Abstract:
Advertising is seen as a non-personal, one-way communication exercise directed to specified markets or buyers and therefore a vital catalyst in the production, distribution and consumption process. The job of advertising is principally to communicate to a defined audience, information and a frame of mind that stimulate action. This study was structured to critically examine the effect of advertsing in persuading consumers to adopt a new or an existing product or for a repeat purchase, with special focus on brands of Emzor Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. The primary and secondary sources were utilized to gather data used in the study. While the questionnaire and structured interviews were the research instruments used to gather the primary data from a randomly selected sample of a defined population. Descriptive statistics was used to present the data collected in the tables while inferential statistical tools like z-test were used to evaluate relationship of the variables from the available data to draw conclusive inferences.
The findings from the study indicate that large number of the respondents see advertising as a factor for deciding on the type of product/services to chose from when confronted with many brands/services. Majority of the respondents agree that advertising influences their buying decision. The respondents also see advertising as a good medium to rely on for information about old and new products.
Further findings revealed that advertisement should be executed long enough to generate such curiosity that will motivate consumers to buy the product.
For effective coverage, the researcher recommends that advertisement be carried out more on Radio and T.V. since a greater percentage of consumers have access to them more often. The study strongly recommends that more academic research work should be carried on some factors such as Price, Taste, Product availability and the influence of reference groups. This is with a view to understanding their relative degree of effects on consumer behavior.
