Examining the Impact of Television Advertisements on Purchasing Behavior of Students of Sargodha

Abstract

This study investigates how puffery in television commercials affects students' purchase decisions. Puffery, which is defined as legal, exaggerated, and hyperbolic promotional claims that reasonable consumers are not expected to take literally, was analyzed for its effectiveness in conveying information, influencing preferences, and shaping perceptions of product categories such as cosmetics, shampoos, soaps, cleaning products, biscuits/chocolates, cold drinks, edible oils, and mobile packages. A structured questionnaire was used to gather data from 280 respondents. 140 from University of Sargodha and 140 students from two government colleges of Sargodha. Using a convenience sample approach the research data is collected during March 2025 to June 2025. The study evaluated how much information viewers were exposed to through puffery-based advertising, how much they liked certain puffery elements such as celebrity endorsements, inflated claims, music, presentation style, slogans, adventure, heroism and how authentic they thought these ads were. Key findings of this research study show that across most product categories, a sizable majority of respondents said they learned "very much" or "much" from puffery-based TV advertisements. The highest percentages were found for food items (75 %), Mobilink packages (76 %), shampoos (74 %), and cold beverages (72 %). A number of puffery aspects, such as music (75 %), presenting style (71 %), and celebrity endorsement (65 %), were highly favored by viewers. However, a considerable majority saw puffery as not very genuine, with (43 %) considering it as “much” or “very much” unrealistic, demonstrating knowledge of its hyperbolic character. The findings imply that although puffery uses persuasive characteristics consistent with persuasion theory like ethos, logos, and pathos to effectively draw respondents’ attention, convey product information, and affect brand perceptions, people often recognize its inflated nature. These results emphasize the necessity for ethical concerns in advertising tactics while highlighting the influence of puffery on young students' purchase intentions in Pakistan.