How many of you listened to the radio, watched television or glanced at a magazine before going to school this morning? Whether or not you realized it the moment you pressed the power button or flipped the cover, you were exposed to some sort of advertisement. Defined as any form of paid communication from an identified sponsor, advertising dominates much of our daily lives. Living in such a consumer-driven economy means we deal with subliminal and direct messages that push us to “buy, buy, buy,” countless times throughout our day. Most of these messages are sent by identified sponsors, including large companies like Wal-Mart, as well as smaller companies. Regardless of size, all modern businesses employ workers to research and promote the product or service they offer. Marketing involves the business processes involved in promoting, selling and distributing a product or service (Wordnet,1). Advertising falls into the promotional segment of marketing. The advertising process is divided into four main concepts: strategy, creative idea, execution and media. The first concept involves developing a strategy to provide focus and direction to advertising. The success of this first step translates into effective advertising. Effective advertising leads to purchase of the product/service or recognition, so when the need for the product arises the consumer remembers the advertisement. Secondly, the marketer must decide the most profitable consumer group, also called the target audience. Companies often incorporate market segmentation into their target audience decisions. Segmentation divides the market into groups of people who have similar characteristics in some key product-related areas. F... middle of paper... for Cheetos you know what you're getting, there's not a lot of variation involved. However, an iPod offers multiple opportunities for customization and upgrades that the consumer must carefully consider in relation to the price he or she is willing to pay. In this sense, purchasing Cheetos requires much less consumer purchase involvement than purchasing a new iPod. All of these factors contribute to the overall satisfaction associated with a product. The results of the primary research conducted help marketers decipher the elements of their advertising strategy that need modification. Essentially, the advertising process continues throughout the life cycle of a product or service. This process must adapt to the changes and adjustments that occur within a given market. I hope this has contributed to everyone's understanding of advertising and the important role it plays in our daily lives.