THE ROLE OF ADVERTISING IN BUSINESS PROMOTION PROJECT TOPIC

THE ROLE OF ADVERTISING IN BUSINESS PROMOTION

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1  BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

       Advertising remains an important component of promotion in any organization, whether a big or small business. It is one of several methods of promotion that a business may use to market its products. It gives people the essential information they need to decide whether or not to buy a product, and also identifies the product and its special features.

For a product to market effectively there is need for more development and improvement of the product and it should be accessible to the target market. There is also the need for the producer to device good and simple ways of communicating with the consumer. This is because consumer needs and wants are usually discovered through communication and partially satisfied through communication too.

The marketing communication mix is comprised of four major components of which advertising is one. Advertising is one of the most important promotional tools business uses to reach its dispersed market effectively. The information (message) about the product is packaged by the producer and sent to the audience or market through an advertising media.

It has the effect of creating awareness for the firm’s products and other business activities in addition to persuading, reminding and convincing the target market to patronize a particular product more than the other promotional tools but works with them for synergistic result.

It is within the area of promotion that advertising resides. The promotional mix represents a wide range of communication methods that organizations use to promote their product and services. These include sales promotion, public relations events and advertising. Of the items included in the promotion mix, advertising is the most effective at reaching a wide range of consumers.

1.2  STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

       Most small businesses in Uyo Metropolis have not been able to break even and have remained stagnated, and some have even close shop because of lack of adequate information on the existence of the business or on the products they offer. Lack of effective advertising therefore has considerable negative effects on the development of small businesses in Uyo metropolis.

Consequently, small businesses continue to dwindle, sometimes where advertising is available small businesses lack the knowledge of the appropriate media to use in reaching their target market. The ultimate effect of this is the lack of growth in the small business sector regarded as a motivator for the development of the larger businesses and this has slowed the pace of industrialization in the State.

1.3  OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

1. To conduct research into the efficiency and effectiveness of advertising in small businesses in Uyo Metropolis.
2. To identify the various advertising media open to small businesses in Uyo metropolis to reach their target markets.
3. To identify problems faced by small businesses in advertising their products.
4. To recommend strategies for solving the problems encountered by small businesses in using advertising to promote their businesses.
5. To find out if small business do use advertising at all or to what extent.
6. To suggest some standards for selecting advertising media

1.4  SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

1. It is expected that the work will help small businesses in Uyo to fully appreciate the role advertising plays in business promotion, growth and profitability.
2. It is hoped that the work will be a useful guide to small businesses in Uyo in using advertising to achieve their marketing goals.
3. It is hoped that with the awareness so created, small businesses will expand and grow tremendously for the industrial development of Akwa Ibom State.

1.5  SCOPE OF THE STUDY

For the purpose of this study, fifteen (15) small scale businesses operating in Uyo Metropolis were selected as samples for study which were:

–      Usmer water

–      Ntaps Supermarket

–      Assure Electronics

–      Royalline Technologies

–      Excellence Wrap

–      Springwood technologies

–      Precious Jewel

–      Shade Cover

–      Crunchies

–      Helcmah Boutique

–      Smart Kids

–      God’s Favour Business Enterprise

–      Wrap Place

–      Ettewood Furniture

–      Berward Ventures

They were selected based on their relative smallness in operational scope.

1.6  LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The researcher was limited to some mode of advertising media like print media, broadcast media and specialty media and also by paucity of finance and time to conduct a wider research.

1.7  RESEARCH QUESTION / HYPOTHESIS

Ho: Small business have adequate information of advertising.

H_I:   Small business does not have adequate information         of advertising.

Ho: Effective advertising leads to growth in small        business.

H_I:   Effective Advertising does not lead to growth in small         business.

Ho: Small business knows the appropriate advertising         media to reach the target market.

H_I:   Small business does not know the appropriate advertising media to reach the target market.

1.7  DEFINITION OF TERMS

1. Advertising: The non personal presentation and promotion of ideas goods and services by an identified sponsor.
2. Business: An activity that satisfies economic needs by planning, organizing and controlling resources to produce and market goods and services.
3. Communication: The process of exchanging information ideas, and feelings.
4. Media: The agencies, means, or instruments used to convey messages.
5. Promotion: Any form of communication that business or organisation uses to inform, persuade or remind people about its products and improve its public image.
6. Marketing Mix: A combination of decisions about product, place, price and promotion used to reach a target market and make a profit.