International Journal of Advance Study and Research Work (2581-5997)/ Volume 4/Issue 3/March 2021

Changing Trends of Advertisements

Dr. Pranita Laxmanrao Chitnis
Department of Commerce and Management Science, Deogiri College, Aurangabad
Email Id: chitnispranita4@gmail.com

DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.4650577

Abstract

Consumerism is an umbrella term that relates to consumer protection, consumer education, and consumer awareness, and the
consumer movement. The consumer is the backbone of the economy. Advertising is a major promotion tool which works by
providing message or information about products. Advertising Strategies are paradoxically changing. Ethics are being sacrificed
for profit maximization. There is always a different ideology behind every advertisement. This paper focused to explore the ethical
part of advertising. What are the several ethics should follow and how advertisements politically inside these ethics and change the
strategies time being focused on profit maximization. This paper focused on the impact of misleading advertisement on consumer
purchases in which specifically a study of women’s image and advertisement, how an advertisement is over-emphasis physical
beauty and sexuality of women, how advertisement attracting women through discounts and gifts. It also analyzed how through
advertisement children’s mindset can be changed and tends to consume more. In the advertisement how false and unrealistic facts
can be used, how advertisements motivate to buy unnecessary things and manipulate children to buy high priced goods, due to
misleading advertisement children tends to consume the unhealthy product. It creates a false image of the content and results of
the products.

Keywords: Consumerism, Consumer awareness, strategies, misleading.

Introduction
The growth of the economy has always been in correlation with the growth of purchasing power of the consumer. Consumer plays a
key role in the economic growth of the nation, business world must give due respect to their customer by acknowledging their rights
not merely because they buy, but because they made the sale the sellable.
Consumerism is the concept that the marketplace itself is responsible for ensuring social justice through fair economic practices,
policies, and laws that compel manufacturers to make products safe. Consumerism is defined by Richard H. Buskirk and James as
“organized efforts of consumers seeking redress, restitution, and remedy for dissatisfaction they have accumulated in the acquisition
of their standard of living”. Philip Kotler states that “Consumerism is not limited to organized efforts only but, is a social movement
seeking to augment the rights and powers of buyers in relation to sellers.”
One of the important tools used in consumerism is an advertisement, which is one form of commercial mass communication designed
to promote the sale of products or services. It is an impersonal means of communication, to groups paid for by an identified sponsor.
It focuses upon groups of persons, rather than upon individuals. Some analysts have argued that advertising plays an important role in
inspiring the growth of gross national products.

Necessity of the research:

Advertising is a major promotion tool which works by providing message or information about products. Advertisings are regulated
by many legal regulations. Indian legal regime, the prominent prohibitory legal provisions to regulate advertising that is consumer
protection Act 1986, Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), Advertising Association of India (AAAI), Press Council of India
(PCI), Prasar Bharti, etc. are having legal control in the misleading advertisement. Even though by using changing strategies
advertisements are misleading to the consumer and tend to consume the products to them. The following points highlight the necessity
of the research:-
 Advertising Strategies are paradoxically changing.
 Ethics are being sacrificed for profit maximization.
 There is always a different ideology behind every advertisement.

Review of literature
Nusier T. Mohammed(2018), a state in his article, “Impact of misleading/false advertisement to consumer behavior”, focused on
the effects of misleading advertising on consumers’ decisions. Low marketing strategies are aimed at generating a high number of
sales and revenues. This study explored the importance of enhancing marketing activities through truthful facts, to-ensure that the
functions of the organization are believable and thus helpful to customers to make the right decisions. The study emphasizes the
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 International Journal of Advance Study and Research Work (2581-5997)/ Volume 4/Issue 3/March 2021

importance of buyers being aware of key information about a product or services through careful search during the buyer decision
process.
Prasad R.R. (2009), in the book Advertising the social aid challenge focused on detailed treatment about diverse aspects of
advertising comprising advertising and society in India, techniques of advertisement, principles of advertisement, its promotion, and
its impact on society.
Krishnamurthi K.(2007), in the book Advertising Management, has led us into a series of psychological appeals that advertising
uses to motivate people to buy products. These are parameters of national and international advertising, Self-preservation, Self-
esteem, Sex and greed, Curiosity and Personal enjoyment, Constructiveness and Destructiveness, and limitation and Altruism.
Chauhan R.K. (1999), in the book Advertising Management, explained that advertising is influencing the mind of buyers and users
to use a particular brand. The more a brand is advertised, the more popular and familiar it is perceived to be. Popularity is like a
magnet. Advertising can enhance its power to attract. This book has presented a fuller understanding of the subtleties and
complexities of advertising as revealed through the systematic, continuous tracking of advertising campaigns as well as by scientific
developments in psychological research into memory and behavior.
Sinha S(2009), the book Advertising Marketing and Sales Management reveals the changing face of our industry and shows the
importance of first principles combined with practical advice. Advertising, Marketing, and Sales Management is essential reading for
any practitioner. It shows how the field sales force serves as a crucial link in organizing and implementing marketing efforts,
examines issues that can impede effective integration of the three groups, and provides specific examples of how different companies
address these issues as they move towards interdependence.

Hypothesis
H0:There is no relationship between the creation of images through misleading ads and consumer purchases.
H1: There is a relationship between the creation of images through misleading ads and consumer purchases.

Objectives
This paper focused to explore the ethical part of advertising. Which general ethics should be followed by advertisements and how
advertisements politically inside these ethics and change the strategies time being focused on profit maximization. This paper aims
following objectives:
 To study certain advertisements and their structure for unfair politics.
 To assess the impact of the advertisements on consumers' purchases.
 To evaluate the absence of ethics in commodity promotion.
 To know growing consumerism.

Research Methodology
This is an empirical Study it includes qualitative and quantitative data. A primary and secondary data source is used for this study.
For a collection of primary data, a structured questionnaire was framed and published sources are used for secondary data collection.
The convenience Sampling method is used with the due care of respondents from all strata. The Sample Size is 200 samples from a
total of 235023 households of Aurangabad city.
Usage of Statistical tools: Chi-square Test, Weighted Average Mean, Percentages are used for analysis and interpretation of data.
i. Ethics and Politics in Advertisements :
Advertising puts across messages. Presentation of messages may be against the accepted values of society. Several advertisers
discarded the moral and ethical values of society. Advertisements must protect these values and motivate people with a realistic
approach.
Table No. 1: Ethics and Politics in advertisements
Ethics Politics
Honesty Creating stereotype images
Fairness in competition Subliminal messaging
No Promotion of hazardous things Using loopholes

Creating Social Consciousness Exploiting Social Paradigms

Creating Environmental Consciousness Manipulates Children and Women

ii. The buying decision process of consumer:

The objective of advertising is to robustly attract consumers by giving them product-related information, application of the products,
demonstrate the use of the products, and guide them to purchase the products. Advertising conveys the massage, which creates an

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 International Journal of Advance Study and Research Work (2581-5997)/ Volume 4/Issue 3/March 2021

image in the mind of the consumer which impacts on buying behavior of the consumer. If it includes certain imagination with facts it
creates a false image or increases that much expectations of the consumer from the products and they tend to purchase it. The
following diagram explains the buying decision process of a consumer:

Buying Behaviour
Images

Repetition

Reality

Thought Process

Decision Making

Fig. 1 Process of buying decision of a consumer

iii. Impact of misleading advertisements and consumer purchases:

For maximization of profit, ethics are being sacrificed by the businesses. There are Paradoxical Changes in the Contents of
Advertisements and always having different ideologies behind every advertisement. When we observe certain cases of
advertisements, it states that there are paradoxical changes in their contents. A case study of Colgate toothpaste, advertisement in
1985 when they entered into the market and had to face their competitors Vico and Bitco at that time they advertise that salt and coal
are dangerous for the health of teeth and now they are advertising salt fights germs for healthy teeth we required to face the
competition of Patanjali. In the same way, some advertisements impact a different factor that degrades the social image of women, it
also impacts children’s mindset and tends them to consume unhealthy products. By using a structured questionnaire primary data is
collected and analyzed on these aspects in this paper.

Women’s Image & Advertisement:

The perception of respondents regarding how advertisements are degraded social Images of women, there is no control of the
government, inactiveness of civil society and NGO’s overemphasis on physical beauty and sexuality of women and how
advertisements attracting women through discounts & gifts were taken through questionnaire and analyzed in the following table
Table No. 2: Table showing perception of sample respondents regarding Women’s image and advertisement

Strongly Agree Uncertain Disagree Strongly Total WM Rank

Agree Disagree
(1) (0.5) (0) (-0.5) (-1)
Degrades social Image of 68 72 24 32 4 200 0.16 IV
women
Lack of Control by the 112 62 4 20 2 200 0.40 III
government
Civil society & NGO’s to be 56 92 4 44 4 200 0.05 V
inactive
Over emphasis on physical 140 46 8 4 2 200 0.58 I
beauty & Sexuality of women
Attracting women through 133 54 2 8 3 200 0.54 II
discounts & free gifts
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 International Journal of Advance Study and Research Work (2581-5997)/ Volume 4/Issue 3/March 2021

Women’s Image & Advertisement: WAM

0.7 0.58
0.6 0.54
0.5 0.4
0.4
0.3 0.16
0.2 WM
0.1 0.05
0
Degrades social Image Lack of Control by the Civil society & NGO’s Over emphasis on Attracting women
of women govt. to be inactive physical beauty & through discounts &
Sexuality of women free gifts
Fig. 2 Graph showing perception of sample respondents regarding Women’s image and advertisement

The above table and graph showed that advertisements overemphasize the physical beauty and sexuality of women which a weighted
mean are 0.58 whereas it also attracts women through discounts and gifts it's weighted mean is 0.54. It also indicates that there is a
need for government to control such types of advertisements. Advertisements are responsible to degrades the social image of women.

Children’s Mindset & Advertisement

Table No. 3: Table showing perception of sample respondents regarding Children’s Mindset & Advertisement:
Strongly Agree Uncertain Disagree Strongly
Particulars Agree Disagree Total WM Rank
(1) (0.5) (0) (-0.5) (-1)
False & unrealistic facts 136 64 0 0 0 200 0.84 IV
Motivates to buy
200 V
unnecessary things 136 56 0 8 0 0.81
Manipulates children
200 I
buy high priced goods 164 32 0 4 0 0.90
Children tends to
consume unhealthy 200 II
product 148 48 0 4 0 0.86
Creating false image
about the content & 200 III
results of the product 148 48 0 0 4 0.85

Children’s Mindset & Advertisement : (WAM)

False & unrealistic facts

0.85 0.84
0.86 0.81 Motivates to buy unnecessary things
0.9
Manipulates children buy high priced
goods
Children tends to consume unhealthy
product

Fig. 3 Graph showing perception of sample respondents regarding Children’s Mindset & Advertisement
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 International Journal of Advance Study and Research Work (2581-5997)/ Volume 4/Issue 3/March 2021

The above table and graph state the impact of advertisements on children’s mindset. Higher perception of sample respondents to that
the advertisements manipulate children to buy high priced goods which indicate higher weighted average mean. Sample respondents
are also strongly agreed for Children tends to consume unhealthy product due to misleading advertisement. It also states that
advertisements creating a false image about the content & results of the product which impacts children’s mindset this contents
weighted average mean is also high i.e. 0.85. The weighted average mean for false & unrealistic facts through advertisements is also
high i.e. 0.84. It also indicates that advertisements motivate to buy unnecessary things.

Hypothesis testing
For testing of hypothesis, Chi-square test is used.

Table no. 4:Table showing Impact of misleading ads on consumer purchases

O E (O-E) (O-E)2 (O-E)2

145 40 105 11025 275.625

22 40 -18 324 8.100

12 40 -28 784 19.600

11 40 -29 841 21.025

10 40 -30 900 22.500

χ2= ∑(O-E)2∕E=346.85

(Source: field survey)

Degree of Freedom = (n-1)
=(5-1)
= 4
The table value of χ2 for four degrees of freedom at a 5% level of significance is 9.488.
The table value of χ2 is less than the calculated value, hence H0 is rejected. That there is no relationship between the creation of
images through misleading ads and consumer purchases. And H1 is accepted that there is a relationship between the creation of
images through misleading ads and consumer purchases.

Findings
A.Women’s Image & Advertisement:
 With a WAM score of 0.63 majorities of respondents ranked I that ads attract women through discounts and free gifts.
 With a WAM score of 0.40 respondents ranked IV to that ads degrades the social image of women.
B. Children’s Mindset & Advertisement :
 With a WAM score of 0.70 majorities of respondents ranked I that ads mislead to buy high priced goods.
 With a WAM score of 0.64 ranked III that ads create false images about the content & results of the product.
C. Harmful to Society and Environment :
 With a WAM score of 0.69 ranked I that look-alike products through ads attract consumers.
 With a WAM score of 0.57 ranked IV that ads attract consumers to purchase goods harmful to the environment.
D. From the total respondents 100% of respondents marked that they never approached consumer court in any misleading case.
E. The table value of χ2 for four degrees of freedom at a 5% level of significance is 9.488, which is less than the calculated value
hence hypothesis is rejected.

Suggestions
 NGOs and Social workers should undertake awareness camps about Government’s Schemes and provisions for consumers.
 There should be awareness of reality amongst children at the school level.
 Promotion of consumer laws through different ways amongst society.
 Addition of consumer protection act in Syllabus of all streams.

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 International Journal of Advance Study and Research Work (2581-5997)/ Volume 4/Issue 3/March 2021

 Awareness of banned & harmful products should be created by government and non-government organizations.
 Setting up public centers for identification of adulteration in food & daily stuff.
 Strengthening legal bindings.

Conclusion
Advertising has a positive contribution to consumers' thought processes and purchasing decisions. Many times social behavior of
consumers influenced by advertisements. Misleading advertisements are having harmful effects on society, children, and women.
Many of the advertisements are directed towards children, women, and the youth. Many times advertisements do not contain any
information about the product's nutritional value but they stress its fruitful or imaginary results. Misleading advertisements make
consumers buy and consume unhealthy & unnecessary products which are harmful to the important assets of the nation i.e. human
beings. It also creates unhealthy trends in the economy of common people. The prime objectives of advertising are mainly long-
range to assure the firm eternal life and a place in the sun. The motive of advertising is to increase demand for the company’s product.
This objective should be accomplished only by ethical advertising. Unethical advertising may cut the very throat of the competitor
who resorts to it and lead to a chain of adverse effects.

References
[1]. Kotler P. (2002). Marketing Management, Prentic Hall of India Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi.
[2]. Krishnamurthi K. (2007). Advertising Management. Global Vision Publishing House. New Delhi.
[3]. Nusier T. (2018). Impact of misleading/false advertisement to consumer behaviour. Int. J. Economics & Business Research Vol. 16
No. 4.
[4]. Prasad R. (2009). Advertising the social aid challenge. Swastik Publishers & Distributors Delhi
[5]. Prasad R.R. (2009). Advertising the Social and Challenge. Swastik Publishers & Distributors, Delhi.
[6]. Sinha S. (2009). Advertising Marketing and Sales Management. Swastik Publications, Delhi
[7]. Sinha S.(2009). Advertising Marketing and Sales Management. Swastik Publications, Delhi.
[8]. Vishal P. (2014). A Review on drug approval process for the US. Europe and India. International Journal of Drug Regulatory
Affairs. 2(1). Pp 1-11.
[9]. WWW.consumer affairs.nic.in dt. 20th Feb. 2020

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