Question

Long Answer Type Question.
Distinguish between advertising and personal selling.

Answer 1

	Advertising	Personal Selling
1	Advertising is an impersonal form of communication.	Personal selling is a personal form of communication.
2	Advertising involves transmission of standardised messages, i.e., same message is sent to all the customers in a market segment.	In personal selling, the sales talk is adjusted keeping view customer’s background and needs.
3	Advertising is inflexible as the message can’ t be adjusted to the needs of the buyer.	Personal selling is highly flexible. as the message can be adjusted.
4	It reaches masses, i.e., a large number of people can be approached.	Only a limited number of people can be contacted because of time and cost considerations.
5	In advertising the cost per person reached is very low.	The cost per person is quite high in the case of personal selling.
6	Advertising can cover the market in a short time.	Personal selling efforts take a lot of time to cover the entire market.
7	Advertising makes use of mass media such television, radio, newspaper, and magazines.	Personal selling makes use of sales staff, which has limited reach.
8	Advertising lacks direct feedback. Marketing research efforts are needed to judge customers’ reactions to advertising.	Personal selling provides direct and immediate feed back. Sales persons come to know about the customers’ reactions immediately.
9	Advertising is more useful in creating and building interest of the consumers in the firms products.	Personal selling plays important role at the awareness stage of decision making.
10	Advertising is more useful in marketing to the ultimate consumer’s who are large in numbers	Personal selling is more helpful in selling products to the industrial buyers or to intermediaries such as dealers and retailers who are relatively few in numbers.