Marketing Communications

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Marketing Communications

Organizination And Management Of Advertising

Agencies And Advertising Departments

CONTROL OF ADVERTISING PRACTICE

The control of Advertising through regulation ethical and legal within advertising practice is imperative,
especially to eliminate deliberate, careless violation of the public sphere.

Consumerist activities against poor ethics, rights of consumers, advertising abuse have increased the
demand for legislation to protect the public. Control and regulation of these abuses of advertising practice
is usually in two ways:

1. SELF-CONTROL: by applying voluntary restraints on the part of advertisers and
   practitioners, through the use of ethical standards.


2. STATUTORY CONTROL: through government legislation and regulatory laws – such as the
   enforcement of health warning on cigarette advertisement. (Vanden Bergh and Katz, 1999)

FINANCIAL ADVERTISING

FINANCIAL ADVERTISING is used to promote the company as a whole, primarily to the financial
communities such as investors, credit and lending institutions, shareholders. Financial advertising assists
the firm to build goodwill amongst the investing public. It is not meant to promote firms’ products but
various firms products could be highlighted in it.

TOOLS OF COMMUNICATION USED IN FINANCIAL ADVERTISING

1. PROSPECTUSES – these are advertisements that seek to inform the public about the issue
   of stocks offered for sale to the investor or prospective shareholders. They are mandatory
   advertisements by statute or law which must be published by the firm.

The contents of prospectuses are:

1. Information on the volume of new shares to be sold to investors.


2. Full details about issuing houses and stock brokers involved in the offer.


3. Information about the company’s profit or performance record.


4. Other corporate news to assist the issue.


5. INTERIM REPORTS: these are reports about the trading activities of a company, which
   may be placed in newspapers. It contains chairman’s report, main products, subsidiaries of
   the company and relevant statistical details that can interest investors. Interim Reports are
   released to the company’s shareholders quarterly or bi-annually.


6. ANNUAL REPORT AND REPORTS OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING: these are
   advertisements indicating the annual reports of the company and the Annual General
   Meetings. They are published annually, containing reports or summary of trading activities
   and profit, turnover and other relevant information about the company.