An AdweekMedia/Harris Poll recently released their findings on just how influential advertising is to different consumer groups’ purchasing decisions. The most significant finding is that of the many groups out there, nearly half (45%) of those in the coveted 18–34-year-old consumer group said that advertising was “somewhat influential in guiding their most recent big purchases.” Furthermore, a good majority of those interviewed in this particular age group (66%) also said that most of the current advertising out there is, at the very least, “somewhat interesting.”
As far as the influence advertising has on purchasing decisions, nearly one-third of all Americans interviewed admitted to the fact that the advertising they were exposed to influenced their purchasing decisions. This is a fairly significant statistic, especially considering that some people don’t like to admit to being influenced. The people over at the Harris Poll who conducted the study reflected on this discovery with the following quote in their report, “The fact that over one-third of Americans do admit to it means that advertisers are, in fact, getting the job done.”
So, in the big picture of things, what’s the significance of this study? Well, for one it shows that the apparently impenetrable “young adult” market is, on the contrary, a rather impressionable group. The study also goes to show that the advertising industry still has enough overall influence to shape consumer’s decisions in each age group/financial sector when making a purchase, a stark contrast to reports out there that the advertising and marketing industry is going downhill when it comes to value and efficiency.
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