Two current news stories caught my eye today. One is today’s financial results from Hershey, where they reported strong increases in both profits and revenue, partly attributable to significantly increased advertising budgets. The other was a set of stories on KFC. Again, following a large advertising campaign their Kentucky Grilled Chicken product launch is one of the best in their history. And now one of KFC’s competitors (El POllo) is also scoring big in California because of a large advertising campaign.

Pundits repeatedly talk about the “death of advertising”, whether it’s in relation to public relations or to social media marketing. But time and again, companies who effectively incorporate advertising into their overall marketing strategy continue to succeed. Traditional advertising is certainly not the same as it was 10-20 years ago, but it is still undoubtably effective. Marketers should not dismiss it as an integral component of their marketing tool box as they move to newer, digital avenues. All media are potentially useful in one situation or another.

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