the Power of Advertising
Posted: Sun May 11, 2014 5:39 am
Hi. Could you check this article and let me know the four sub band-scores you'll give me?
Thanks.
QUESTION:
Today, the high sales of popular consumer goods reflect the power of advertising and not the real needs of the society in which they are sold.
To what extent do you agree or disagree?
ANSWER:
I do not think the success of a product reflects only the power of advertising, even though advertising contributes remarkably to the success.
Those who believe in the power of advertising are not entirely wrong. When I was young, many of my classmates often bought snack food their favourite singers or film stars endorsed. Obviously, celebrity endorsement has a strong power in persuading customers, especially children, to buy a product. Another good example is Harry Potter. The success of all the related products, including the novel and the film series, the video games, and the dolls, are largely attributed to the impressive advertisements.
However, the quality of the product itself is also a vital factor. In addition to the impressive advertisements for Harry Potter, all the products are widely recognised as great products, especially the novel series. If the products themselves did not really deserve the popularity, they could hardly enjoy good sale volumes for long. I believe this applies to all products: quality is the number one factor to ensure long-term popularity.
In addition, the advent of the Internet gives customers many more objective ways to evaluate the quality of a product. This makes it harder for a company to fool customers by means of advertising. Customers can now easily collect their friends’ opinions on a specific product and its rivals by using social network websites such as Facebook. Insight into a product’s features, advantages and disadvantages from other buyers can be found on many forums, blogs and online stores. All these provide customers with plenty of ways to learn about a product objectively.
For all the above reasons, I believe though advertising is often crucial in a product’s success, it is not always the case. Neither is it the only dominant factor.
Thanks.
QUESTION:
Today, the high sales of popular consumer goods reflect the power of advertising and not the real needs of the society in which they are sold.
To what extent do you agree or disagree?
ANSWER:
I do not think the success of a product reflects only the power of advertising, even though advertising contributes remarkably to the success.
Those who believe in the power of advertising are not entirely wrong. When I was young, many of my classmates often bought snack food their favourite singers or film stars endorsed. Obviously, celebrity endorsement has a strong power in persuading customers, especially children, to buy a product. Another good example is Harry Potter. The success of all the related products, including the novel and the film series, the video games, and the dolls, are largely attributed to the impressive advertisements.
However, the quality of the product itself is also a vital factor. In addition to the impressive advertisements for Harry Potter, all the products are widely recognised as great products, especially the novel series. If the products themselves did not really deserve the popularity, they could hardly enjoy good sale volumes for long. I believe this applies to all products: quality is the number one factor to ensure long-term popularity.
In addition, the advent of the Internet gives customers many more objective ways to evaluate the quality of a product. This makes it harder for a company to fool customers by means of advertising. Customers can now easily collect their friends’ opinions on a specific product and its rivals by using social network websites such as Facebook. Insight into a product’s features, advantages and disadvantages from other buyers can be found on many forums, blogs and online stores. All these provide customers with plenty of ways to learn about a product objectively.
For all the above reasons, I believe though advertising is often crucial in a product’s success, it is not always the case. Neither is it the only dominant factor.