MY PROJECT WORK

Declaration

Candidates’ Declaration

This research project is our original work and has not been submitted for examination to any other program in the School of Business and Management Studies, Tamale Polytechnic, or elsewhere.

Candidate Name: Ibrahim Alhassan Zonaa Matriculation Number: 08131440

Certification

We hereby certify that the preparation and presentation of the project work were supervised in accordance with the guideline on project work laid down by the School of Business and Management Studies, Tamale Polytechnic.

Internal Supervisor’s Name: Mr. David Banaba

Signature………………….. Date………………….

External supervisor’s Name……………………………

Signature………………………………… Date………………..

HOD’s Name: Mr. Anass Sulemana

Signature……………………………….. Date………………..

Abstract

Advertisers are moving away from the traditional media (TV, print, radio etc.) of

advertising to adopting the contemporary online marketing, because of the rapid growth

of technology. The internet is becoming an important one stop point for consumers in

finding most of their needs. Be it communication, entertainment, shopping, information

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search, internet serves as a panacea for all their requirements. Many consumers are online

every day for their personal work, but do they notice the ads, banners displayed on that

webpage and most important their recall value. The current study investigated the

effectiveness of internet advertising on consumer behavior by conducting a case study of

marketing students in Tamale Polytechnic. The study sought to determine the

effectiveness of internet advertising on reach and creation of awareness; to establish the

reliability of internet advertising through recall; and to determine the relationship

between internet advertising and purchase decision. The study used a case study research

design. The target population was the marketing students of the Tamale Polytechnic. The

study used random sampling to select 80 respondents. The primary data was collected

using questionnaires. Content analysis was used to analyses the data. The data was

presented using percentage and frequency. The study found that internet advertising was

effective on reach and creation of awareness due to diverse usage, and established that its

reliability as an advertising media was low compared to TV

Acknowledgements

The completion of this study would have been impossible without the material and moral

support from various people. It is our obligation therefore to extend our gratitude to them.

First of all we are greatly indebted to Mr. David Banaba who was our supervisor for his

effective supervision, dedication, availability and professional advice. We extend our

gratitude to our lecturers who taught us in the HND Marketing program, therefore

enriching our research with knowledge.

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The students in the marketing department, who were our respondents, deserve our

appreciation for their support and willingness for providing the required information

during our study. Our appreciation goes to Daryl, a friend in Canada, who suggested this

project topic for us. Special thanks to Eriksen and Hemmingsen in Denmark who assisted

us with pieces of information. Our appreciation finally goes to our classmates, with

whom we weathered through the storm, giving each other encouragement and for their

positive criticism.

Table of ContentsDeclaration............................................................................................................................i

Certification..........................................................................................................................i

Abstract................................................................................................................................ii

Acknowledgements............................................................................................................iii

List of Tables.....................................................................................................................vii

List of Figures..................................................................................................................viii

CHAPTER ONE..................................................................................................................1

BACKGROUND OF STUDY.............................................................................................1

Introduction..........................................................................................................................1

iii

Problem Statement...............................................................................................................3

Objectives............................................................................................................................4

Research Questions..............................................................................................................4

Scope of the study................................................................................................................5

Significance of the study.....................................................................................................5

Limitations...........................................................................................................................6

Organization of Chapters.....................................................................................................7

CHAPTER TWO.................................................................................................................8

LITERATURE REVIEW....................................................................................................8

Introduction..........................................................................................................................8

Definition of Marketing.......................................................................................................8

The Internet..........................................................................................................................9

Traditional Marketing (TM)..............................................................................................10

The four Ps.........................................................................................................................11

Figure 1: The 4P – The Marketing Mix, 2016...................................................................11

Product...............................................................................................................................12

Price...................................................................................................................................13

Place...................................................................................................................................14

Promotion..........................................................................................................................16

How is Marketing Conducted Online?..............................................................................16

Banner ads.........................................................................................................................16

Pop-ups..............................................................................................................................18

Search Advertising.............................................................................................................20

Email/Newsletters..............................................................................................................21

The herd-behavior..............................................................................................................21

Effectiveness of Internet Advertising................................................................................22

Internet Advertising and Consumer Behavior...................................................................23

General Importance of Online Marketing to an Economy................................................26

CHAPETR THREE...........................................................................................................27

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY......................................................................................27

Introduction........................................................................................................................27

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Research Design................................................................................................................27

Population of the Study.....................................................................................................28

Sample Size Determination...............................................................................................28

Sampling Techniques.........................................................................................................28

Data Collection Instrument................................................................................................29

Analytical Procedures........................................................................................................29

Ethical Considerations.......................................................................................................30

CHAPTER FOUR.............................................................................................................32

DATA ANALYSIS, RESULTS AND DISCUSSION......................................................32

Introduction........................................................................................................................32

The Background Information:...........................................................................................32

Effectiveness of Online Marketing/Internet Advertising on Reach and Creation of Awareness:.........................................................................................................................34

Prefer platform of advertisements: (Table 5).....................................................................36

Watching TV commercials during commercial break (Table 6).......................................37

Reliability of Internet Advertising through Recall............................................................39

CHAPTER FIVE...............................................................................................................44

SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENTATIONS........................................44

Introduction........................................................................................................................44

Conclusion.........................................................................................................................45

Recommendations..............................................................................................................46

References..........................................................................................................................47

APPENDICES...................................................................................................................49

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List of TablesTable 1 Distribution of respondents by year of study:

Table 2 Distribution of the respondents by age brackets:

Table 3 Gender distributions of the respondents:

Table 4 Attitudes towards advertisements:

Table 7 Changes channel during commercial breaks:

Table 8 checking an online advert:

Table 9 Ad recalls:

Table 10 Mode of advertising influencing intention to buy a product/service:

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List of Figures

Figure 1: The 4P – The Marketing Mix, 2016.

Figure 2. Internet usages:

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CHAPTER ONE

Introduction

This chapter discusses the background, problem statements, objectives, research

questions, scope, significance, limitations and organization of chapters.

Background of the Study

Before the internet there were many different ways through which corporate

organizations could advertise their goods and services in different media such as radio,

TV, newspapers, magazines as well as via telemarketing or pamphlets. Usually the goal

was to get an organization’s name, product/service name, a statement etc. communicated

to as many people as possible for the smallest price possible. When the internet arose, a

number of search options became available. Organizations had the option to advertise

themselves on a large scale. Due to advertising perception at the time, many businesses

were assumed to have great value, and thus traded on the stock exchange at extraordinary

high rates. This collapsed in 2001 at what is commonly known as the dot-com bubble.

After the dot-com collapsed, the internet was almost disregarded because of many failing

website-based businesses that had expectations to the market and assumptions about

consumers.

However, both consumers and organizations continued exploring online options. Soon

more substantial business models emerged: search advertising, and e-commerce were the

new possibilities. Enhancement in targeting advertising, and understanding how websites

maintain visitors, became relevant. Researching consumer’s behavior and buying pattern

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online began to interest scholars. Due to the technologies available today, as well as

broadband implementations in most homes, advertisers are able to make massive leaps

and create global campaigns (become globalized in just a few minutes). Leaps that will

be more obvious as a new generation of professionals take control. The internet is no

longer a medium of “new economy”, and “E-business” as a term has rather been rendered

obsolete. The internet is used by industries, mostly in the western world as a branding

and marketing tool, as an internet communication tool, and as the start of most business

transactions. Today organizations use the internet as one of the most powerful tools in a

number of ways. The internet has unlocked large number of search options and new ways

of highlighting the important aspects of any item. Thus marketing has been redefined via

the internet, and given even small businesses a chance to promote and brand their

products/services on a larger scale. The internet has therefore experience enormous

growth in online advertising, since its inception in the early1990. It is still however

executed in the usual one-way communication, as it has always been done.

But are all organizations aware of the possibilities, and do they use them?

We live in a world of connectivity; the number of mobiles phones subscription

outnumbers the number of inhabitants. In our part of the world, it is common to see

people own and using several phones. The number of text messages increases year-by-

year, email and instant Messenger programs set records each year. All of which points

out that people are in need of being contact with others. Are organizations aware of the

consumer’s need to be connected and be part of a dialogue? Are organizations adopting

the interaction approach to their advertising concepts? Getting the user to feel like part of

the organizations will create not only happy customers but ambassadors that will promote

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an organization and its offer even further. Most people do not leave their home without

their mobile phone, they are scared to miss anything, and want people to be able to reach

them for an opinion. Customers are jumping on the chance to be heard in large audiences.

Can this interaction approach be used in advertising to create success?

Problem Statement

It is true that people have started realizing that internet can serve as a one stop point for

all their needs. Be it communication, entertainment, shopping, information search etc.

Internet serves as a panacea for all their requirements. This has led 70% of the ever users

to glue themselves to the internet and access it on a regular basis. This is an opportunity

for advertisers to exploit this revolution. But, is it the end of traditional

marketing/advertising? Is internet advertising effective and efficient compared to the

traditional form?? Does it fulfill the basic objectives of advertising (create awareness, to

generate sales, build positive image, etc…)???

The problem is that, volumes of consumers are online every day for their personal work,

but do they notice the ads, banners etc. displayed on that webpage, most important what

is their recall/remembrance value. What about the reach of online marketing/advertising,

is it effective across over all target groups? We have trusted traditional advertising all

these years and it is a proven medium that fulfills all the objectives of advertising, can

one have the same trust for online advertising…

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Objectives

The general objective of the study was to assess the impact of internet on the sale of

goods or services offered by organizations.

The specific objectives of the study were to:

Determine the effectiveness of internet advertising/online marketing by

service organizations.

Establish the reliability of internet advertising through recall by service

organization.

Determine the relationship between internet advertising and purchase decision

by service organization.

Research Questions

What alternative advertising options does the internet provide to the Tamale

Polytechnic?

To what extent does the organization aware of such alternative advertising

options and to what extent does it take advantage of them?

What strategies should the organization adopt to take advantage of these

options?

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Scope of the study

This project is overall divided into four main parts. The introduction, problem statement

and objectives are our pre-understanding and questions towards internet marketing, and

how we intend to analyze them. We have found a secondary data that we will be feeding

into.

Significance of the study

The study may benefit marketers, businesses, government and academicians. This study

may be able to inform marketers on the consumer preference of the advertising media and

whether using internet marketing would be effective in reaching and increasing

awareness of the target audience. Before adapting marketing practices to the internet, it

is imperative to understand the characteristics of the online customers towards online

advertising as would be revealed by this study. The internet has grown in popularity in

many parts of the world, as an advertising medium because, among other things, it allows

24-hour interactivity between the advertiser and the customer. It is important for local

businesses to look into internet advertising as more consumers turn to the internet for

their purchasing. A small business that can offer online purchasing may be able to tap

into this customer base.

The government from this study would understand the value of internet marketing and its

influence on consumer decisions which ultimately impacts electronic commerce/trade

and therefore would effectively regulate how internet marketing is delivered by acting

rationally on laws that would restrict data usage, create an ambient environment and

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availing resources to internet providing organizations and at the same time safeguarding

the interest of consumers.

For scholars and academic researchers, the current study forms a basis upon which future

research on internet marketing may be established. The findings may be resourceful in

providing viable information to academicians, researchers and consumers on various

concepts related to internet marketing.

Limitations

Throughout this paper online and offline will refer to whether or not the subject is

available to the public via the internet. We will not consider in what “language” (HTML

or other) the information is available, nor will it be considered, what device the

information is brought from.

The internet is not only available on computers. Cellular phones, mechanical calendars,

portable music players etc. are integrating faster and faster.

“In the near future, networked computers will be everywhere. Low-cost microprocessors

and network connections will be embedded in all consumer durable devices, such as the

washing machine, the refrigerator, the hot water tank, the oven, and many others. Every

one of these devices will be connected to the internet, through either the electrical wiring

system or through a community wireless network” (Watson et al, 2002). According to

Eriksen and Hemmingsen’s work, 2008. Online communication today is not only

confined to the computer, and so marketing can be provided to the end-user in more ways

than via the computer. This paper will not distinguish between different ways of

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accessing the internet. A website can be designed to appear the best on a smaller screen

(cellular phone), or chat can via the internet go from computer to regular phone, even

with one end typing in text and the other end speaking.

Online marketing will therefore be used in the broadest term possible, only where

necessary will the definition be stated and discussed.

Organization of Chapters

The research work is organized under five chapters:

Chapter One contains the following: background of the study; problem statement;

objectives; research questions; scope; significance; limitations and the organization of the

chapters. Chapter Two covers introductions (marketing); definition of internet; the

Traditional marketing; the marketing mix. Chapter Three covers the following:

introduction; research design; target population; sample size determination; sample

techniques; data collection; analytical procedures; ethical considerations. Chapter Four

contains data presentation and analysis. Chapter Five covers introduction; summary of

findings; conclusion; recommendation

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CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

Introduction

This chapter discusses the meaning of marketing, definition of internet, the traditional

marketing, the marketing mix, how is marketing conducted online? the effectiveness of

internet advertising, internet advertising and consumer behavior, and the general

importance of online marketing/internet advertising.

Definition of Marketing

Kotler (1997) Marketing is a social and managerial process by which individuals and

groups obtain what they need and want through creating and exchanging products and

value with others. Indeed, marketing is fundamental to any business’s growth. The

marketing teams (marketers) are tasked to create consumer awareness of the products or

services through marketing techniques. Unless it pays due attention to its products or

services and consumers' demographics and desires, a business will not usually prosper

over time. Essentially, marketing is the process of creating or directing an organization to

be successful in selling a product or service that people not only desire, but also are

willing to buy. Therefore good marketing must be able to create a "proposition" or set of

benefits for the end-customer that delivers value through products or services.

Throughout this paper we will not differ between marketing, advertising and the term ad.

Our understanding of the words is meant to be the same, and thus they will frequently be

used. One term needs to be explained though; viral marketing, which is a concept that

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have developed with the emergence of the internet. Viral marketing spreads through

social relations, and is considered a modern version of word of mouth marketing.

Whether funny, surprising or with deep impact many small texts, pictures or even videos

are sent from one user to another for various reasons.

Viral marketing is actually based on social relations, where ambassadors of your product

or service will create advertising for you by highlighting their experiences with your

offer. Viral marketing is cheaper than normal advertising option, as you in theory only

have to place your advertisement one place, and let it spread from there. Furthermore

viral marketing is often not even perceived as commercial advertising, as the person

behind the message often is a friend or co-worker. Viral marketing often has the

possibility to reach consumers the organization normally would not reach with any

advertising option. Viral marketing is word of mouth translated into internet marketing,

and can be seen as the herd-behavior in social relations. Many people have a tradition for

passing funny emails on, or having a specific Friday ritual with wishing good weekends

with a joke. Many organizations today are very much aware of viral marketing, and

typically have their advertising material available online, and possible to send to friends.

According to Eriksen and Hemmingsen’s work, 2008.

The Internet

Concerning the internet, there have been many ideas and theories. Due to the fact that the

internet is rather a new phenomenon there is yet room for evolvement. At first marketers,

quite naturally, considered online media as extensions of the space and time media—TV,

radio, and print. Advertisements during most of online advertising's first 10 years filled

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measured spaces on web pages with variously sized banners, rectangles, buttons, or

leader boards. In fact, a good amount of early advertising industry work focused on

defining such spaces, called Interactive Marketing Units, in order to standardize practices

for the sale and delivery of paid advertising.

Through the years, many experts have developed theories concerning online marketing.

Since the famous “Bubble” started collapsing in the late 90, speculations around the

reason why it came to this point, has been many as mentioned earlier.

In order to realize the potential and possibilities of the medium, it is important to

understand what the internet has brought of marketing communication. Internet

marketing has evolved from websites with organizations logos and contact information,

through online product catalogues to a two way communication tool (questionnaires and

specific correspondence), and now, with Customer Relationship Management (CRM) a

variety of new options are opening up.

To understand e-communication and how organizations use the internet as

marketing/advertising tools, it is important to understand how it is adopted by

organizations.

Traditional Marketing (TM)

We will try to give an overview of what traditional marketing is and how it is used over

the internet. The traditional marketing is a common known media concept. There are

several ways of looking at TM, and using it. We have in this project chosen only to focus

on the TM over the internet. In the next subchapter we try to point out some of the

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common know media tools as advertising tools. But before doing that, it would be

necessarily to point out that these tools were as common before the internet, in another

shape, than it is today.

As stated previously marketing is a broad term used to cover many aspects. In everyday

use “marketing” is the promotion of any offer you wish to sell. However marketing is

more than just getting a statement that says “buy this offer” (Kerin et al 1997)

The four Ps

Marketing is company centered, and is according to E. Jerome McCarthy divided into

four general sets of activities, namely product, price, promotion and place. E. Jerome

McCarthy defined his four Ps theory in his Basic Marketing: A Managerial Approach

(McCarthy 1960). Each of the activities can be further divided into different categories.

Figure 1: The 4P – The Marketing Mix, 2016.

This paragraph will go through the 4Ps as defined by E. Jerome McCarthy and Philip

Kotler, then we will explain what enhancements/developments have been discussed, and

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The Marketing Mix

Place

Product Promotion

Price

from here we will define how the theory applies to the discussion at hand. The marketing

mix is probably the most famous marketing term. Its elements are the basic, tactical

components of a marketing plan. Also known as the Four P's, the marketing mix elements

are price, place, product, and promotion. The concept is simple. Think about another

common mix - a cake mix. All cakes contain eggs, milk, flour, and sugar. However, you

can alter the final cake by altering the amounts of mix elements contained in it. So for a

sweeter cake add more sugar! It is the same with the marketing mix. The offer you make

to your customer can be altered by varying the mix elements. So for a high profile brand,

increase the focus on promotion and desensitize the weight given to price. Another way

to think about the marketing mix is to use the image of an artist's palette. The marketing

mixes the prime colors (mix elements) in different quantities to deliver a particular final

color. Every hand painted picture is original in some way, as is every marketing mix.

Some commentators will increase the marketing mix to the Five P's, to include people.

Others will increase the mix to Seven P's, to include physical evidence (such as uniforms,

facilities, or livery) and process, i.e. the whole customer experience e.g. a visit to Disney

World (Borden 1964).

Product

The actual product is what the consumer wants, quality and color, size and features. It

also includes supporting elements such as warranties, guarantees, and support. It is made

up from relations between: Definition; physical product, a service or even people and

organizations can be products. Level; the product level gives the marketer an option of

differencing otherwise similar products. The levels are:

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The core benefit, the fundamental product, buying a car is buying transportation.

The generic product, transport need to be transformed to something physical – for

example wheels.

The expected product, the car needs to be silent and comfortable

The augmented product, special attributes that define your product from the

competitors.

The potential product; what will the product turn into the future. The car may be

ready to install an auto drive function.

Price

Price is one of the easiest ways of differencing from the competition, if you sell your

offer cheaper than anyone else, the conclusion must be that you get the sale. In its core

understanding the price need not be monetary - it can simply be what is exchanged for the

product or services, e.g. time, energy, psychology or attention. Setting the right price is a

difficult task, what to charge depends on your strategy. The simple way is to look at

supply and demand. But in certain cases strategy requires to neglect one. Using Price-

elastic theory (Case & Fair 1999) e.g. if the goal is to conquer a new market in

competition with existing products (market penetration), low price is a good start. Or the

opposite – if your strategy is to have the best product in terms of quality, price is much

less a factor. It can even be a downside to market your product at a low price. An

important notice is that most products become more elastic over time, as consumers have

time to find substitutes. It is also an option to estimate demand at different prices and

then optimize your income, by selecting the place on the curve where your contribution

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margin is highest. Sometimes price changes are necessary, normally consumers tend to

look with suspicion on lowering price, deeming that the product might by lowered in

quality as well. Also, while a price reduction will give a higher turnover, the customer

loyalty is lowered as well. Thirdly your competitors will also lower their price and start

an avalanche. An increase in price will normally cause a reaction from both customers

and competitors. If your product is a luxury, then it will be more vulnerable if the price is

heighted. The competitors can react in different ways to your chance of price, depending

on their own strategy. It is also important to notice that an increase in price can be altered

by changing something about your product, e.g. lowering service, quantum pr. unit,

packing or removing functions, and thereby keep the same price, but maximizing

contribution margin.

Place

Place, refers to where the offer is sold, what place in the store, or what type of store. And

also to which segment the product is sold. It is however also about distribution and the

choice of the number of levels before the product reaches the end-user. The links between

producer and retail outlet are often enhancing the sale. For instance selling groceries are

done in stores, where many different producers are present, inevitable heightening

competition, but also making the product available to a large number of customers. These

links can therefore be a subject of much strategy discussion. Who to pick, what are the

terms of the distribution and what are the alternatives. Placement or distribution: refers to

how the product gets to the customer; for example, point of sale placement or retailing.

Retailing consists of the sale of goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a

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department store or kiosk, or by post, in small or individual lots for direct consumption

by the purchaser.4 Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery.

Placement of a product is essential for the seller to sell and also form the purchasers that

are viewing the sites. Later in the analysis we look at the impact the placement of a goods

or adverting have on the internet; it is not different from stores or kiosks than it is over

the internet. Purchasers may be individuals or businesses. In commerce, a retailer buys

goods or products in large quantities from manufacturers or importers, either directly or

through a wholesaler, and then sells smaller quantities to the end-user. Retail

establishments are often called shops or stores. Retailers are at the end of the supply

chain. Manufacturing marketers see the process of retailing as a necessary part of their

overall distribution strategy. Shops may be on residential streets, shopping streets with

few or no houses, or in a shopping center or mall, but are mostly found in the central

business district. Shopping streets may be for pedestrians only. Sometimes a shopping

street has a partial or full roof to protect customers from precipitation. Online retailing,

also known as ecommerce is the latest form of non-shop retailing, for instant mail order.

Shopping generally refers to the act of buying products. Sometimes this is done to obtain

necessities such as food and clothing; sometimes it is done as a recreational activity.

Recreational shopping often involves window shopping (just looking, not buying) and

browsing and does not always result in a purchase This P is therefore referring to the

channel by which a product or services is sold (e.g. online vs. retail), but can also be

specific to which geographic region or industry, to which segment (young adults,

families, business people), etc. also referring to how the environment in which the

product is sold in can affect sales.

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Promotion

The way the offer is promoted also influences the buyer behavior, not only with regard to

the actual product, but also to the surrounding parts, i.e. the promotion of the warranty or

the organization’s reputation.

Promotion can be divided in five subcategories: Advertising; Sales promotion; Publicity;

Personal selling. Further study may expand these promotional tools.

How is Marketing Conducted Online?

Throughout this paper, the term internet marketing will be used in a broad sense. There

will be sought to make the reader understand the closer definition by using other more

precise terms, where applicable. But in general internet marketing can be trying to

promote both sales and communication, e.g. contact details, product sales, support

possibilities, aftersales options etc. So what are the thoughts on marketing options online?

How does one approach the consumer (visitor), and to what extend do the visitor behave?

Banner ads

One of the most widely used forms of advertising online is that of the banner ad. The ad

is placed on a website, and usually highlights itself with different colors, size and motion.

It can be a punch line, a question or even a video. It has (as almost every other item

online) evolved with the discovery of newer tools and programs. In the beginning the

banner was a non-moving square with a text and/or picture, but today it is often a video

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that starts with a mouse over. Therefore the banner ad can be compared to an outdoor

communication form that developed with the internet.

The return on investment (ROI) for banners are measured in two ways, firstly the brand

awareness (Robinson et al 2007), where the remembrance of your message or brand name

is important. Secondly by a rate of interaction - the click through rate (CTR) – the more

people who click on the banner, the more value the advertiser has been given. It has been

found that while repetition reduces CTR is enhances brand awareness.

Banner ad has been studied since the beginning of the commercialized internet. Many

different angles of discussions and conclusions have been drawn, and there are several

counter perceptions. The form of the banner, the size, placement on the page, color and

sound etc. are all factors to be considered in order to emphasize your message. A study

from Kingston University revealed that bigger is better (Robinson et al 2007); however

the study did not take into account the placement on the website. For instance a banner

placed in the top left corner could be more likely to generate awareness or (as the case for

this study) CTR. Earlier studies have proven to have little effect, Dreze and Hussherr

tested in 2003 standard size (specific pixelsize) banners against two other sizes, and

found that the smaller did actually perform as well as the larger one (Robinson et al

2007).

Studies also show that the message on the banner can have an impact. Mentioning of

price, gift, or free offers actually reduce CTR, while banners with neither price nor

promotional offers have bigger influence on CTR and brand remembrance (Rettie et al

2004).

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A more specific targeting of the banners has proved to be more successful, generating

higher CTR.

“There is considerable evidence that targeting can improve click-through rate (Briggs et

al., 1997; Chandon & Chtourou, 2001; Chandon, Chtourou, & Fortin, 2003; Chatterjee et

al., 2003). Briggs and Hollis distinguish three aspects of targeting: the immediate

relevance of the product to the target audience, the immediate relevance of the message

to the target audience and the relevance of the brand. The internet enables advertisers to

target users by choosing appropriate sites, in addition, advertising delivery can be related

to the search terms that surfers use.” According to Eriksen and Hemmingsen (as cited in

Rettie et al 2004).

This suggests that advertising via banners is more than just having the brand name, or

making a good promotional offer. It is necessary to target the specific consumer via the

correct host website, and it also needs to be with the correct message. This is not different

from that of offline marketing, but the internet has created an option to target simpler

than otherwise. It is possible to track where the visitor is from via the ISP (Internet

Service Provider), what search words were used to visit this website (what website did

the visitor leave to visit the current) and is the visitor a first timer on this site or a

frequent visitor.

Pop-ups

The pop-up is defined by a new page (of your current browser) opens on top of the one

you are currently visiting. There are several variations of the pop-up:

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The pop-under, opening a website under the one currently being visited.

The pop-in; where something is blurred or covered at the visited website in order

to advertise for something.

Pop-ups can be designed to appear when a website is loading, after a period of time is

spend on a website, or upon leaving the site/closing the window. Pop-ups can appear as

small windows covering a portion of the host website, it can therefore be less intrusive,

e.g. when not covering a vital text or similar.

The pop-up has been perceived as very annoying, and has often been compared to that of

advertising breaks on TV. Several pop-up killers3 have been introduced online, and lately

Microsoft has included such a killer in their very popular Internet Explorer program. Pop-

up advertising is discarded by most users. Several other bigger software producers have

included pop-up killer software in their programs, and major advertisers have disregarded

the option of pop-up advertising. Edwards, Li and Lee examined the intrusiveness and

irritation of pop-ups in a study from 2002. They stated several hypotheses based on when

and where pop-ups appeared, and found that more relevant content was perceived less

intrusive, and the perception was also dependent on whether the user is searching

something specific or just browsing without goal.

Although the pop-up is perceived as more of an annoyance than that of the banner ad, the

success rate is often higher:

“Still, some advertisers cling to pop-ups. Despite aggravations, ad execs say that 2% of

them entice Websurfers to click -- four times the rate of traditional banner ads.” (Baker,

2003).Source: Eriksen & Hemmingsen’s work.

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Some organizations even have great success with pop-ups, designing them as

entertainment or small puzzles.

Search Advertising

Google has developed the option of search advertising. According to Danish Newspaper

Jyllandsposten, the idea was actually invented by a small competitor, eventually bought

by Yahoo! a major competitor (JP 3/6-2008). Without bringing to much detail, the

concept is that any given word typed into a search engine, can be bought. This way, the

results shown is at one hand the result of the search concept, but a new list of advertising

is available (typically in a different list than that of the search results. Here the buyer of

the word, get advertising space. The more popular the word is, the more expensive it is to

buy.

Another feature is that you can buy pr. click. One thing is to have your site/product

shown in a search, it also has to be clicked on to be truly effective. Therefore it is

possible to define your budget for a specific word, and thus create even small campaigns

through Google.

Furthermore, Google has introduced a quality score, where the site behind a bought word

is valued. The webpage shown when a bought word is clicked could for instance be a

new site with advertising. Such a site would receive a lower score, and be charged more

for a good placement on the search advertising list. Thus marketing via Google have

enhanced the serious actor’s possibilities.

20

Email/Newsletters

Email is a very simple way of reaching the customers. It has however been misused, and

most users of the internet are very familiar with the concept of Spam. Less serious

companies and advertisers buy email addresses by the hundreds and send out ads.

Many websites that ask for details on the visitor, and thus require an email address, and

often ask to be allowed to send out regular newsletters. These newsletters are a good way

to keep visitors returning to the site.

The herd-behavior

The internet reaches the globe in seconds. Therefore a successful site such as

facebook.com has millions of users. The question is, however, if the site is successful

because it has a product millions of users wants, or if the site is just popular because of

herd-behavior. Dholakia and Soltysinski examined this behavior in “Coveted or

Overlooked” from 2001. The publishing was based on online auctions, but it is relevant

to marketing as well. The results were that a parameter such as price might create herd

behavior, even though other auctions (sites/services) might be similar.

The herd behavior can be compared to viral marketing. If the message is interesting to

large numbers of people, it will be watched by even more people.

An example can be found at youtube.com, where top lists of different videos can be

found. Not only most viewed (which is obvious), but also most recent, - discussed or

active. The herd behavior is here used when browsing videos, and the most viewed will

21

be even more viewed, as people think this must be seen, since so many have been

watching it. According to Eriksen & Hemmingsen’s work, 2008

Effectiveness of Internet Advertising

Various researchers have studied numerous factors that might have an impact on internet

advertising recall. The factors include ad characteristics, internet users’ viewing mode

and duration of viewing, campaign publicity, attitudes toward the web site or ad, and

curiosity and innovative advertising strategy (Danaher and Mullarkey, 2003; Goldsmith

and Lafferty, 2002; Menon and Soman, 2002). Danaher and Mullarkey (2003) examined

the effects of such factors as viewing mode, visit duration, text and page background

complexity, and the style of banner ads on both aided and unaided recall. The authors did

not find any significant impact of the web site context factors on advertising recall. The

key finding was that the duration of page viewing is a strong determinant of the ability to

recall banner ads; however, a minimum level of exposure (around 40 seconds per page) is

required to achieve a reasonable level of advertising recall.

Dreze and Hussherr (2003) also examined the effectiveness of ad characteristics on the

ability to recall ad. Animation content, the shape of the banner ad, and frequency of the

ad (repetition) leads to higher advertising recall but not the size of the banner. In addition,

the authors reported that “a banner’s message influences both aided advertising recall and

brand recognition. This indicates that what an ad says is more important than how it says

it” (p: 21). In contrast, Yoon (2003) found that banner image is more significantly

effective than text to assess consumers’ preferences toward online ads.

22

In terms of consumer responses in the form of liking online ads, researchers such as

Goldsmith and Lafferty (2002) and Metha (2000) have found that a more favorable

attitude towards ads can lead to a higher ability to recall ads. Goldsmith and Lafferty

(2002) found a significant relationship between positive responses to web sites and the

likelihood of recall the brands advertised on the web. The authors reported that “In

general, research suggests that those consumers who have a positive attitude toward an ad

are more able to recall than those with a negative attitude (p: 320). Metha (2000) made a

similar conclusion but the study was based on print advertising performance.

Click-through rate is a widely used measure for assessing the effectiveness of banner

advertising, which is the average number of times a viewer clicks on a pop-up ad and is

then exposed to the target web site (Dreze and Hussherr, 2003; Faber, et al., 2004). As

reported by Cho (2003), “the banner advertisement click-through is believed to be the

most common way to draw consumers into a target site and engage them with a brand or

product. (According to George Otieno Osewe’s work, 2013)

Internet Advertising and Consumer Behavior

The evolution of the internet as a global communication infrastructure (Cae, 2000) has

created a new advertising channel for advertisers and advertising agencies to utilize and

will provide advertisers with the means to more cost effectively target their promotional

messages to consumers. Psychological factors such as thinking, feeling, sensation, and

intuition directly correlate with customers’ online advertising experience. Companies

should aim to strengthen customer interactions with advertisements on the Web, keeping

both context and cognition in mind. Unfortunately, most companies provide a generic

23

experience to all customers rather than relying on customer analysis to deliver a

personalized experience. They’ve failed to innovate and bring the online advertising

experience to a whole new level of interaction and integration that would truly let them

achieve effective communication.

As consumers experience and respond to stimuli around them, emotions arise. Their

reactions manifest themselves as physiological changes they experience as feelings.

Likewise, as people react to stimuli online—for example, to an online advertisement—

they have emotional responses that are directly proportional to their reactions to these

stimuli. On the other hand, when customers repeatedly experience the same stimuli, they

may not cause any emotional response. People become conditioned to ignore the ever-

present ads on Web sites, which is called ad blindness (Wolhandler, 1999).

Advertising and promotion offer a news function to consumers. As Yoo W., Suh K. and

Lee M. (2002) mentioned in their report, personal interactions with other customers and

service providers play a very important role while shopping online. Viewers of ads learn

about new products and services available to them, much like they learn about events in

the news. This information function has a neutral role. It provides facts without approval

or disapproval from consumers. Customer behavior at this stage encompasses expressions

of curiosity. Consumers have a rational response to advertising when they look at the

features of a product or service. This response focuses on a logical listing of all the

functional aspects of the offering. This is an intellectual response, rather than an

emotional one (Lee, 2002).

24

When customers weigh benefits, they become emotionally involved with advertising and

promotion. Consumers identify ways the product or service can make them happier,

improve their lives or give them pleasure. This part of the consumer response is irrational

and can lead to impulse buying and competition to obtain the product. Repeated

advertising messages affect consumer behavior. This repetition serves as a reminder to

the consumer. Behavior that stems from reminders includes suddenly thinking of a

product while shopping and making a decision to buy it, as if it had been on the

consumer’s "to-do" list (Lee 2002).

Consumer behavior splits between loyalty and alienation depending on how well the

product lives up to its advertised benefits (Thorson, 2000). Corporate behavior – such as

scandals or charity work – can also affect alienation and loyalty responses. Once the

consumer makes this choice, advertising and promotion are not likely to undo that

decision. The Cannon-Bard Theory that Walter Cannon and Philip Bard advocated

suggests human beings feel emotions first, and then act upon them. When customers visit

a Web site, the ads they encounter evoke an emotional response—before they even

decide what their next step should be. If ads don’t trigger customers’ emotions, they may

not take any action in response.

Based on the review of the research studies mentioned above, it is clear that internet

advertising is gaining much attention and should be an essential part of a marketer’s

advertising media mix. The inconclusive findings call for further studies on internet

advertising to gain more insight into consumers’ response and perception of the internet

as an advertising medium. Hence, this study determined the effectiveness of internet

25

advertising as an ad medium, and its relationship to consumers’ response e.g. online

purchase decision. According to George Otieno’s work, 2013

Since the internet has several faces, apart from the email address, we can also look at

social networks (Facebook; LinkedIn; Referralkey; Twitter etc.). This aspect of the

internet has contributed tremendously to helping organizations advertise online. The

herd-behavior can give a testimony when we talk of social network. People can subscribe

to social network with a cell phone number and that had enabled the risen number of

social network users. People share ads to friends and post videos/pictures on their walls.

Per this action a sharer of an ad can be called an ambassador, since he / she is advancing

the dissemination of the ad.

Generally, many people see pop-up to be irritating. It poses disruptions when someone is

busy navigating through web pages. The unsolicited nature of pop-ups rendered it less

viability by some internet users. Such people would not give it attention, let alone reading

to know the content. Adverts are intended to persuade leads and current customers to

respond favorably to the demands of the advertiser. Advertisement will lose its purpose

when the needed attention is not given by the customers.

General Importance of Online Marketing to an EconomyOnline marketing/advertising has become a contemporary mode of advertising, since

technology is fast growing and be the major driver of economic success. Organizations

have seen it necessary to advertise or keep the customers/prospects abreast with the

trends 24/7. An economy which is prone to technology will obviously has its businesses,

especially advertising doing online.

26

CHAPETR THREE

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Introduction

This section of the project focuses on the research methodology that had been used in the

study. It provided a detailed description of the research approach adopted in the study—

research design; target population; sample size determination; data collection

instruments; analytical procedures and ethical considerations.

Research Design

Research is defined as a systematic process of gathering, recording, processing and

analyzing data, which—when interpreted will help business and society to uncover

opportunities and to reduce risk in decision making (Williams, Thomas and Neigh 1990).

This study uses descriptive research. Descriptive research concerns the study of

relationships or conditions that exist in opinion held by people, or processes that are

going on, or effects that are evidence, or trends that are developing. This type of research

concerns mainly with the present events or situations.

The object of description research is to portray an accurate profile of person, event, or

situation. In other words, it aims at description of businesses, social systems, relations, or

social events, providing background questions as well as stimulating explanations.

Descriptive research in most cases is used as a preliminary study or description in

27

management and in business research, which has a very clear place. But it should not be

thought of as an end rather a means to an end.

Population of the Study

The sample of the study was picked at the Tamale Polytechnic, which has a huge student

population of 1000s. For the purposes of the study, a section of the entire student

population was selected. The marketing department was selected, because students from

that department are assumed to have background knowledge in advertisement.

Sample Size Determination

Students were selected from all the levels (100, 200 and 300) in the department, who

exercised their background knowledge in advertisement by expressing their opinion in

response to the questions that were found in the questionnaire. A total of 80 students were

sampled from all the levels. This approach was simple, since random sampling was

feasible. The sample size could have been more than what was chosen, but for the

purpose of accurate data, the researchers picked 80.

Sampling Techniques

Random simple technique was used because all the students in the Polytechnic could not

have been reached out with the questionnaires. Besides, there was the need for students

with background in advertising to be chosen, which was why the marketing department

was the chosen over the other departments.

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Data Collection Instrument

The research made use of primary data that was gathered from marketing students at the

Polytechnic with the aid of structured questionnaires distributed to 80 students. The

administered questionnaires were collected after completion by the respondents on the

same day and their responses used for the analysis. The questionnaires had both open and

close ended questions to enable guide the respondent through filling of the questionnaires

as well as probe them for more information.

Analytical Procedures

Tables and charts had made it possible for the data to be analyzed appropriately. All the

response from the subjects are been tabulated, so that each question in the questionnaire

is given a substantial analysis in order to arrive at an inform recommendation.

This section presents the analysis and findings of the study as set out in the research

methodology. The results were presented on the effectiveness of online marketing on

consumer behavior—a case of Tamale Polytechnic marketing students. The study

objectives were; to determine the effectiveness of internet advertising on reach and

creation of awareness by the Polytechnic; to establish the reliability of internet

advertising through recall; and to determine the relationship between internet advertising

and purchase decision by the Polytechnic.

The study targeted 100 respondents out of which all the 80 respondents responded and

returned their questionnaires contributing to a response rate of 80%. This response rate

was sufficient and representative and conforms to Mugenda and Mugenda (2003)

29

stipulation that a response rate of 50% is adequate for analysis and reporting; a rate of

60% is good while a response rate of 70% and over is excellent. This commendable

response rate was due to extra efforts that were made via courtesy calls made to remind

the respondents to fill-in and return the questionnaires. The chapter covers the

demographic information, and the findings based on the objectives. The findings were

then presented in tables and charts as appropriate in explanation.

The study initially sought to ascertain the general information on the respondents

involved in the study with regards to the year of study, age, and gender. The demographic

information points at the respondents’ suitability in answering the questions on the

effectiveness of internet advertising on consumer behavior: the case of Tamale

Polytechnic marketing students. The respondents were asked to indicate their year of

study.

Ethical Considerations

Content validity refers to the extent to which an instrument represents the factors under

study. To achieve content validity, questionnaires included a variety of questions on the

knowledge of students on internet advertising and consumer behavior. All the subjects

completed the questionnaires in the presence of the researchers. This was done to prevent

subjects from giving questionnaires to other people to complete on their behalf.

Reliability can be ensured by minimizing sources of measurement error like data

collector bias. Data collector bias was minimized by the researchers’ being the only

people to administer the questionnaires, and standardizing conditions such as exhibiting

30

similar personal attributes to all respondents, e.g., friendliness and support. Pilot testing

was carried out by the researchers to identify any flaws on the questionnaire to reduce

errors of measurement and test for consistency.

31

CHAPTER FOUR

DATA ANALYSIS, RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Introduction

This chapter focuses on the background information, the research methodology that was

used in the study. It provides a detailed description of the research approach adopted in

the study—Research design, target population, research instruments, data collection and

analysis methods used was presented in the subsequent sections.

The Background Information:

The study initially sought to ascertain the general information on the respondents

involved in the study with regards to the year of study, age, and gender. The demographic

information points at the respondents’ suitability in answering the questions on the

effectiveness of internet advertising on consumer behavior: the case of Tamale

Polytechnic marketing students. The respondents were asked to indicate their year of

study. The study findings are illustrated in the below tables:

32

Table 1Distribution of respondents by year of study:

Year of study Frequency Percentage (%)

First Year 20 20

Second Year 22 22

Third Year 38 38

Total 80 80

Source: Field data, 2016

Table 1 carried data that was gathered from students at the marketing department in all

the levels. This is to provide an accurate data for the better understanding how online

marketing by the Polytechnic is explored from a pull of respondents. It assumed the third

years might have the greatest exposure to the school’s online marketing, since they

represent the oldest students in the Polytechnic and probably might use the schools

website more than any other student. Because of this assertion, they got the highest

sample size (38).The various ages of the respondents were gathered for demographic

consideration. The study findings is illustrated in the below table (Table 2).

Table 2 Distribution of the respondents by age brackets:Age brackets Frequency Percentage (%)

19—25 51 51

26—35 28 28

36 and above 1 1

Total 80 80

Source: Field data, 2016

33

The findings have established that majority of students in the marketing department are

between the ages of 19—25. This may sound a positive indication to Polytechnic online

marketing, because this age group is supposed to have the highest exposure to the

internet, if the youthful exuberance is to be considered. However, further findings will

clear the air.

The study sought to establish the gender of the respondents and the findings are as shown

in Table 3.

Table 3 Gender distributions of the respondents:Gender Frequency Percentage (%)

Male 41 41

Female 39 39

Total 80 80

Source: Field data, 2016

From the study findings, males dominated over the females. This can attributed to the

males willingness to express their opinion, while at the flip side, some of the females

were not ready to respond to the questionnaires, because they were busy reading their

handouts.

Effectiveness of Online Marketing/Internet Advertising on Reach and Creation of Awareness:

One of the purposes for this study is the effectiveness of online marketing on reach and

creation of awareness. Organizations use various ways and platforms to advertise their

34

offers. Knowledge of these various platforms of advertising are been sought out from the

respondents, that vividly seen TV and Movies as the highest platform with 59%

according to the respondents. Radio and the internet had 15% and 10% respectively. This

illustrates that the effectiveness of internet advertising on reach and creation of awareness

was determined by the level of knowledge about the existing platforms of advertisements

adopted by various organizations in the Tamale Metropolis.

The respondents were asked to indicate their attitudes towards advertisements. Table 4

illustrates the study findings:

Table 4 Attitudes towards advertisements:

Attitudes towards advertisements Frequency Percentage (%)

Informative 23 23

Create awareness 57 57

Entertain 9 9

Irritates 1 1

Annoys 2 2

Waste time 1 1

Total 80 80

Source: Field data, 2016

It is refreshing to know the overwhelming endorsement respondents had given to the

creation of awareness—57% by advertisements. Awareness creation is one of the

fundamental principles of advertisement, aside information, persuasion, and education.

35

23% perceived advertising to be informative. 9% is of the opinion that advertising is

entertaining. 2% thought it is annoying. Whereas 1% asserted that advertising is either

irritating or waste time, respectively.

Considering the response in a hierarchical form from the highest (57%) to the lowest

(1%) indicates that there is a positive response to advertisements, so the Polytechnic can

pick these study findings as a source of secondary data for analysis and decision making.

In order to further identity the effectiveness of online marketing on reach and creation of

awareness, respondents were asked to indicate the various platforms through which they

view, read and listen to advertisements. Table 5 provides the detail illustration.

Prefer platform of advertisements: (Table 5)Platform of ads. Frequency Percentage (%)

TV, Movies 59 59

Newspaper,

Magazine4 4

Radio 15 15

Internet 10 10

Total 88 88

Source: Field data, 2016

Evidence has shown from the study findings that respondents have several platforms

from which they receive their advertisements. Because of that the figure had exceeded

80, since some respondents had chosen more than one platforms. The internet scored

10% and lied third to TV and movies (59%) and radio (15%), respectively. 10% is not a

36

poor score for internet looking at the environment where the study was conducted.

Strictly speaking, internet accessibility is still at the infancy in the Tamale Metropolis.

The several Wi-Fi in the Polytechnic have encryptions making internet access not

feasible to students. The Polytechnic needs to make internet access flexible to students,

so that visiting the school’s website and exploring the advantages on the site will be made

possible. This moved would widen the viewership of the Polytechnic online marketing.

The study sought to establish whether the respondents watched the TV/ or listened to

Radio commercials during commercial break. The findings are as shown in Table 1.6.

Watching TV commercials during commercial break (Table 6)

Watch TV commercials Frequency Percentage (%)

Yes 70 70

No 10 10

Total 80 80

Source: Field data, 2016

It is obvious from the findings that majority of the respondents watch television

commercials during commercial breaks. 70% of the respondents watch TV commercials,

according to the study. This is a positive signal to organizations that seek to advertise via

the television, since the perception by the respondents on TV commercial is very high.

Table 7 Changes channel during commercial breaks:

37

Column1 Frequency Percentage (%)

Never 10 10

Sometimes 42 42

Depends on

ad26 26

Often 2 2

Every time 2 2

Total 82 82

Source: Field data, 2016

Respondents were asked if they change channel during commercial breaks and the

responses are tabulated in the above table. The study saw that majority (42%) of the

respondents sometimes switch to other channels during commercial breaks. This behavior

of switching channels can be attributed to what is known in communications as ‘zipping

and zapping.’ Two interesting programs may be telecasting at the same time and the

audient wants to have a gist each in those programs. 26% of the respondents switch to

different channel during commercial breaks depending upon the advert. An advert may

appear annoying or irritating, if not well package and that may cause an audient to flit to

a different channel. 10% of the subjects never change a channel during commercial

break. This is an indication that TV adverts get wider viewership and that can be a plus to

organizations with the intention to advertise on TV. The percentage scored sometime,

depends on ad and never indicated that many people subscribed to watching commercials

on TV. Here the sample size exceeded the 80, because some respondents have chosen

more than one option.

38

Reliability of Internet Advertising through RecallThe second objective of the study was to establish the reliability of internet advertising

through recall. First, the respondents were asked whether they would check an online

advert and the findings presented in the next table

Table 8 checking an online advert: Checking online ad Frequency Percentage (%)

Yes 38 38

No 42 42

Total 80 80

Source: Field data, 2016

Out of the total respondents, majority of them with a percentage of 42 do not check

adverts online. Whereas 38% of the respondents stand at the flip side. The percentage gap

between the two groups respondents depicted that online advertising do not get large

subscribers. Respondents who check adverts online assert that they do trap to read adverts

from pop-ups or from junk emails. Pop-ups ads usually block the view of the content or

appear right in the middle of the page, or keep floating around which is considered to be

very irritation for the consumers. Checking the ads determined the level of interaction

with the online ads. Even though the reach of internet is high than that of other modes, its

ability for awareness creation is very low. For the Polytechnic to raise awareness for its

online advertisements, internet accessibility should be made wide, so that to encourage

students to go online. With this, the Polytechnic can increase awareness of its online

marketing by floating the ads on the web page that no visitor to the site escapes.

39

The respondents were further asked to indicate their purpose of using internet. The study

findings are illustrated in Figure 2.

Figure 2. Internet usages:

social networking

emailing

information

entertaining

e-commence

downloading

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50

%

%

Source: Field data

Figure 2 study findings indicate internet usages by the respondents. Various usages are

given and chatting and networking top the lists, which has the highest percentage of 43.

Information came second with the percentage of 27. 17% of the respondents use internet

for the purposes of emailing. Respondents who use the internet for e-commerce scored

9%. Downloading had the list percentage of 2. These disparities in the findings have

shown that respondents mostly use the internet for communications/conversations. Social

networks such as Facebook; twitter; LinkedIn etc. are the most widely use platform for

communications/conversations on the internet. These findings should encourage the

40

Polytechnic to take its online marketing to the social media. Students (existing and

prospects) can be reached out to with ads from the Polytechnic through the social media.

To establish the reliability of internet advertising through recall, the respondents were

asked to indicate whether they would recall the last three TV and online ads.

Table 9 Ad recalls:

Ad recalls

Frequenc

yPercentage (%)

TVYes 75 75

No 5 5

Total 80 80

Online

ads

Yes 38 38

No 34 34

8 8

Total 80 80

Source: Field data, 2016

Overwhelming number of the respondents recalls TV ads, with the percentage figure of

75. This is a good score in terms of creating awareness. 5% among the respondents could

not recall any of a TV ad. This figure is minute as compare to those who responded

“YES”

41

However, 38% of the respondents could recall online ads. This means that respondents

possibly view/read pop-up ads as and when they showed up on their screen. This is a plus

to reaching out to customers via the internet. 34% of the respondents had chosen no,

whiles 8% did not know what to choose. These study findings have opened an

opportunity to the Polytechnic, where pop-up ads will be the best form of online

advertisement on reach and recall.

From these findings, one can easily strike out the difference in reliability between online

and TV ads on recall values. The study found out that TV ads are much reliable than

internet advertising and other forms of advertising.

Table 10 Mode of advertising influencing intention to buy a product/service:

Column1 Frequency Percentage (%)

Magazines

and

newspapers

9 9

Friends and

relatives40 40

TV

commercials37 37

Online

advertisements8 8

Total 94 94

Source: Field data, 2016

42

Here again, respondents chose more than one option, that saw the total figure moved to

94. Friends and relatives clocked the highest percentage (40%) in the mode of influencing

intention to purchasing an offer. TV commercial came second with 37%. Magazine and

newspaper follow suit, with 9% then online advertisements, with 8%. The 40% response

on relatives and friends influence to purchasing decision signals that viral marketing

plays significant role in customers’ decision. The Polytechnic can build goodwill with

customers by being friendly to them in both online and offline, so that customers would

serve as ambassadors to the Polytechnic.

43

CHAPTER FIVE

SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENTATIONS

Introduction

This chapter presents summary of findings, conclusion and recommendations of the study

in line with the objectives of the study.

Summary of finding

In this phase of the chapter, the overall study will be summarized in order to give a

catchy view of the piece. In the study, we have seen the transitions advertisements have

gone through since its inception—from the dot-com bubble to the Internet, which is the

contemporary form of advertisement. The impact of online marketing is very great even

though there are some organizations in the Tamale Metropolis that still find it difficult to

comprehend the nitty-gritties behind it. The effectiveness of internet advertising have

spelt it all out, the advantages of online marketing has for an organization, especially

Tamale Polytechnic. In one of the previous chapters, we have looked at some form of

online marketing such as: pop-ups; email/newsletters; herd-behavior etc. Since online

marketing cannot be a warehouse of measure to a successful contemporary form of ad,

there are some challenges that confront it. The study revealed that the ability of the

respondents to recall the internet ads was low compared to TV, and therefore even though

the reach of internet is much higher than other forms, TV ads are much more reliable than

internet advertising Danaher and Mullarkey (2003). Internet advertising is a key

determinant of purchase decision of the customers as they consider it to be an interaction

44

point between them and the organization from where they buy their products/services.

The study also established that internet advertising has significant relationship with

purchase decision of the consumers.

Conclusion

The objective of the study was to determine the effectiveness of internet advertising on

consumer behavior using a sample of Tamale Polytechnic marketing students. After

analysis of the study findings, the study concludes that the effectiveness of internet

advertising on reach and creation of awareness was determined by the level of knowledge

about the existing platforms of advertisements adopted by various organizations in the

Tamale Metropolis and the time spent on various media. Internet advertising was

effective in providing higher reach and creation of awareness. However, in spite of the

diverse usage of internet and wide interaction with various internet advertisements, fewer

respondents were able to recall the internet ads they had seen. This implies that the

reliability of internet advertising is quite low. The research established that TV

advertising is more reliable than internet advertising therefore conforming to Danaher

and Mullarkey (2003), that TV ads are much reliable than internet advertising.

The study concluded that few of the respondents purchasing decisions are influenced by

internet advertising. The major influencer of purchasing decision is ‘friends and

families’. The percentage (8%) scored by the internet advertising in the study is a

determiner that online marketing is gaining interest in the Tamale, so organizations, for

that matter T. Poly can feed into this data and grow the interest in order to explore the

future opportunities that is in stocked in online marketing.

45

Recommendations

The study established that the reliability of internet advertising is low and therefore

recommends that the management of the polytechnic’s online marketing should provide

unique experience to its customers based on customer analysis to deliver a personalized

experience to the customers. The study also found that internet advertising is effective in

reach and creation of awareness and recommends that the polytechnic should invest more

on internet advertising to increase the patronage of the institution’s online services.

Finally, the study determined that there is a positive relationship between internet

advertising and consumer purchase decision and further recommends that organizations,

especial Tamale Polytechnic should conduct research on different platforms to ensure

internet advertising initiatives being implemented suits the targeted customers to improve

the patronage of its services. Organizations can explore the opportunity of online

advertising presented by Kalah Social - An innovative Ghanaian social medium which

provides free adverts and promotions “I have realized that, Kalahsocial allows

Companies, Musicians, Actors/Actresses, Media Platforms, Celebrities and much more

an opportunity to connect with their fans and clients, advertise and promote their works

online for free.” Kalah social also provides online shopping, where individuals and

businesses can also upload their items and products and sell them online for free.

This social network can be reached out via—www.kalahsocial.com.

46

REFERENCES

Baker S. (2003), “Pop-up Ads Had Better Start Pleasing”, (1st Edition) Business Week,

New York

Borden, N. H. (1964), “The Concept of the Marketing Mix”, (1st Edition) at the Harvard

Business School, USA

Danaher P. J. and Mullarkey G.W. (2003), Factors affecting online advertising recall: A

study of students. Journal of Advertising Research, 43: 252-267. Source: George Otieno

Osewe’s work, Kenya

Dreze X. and Hussherr F. X. (2003), Internet advertising: Is anybody watching? Journal

of Interactive Marketing, 17: 8-23. Source: George Otieno Osewe’s work, Kenya

Goldsmith R. E. and Lafferty B. A. (2002), “Consumer Response to Website and their

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48

APPENDICES

APPENDIX I: RESEARCH QUESTIONNAIRE

SECTION A – BACKROUND INFORMATION

(A)Distribution of the respondents by year of study:

First

Second

Third

(B) Distribution of respondents by age bracket:

19—25

26—35

36 above

(C) Gender distribution of the respondents:

Male

49

Female

SECTION B – ATTITUDES, REACH AND AWARENESS

(D) Attitude toward advertisement:

A— Informative

B— create awareness

C— entertain

D— irritating

E— annoying

F— waste time

(E) Your prefer platform of advertisement:

A—TV, Movies

B—Newspaper, Magazine

C—Radio

D—Internet

(F) Watching the TV commercials during commercial break:

YES

NO

(G) Change the channel during commercial breaks:

50

A—Never

B—Sometimes

C—depends on ad

D—Often

E—Every time

(H) Checking an online advert:

YES

NO

(I) Internet usage:

A—Chatting and social networking

B—Email

C—Information

D—Entertaining

E—E-commerce

F—Downloading

SECTION C: AD RECALL

(J) Advertising recall:

A—TV YES NO

B—Online ads YES NO

51

(K) Mode of advertising influencing intention to buy product:

A—Magazine

B—Friends and relatives

C—TV commercials

D—Online advertisement

52