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Analysing Consumer Choice Between Different Mediums of Marketing
Analysing Consumer Choice Between Different Mediums of Marketing
Abstract
Over the years, the conventions of marketing have frequently been changing. This change has resulted in
different forms of marketing working more efficiently for certain tasks than others. Using AI or Influencers to
market a brand's product has shown exponential growth by firms in the past 5 years and present study analyses
the consumer's preference towards different mediums of marketing. Previous research shows brands shifting
from conventional methods of marketing, such as through media forms, to innovative and efficient means of
marketing such as through the use of AI. In addition, marketers are now specifically being advised to integrate
AI into their methods (Davenport, 2021). With such a rapid change in marketing trends, consumer preferences
need to simultaneously be analysed. In this paper, a survey was carried out analysing consumer preferences
from 72 respondents with a variety of questions. The data generated was used in the form of graphs and
discussions. Even with the rising change in marketing trends, consumers tended towards conventional methods
of marketing - Possibly due to familiarity and comfort. This signifies that new methods of marketing may not be
as advanced and fine-tuned as needed. For instance, AI lacks emotional connection (el Kaliouby, 2020).
Furthermore, in time with more R&D and fine-tuning, new marketing trends can become the standard.
Keywords
Marketing, Artificial Intelligence, Influencers, Mainstream Media, Future of Ads, AI Marketing, Influencer
marketing, Media Marketing.
Figure 2 depicts the preferences between female most preferred for Personal Use. According to
and male genders for the Personal Use category of Forbes, 62% of Women follow beauty influencers
products. Looking at the female responses it is and take feedback before purchasing a product
visible that Influencer marketing is the most (Forbes, 2019) which could explain why the female
preferred for personal use products whereas, in the demographic shows more preference towards
male demographic, Media based marketing is the influencer-endorsed marketing.
Figure 3: Graphical Representation of Marketing preference for Finance in Gender (N= 76)
Looking at Figure 3, It is seen that both genders finance-categorised goods, this may also be the
reflect similar outcomes in preference when it case as consumers, when spending great sums of
comes to financial products such as mutual funds, money, prefer to listen to someone of greater
stock options and etc. Both show media-based and stature than them and a smart computer, in the form
artificial intelligence marketing as the most of artificial intelligence, may seem trustable.
preferred form of marketing. This outcome was However, since Media based ads have been used to
expected and is agreeable as influencers may not promote such products and services for many years
hold the power to convince individuals to purchase
in the past, consumers are more easily able to
relate.
Firstly, within the 14-20 age bracket, media-based deal of time on social media and thus have
ads come out on top for consumer preference, developed a sense of trust in these influencers.
which was not the predicted outcome. It was Moving forward, the 41+ category shows that
assumed that influencers would be the most Media Based marketing is the most preferred which
preferred within this bracket however influencers makes sense because for a long time, Media was
are the least preferred. Looking at 21-40, as the most optimal method of promotion and so this
expected, influencers are the most preferred. This is age bracket trusts this method the most.
the case as most people of this age spend a great
Figure 5: Graphical Representation of Marketing preference for utility in Age (N= 76)
Observing the preference for utility products the 14-20 category Media-Based marketing is
amongst different age brackets we can infer that in preferred possibly due to utility products being
associated with infomercials. The 21-40 the 21-40 age bracket. All brackets deem Media-
demographic highlights the same trend, with Based marketing to be the most effective or most
artificial intelligence following instead of preferred possibly due to the relation to
influencer marketing. 41+ shows the same trend as infomercials as mentioned earlier.
This question aims to asses the main drawbacks of due to the established issue of artificial intelligence
artificial intelligence being used as a form of lacking to create an emotional connection with the
marketing. The questions present the respondent consumer (Brookhouse & Piorno, n.d.) thus
with a range of issues within different forms of causing engagement issues. 31.9% of respondents
marketing and an option that allows the respondent believe that AI needs to be more personalised
to deem artificial intelligence as perfectly effective. towards the concerned audience. This was an
With 72 responses, the majority or 40.3% agree unexpected runner-up as AI is used often to suggest
that artificial intelligence as a form of marketing products based on search history and computer
needs to value customer engagement over reach. cache. Considering that AI specialises in
This signifies that artificial intelligence lacks to personalisation, the respondents could have been
make a connection with the consumer. skewed by the lack of connection within AI.
Furthermore, this could also be due to a lack of furthermore, 15.35% of respondents believe that
human presence thus leading to a lack of trust bad-quality ads are seen created by AI. This could
between the consumer and supplier of the be a subjective issue due to unsatisfactory past
concerned product or service. This response was experiences.
expected to be the most frequently picked option
Figure 8: Graphical representation of the drawbacks selected against media-based marketing
The following graph shows results to a question Based marketing should focus on customer
that aimed to analyse the main drawbacks of engagement more than customer reach. This would
Media-based marketing. Out of the 5 answer emphasise the quality of ads and possibly their
points, 72 respondents chose where Media-Based effectiveness in persuading a consumer. Moreover,
marketing lacks as a form of marketing. Looking at this would also signal that Media Based ads are not
the results, the majority or 36.10% of respondents being effectively placed, thus, adding to the claim
believe that Media Based marketing needs to be that Media Based ads lack personalisation.
more personalised towards the focused audience. Furthermore, we can also observe that 18.10% of
To evaluate this claim, to be more personalised respondents believe that bad-quality ads are seen.
brands can project certain ads onto certain channels This claim is subjective however can also signify
that focus on a specific topic, for example, a that they are not personalised enough, adding to the
company advertising sports attire would purely first claim. The remainder of the respondents
project ads onto sports channels on mainstream believed that Media Based ads were perfectly
media, This, in turn, would result in a more effective with one respondent regarding them as
efficient output for the firm. In continuation, highly ineffective.
31.90% of the respondents believe that Media
Figure 9: Graphical representation of the drawbacks selected against influencer-based marketing
The following graph shows results to a question 29.2% of respondents regarded influencer
that aimed to analyse the main drawbacks of marketing as a medium that has to focus more on
Influencer marketing. Out of the 5 answer points, engagement over reach. To evaluate, a common
72 respondents chose where Media-Based problem with influencer marketing is that it is hard
marketing lacks as a form of marketing. Influencer to evaluate the efficiency of the engagement which
marketing is known to be proficient in establishing is why it may be a limitation of the medium, thus
trust in a consumer's eyes which is why the results firms may have to focus on the reach to achieve
were surprising and did not match the initial benefits. 18.1% of respondents could be
hypothesis. Moreover, 37.5% of the respondents categorised as those that faced bad experiences
believed that influencer marketing was not with influencer marketing or those that are used to
personalised enough, We did not hypothesise this more conventional forms of marketing such as
answer point to be the most picked answer as Media-based. Lastly, 15.3% of the respondents
influencers are known to create a relationship with believed that it is perfectly effective as it is.
the consumer creating more demand for a product.
This is a table highlighting the preferred form of marketing for each type of product in the following
demographics; Male, Female. Ages 14-20, 21-40 and 40+.
Table 1: Depicting the most preferred forms of marketing for each demographic type
Personal Use MB IM MB IM MB
products
Utility MB MB MB MB MB
Products
Financial MB/AI AI MB MB AI
services
Key: Influencer Marketing - IM; Artificial Intelligence based marketing - AI; Media Based Marketing - MB
This table compiles the results of the study into a According to data from the article (Thomas, 2020),
preference table according to the demographic. The "social media allows for a more diverse range of
male demographic on average, prefers Media-based voices," which is agreed upon. The article goes on
marketing for all types of products and services. to say that 30% of Twitter posts are created by AI
Females, however, show preference towards all bots to "pose" as humans, demonstrating that the
three mediums with different products. Looking at influencer industry already embraces AI. The
age, we can observe that the 14-20 age bracket article examines "Lil Miquela," one of the most
prefers Media-based as a marketing approach and influential people in 2019, to provide additional
21-40 a mix of Influencer and Media-based evidence of AI activity. Lil Miquela seeks "change"
marketing. Older consumers, prefer Media-based and promotes luxury brands. The article examines
and Artificial Intelligence as a form of marketing the costs and effectiveness of these AI bots and
which was not hypothesised. These results imply comes to a conclusion that, although they may
the power of familiarity within consumer choice appear to be more affordable, AI influencers
since marketing through forms of mainstream frequently have fewer followers than their human
media is extremely common - consumers choose to counterparts. According to the article, AI
stay loyal to advertising they are comfortable and influencers have a high potential for effectiveness
amicable with. and have not been extensively studied. Because
they possess social capital, current taste, and other
Influencer Marketing characteristics that appeal to the common
Due to the trust that influencers place in their consumer, AI influencers can be effective
followers, influencer marketing can be more endorsers. Because AI influencers are one-of-a-
effective and efficient in promoting a brand. As a kind, they would also provide consumers with an
result, influencer marketing generates higher unforgettable endorsement experience, fostering a
engagement for a business than self-brand positive brand perception. However, the article also
advertisements. The skills, standing, and reach of a demonstrates that consumers may occasionally
particular influencer determine how effective "lose trust in AI" as a result of a possible lack of
influencer marketing is which is why the survey emotional connection or being overshadowed by a
conducted above on influencer marketing showed celebrity influencer.
signs of anomaly responses. As mentioned in the
survey analysis above, the effectiveness of Artificial Intelligence
Influencer Marketing can be hard to measure Looking at Artificial Intelligence, it has its strong
quantitively, however, we can use the quantity of suits for securing a positive ROI however, it has its
likes an influencer receives on posts, tweets, or limitations that can create a barrier to efficiency in
stories as an indicator of effectiveness. terms of marketing. To highlight the advantages,
we can see extremely accurate personalisation
towards targeted consumers as well as relevant
messages (Kniahynyckyj, 2023).Moreover, data at spreading brand image and increasing traffic but
that has been accumulated over time can now be not to the level of Artificial Intelligence. Media
used to accurately pinpoint ads towards the most Based marketing, although conventional and
eligible consumers (Chen, 2019), allowing for possibly outdated, is still the most preferred
extremely accurate ad targeting. In addition, since method of marketing amongst consumers (as
there are fewer humans needed in the loop we can supported by the survey conducted). In addition,
directly conclude that there will be reduced costs according to the data collected earlier in the study,
(Bhalla, 2021). In contrast, there are cons to using Media Based marketing needs to be more
AI as a form of marketing, such as the lack of trust personalised towards the target demographic.
between the consumer and AI. We know, from Furthermore, we can observe that each method of
discussions on influencer marketing, that trust and marketing includes respective advantages and
personal connection in a transaction are extremely disadvantages. Looking at our data from the
crucial however AI lacks that which can be conducted survey, we can correctly assume that
difficult to create optimal efficiency. Media-Based marketing is the most preferred
among consumers.
Media-Based Implications
As seen in our data, Media Based marketing was The implications of this paper signify the future of
regarded as the most effective. To discuss this, we marketing and the route a firm should take to
can look at the pros and cons of marketing through maximise efficiency while marketing their good or
mainstream media. Media-based marketing is service. As observed throughout the study, on an
effective in; reaching an although not specific but average Media based marketing was the most
wide audience - covering a large demographic, preferred form of marketing. This implies possibly
being simple and easy to comprehend, portraying due to familiarity, conventional forms of marketing
an entertaining and persuasive story (Bean, n.d.). such as through media are still the most preferred
However, Media based marketing has drawbacks amongst consumers. In effectiveness, we know that
that include; high costs to be effective which may artificial intelligence is most advantageous in
not be accessible by smaller firms (The Pros and personalisation and targeting a niche demographic.
Cons of TV Advertising, n.d.) and no guarantee on a Moreover, we are aware that influencer marketing
solid return on investment in the short run (Gaille, is effective in creating trust (White, 2023). Thus,
2016). although new forms of marketing are more
effective for respective objectives - due to
Conclusion familiarity, consumers positively view media-based
To conclude we will concisely examine the major marketing as they are used being persuaded
findings of the study by exploring the results of the through mainstream media in the forms of stories
survey as well as the statements made in the and infomercials. The implications on the future of
external discussions section. Firstly, we can marketing inferred from the above is that possibly
conclude that Influencer marketing is effective in with more time, consumers will standardise these
creating trust in the consumer as the influencer uses approaches to marketing. Larger firms should focus
ethos to portray the need for a product. In contrast, on branching out their product or service through
influencer marketing lacks as it is known to be hard all forms of marketing and smaller firms should
to quantitatively measure. Moreover, Artificial focus on effectiveness as they aim to achieve
intelligence as a marketing method is highly is economies of scale.
accurate at the personalisation of ads towards
targeted audiences
(Clark, 2021). This results in extremely efficient
marketing, however: Artificial Intelligence lacks Limitations
the personal connection that needs to be made for There are several limitations to take into
effective advertising, thus leading to a lack of trust consideration that could have resulted in anomaly
amongst the consumer. Lastly, Media Based data. Firstly, the survey conducted in our study
marketing is a method of marketing that is effective only had 72 total respondents, this small data set
could have resulted in biased data. For example, marketing form they have had more memorable
when measuring the medium chosen to purchase experiences with. Referring to the squeaky wheel
Financial services, the age bracket of 41+ displayed bias, we can also infer that while individuals
anomaly-like results possibly due to the small data vocalise their thoughts on certain things, others are
set of respondents in our survey. Furthermore, as also left with similar thoughts (Tan, 2022) .
we surveyed respondents we realised that consumer Therefore, if a consumer heard about a bad
bias could potentially skew data. As the average experience that another individual faced with a
human makes around 35,000 choices in a day form of marketing they may have forcibly chosen
(graff, 2021) - over time - we tend to create answers due to their pre-formed mindset. In
shortcuts and certain preferences in our life. In turn compilation, these limitations may have caused
consumers tend to view things with familiarity, for skewed or anomaly-like data in our set.
example, respondents of our survey may choose the
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