We see advertising anywhere we look. Its message is simple – it consists primarily in praising the virtues of products or services, highlighting their advantages so as to encourage customers to buy them. Currently, there are many different forms of advertising, as it is not limited to television or radio clips, but it is also prevalent on the Internet. It could be said that advertising has become a part of the modern world.

Who's watching this? How advertising works

Advertising is information combined with a persuasive message. Its purpose is primarily to encourage the purchase of goods or the use of a particular service. Most often, advertising promotes a particular brand or type of product in a competitive situation. It may be more or less indirect, or it may be concealed in the content or context of another topic, message or issue. Some ads reliably inform about the product and its features, while others merely extol its advantages.

How advertising works Its impact on sales is not always immediate. Nonetheless, advertising often influences our attitudes and behaviour, which is an indirect effect of advertising. Many attempts have been made to explain how advertising works. A certain solution to this issue is the AIDA model, namely:

• awareness,
• interest,
• desire,
• action.

According to this structure, interest in the product or brand must be preceded by relevant knowledge. Therefore, advertising in this aspect has two roles: informative, which means familiarising people with the product, and persuasive, which means that people will want to own the product before they buy it.

Another explanation of how advertising works is the awareness – trial – reinforcement process. In this case, it all begins with the customer finding out about the existence of a particular product, following which they make a trial purchase. If the product appeals to the customer, they will buy it again, and this is the first step to a repeat purchase behaviour.

Does advertising really have such considerable influence on our purchasing decisions? Its opponents make many accusations against it, pointing to its influence on the creation of needs or consumer manipulation. Supporters, on the other hand, point out that advertising does not create needs – customers already have them, and advertising only makes it easier for them to make a decision and buy the product. This would mean that advertising doesn't have as much of an effect on people as it would seem, although it is very often quite effective. There is also no evidence stating that by watching or listening to advertising, a person becomes a slave to advertising or a victim of manipulation. In understanding how advertising works, subject-focused training will certainly be of great assistance.

Who's buying it? How sales work

Marketing, and therefore advertising, would not exist without sales. These concepts are known to complement each other. Of course, the starting point is the product. Sales are focused on the customers, their needs and on how the product will help them meet those needs. This is the fundamental difference between sales and marketing – because advertising is focused primarily on the product. When considering the aspect of sales, it is easy to define the customer and identify their needs, as it is a relationship between the salesperson and a person or a company.

Selling is based, first and foremost, on asking questions. The salesperson asks questions of the customer, in this way analysing their needs which allows the salesperson to offer the best solution that will actually meet the customer's expectations. This works regardless of whether the product is a training course available on a learning platform or a cosmetic product.

Does it work? With customer-centric, question-based selling, it's easy to uncover the customer's real needs and create the best offer for them. The relationship between the salesman and the customer is direct, and this enables the salesman to get to know the customer and their expectations.

An unbreakable bond – advertising and sales

Wherever sales are important, advertising must follow. Because first, you have to let the customer know about your product or services. However, the mere act of reaching a potential target group with your message does not guarantee success. Conversion, which is the rate of actions performed by recipients in response to a marketing campaign, usually ranges from one percent to a dozen or so percent. This makes it clear that the majority of the advertising audience will not become our customers. To alter the situation, we need to combine advertising with the appropriate sales techniques. These two elements are dependent on each other. The activities carried out will vary depending on the type of advertising, but they will always have one goal in mind – profit.

Firstly, it is worth noting that one of the most important issues is the price of the product. If the price is too high, even the best advertising campaign will not convert into sales. Of course, it's not a good idea to excessively reduce the prices to match the competition, but it shouldn't be too high either, because customers will feel discouraged from buying, even if the product is an online course, i.e. online learning.

Sales are also influenced by the company's reputation. If it is negative, the marketing campaign will not be successful. Of course, some of the reviews may be false; however, they still influence customers' purchasing decisions. In such a situation, it is worth acting by building a positive brand image by means of online advertisements or campaigns.

Without advertising there are no sales and vice versa

If you want to sell a product, your potential customers must know about it. A high-quality product will defend itself, and its name will be made known through the recommendations of its satisfied users. However, this is not always the case. It can even be argued that such situations are quite rare, and when marketing goods, it is not worth counting on the fact that sales will increase without resorting to advertising. Moreover, customer reviews are also a form of advertising – they are known as the so-called word-of-mouth marketing, found both offline and online.

Although sales and marketing are based on different principles, in essence, one does not exist without the other. Marketing helps build brand awareness in customers and places emphasis on the product. Sales, on the other hand, focuses on customers and their needs. Without product information there will be no sales, while advertising that does not result in increased sales is not effective. Marketing efforts attract interest, but it is sales that make the customer feel that the service or product is made specifically for them.