(a) Explain five functions of advertising. (b) Explain three merits and two demerits of newspaper advertising.

Answer Details

(a) Five functions of advertising

1. Information: It informs the public about the existence, features, prices and uses of goods and services, and where they can be obtained.
2. Persuasion: It persuades and induces consumers to buy a particular product in preference to those of competitors, thereby creating and increasing demand.
3. Creating and maintaining a market: It opens up new markets for new products and helps to retain existing customers and market share.
4. Reminding / building goodwill: It keeps the product constantly before the public, reminds consumers to buy again and builds a favourable image and goodwill for the firm and its brands.
5. Educating consumers: It teaches consumers about new products and new uses of existing products and guides them on how to use goods properly.

(Other points: it supports salesmen by pre-selling goods; it can raise revenue for the advertising media.)

(b) Three merits and two demerits of newspaper advertising

Merits

1. Wide coverage: Newspapers reach a large and varied readership over a wide area at relatively low cost per reader.
2. Permanence / reference: The printed message can be kept, re-read and referred to later, unlike radio or television which is momentary.
3. Detailed message: Enough space is available to give full details, prices and illustrations, and the advert can be targeted by choosing a paper read by the desired audience.

Demerits

1. Short life-span: A newspaper is usually read once and discarded the same day, so the advert has a very short effective life.
2. Limited to the literate: It appeals only to people who can read, so it fails to reach illiterate consumers; also its still black-and-white print lacks the sound and motion of radio and television.