PRINT ADVERTISING

INTRODUCTION: One of the mass media which is becoming increasingly important in the modern world is the economic functions of advertising. The mass media perform this function for the people by bringing together buyers and sellers through advertisements. Again, the world is fast becoming a common market place of ideas. Many multinational companies have come to realize that people have the same basic needs and desires. Consequently, they have heeded to calls for global marketing and can promote their goods and services using advertisements.

Similarly, the essence of being in business by any commercial organisation is to produce for sales and profits. For an organisation to continue to be in business such organisation must generate enough sales from its products or services to cover operating costs and post reasonable profits. For many organizations, sales estimate is the starting point in budgeting or profit planning. It is so because it must be determined, in most cases before production units could be arrived at. Buttressing the importance of advert, Prachi (2015), noted that advertising plays a very important role in today’s age of competition.

In an industrial and free competitive market economy, where the interplay of economic variables dictates the market, the problem of survival of business becomes a very nightmarish one for producers and manufacturers. The singular desire of manufacturers becomes how to create awareness and market for their goods. Advertising is then one strategy that fulfils the desire completely. The desire to be buoyant in business and to increase profit has given advertisement an irrevocable reputation.

Gaurav (2013) stresses that advertising is crucial for the launching (introduction) of a brand new product, service or idea in the market. He maintains that if the advertisement of any concerned product, service or idea is done correctly at a right place, through proper media, and within a particular time constraint, can attract many new customers. It helps to capture the market and increase sales of an advertiser.

Advertising is not undertaken by management just for fun or to keep products or services. It is principally involved in persuasion or advocacy even apparently just giving us information, using media that are paid for it to get through to the mass audience with the identity of the advertisers being clear. Advertising has the mandate to sell the advertiser’s goods and help the consumers to shop wisely (Okoro, 1995:42) cited in Akinrosoye (2015:4).

One function of the mass media which is becoming increasingly important in the modern world is the economic functions of advertising. The mass media perform this function for the people by bringing together buyers and sellers through advertisements. Again, the world is fast becoming a common market place of ideas. Many multinational companies have come to realize that people have the same basic needs and desires. Consequently, they have heeded to calls for global marketing and can promote their goods and services using advertisements.

Similarly, the essence of being in business by any commercial organisation is to produce for sales and profits. For an organisation to continue to be in business such organisation must generate enough sales from its products or services to cover operating costs and post reasonable profits. For many organizations, sales estimate is the starting point in budgeting or profit planning. It is so because it must be determined, in most cases before production units could be arrived at. Buttressing the importance of advert, Prachi (2015), noted that advertising plays a very important role in today’s age of competition.

In an industrial and free competitive market economy, where the interplay of economic variables dictates the market, the problem of survival of business becomes a very nightmarish one for producers and manufacturers. The singular desire of manufacturers becomes how to create awareness and market for their goods. Advertising is then one strategy that fulfils the desire completely. The desire to be buoyant in business and to increase profit has given advertisement an irrevocable reputation.

Gaurav (2013) stresses that advertising is crucial for the launching (introduction) of a brand new product, service or idea in the market. He maintains that if the advertisement of any concerned product, service or idea is done correctly at a right place, through proper media, and within a particular time constraint, can attract many new customers. It helps to capture the market and increase sales of an advertiser.

Advertising is not undertaken by management just for fun or to keep products or services. It is principally involved in persuasion or advocacy even apparently just giving us information, using media that are paid for it to get through to the mass audience with the identity of the advertisers being clear. Advertising has the mandate to sell the advertiser’s goods and help the consumers to shop wisely (Okoro (1995) cited in Akinrosoye, 2015).

Similarly, of all marketing weapons, advertising has leading impact on viewers mind, as its exposure is much more felt (Katke, 2007). Marketing mix has four subsets i.e. product, price, place and promotion. Advertising is a component of promotional mix, which is used to create awareness about products and services for taking purchase decisions (Akinrosoye, 2004). Advertisement evolves date back in the ancient times. Different societies used different types of symbols for the promotion of the products and services for attracting consumers.

No company can become a market leader unless they invest lots of their investment in promotional purposes (Hussainy et al., 2008). The major aim of advertising is to impact on buying behavior; however, this impact about brand is changed or strengthened frequently people’s memories. Newspaper advertising has been around longer than any other form of advertising we seen today and is still the first kind of advertising that businesses think about (Ekwujuru, 2018). Newspaper advertisement is one of the effective means of advertising products, services and idea especially when targeting educated audience. Another edge of print advert rest on it permanence.

Since it is in a permanent form, it can be transported to so many places, it can be referred to anytime etc. Newspaper is easy to be used to target certain audience. Newspapers unlike most other media allow the advertiser to build an advert in any size. More than any other medium, consumers believe in newspaper advertising. Thirty-six percent of adults surveyed find newspapers are trustworthy or believable, a large gap when compared to television (8 percent), or the Internet (15 percent). (How America Shops and Spends, 2011).

Frank (2010) reports that shoppers are less willing today to accept advertising that is spooned out to them. They seek out advertising on their own and newspapers as a medium offer this opportunity. The newspaper editorial environment typically adds credibility and legitimacy to the brand being advertised. To readers, the advertising in a newspaper is every bit as important as the news. And as such newspaper advertising is a valuable commodity to readers.

Meanwhile, one of the media often used by MTN Nigeria to showcase brands, products, and services to the wider world is through newspaper. The report also showed that advertising expenditure in 2017 was dominated by GSM providers who accounted for 17 percent of total advertising spend while MTN accounted for 8 percent of total advert spend in 2017, Globalcom accounted for 4 percent followed by Multichoice, Nigerian Breweries, Cadbury and De-United Industries Limited with 3.0 percent each (MediaReach OMD, 2017).

According to the report the print advertising spend was N17.6 billion in 2017. From N3.6 billion in the first quarter (Q1’17), print advert spend rose by 11 percent to N4.0 billion to in Q2’17. In Q3’17 it rose by 18 percent to N4.7billion, and further by 15 percent to N5.4billion in Q4’17. It is against this background that the study is set out to content analysis print advertisement of MTN Nigeria between January to December, 2018 with a focus on the frequency, position and size.

Statement of the problem

Although, lots of studies have been conducted on the role of advertising on brand promotion and other related studies (see: Opeyemi and Funmilola, 2016; IFPA, 2005; Sambe, 2013; and Peter, 2014), only a few or no studies actually focused on the content analysis of advertisement of brand, even where it exist, they were not done specifically on MTN Nigeria and therefore, the findings cannot be replicated on MTN Nigeria.

Therefore, one of the gaps this study is aimed at filling is to content analyse newspaper advertisements of MTN Nigeria between January-December, 2018 with a view to knowing whether the frequency, position, colour and size of the adverts in the newspaper is capable of increasing customers awareness and persuasion towards MTN brands, products and services.

Objectives of the study

1. To examine the extent of prominence given to MTN advertisement campaigns between January to December 2018 by the selected newspaper.

2. To ascertain the ad strategies/tactics used by MTN in the newspaper.

Research Questions

1. What is the frequency of MTN advertisement campaigns between January to December 2018 by the selected newspaper?

2. What ad appeal/strategies are often used by MTN in newspaper ad placements?

Significance of the Study

This research finding will contribute significantly to the existing body of knowledge in the area of advertising, mass communication, marketing, newspapers and print adverts in general.

The advertisers will through this study realize and understand the true impact of various strategies particularly the use of print media (photo, models/celebrities in promoting their brands, products and other services especially in the era of competing brands.

Advertising consultants, media practitioners, corporate institutions will benefit from the study as it exposes them to how best, where and when to place adverts including how to monitor the result from the campaigns.

Newspapers, radio, television and digital platforms including advertising agencies may gain from this study as it will uncover what consumers’ want and how they want it in order to design an appeal and strategies to gain more audience to their clients

Researchers from advertising, marketing, mass communication and other related field may who may be interested in conducting similar or related one shall find this study relevant as it offers them empirical opportunity to see what has been done while it will serve as reference material for them, thus fill some gaps in telecommunication print advertising.

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