CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
Advertising
as a concept, can be defined as a form of communication through the media about
product, services, ideas, personalities or organizations, paid for by an
identified sponsor writer Alide in Okunna (2002: 99).
Bovee and
Arens (1985) gave a more widely accepted definition of advertising as the
non-personal communication of information, usually paid for any usually
persuasive in nature about products (goods and services) or ideas by an
identified sponsor through various media. It is an exciting, dynamic, and
challenging enterprise. It is often a persuasive communication in that it tries
to persuade the reader, the listener or the viewer to take to the sponsor’s own
point of view and also to take some appropriate action. It is not personal or
face to face communication, rather it is directed to a group of people.
Advertising
is also controlled, identifiable information and persuasion by means of mass
communication media. Defined by Wright and Zeight (l92:10). Gillran Dyer says
that in its simplest sense, the word “advertising” means drawing attention to
something or notifying or informing somebody of something.
According
to the understanding of Advertising practitioners council of Nigeria (APCON)
“advertising is a form of communication through the media about products,
services or ideas, paid for by an identified sponsor”.
The terms
advertising was coined from the Latin word “advertere” which mean literally
means to draw attention. This is when you are getting the evidence mind in a
product, notifying or informing somebody/people of something. There is no doubt
that advertising has brought prosperity to different countries of the world
through different means. It has helped in speeding up the introduction of new
inventions and has most importantly widened markets for mass-produced goods and
services. Consumers of industrial goods and service and all over the world
today enjoy the choice of a wide variety of such goods and services.
Advertising
has also been of immense benefit humanity and has contributed in no small
measure rapid industrialization and expansion processes all over the world. In
fact, advertising has contributed in making the world a better place to live
in.
Tracing
the history of advertising however, it is evident that its practice is as old
as man. Weppner (1979) in Okunna (2002: 85) reveals that advertising seems to
be part of human nature evidenced since ancient times.
On the
other hand, GSM stands for Global System of Mobile Communications. In Nigeria,
GSM means Telecom explosion. The GSM revolution began in August 2001 and
changed the face of Information and Communications Technology in Nigeria.
Since the
GSM launch, mobile telephony has rapidly become the most popular method of
voice communication in Nigeria. Growth has been so rapid that Nigeria has been
rightly described in various fora as ‘one of the fastest growing GSM markets in
the world”.
Indeed
these developments have been truly explosive: according to statistics from the
Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), compared with just about 450,000
working lines from NITEL in 2001, by August 2011, the GSM operators had
recorded over 21 million subscribers. Expectations are that the figure should
rise to 50 million by the end of 2014, due to massive expansion programmes
launched by the operators.
As a
result of this various Handset or mobile phones are now available in the
country with different size, face, colour, facilities and cost.
1.2 STATEMENT
OF THE PROBLEM
In any
competitive marking environment such as ours, a marketing department/ term is
often faced with the problems of how to determine the measure of demand for its
products in a given market segment, how to determine the factors responsible
for the variations in the demand pattern.
Many GSM
service providers are faced with the problem of not only identifying suitable
strategies to bet their competitors but also how to determine the strength of
the contributions of various components of the promotional mix variables
especially advertisement to achieve the purpose of stimulating demand of their
product brand.
This has
equally led to high budgetary allocation by the GSM service providers as they
understand that Nigerians are among the top users of mobile phone based on the
population.
However,
the study is to appraise the impact of television advertising on the popularity
of MTN network among students of Osun State Polytechnic, Iree.
1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE
STUDY
i.
To examine whether
television advertising is an effective tool for marketing of MTN network service.
ii.
To examine if the
percentage of the MTN subscribers increase
when exposed to television advert.
iii.
To study whether
television advertising has impacted on the MTN service provider.
iv.
To examine if MTN
television advertising campaign influence students
of Osun State Polytechnic to subscribe and buy MTN products.
v.
To examine if MTN
television advertising deceives students of Osun State Polytechnic to MTN packages and
services,
1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
i.
Does television serve as
an effective tool for marketing of MTN network service?
ii.
Has television advertising
increased the percentage of the MTN subscribers among students of Osun State
Polytechnic?
iii.
Do students prefer MTN
network to other service providers?
iv.
Has television advertising
enhanced MTN Company in getting information to the subscribers?
v.
Does MTN television
advertising campaign influence students of Osun State Polytechnic to subscribe
and buy MTN products?
vi.
Does television
advertising deceives students of Osun State Polytechnic to MTN packages and
services?
1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
Advertisers: The study will be of
importance to advertisers on the need to improve sales through the use of
advertisement technique.
Media: Mass media outfit will also benefit from the study to know what
the public is expected when advertising a product or service.
GSM Network Providers: It is anticipated that results from this study will help to
evaluate and identify better ways of making GSM network service providers
advertising and business operations more effective.
General Public: At the end of this
research, the public should be able to identify good advertisement from one
that is aim at deceiving them.
1.6 SCOPE OF STUDY
This
study is concern the impact of television advertising on the popularity of MTN
network among students of Osun State Polytechnic, Iree. The scope of the study
has been narrowed down to Osun State Polytechnic, Iree since it is difficult if
not impossible to study all MTN subscribers in Nigeria due to poor funding,
time, relevant materials and other considerable factors.
1.7 LIMITATIONS
The
drawbacks in the course of carrying out this study that could limit the general
applicability of the research, these hindrances includes fund, time and other
human material resources.
Material: At the time of
gathering materials for this study there was relatively little material.
Finance: There is no much
found to travel to and browse online for necessary materials
Time: Available time for
this study is relatively short compare to the task while other academic
activities also coincide to with the period of the project.
1.8
DEFINITION OF THE TERMS
Advertising: This is any paid form
of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods or services, by an
identified sponsor, Adirika, Ebue, Nnolim (1996:107).
Marketing: This can simply be
referred to as the efforts by a company to design and disseminate information
about its terms and the benefits to the target market, using different medium.
Adirika, Ebue, Nnolim (1996:87).
GSM: Global System for
Mobile or mobile phone.
Television: This is a device that transmits information in an audio-visual
manner to a wider audience reside in different geographical location at the
same time.
GSM Network Providers: These are the providers of GSM service network.
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