Media Buying

Placing advertising in media has become a very complex activity. Unless you already have experience in advertising, or have the time to learn the details of media placement, it makes sense to hire a Media Buying Agency to help you make the most cost effective decisions and get you most bang for the buck.

How can I measure effectiveness of media placements?

Reach and frequency are two most commonly used means of measuring effectiveness.

Reach is the number of people the advertising message reaches. Higher reach rating means more people see or hear the message. Reach rating is expressed as fraction of total population that receives the message. Reach rating of one means 100% of the population received the message. Reach target is defined by the identifying features of your prospects.

Frequency is the number of times the targeted audience sees or hears your message. It is expressed as the average number of time your target sees or hears the message.

Gross Rating Points (GRP) is used to measure overall effectiveness of media placement. GRPs are calculated as:  GRP = Reach (rating number) x Frequency

What are some of the common mediums for advertising?

Broadcast, Cable and Satellite Television are three ways of getting television programming into our homes. It is important to obtain demographic information of the channels you are considering so that you can target the advertisements to the right audience. Television gives you the widest possible audience to convey your message. It also gives the ability to demonstrate your product or service with good visual and audio impact.

The main disadvantage of television is that it is one of most expensive mediums for advertising. Also with the advent of Digital Video Recorders (DVR) it is possible for consumers to record programming and skip the advertisements.

ACNielsen is the leading company that measures broadcast television audience.

Radio advertisement is relatively inexpensive and allows you to send multiple audio messages daily to the target audience. But radio can’t convey complicated messages as well as the television.

Arbitron is the leading company measures radio station listenership.

Newspaper circulation is the common means of calculating how many people read a particular newspaper. It is not a very accurate measurement - not every newspaper that is bought is read and more than one person may read a copy of the newspaper. The disadvantage of newspaper advertising is that your target audience cannot be narrowed down by more than geographic location.

The Audit Board of Circulation (ABC) is the organization that verifies circulation figures.

Outdoor advertising provides specific geographic targeting for your advertising. Size of the billboard provides a lot of flexibility in formulating the message. If the billboard is placed in an area where it is seen by daily commuters, it helps build frequency of your message.

Since the driver or the passengers have just a few seconds to see the billboard, the message has to be designed such that there is not much to read. There is not much scheduling flexibility in case of billboards. Also if your billboard is in the bad part of town, it needs to be checked regularly for graffiti and defacement.

Billboard companies estimate exposure based on traffic patterns in the area but this measure cannot tell much about how many drivers and passengers actually notice and read the billboard.

Direct Mail is probably the most highly targeted means of advertising. It allows for a detailed message and can solicit direct response via mail or phone. Unfortunately number of advertising mail pieces coming in the mail has increased dramatically and it is a cluttered environment. You may have to work harder to get the target prospect to open the mail, read it completely and respond in a timely fashion.

Can you help me make the right media choice for my advertising campaign?

Which is a better advertising buy: radio or television? How many times should an ad appear in the newspaper? How long should an advertising campaign last? What is the best way to increase response rate to direct mail? These questions are not easy to answer. Before making a media decision, analyze your competition, your market and understand your media options. Consider the following questions.

• Who is your competition and how does their products compare to yours?
• How are your products or services different from the competition? What makes your offerings stand out in the marketplace?
• What is the likely profile of your target customer? Where can you reach your target market?
• What do you expect from your advertising efforts? Increase awareness, gain new customers?
• What is your budget for the advertising campaign?
• Do your ads clearly explain the main product benefits? Is the pricing clear, and does it meet regulations?
• Are the ads fit to run on the advertising medium of your choice?
• Is your staff on board with you for the campaign?

How is media purchased?

Media is purchased by the amount of time or space. Radio and television spots for ads are generally in 30 and 60 seconds. Newspaper ads are available as display advertising or as classified advertising. Display advertising is sold per column inch or centimeter - width of the ad in number of columns multiplied by height in inches or centimeters. Classified ads are sold by the line. Pricing of Outdoor ads is determined by number of "showings" and the size of the board. A showing equals the percentage of population that passes a billboard each day. Direct mail is priced per one thousand pieces. Direct mail costs may include printing, inserting, sorting, and postage.

Many advertisers use cooperative advertising to lower costs. Ad costs are divided between one or more parties. For example, manufacturers can offer a cooperative ad program to wholesalers and retailers and split the costs with them.

How do I find professionals to assist me in buying media?

Hire a media buying agency to help you buy media and place advertising campaigns. Also approach your advertising agency since they may already have a media buyer on their staff. Make sure the Media Buying Agency you hire has experience in your industry. Media Buying Agency should also be responsive to your needs and capable of creatively solving any problems that may arise.