The Impact of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) on Advertisement Practice in Nigeria
Chapter One
Objectives of the Study
- To know whether Globacom uses ICT in advertising its products and services.
- To examine whether ICT has an impact on the advertisement of Globacom products.
- To show the benefits of ICT in the advertisement of Globacom products.
- Get the other 4 objectives of the research after the purchase
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
ICT Diffusion
ICT has diffused in various ways over the years but still has a long way to go in achieving perfection or near perfection. Porter (1990) was insistent upon the crucial role that IT would play in the 1990‟s. According to him, the mastering of the processes, the access and the circulation of Information had become fundamental in the acquisition of a competitive advantage across one‟s industry – or even across industries when they are competing with one another. Moreover, he established that there existed a hierarchy of the effects of the implementation of Information Technology. The most common effects being to optimize each activity in its current form, add new function to activities and reorganize individual activities. Then there are effects with high value like coordinate various activities in different locations, link corporate activities together and inter activities exchanges.
In marketing, the presence of IT is crucial in the area of information gathering, analyses, data mining, market surveys, information dissemination, Executive Information Systems and Marketing Orientated Information Systems. These are the major events in the informational revolution of marketing. Yann, (1996).
In order to go forward in this, it is necessary to distinguish between Information and Information Technology. Information technology consist of all the hardware and software a firm needs to use in other to achieve its business objectives while information is the definite knowledge acquired or supplied about the firm.
According to Yann,(1996), because of the prevailing role of IT in changing the behaviour of organizations, there is a tendency to exaggerate the importance of technology itself. Technical problems become the focal point, and the basics are often shifted to the background.
The approach is not to focus on the tools that transfer Information, but instead on the understanding of the big picture of the Information System. A holistic approach must be applied at all times to achieve best results.
ICT In Marketing
ICT in marketing has come of age and organizations of various sizes employ various ICT techniques. According to Redoli. et al., (2008), for organizations to be innovative in any of their functional duties they need to use information and communication technologies (ICTs). At the time, they were writing about Small and medium enterprise companies. This also holds true for all organizations irrespective of their size. This means that the use of ICTs can be considered as key factor for innovation and Entrepreneurship. ICTs are a must for organizations to innovate. In fact, a look at the Global Innovation Scoreboard (GIS) reveals that all African countries excluding South Africa are omitted in the list. South Africa which is even mentioned belongs to the list of countries lagging behind in innovation. It is found in the same group with Brazil and Mexico. It is not surprising then that Africa is considered a third world continent.
According to Bengtsson et al., (2007) the process of adopting and developing Internet applications in firms can be very rapid because of the international diffusion of computer and Internet technology. Stage models are derived mainly from studies of small and mediumsized enterprises (SMEs.) Studies suggest that a more basic use of the Internet is adopted before more advanced applications are developed. However, they neither elaborate adequately on the challenges of introducing more advanced applications, nor on how the introduction of different innovations is stimulated or hindered.
Basic use of the Internet includes online presentation of the firm, its products or services, and simple information exchange via email. Advanced use of the Internet assumes more sophisticated two-way interaction and data processing, and includes online ordering and payment, collecting feedback from customers and integrating the homepage with the firm‟s internal functions .Bengtsson et al., – (2007).
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research Design
The study was carried out through a survey. A case study approach was used and Globacom constituted the case. This qualitative model was chosen because it is suitable for practical problems. It is often seen as being problem – centered, small scaled and manageable. It is amenable to different application of different empirical evidence. Yin (1994). The study examined the impact of ICT on the marketing practice of Globacom hence, the use of a case study.
Population
The study focused on the Marketing and IT staff of Globacom. These people were used because they had a better understanding of what was required as well as having the information needed to provide accurate responses.
This was based on the knowledge that these group of employees were daily involved in using these tools to communicate with clients and potential clients. The total population of the Marketing and IT staff in the organization is seven (7).
CHAPTER FOUR
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Data Analysis Procedure
The SPSS descriptive statistics procedure was used to capture the means, frequencies and percentages and charts were used to represent the results. The results and their corresponding discussions are presented below.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATION
Summary
This study was conducted to find out how Telecom companies in Nigeria use ICT in marketing communication. Globacom was used as a case study. ICT (internet) has become intertwined with life. It is ubiquitous and its impact on all aspects of life cannot be overemphasized. Organisations have found creative ways of using ICT tools to reach their customer and boost their position in the market.
Empirical evidence has shown that the internet and e-mail offers organization the cheapest and fastest way to reach a targeted audience. The cost of communicating with a targeted audience via email is a mere fraction of a telemarketing cost. The internet lends itself to various interactive uses. Marketers all over the world have tried to exploit this unique ability that ICT offers.
A very high percentage of people in developed countries have access to the internet. This high penetration rate has motivated organizations in these parts of the world to look to the internet as a very viable option to reach a targeted audience. Most of the research that has been conducted so far has been on ICT usage in developed countries in America and Europe. These studies have shown that people are moving away from print to electronic medium. The advent of social network has given rise to new forms of marketing like gorilla marketing and viral marketing. These are tools that can be exploited by marketers to their advantage at very little cost.
An extensive literature review was undertaken in this study. The review showed that there are different levels of ICT usage in marketing communication. They range from very basic uses like a mere presence on the web and very sophisticated uses like on line purchase and payment, CRM, SFA and product design and customization. Organizations found creative ways to exploit these uses.
It became necessary therefore to find out if organizations in emerging economies are also using this technology to their benefit. This was necessitated by the fact that there is little literature available on the use of ICT tools in marketing communication by organizations in emerging markets like Nigeria. The focus of the research was on the Telecom industry. Globacom was used as a case study. Globacom is the biggest telecom company in Nigeria with three subsidiaries. The researcher believes that a company of that size whose revenue is mostly through export will be one of the first to adopt these tools and try to exploit its most sophisticated uses.
The study was designed to be a survey. Primary empirical data was gathered through the use of questionnaire targeted at the Marketing and IT Department. Data collected was analysed using SPSS and simple percentages in a descriptive manner. The findings of the research showed that Globacom commenced the use of ICT in marketing communication in 2001. The company has a working website and has over the years built a mailing list. The website is a basic website with light graphics and offers opportunity for clients to sign up on line to receive correspondence from the company.
Unfortunately, it seems that this particular feature has not been used by clients as Globacom resorts to coping e-mails. This violates the CAM-SPAM law and could open up Globacom to spamming complaints. A complaint like that by a client could cause all ISPs to block all mails coming from the domain of Globacom.
Findings also indicate that the organization has made effort to maximize the use of e-mail marketing. They often change the e-mail marketing message, update the content of the website and constantly update software and hardware. This will keep vibrant its communication and offer clients something to come back to and perhaps motivate them to refer others to the company. There was a two hundred percent increase in the revenue earned by globacom when revenue earned before the company started using ICT is compared with revenue earned in 2009. This may be attributed to greater reach and efficiency due to ICT usage.
Conclusions
ICT is a very viable tool in marketing communication. Effective and proper use of this tool has become very vital for an organization to gain competitive advantage. Any organization that ignores this fact is handing the edge over to its competitors.
The survey results and analysis show that the company under study use ICT in marketing communication. The company makes every effort to maximize the use of this channel as they communicate with clients and potential clients. Unfortunately the full potential of this medium is not beinn exploited. The website is very light. Globacom is a telecom company involved in manufacture of telecom products and furniture. The company could use all their products to create heavy graphics that woul showcase the products in very advantageous points and add a spin to the site making it the destination of choice.
The site however ranks very high on search engines. The organization performs web analytics and incorporates their finding into their text. This brings up the site every time the words are typed into search engines. In every endeavour of man there are acceptable and unacceptable practices. In the case of using ICT in marketing communication that law is to respect the privacy of others. But, in this case that law has somewhat been violated. Copying e- mail of clients violates their privacy.
Recommendation For Future Practice
ICT in marketing must be brought to a new paradigm, where the tools of ICT will be used maximally, effectively and efficiently to gain business value and competitive advantage. Countries already advanced in ICT usage have been able to achieve this and companies in emerging economies like Nigeria can also aspire to achieve the same. Globacom is using ICT in various ways in marketing communication. But, there are more ways to apply it and best practices to be adhered to.
It is recommended that Globacom build a website that is heavier in pictures and graphics while not reducing the text. This will show the products off better and be interesting enough to keep bringing traffic to the website.
The method the company used to build a mailing list is not the right method. The company must protect itself from spam complaints by ensuring that only consented clients are sent email. They should advertise their website and encourage people to sign up to receive e-mail from the company.
However, when all is considered globacom is using ICT tools in marketing communication and it does appear that its use is impacting positively on its performance.
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