Advertising Management

Eleven Important Functions Of Advertising Agency

Functions of Advertising Agency – Central function of ad-agency is planning, preparing and placing advertisement. Planning function includes collecting information about client, its products, its market, its competitor, media and taking various decisions related to ad for client. Preparing function includes writing, designing and producing the ad. Placing function includes contacting media for time and space and delivering the ad in appropriate form to media. Detailed review of functions of ad-agency is as follows:

Functions Of Advertising Agency

(1) Contacting Clients – Ad-agency’s first and foremost task is to contact and select clients who are desirous of advertising their products or services. The preference in choosing the clients is given to those firms which are financially sound, make good quality products and services and have efficient management. If financial position of client is sound, agency will not find it difficult to recover the bills. Agency should not choose a client who is the main competitor of its existing client, because the agency-client relationship is very intimate and confidential, e.g. an agency having Pepsi as its client will not take the advertising work of Coke as both are competing brands.

(2) Advertising Planning – Another function of advertising agency is planning the ad for its clients. For this, the agency has to perform following tasks:

  • Study of client’s product to identify its inherent qualities in relation to competitor’s product.
  • Analysis of present and potential market for the product.
  • Study of trade and economic conditions in the market.
  • Information about season when maximum sale can be made.
  • Information about level of competition, competitor’s spending on advertising
  • Knowledge of channels of distribution, their sales, their methods of operation, etc.
  • Formulation of advertising plan.

(3) Creative Function – According to David Ogilvy, “Creative function is the most important of all advertising functions. The copywriters, artists, art-directors and graphic-specialists are referred to as creative people.” These creative specialists conceive new ideas with regard to ad-message, ad-appeal, layout of ad-copy, etc. This creative function helps in designing original and unique ad-copy.

(4) Developing and Preparing Advertising Copy – Ad-agency is a specialized organisation and it involves specialists such as: writers, artists, market-analysts, website-designers animators, graphic-designers, researchers, film directors, etc. These persons help to prepare effective ad-copy for its clients. Ad-copy is generally of following types.

  • Ad-Copy for Print Media: It requires creative ability, technical knowledge, artistic skill, writing skills, photography and technical processes involved in printing. Ad-agency provides specialized services for preparing effective print ad-copy.
  • Ad-Copy for Broadcast Media: Ads for audio-visual media like T.V., need different types of skills for developing an effective ad-copy. For this, ad-agency needs services of film-directors, models, artists, actors, script-writers, musicians. Such ads need effective and impressive voice, attractive faces, etc.
  • Ad-Copy for Internet Media: For developing internet ad-copy, ad-agency requires the services of expert website-designers. Ad agencies have special expertise in developing internet ad-copies.

(5) Approval of Client – After that the ad-copy is prepared, it is shown to client for his approval. In case any changes are suggested by the client, the same may be incorporated to his satisfaction. Then after incorporating the necessary changes, final approval is taken from client.

(6) Media Selection and Media Scheduling – Another important function of ad-agency is selecting media for its clients. Various factors like media cost, media circulation, nature of product, nature of customers, ad-budget of client, needs of clients etc. are considered by ad-agency for selecting media for its clients. Ad-agency helps its clients in selecting media, allocating the client’s ad-budget and in planning media scheduling. In media-scheduling date and time of issuing ad in the media is decided. . In selecting appropriate media for its ,

(7) Ad-Execution – After obtaining approval from client, the advertising copy is handed over to media for its execution. The employees of ad-agency check, whether media has actually given the ad at the decided time, place, date or not.

(8) Evaluation Function – The next major function of ad-agency is to evaluate the effectiveness of advertisement for the benefits of its clients. In case any deficiency is felt, necessary changes should be made for future advertising campaign with the approval of client.

(9) Marketing Function – The advertising agency also performs marketing functions, such as selecting target-customers, designing products, packages, developing channels of distribution, determining prices; new product development, conducting market research, sales promotion, publicity, improving public relations, etc. It also gives information about the changes in market-environment like changes in fashion, market-conditions, level of competition, etc. Accordingly, the client makes goods considering the prevailing conditions in the market.

(10) Research Function – It includes continuous research regarding different media, their circulation, media-cost, entry of new newspapers/magazine, collecting information about rating of various TV programmes, serials so that time of ad can be decided, i.e. giving the ad during popular TV programmes. Ad-agency also performs research function for its client’s product and market.

(11) Accounting Function – Accounting function of agency includes checking bills received from media, cash discount allowed by media, billing to client, collection of dues from clients, making payment to media, payment to outside professionals like-writers, film-producers, models, making payment for purchasing advertising material, salary to staff, etc. Thus practically ad-agency performs all the advertising functions for advertiser.

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Manish

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