(a) Give any five advantages of advertising. (b) What are five distinctive merits of television as a medium of advertising.

(a) Five advantages of advertising

• It informs: it makes customers aware of the existence, features, uses and prices of goods and services.
• It increases sales: by persuading people to buy, it widens the market and raises the volume of sales.
• It creates and maintains demand: it builds brand loyalty and keeps a product in the minds of consumers.
• It supports mass production: the larger sales it generates allow firms to produce on a large scale and enjoy economies of scale, which can lower prices.
• It provides employment and revenue: it gives work to advertising agents, artists and media houses, and provides income to newspapers, radio and television.

(b) Five distinctive merits of television as an advertising medium

• Sight and sound combined: it appeals to both the eyes and the ears, and shows the product in action, making the message vivid and convincing.
• Use of colour and motion: moving, coloured pictures demonstrate how a product is used and attract strong attention.
• Wide coverage: it reaches a very large audience, including the literate and the illiterate, over a wide area.
• Great impact and memorability: the combination of drama, sound and pictures leaves a lasting impression on viewers.
• Live demonstration: products can actually be demonstrated on screen, so viewers see the benefits for themselves.