Since then I've spent considerable sums of money and time here. Advertising works.
 
I suppose it's enough to tip people over the edge. If someone wants to buy a monitor and a banner comes up saying monitor sale, then there's a good chance they will click on it. The thing that never works with me is when companies offer cover/insurance type products and they say "from only 79p per day" I just start thinking that will turn into quite an amount in no time, especially as it increases every single day whether I think about it or not. And the oppsite way round when they say "could save you upto £128 per year" I just think can't be bothered, I wouldn't even notice.
 
It should really depend on the age of the clients you are trying to attract as younger people use different media to find business's than older people.

Personally I think it does work, where I work would be in its death throes if we didn't put ourselves out there, through a variety of media.
 
also it's not just to make you buy there and then, it's to make sure you know who they are and what they do. for example, I've never bought a bathroom suite or kitchen etc etc BUT if I wanted to buy one, I know places that specialise in them because they always advertise.


So if someone wants to buy a TV, there's a good chance they will just go to Comet and Curry's. Sounds daft and obvious but think about it.
 
mame said:
also it's not just to make you buy there and then, it's to make sure you know who they are and what they do. for example, I've never bought a bathroom suite or kitchen etc etc BUT if I wanted to buy one, I know places that specialise in them because they always advertise.


So if someone wants to buy a TV, there's a good chance they will just go to Comet and Curry's. Sounds daft and obvious but think about it.
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I understand what you are saying, however I simply would never enact my consumer decisions based on mind shouts. I wouldn't go to Ikea and there and then buy a kitchen based on their advertising campaign. I will research kitchens, get prices, experiences and reviews etc, and make an informed decision. Marketing that gets a product on my 'for consideration list' is far less lucrative than 'buy me now' marketing.
 
BunnyKillBot said:
I understand what you are saying, however I simply would never enact my consumer decisions based on mind shouts. I wouldn't go to Ikea and there and then buy a kitchen based on their advertising campaign. I will research kitchens, get prices, experiences and reviews etc, and make an informed decision. Marketing that gets a product on my 'for consideration list' is far less lucrative than 'buy me now' marketing.
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Yes but you are now considering them. They have been the first place you have thought about. Ok, maybe an expensive one-off item like a kitchen wasn't the best example but you see my point. I said Kitchen, you said Ikea.
 
BunnyKillBot said:
I understand what you are saying, however I simply would never enact my consumer decisions based on mind shouts. I wouldn't go to Ikea and there and then buy a kitchen based on their advertising campaign. I will research kitchens, get prices, experiences and reviews etc, and make an informed decision. Marketing that gets a product on my 'for consideration list' is far less lucrative than 'buy me now' marketing.
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How do you know about Ikea?
 
Its not becoming less effective, its becoming more sophisticated.

The ways that brand interact with their customers have been changing throughout the years due to the different ways that we interact with media. Whilst there is still place for your standard TV ads and banner ads and what not, brands are investing more and more money to become partners in your consumer journey.

Its no longer just about telling you that they exist, brands are looking to help you along the way and ensure that they are part of the conversation.
 
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"consumer journey"

?

You sound like you working in marketing...


I don't even notice ads now, just the X in the corner, I might remember the colour and that's it.
 
Marketing definitely works. A classic example is computer games. Wander over to the PC/Console gaming forums and take note of how important the use of trailers, screenshots and sale pricing is to make gamers aware of the next big release.

Many excellent games have sold very poorly due to inadequate marketing.
 
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