This marketing approach to products has been beneficial for the consumer because it determines what a company will sell based on what the consumer wants, or the market place is ready to discover and buy, rather than on hope and guesswork. When you look around at all the products which flop, or those which make you wonder who would buy them, and at the companies which fail to keep up with consumer desires and demands, you may well pause to reflect on the success of the marketing approach. Like most things in life, it is neither a sure thing nor an exact 'science', but modern commerce has thrived on marketing theory and it is now part and parcel of everyday commercial judgments.
The implications of this approach for advertising personnel are considerable, and the best way to grasp what this means is to examine who works in advertising, and so begin to understand the hierarchy or power structures.
People in advertising: Most people connected with the business have titles such as marketing manager, copywriter, or research assistant. These identify and, to a large degree, define what work the person does.
The advertiser: Any person, organization, or government department who buys and pays for an advertisement is 'the advertiser'. In organizations and government departments who regularly advertise, someone will be appointed to be responsible for the advertising. Many companies have their own advertising departments. The marketing expert in the company is likely to be the key person as regards any advertising because his influence and, sometimes, his authority, extend over the sales department, research department, promotion, advertising and public relations. For this reason, a marketing person has great opportunity for advancement. Big manufacturing companies often have marketing departments where products are divided into brands, like Persil, or into product groups such as soap powders and detergents. Those in marketing staff in charge of a brand or product group are called 'brand managers'.
Non-commercial clients, say charities, and large associations, may also have marketing staff for their 'products', which are in the form of services or benefits. In any case, someone somewhere will turn up as your client and he, she or it is the advertiser as far as you are concerned.
The advertising agency: The concept of marketing means that, your advertising agency account personnel should have marketing as well as advertising experience and that the research functions should be represented within the agency. An agency is undoubtedly the forum where you will gain the best all-round experience in your career, and have the biggest chance of rising to the top in the advertising business. Agencies can be one-man bands, small outfits, large public companies which may work internationally, or multinational companies.
The media: Newspapers, magazines and television companies all have advertising departments selling space or time. Their work is ancillary to that of producing a newspaper or running a television station and they are not essentially in advertising itself. However, such jobs may prove useful stepping stones to a job within an advertising agency. Marketing is part of the media too, and much money and time is spent researching and showing how the media's consumers-the readers and viewers-match up to the advertisers' desired audience of consumers for his product.
Specialist companies: Advertising calls upon the expertise of numerous specialist companies, for example public relations consultancies, design consultants, research companies, direct marketing companies, television production companies, photographic and artwork studios, print, type and block making companies. Such specialists, of course, also undertake work direct for other clients. The research company through one of its directors may make a feature film.
The work of specialist companies for advertising agencies is dealt with later. Although they work for advertising agencies they are not strictly advertising people but specialists in their particular field, such as photographers, illustrators, printers or film technicians. Once again, the marketing mentality permeates these specialist services for they need to understand marketing principles and concepts even if they do not directly involve themselves in the data and planning. Marketing terms such as 'segment' and 'audience' are all par for the course and everyday jargon if you work in advertising or in the specialist companies serving the industry.
No two agencies work in quite the same way. Smaller but still competitive advertisers tend to prefer the creative 'hot-shops', whilst major spenders usually prefer well established slightly more 'solid' agencies.
