Getting advertising messages reach the consumers is a tough call. A good product or a commendable service may get unnoticed and be of no avail if marketers fail to give the message out to the interested consumer. But the challenge here is to find that one or a group of consumers who really matter to the company.  Most methods of reaching out to the consumer, either through advertising or through promotions are ineffective, given the chances of the advertising messages getting dissipated among the noises in the market or due to the divergence of the customer base.

The Typical Mass Marketing Approach: Many products that we see on our day-to-day life are mass market products. Be it the ubiquitous Nestle or Cadbury’s chocolates or detergents and cosmetic ranges from Unilever or P&G, these mass market products have a wide appeal with a consumer base that is widely spread across. The typical advertising initiative in this approach involves sending the message out there in the open for anyone and everyone to hear and grasp – and respond to.

Problems with Mass Market approach: One problem with the Mass Market approach to marketing and advertising is that the advertising outlay is far too high and not in favor of an average company trying to promote its new product. It was left to the consumer goods giants and large companies with huge advertising budgets to spend lavishly on advertising their products on a mass scale.

Another problem with the Mass Market approach to advertising is the sheer magnitude of the target market and diversity of the populace. With mass market advertising, it turns out that despite all the advertising outlays and huge expenses, the message may not reach the right target market at all. It is one thing to spend large amounts and another to get mileage out of the advertising programme. The money spent on mass advertising campaigns could actually end up getting the advertising message to the wrong consumer who may not be interested in the product or service at all.

The mass market approach to advertising is not for every advertiser. One would have to be as big as the multi-national consumer goods giants to appeal to a widespread target market with large marketing budgets to be successful as a mass marketer.

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