In most areas of business, marketing is the key to the company’s growth and success. Advertisement is one of the essential marketing tools explicitly used to affect the customer’s decision-making scheme, thus causing him or her to choose one product over its competitors. Marketing research, on the other hand, aims to determine effective advertisement and marketing strategies by studying the correlation between two variables, where an independent variable represents typically a factor that is not influenced by the other factors considered, whereas the dependent variable changes in accordance with changes made to other variables.
The role of marketing strategies – specifically, the choice of advertisement – on the consumer’s decision-making is thoroughly explained in Kumar and Raju’s article “The Role of Advertising in Consumer Decision Making.” The study’s authors explore the relationship between two variables: customers’ emotional response and their buying behavior. After conducting the study of over 100 customers, the researchers found that advertisements indeed have a strong influence on the customer’s decision to buy a particular product and can persuade the customer to buy a product even when he or she does not need it (Kumar and Raju 45).
Another article by two researchers from India focuses specifically on the psychological side of marketing. The article presents an empirical study that aimed to measure the impact of the advertisement. For instance, the researchers found that the customer’s attitude towards the ad itself can influence its effectiveness and make customers trust the brand: “Research studies indicated that the consumers’ attitudes toward advertisements and their attitudes toward brands might shape their purchase intentions” (Rao and Rao 15). One of the most important findings of the study is that the effect of advertisement depends on the person’s demographic background, such as age, gender, and occupation (Rao and Rao 18), which demonstrates the psychological nature of marketing.
Finally, the influence of ads and marketing on the customer’s purchase decisions is studied by Gîrboveanu et al. The authors introduce the idea that the purchase process always involves decision-making process under risk: while “A purchase decision can be considered as an optimization process through which buyers seek the product or the brand that will yield the greatest satisfaction” (Gîrboveanu et al. 896), there is always a risk that the customer will not be satisfied with the purchase. Therefore, effective ads persuade the customer to buy the product by decreasing the feeling of risk and promoting the product as reliable and trustworthy. The study also found that buyers tend to pay more attention to different brand advertisements when they are seeking information on these specific brands (Gîrboveanu et al. 897).
A useful source of information on marketing research is Nargundkar’s book Marketing Research – Text & Cases. The author explains the concept of dependent and independent variables in marketing research giving specific examples. For instance, Nargundkar states that sales volume is a common dependent variable in marketing, whereas one of the most frequently used independent variables is the “quantum of advertising” (188). Other examples of dependent variables in marketing, according to Nargundkar, are the quantity of product bought and consumer satisfaction. In contrast, independent variables may include family size, product availability, and personal income (188).
Overall, market research is a crucial part of creating a marketing strategy. To comprise an effective advert, for example, marketing experts must study the target population and consumers’ interests. A good marketing strategy allows one to attract more customers and increase revenues by influencing the consumer’s thought processes to persuade them to buy the products or services offered by the company.
Works Cited
Gîrboveanu, Sorina-Raula, et al. “The Role of Advertising in the Purchase Decision Process.” Annals of the University of Oradea: Economic Science Series, vol. 17, no. 4, 2008, pp. 895-900.
Kumar, D. Prasanna, and K. Venkateswara Raju. “The Role of Advertising in Consumer Decision Making.” IOSR Journal of Business and Management, vol. 14, no. 4, 2013, pp. 37-45.
Nargundkar, Rajendra. Marketing Research – Text & Cases. 2nd ed., McGraw-Hill Education, 2003.
Rao, K. Rama Mohan, and U.V. Adinarayana Rao. “Impact of Advertisements on Consumer Decision Making Process.” PRIMA: Practices and Research in Marketing, vol. 3, no. 1, 2012, pp. 15-27.