INFLUENCE OF ELECTRONIC ADVERTISING ON CONSUMERS PURCHASING DECISIONS OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES WITHIN THE ACCRA METROPOLIS

ABSTRACT Advertising enables companies to meet communication and other marketing objectives. Consumers’ purchase behaviour in today’s information-saturated world is based on how a service or product is advertised. In spite of the apparent wide-spread and huge-scale adoption of E-advertising on a global scale, one does not see this trend happening on a big scale in Ghana. Thus, using the descriptive study design the study sought to explore and unravel the influence of e-advertising on consumers’ purchase decisions within the Accra Metropolis. Snowball sampling procedure was employed to search and select participants with the same characteristics relevant to be included in the study. The study pointed out some of the key elements in e-adverts which influence consumers demand for alcohol or made them purchase alcohol. The study further revealed that because of linear relationship between e-advertising and consumer behaviour of customers of alcoholic beverages, e-advertising can significantly influence the consumer behaviour of consumers of alcoholic beverage in the Accra Metropolis. In view of this, it is recommended that Management of alcoholic beverage companies should as a matter of policy make use of e-advertising modes such as e-adverts streamed through TV, their website, mobile phones, social media network and other media sites. It is further recommended that management should also increase the frequency of e-advertising especially television related ones because of the significant positive effect between e-advertising and consumer behaviour of consumers of alcoholic beverages, since it would translate into sales hence profits.