As I move into this stage of my marketing research, it would be valuable to understand how advertisements are used in the environment and how they capture the eyes of the consumer. Advertisements can come in all shapes and sizes, from large scale billboards all the way down to wall posters found on the high-street. The market for retail advertisements is very saturated so it is key that fashion brands think outside of the box and capture the consumers attention. Part of this is done through the location of the specific advertisement, some can be positioned in locations where high amounts of traffic are likely to be passing by. This type of advertising helps to spread the message of a brand or the particular product that is trying to be promoted which then ultimately helps drive sales.
A billboard is a large outdoor advertising structure, typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertisements to passing pedestrians and drivers. Typically showing witty slogans and distinctive visuals, billboards are highly visible in the top designated market areas. Billboard advertising makes an instant impression, getting your message across in seconds. Billboards enable advertisers, large or small to reach huge audiences every day. Essentially this type of advertising is more commonly referred to as outdoor advertising. Outdoor advertising is a very broad term that describes any type of advertising that reaches consumers when they are away from home. This could include: billboards, bus shelter posters, fly posters and digital posters which are very popular in places such as Times Square New York.
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| Times Square Advertising (Source: ABC News, 2014) |
Due to the introduction of the internet, many retailers have included internet marketing into their campaigns. The Internet is used by online and offline companies to promote products or services. Banner advertisements, pop up ads, text ads and paid search placements are common forms. Banner, pop up and text ads are ways to present an image or message on a publisher's website or on a number of websites through a third-party platform like Google's Adwords program. Paid search placements, also known as cost-per-click advertising, is where you bid a certain amount to present your link and text message to users of search engines like Google and Yahoo. Many sites use cookies which build up a profile on the user, advertisements will then follow you around the internet based on what you have previously been looking at. This type of marketing is very tailored to the consumer and it often forces a sale when they least expect it.
Aside from these modes of advertising there are many other ways to market your business. Guerrilla advertising which is also known as ambient media, has become prominent over the last 20 years. It is a broadly used term for anything unconventional, and usually invites the consumer to participate or interact with the piece in some way. Location is important, as is timing. The driving forces behind guerrilla advertising or marketing are creative ideas and innovation, not a large budget. This style of marketing is extremely effective for small businesses to advertise their product or service, especially if they are competing against bigger companies as it is inexpensive and focuses more on reach rather than frequency, guerrilla advertising tires to alter our environment.
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| Carling Guerilla Advertising (Source: Campaign Live, 2015) |
I now understand the primary methods of marketing used in the fashion industry. It is clear to see how certain marketing techniques can capture the consumer and ultimately entice them to buy into the specific brand. Personally, I have noticed that digital billboard is being introduced more, this is due to the convenience of displaying more than one advertisement on the same billboard and therefore saving space. Digital billboards also have the opportunity of displaying an animated image. I may want to look into this as I move forward and create my own advertisement. As I move forward I will try to adopt some of these methods in my own work. To do this I must build a plan on what I intend to produce for my marketing submission. If I decide to create billboard advertisements the location of these must be determined in order to reach my intended market or a high number of consumers all in one location.
References
ABC News, (2014), Times Square Advertising, [Photograph] Retrieved from https://abcnews.go.com
Campaign Live, (2015), Carling Guerrilla Advertising, [Photograph] Retrieved from https://www.campaign.co.uk
