Media buying, tools and resources
If you are going to get the most out of media buying you have to:
- Be able to find the best advertising media to match your products and services
- Effectively target the right audience through strategic positioning
- Be able to negotiate
- Not go overboard and over budget
- Monitor and track results well
Sound easy?
Well, not many people get it right first time, but a reassuring point is that there are professionals and media organisations there to help make the whole thing a trouble free exercise for you. In fact, more and more specialist advertising agencies offer Media Buying Services and advice across a massive list of media advertising formats.
If you want to handle it all on your own, then you should consider the time it takes to put a plan, schedule and design together for different types of media. Some are more difficult than others, but should be treated with the same meticulous detail and enthusiasm. Remember, if you are going to take on someone who can handle the Media Buying Services, then you have to make sure they are honest and will offer impartial recommendations. Some companies will sign you up because it means more commission for them. Of course, this does nothing for their long-term relationship with you and most offer a very above-board service these days. Just make sure you meet with the agency and this will enable you to make up your own mind.
So, whether it is newspaper advertising or advertising on a radio station, you have to look at the fundamental areas of what is going to make the campaign stand out to the relevant target audience. Then, you match the design, message and your main objectives to the format you are advertising in.
The advertising costs will be based on the type of media you are looking at. For Internet Advertising, the costs can be fairly low, although this can also depend on the number of page impressions or schedule you sign up for. Another simple format is ppc advertising (pay per click advertising), which gives you the opportunity to set the cost per click and overall budget to what you want it to be. This is one of the safest formats available and is very easy to track.
The other end of the scale can be National Newspaper Advertising and magazine advertisements and the latter is often described as more of a corporate and brand awareness vehicle. Then we come to Outdoor Advertising, which incorporates billboard advertising and mobile billboards. These can be extremely effective, but this depends very much on location and demographics.
The top two in terms of design, planning and costs are Radio Advertising and Television Advertising, although radio is now much more cost effective than 10 years ago. In fact some local radio stations offer very good rates, which includes the planning and recording costs.
Whatever you choose, do your homework and investigate the pros and cons for each before you take the plunge. There are people to help you if required and the whole concept of media planning and buying is much easier to put in place than it used to be.
Take a look at advertising agencies in our agency database
Take a look at our media database
Look at ppc management services