We're surrounded by advertising and merchandising. Everything seems to scream for our attention and entices us to buy. Signs, commercials, banners and displays are all in place to create a response and ultimately a sale. Advertising and merchandising are not the same, but work together to sell products and services.
History of Advertising
Advertising is defined as a public promotion of a product or service. In some form or another, it's been part of the human culture throughout the ages. As long as humans have traded products and services, there's been some form of advertising, and it's changed with available technology through the centuries. Gutenberg's printing press gave rise to mass media, and the prevalence of advertising increased with it.
According to Advertising Age, the first advertisement appeared in 1704. Twenty-five years later, Ben Franklin began publishing his popular Pennsylvania Gazette which featured pages of "new advertisements." The invention of television provided another advertising outlet, and the first TV ad aired in 1941. The digital age offered another new medium for ads in the 1990s, and by 1999, Internet advertising exceeded $2 billion.
Types of Advertising
There are countless types of advertising. Besides newspapers, television and the Internet, radio and magazines garner much, if not all, of their revenue from advertisements. While those media offer additional informational content, billboards are in place solely as advertisements. Painted buses and company vehicles are often referred to as "moving billboards." Direct mail, whether postcards, letters or catalogs, is another type of advertising.
21st-Century Ads
The arrival of the digital age brought with it an entirely new medium for advertising that expands with every passing year. PPC ("pay per click") ads appear on every search engine results page. Pop-up ads have become so prolific that there are programs to block them. YouTube has become another advertising platform, rather than simply a place to post personal videos, as have the social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. As long as there are eyeballs looking at something, advertisements are sure to follow.
Merchandising Definition
Merchandising is the display of actual goods or promotional information that enhances the goods for quick sale. Merchandising is a combination of offering the right product, at the right time, in the right place and at the right price.
Examples
In-store displays are a prime example of merchandising. Special offers and promotional products are positioned near the entrance. Similarly, fruits and vegetables in the produce aisle are neatly arranged to provide the greatest appeal. In-store posters and other signage contribute to merchandising efforts. "Shelf-talkers" are the labels and tags prominently displayed with the product to entice buyers. Websites follow suit, although there is no physical product. Placement of information and "click here" offers are important to generate the desired result.
Effects
Often, merchandising works to generate impulse buying. How often have you walked into a store, seen a display and made an unplanned purchase? That spontaneous and unplanned purchase is the goal of merchandising. And if you've resisted every sign and special order in the aisles, there's usually a last-ditch effort at the check-out register--the point of purchase display. It's usually something inexpensive and very impulsive, but it attracts attention and generates sales.
Relation of Advertising and Merchandising
Advertising and merchandising work in concert with each other. Advertising gets your initial attention and draws you to the store. Merchandising is what seals the deal and creates the actual purchase after you're there.
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