Consumer Perceptions of Advertising as Misleading
A mail survey was conducted of 314 residents of two California cities to measure consumer perception of the prevalence of misleading advertising. Information was obtained concerning the extent of misleading advertising in the various media, for 30 products and services and for three age groups. The findings indicate that over half of the sample viewed “most” or “all” mail and telephone advertising as misleading, and that 38 percent of the respondents regarded “most” or “all” television advertising as misleading. Newspaper advertising was considered the most credible. Findings indicate that “most” or “all” advertising for products and services was viewed as misleading by 30 percent of the respondents. Findings for actions taken concerning misleading advertising indicate that nearly half of the sample had registered a complaint to the store or person advertising and that 29 percent of the respondents had complained to a manufacturer. Also, findings for the age groups indicate that two out of three respondents regarded “most” or “all” advertising directed at children as seriously misleading. Advertising directed at senior citizens was viewed as seriously misleading by 45 percent of the sample, and advertising directed at young and middle-aged adults was viewed as only slightly less misleading.
Misleading advertising: a study of radio spots in Spain
: In order to identify the different types of misleading advertising, this study is based on the existing legal framework in Spain. A total of 430 radio spots —or 1,664 when broadcast frequency is considered— were coded according to radio station type, time slot and product category. The findings of content analysis reveal that 33% of radio spots in 2009 included misleading content, predominantly in terms of product characteristics and those within the health category. The study suggests that a new approach should be taken by the organisations that control, monitor and follow-up on advertising. Methodology and
Application of the Kano Model for a Better Understanding of Customer Requirements in Higher Education—A Pilot Study
Various pieces of information and knowledge turn into “know-how” simply by their application in the market. This applies to all spheres of activities. It is therefore important to know and understand the requirements of customers already in the stage of making a product, and to confront these with the possibilities of a producer. In this article we are exploring the possibilities of a better understanding of the requirements of customers and stakeholders in the process of the creation of products in educational services. In particular, we examined seven general requirements: practice orientation, ethical orientation, research orientation, quality resources, innovation orientation, skills orientation, and quality staff. We use the Kano model on a pilot sample of respondents at an institution of higher education. Our results showed that “practice orientation” and “quality resources” are the most stable requirements, while “quality staff” is the least stable. The most linear requirement (the same effect on satisfaction and dissatisfaction) is “innovation orientation”. “Research orientation” belongs to attractive requirements and we also found that in the case of “ethical orientation” there are weak relations between positive and negative responses in our survey. The “skills orientation” proved to be too general, and our research shows that it could be indifferent. It is therefore advisable to specify the investigated skills when investigating requirements on educational services. The main contribution based on the proposed research procedures is an effective linking of customers and producers already from the beginning of constructing a value chain. Investing in sophisticated management approaches when modelling products and processes can thus become a significant source of the competitive advantage of an educational institution. At the same time, it is a contribution to better placing of its graduates in the labor market.