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How advertisement in food changed throughout historyAdvertising is a sales and marketing strategy employed by an organization to increase sales and thus profits. Advertising dates back to the 1830s with La Presse, a French newspaper being the first incorporate paid advertisement into their paper. In the present world, almost all companies dealing in food invest in advertisement to help popularize their brands as vastly as possible. Media which include magazines, newspapers, radio, television, and billboards and hoarding are the channels that have been used for advertisement overtime.The purpose of this paper is to examine how food advertisement has changed throughout history in three specific phases; fragmentation phase, unification phase, and segmentation phase (Edds, 2009).

Fragmentation phase is the earliest phase of food advertisement and it represents the 1800s (A brief history of advertising , 2007). During this phase, the food supply was majorly local and the target market was equally a small area. Packaging of such products was basic since the intention was to serve the local market and durable storage and transportation was not in the picture. Even the big companies were convened to the small markets which made the advertisement as well as basic as the products dealt in. Advertisement was conducted in wall paintings and hoardings in the public places that ensured that the information was noticeable to at least as many people as possible. Advertisement in this phase was focused on the quantity of food and the brands available. Marketing of the food was also done through regular publications that were sold locally and ensured the locals were able to catch the advertisement, examples are journals and gazettes. The fragmentation phase falls in the early age.

The next phase is the unification phase. With industrial revolution, the foods and beverages industry was not left behind but rather it also attained a level of sophistication. The target market widened as well and the food suppliers were able to serve a wider range of consumers. Packaging saw a new light since the products were a subject to long transportation to serve the vast market. During this period, advertisement involved promoting of the brand names and top brands such as Heinz became popular. Unlike the fragmentation phase, food advertisement focused more on the ingredients and the quality benefits of a product. Companies participated in advertising strategies such as products tasting where the companies made certain products available for the consumers to taste and this way their preferences can be influenced. Brands during this period ensured that the ingredients of their products were articulated to the benefits of the products, for instance, health implications of certain ingredients.

The other phase of advertisement is segmentation phase. In this phase, the brands focused on the values of their products which are a subject to competition. Unlike the other two phases, in segmentation period the companies deal in a very wide market. Examples of these companies include the Coca-Cola Company and KFC which are international. In this phase, the emphasis is on health benefits and even emotional implications of a brand (Bramen, 2010). The companies are trying to tone down to the value of the products and consumers appreciate healthy habits such as demanding of more natural products. Food suppliers are more inclined into studying the consumer behavior that influence the type of products that tops the market unlike in the fragmentation and unification phases where the brands determined what the consumers got on markets. Advertisement now involves brands convincing the consumers on value grounds.

In summary, advertisement has evolved throughout history industrial revolution being the major driver of the change. Markets, that is, the consumers have also had a great role to play in the evolution of advertisement. As seen above, the first phase saw less of consumer influence but as time progressed the consumer influence is felt and in the modern day the brands pay attention to the needs of consumers which makes advertisement more inclined to the value and quality.

References

BIBLIOGRAPHY A brief history of advertising . (2007, July 1). Retrieved from OpenLearn: https://www.open.edu/openlearn/money-management/management/business-studies/brief-history-advertising

Bramen, L. (2010, January 29). The Most Successful Food Commercials. Retrieved from Smithsonian.com: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/the-most-successful-food-commercials-78881403/

Edds, L. E. (2009). The Food Industry: Lifeline of America. New York: Cornell University.