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Businesses turn to advertising agencies to help them get noticed.
But, advertising is much more than that. Basically, advertising
is a strategic component of a total marketing plan. Therefore, sound
strategy should underlie advertising and all marketing efforts to
ensure they are worthwhile and to achieve a greater return on investment.
Sound strategy begins with sound research. Many companies forgo
this step in the interest of time and/or money. However, in the
long run, investing in research before a marketing campaign is launched
could save companies thousands of dollars. In essence, investing
in quality market research is money well spent.
Market research is certainly value added in this sense. Conducting
research prior to execution will make advertising and marketing
campaigns more effective. Before the campaign is launched you can
find out:
- What message should be communicated
- What images should be conveyed
- What spokesperson will have the greatest positive impact
- What is the best way to reach the target audience
- What influence will the ad have on purchase behavior
While advertising research is generally focused on a particular
campaign, other valuable information can be gleaned from the research
which will help to shape future marketing efforts. For example,
when a company embarks on testing an ad campaign, they will likely
learn about:
- perceptions of and attitudes toward their brand and corporate
identity
- perceptions of competitors
- customer satisfaction issues
- psycho-demographic influences on consumer behavior regarding
their product or service
While not considered to be specific objectives of ad testing, these
valuable nuggets of information may be the catalyst for future research
and may spark new creative ideas.
Advertising and market research, taken together, can produce powerful
results. Businesses that invest in advertising dollars would be
wise to consider multiplying their return on investment by adding
research as a key component of the strategic marketing plan. ‡
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