Are the critics really justified in raising objections to advertising? Discuss.

Although many people have vehemently opposed it, yet it cannot be concluded that it is really not needed. The following arguments can be put forward to counter the arguments of various critics of advertisement:

(i) It does not Increase Costs: It is said that advertisement causes unnecessary increase in costs. However, the reality is that advertisement increases the demand for a product which in turn raises the scale of production. A lot of saving is affected in case of large production.

Therefore, it can be said that advertisement is helpful in making available good quality products and services at cheap rates.

(ii) It does not Undermine Social Values: It is absolutely wrong to say that advertisement undermines social values. Instead of undermining social values advertisement helps in raising the social level. It provides people with the information about modern and better products. It, therefore, widens the area of people's choice. So far as the question of day-dreaming for the customers is concerned, it only provides information about products. It is in the hands of the customers to buy them or not to buy them. If the dissatisfaction of the people increases because of advertisement, it is their own weakness and not that of the advertisement.

(iii) It does not Confuse the Buyers: It is true that sometimes the reality is distorted in the advertisements, but the buyers happen to be rational beings and, therefore, they decide to purchase a product only after evaluating every aspect of it. However, if they have no information about any aspect, they can get it from the seller. Hence, it is wrong to say that advertisement confuses the buyers.

(iv) It does not Encourage Sale of Inferior Products: It is true that all the sellers point out the superiority of their product in the advertisement. However, it is the duty of a buyer to know about the comparative quality of a product before buying it. A seller cannot tell lies about his product in the advertisement. If he does so, legal action can be taken against him. So far as the question of selling some inferior quality product at high price, is concerned it must be said that a buyer can be cheated only once and not time and again. Those sellers who adopt such a policy, are doomed quickly.