People buy a product if it fulfills their needs; there is no need for advertisement. To what extent do you agree or disagree with it?

People's buying habits are not influenced by advertisements is an opinion

that is

held by opponents of the current consumerist society.

However

,

such

a statement is biased and

this

essay hopes to promote a balanced view of advertising as an innovation of modern society to inform its members of the choices and options available to them. First and foremost,

while

buying behaviour is often dictated by necessity and spending capacity, advertising has raised the awareness of people to the necessity of owning efficiency-improving tools and gadgets.

For example

, when the safety pin wasn't invented, people settled for 'tying knots' to fasten objects, which is a very basic household need.

However

, advertising

this

new invention raised the need to own it, with the result that a safety pin can now be commonly found in any household as a better method of fastening. The same can be said for a smartphone as opposed to a bulky analogue phone or even a non-smartphone.

Secondly

, advertising

also

provides a means for different producers to inform their customers of the choices they have available to them in terms of price, size and quality.

This

stems from the belief that everyone has the right to buy a premium quality product irrespective of their spending capacity.

For instance

, in a country like India, where most folks earn a middle-class income, certain shampoos sold in standard sizes are considered premium and out of reach of the average Indian. But companies began to sell them in 5 ml pouches and made their premium products accessible to the common man.

To conclude

,

while

most advertisements seem to be about products that are unnecessary or out of reach of the average person, they are usually targeted to either raise awareness of the possibility of doing something in a better way or to make quality items available to larger groups of the public.

Hence

, publicity is essential for making the polity of a nation an informed one to aid in making intelligent choices, as long as it is honest about the message it is propagating.