Advertising media selection

Last updated
Advertising media often appear to be ubiquitous Yonge & Gould, Toronto.jpg
Advertising media often appear to be ubiquitous

Advertising media selection is the process of choosing the most efficient media for an advertising campaign. To evaluate media efficiency, planners consider a range of factors including: the required coverage and number of exposures in a target audience; the relative cost of the media advertising and the media environment. Media planning may also involve buying media space. Media planners require an intricate understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of each of the main media options. The media industry is dynamic - new advertising media options are constantly emerging. Digital and social media are changing the way that consumers use media and are also influencing how consumers acquire product information.

Contents

Types of advertising media

TV, once the mainstay of media advertising, is losing some of its gloss Front-Side+Stand.png
TV, once the mainstay of media advertising, is losing some of its gloss

The selection of advertising media for a given campaign requires a deep and rich understanding of the media options available. [1]

Television advertising

Television advertising offers the benefit of reaching large numbers in a single exposure. The reason for having large numbers is that this advertising method can reach the household-level customers. [2] Yet because it is a mass medium capable of being seen by nearly anyone, television lacks the ability to deliver an advertisement to highly targeted customers compared to other media outlets. Television networks are attempting to improve their targeting efforts. In particular, networks operating in the pay-to-access arena, such as those with channels on cable and satellite television, are introducing more narrowly themed programming (i.e., TV shows geared to specific interest groups) designed to appeal to selective audiences. However, television remains an option that is best for products that targeted to a broad market. The geographic scope of television advertising may vary, from local or regional advertising through to national coverage, depending on whether public broadcasting or subscriber-based cable services are used. [3]

Television advertising, once seen as the mainstay of media advertising, is facing numerous challenges from alternative media, especially interactive and social media. Technological innovations, especially the advent of ad blocking and zapping, has eroded TV's immediacy and relevance for some audiences. [4]

Radio advertising

Promotion through radio has been a viable advertising option for over 80 years. Radio advertising is mostly local to the broadcast range of a radio station, however, at least three options exist that offer national and potentially international coverage. First, in many countries there are radio networks that use many geographically distinct stations to broadcast simultaneously. In the United States such networks as Disney (children's programming) and ESPN (sports programming) broadcast nationally either through a group of company-owned stations or through a syndication arrangement (i.e., business agreement) with partner stations. Second, within the last few years the emergence of radio programming delivered via satellite has become an option for national advertising. Finally, the potential for national and international advertising may become more attractive as radio stations allow their signals to be broadcast over the Internet.

In many ways radio suffers the same problems as television, namely, a mass medium that is not highly targeted and offers little opportunity to track responses. But unlike television, radio presents the additional disadvantage of limiting advertisers to audio-only advertising. For some products advertising without visual support is not effective. [ citation needed ]

Print media continue to offer varied advertising opportunities 2007 news kiosk Tokyo 511061919.jpg
Print media continue to offer varied advertising opportunities

Print publications such as magazines, books, newspapers and Special Issue publications (such as annuals) offer a variety of advertising opportunities: [5]

Magazines, especially those that target specific niche or specialized interest areas, are more tightly targeted compared to broadcast media. Additionally, magazines offer the option of allowing marketers to present their message using high quality imagery (e.g., full color) and can also offer advertisers the ability to integrate interactive, tactile experiences through the use of scratch-it papers impregnated with scents (e.g., perfume).

Newspapers have also incorporated color advertisements, though their main advantage rests with their ability to target local markets. For advertisers, the ability to insert catalogs or special promotional material into the newspaper is an advantage.

Special Issue publications can offer very selective targeting since these often focus on an extremely narrow topics (e.g., auto buying guide, tour guides, college and university ratings, etc.).

Internet advertising

The Internet is the fastest growing advertising media HP Pavilion G7-1317cl Notebook PC.jpeg
The Internet is the fastest growing advertising media

The fastest growing media outlet for advertising is the Internet. Compared to spending in other media, the rate of spending for Internet advertising is experiencing tremendous growth and in the U.S. trails only newspaper and television advertising in terms of total spending. Internet advertising's influence continues to expand and each year more major marketers shift a larger portion of their promotional budget to this medium. [6] Two key reasons for this shift rest with the Internet's ability to: (1) narrowly target an advertising message and, (2) track user response to the advertiser's message. [7]

The Internet offers many advertising options with messages delivered through websites or by email: [8]

Online advertising has spawned a range of new segmentation and targeting approaches including Affinity targeting, Behavioral targeting, Contextual targeting and Geographic targeting and Purchase-based category targeting. [11]

Out-of-home media

Piccadilly Circus, London is lit up with multiple out-of-home messages) Piccadilly Circus, London - at night - Lyca Mobile and Hyundai (6438384381).jpg
Piccadilly Circus, London is lit up with multiple out-of-home messages)

The use of signs to communicate a marketer's message places advertising in geographically identified areas in order to capture customer attention. The most obvious method of using signs is through billboards, which are generally located in high traffic areas. Outdoor billboards come in many sizes, though the most well-known are large structures located near transportation points intending to attract the interest of people traveling on roads or public transportation. Indoor billboards are often smaller than outdoor billboards and are designed to attract the attention of foot traffic (i.e., those moving past the sign). For example, smaller signage in airports, train terminals and large commercial office space fit this category. [ citation needed ]

While billboards are the most obvious example of signage advertising, there are many other forms of signage advertising include:

Mobile device advertising

The growth of hand-held devices is changing the way that consumers consume media and search for product information' A serviceman accesses social media channels using an iPad, outside MOD Main Building in London MOD 45156052.jpg
The growth of hand-held devices is changing the way that consumers consume media and search for product information'

Handheld devices, such as cellphones, smartphones, portable computers and other wireless devices, make up the growing mobile device market. Such devices allow customers to stay informed, gather information and communicate with others without being tied to a physical location. While the mobile device market is only beginning to become a viable advertising medium, it may soon offer significant opportunity for marketers to reach customers at any time and anywhere.

Also, with geographic positioning features included in newer mobile devices, the medium has the potential to provide marketers with the ability to target customers based on their geographic location. Currently, the most popular advertising delivery method to mobile devices is through plain text messaging, however, over the next few years multimedia advertisements are expected to become the dominant message format. [ citation needed ]

Word of Mouth Promotion of products can also happen through verbal communication between people.

Audience research

Selecting the optimal media vehicles for a given campaign requires detailed research and analysis. Media planners need to match their target market with media audiences. [12] Identifying the audience for a magazine or newspaper, or determining who watches television at a given time, is a specialized form of market research, often conducted on behalf of media owners.

Measures of media audience that are of especial interest to advertisers include: [13]

Print Media

Broadcast Media

Out-of-home media

Internet and digital media [14]

Although much of the audience research data is normally only available to subscribers and prospective advertisers, basic information is published for the general public, often as topline survey findings. The type and depth of freely available information varies across geographic markets. Audience research for broadcast media is provided to prospective advertisers via the networks or via a media buying group. A limited amount of basic audience data is available to the general public through statutory authorities or media organisations.

Links to Wikipedia Articles About Organisations that May Provide Sources of Broadcast Audience Data ( Main English speaking markets)
CountryRadioTelevision
Australia GfK for Commercial Radio Australia [15] OzTAM [16] and Regional TAM
Britain RAJAR Broadcasters' Audience Research Board
Canada Numeris Numeris
New Zealand GfK for the Radio Broadcasters Association [17] Sky TV, TVNZ and TVWorks
United States Nielsen Audio [18] Nielsen

Advertising media scheduling

Scheduling refers to the pattern of advertising timing, represented as plots on a calendar-type flowchart (as shown in the figure), typically for one year, but may be for a specific campaign of shorter duration. A media schedule typically contains specific detail including the media channels used, ... specifies insertion or broadcast dates, positions, and duration of the messages." [19] These plots indicate the pattern of scheduled times advertising must appear to coincide with favorable selling periods. The classic scheduling models are: Blitzing; Continuity, Flighting and Pulsing. [20]

The media schedule includes specific detail such as dates, media, position, placement Sample Media Schedule.jpg
The media schedule includes specific detail such as dates, media, position, placement
Blitzing,continuity, flighting and pulsing are the main schedule patterns Broad Approaches to Scheduling-1.jpg
Blitzing,continuity, flighting and pulsing are the main schedule patterns

A major consideration in constructing media schedules is timing. The advertiser's main aim should be to place the advertisement as close as practical to the point where consumers make their purchase decision. [21] For example, an advertiser who knows that a grocery buyer does a main shop on Saturday afternoons and a top-up shop on Wednesday nights, may consider using radio spots to reach the shopper while he or she is driving to the supermarket.

The broad approaches to scheduling are: [22]

Blitzing

Blitzing consists of one concentrated burst of advertising normally during the initial period of the planning horizon. Blitzing is more likely to be used by new products attempting to penetrate the market or by dominant brands in competitive markets.

Continuity

Continuity is a pattern of relatively constant levels throughout a given time period or campaign. This approach is primarily for staple, perishable products (i.e. non-seasonal products). Advertising runs steadily with little variation over the campaign period. There may be short gaps at regular intervals and also long gaps—for instance, one ad every week for 52 weeks, and then a pause. This pattern of advertising is prevalent in service and packaged goods that require continuous reinforcement on the audience for top of mind recollection at point of purchase. Advantages:

Program or plan that identifies the media channels used in an advertising campaign, and specifies insertion or broadcast dates, positions, and duration of the messages.

Flighting (or "bursting")

In media scheduling for seasonal product categories, flighting involves intermittent and irregular periods of advertising (flights), alternating with shorter periods (hiatuses) of no advertising at all. The main advantage of the flighting technique is that it allows an advertiser who does not have funds for running spots continuously to conserve money and maximize the effect of the commercials by airing them at key strategic times. Advertisers may employ less costly media such as radio or newspaper during a television flighting hiatus. This method of media planning allows the messages and themes of the advertising campaign to continue to reach consumers while conserving advertising funds. [23]

Advantages:

Pulsing

Pulsing combines flighting and continuous scheduling by using a low levels advertising of continuous advertising, followed by intermittent bursts of more intense advertising at predetermined times such as holidays, peak seasons. Product categories that are sold year round but experience a surge in sales at intermittent periods are good candidates for pulsing. For instance, under-arm deodorants, sell all year, but more in summer months. Pulsing is also used by market challengers who want to create an impression of a larger advertising budget.

Empirical support for the effectiveness of pulsing is relatively weak. However, research suggests that continuous schedules and flighted schedules generally result in strong levels of consumer recall. [24] [25]

Advantages:

Media buying

Also see Media buying

While some advertisers prefer to purchase advertising spots by dealing directly with media owners (e.g. newspapers, magazines or broadcast networks), in practice most media buying is purchased as part of broader negotiations via a media buying agency or media buying group. Well-known centralised buying groups include Zenith or Optimedia. These large media agencies are able to exert market power through volume purchasing by buying up space for an entire year. Media agencies benefit advertisers by providing advertising units at lower rates and also through the provision of added value services such as media planning services. [26]

Most media outlets use dynamic pricing, a form of yield management which means that there are no fixed rates. Prices depend on a number of factors including - the advertiser's prior relationship with the network, the volume of inventory being purchased, the timing of the booking and whether the advertiser is using cross-media promotions such as product placements. Advertising spots purchased closer to air-time tend to be more expensive. [27]

Buying advertising spots on national TV is very expensive. Given that most media outlets use dynamic pricing, rates vary from day to day, creating difficulties locating indicative rates. However, from time to time, trade magazines publish adrates which may be used as a general guide. The following table provides indicative advertising rates for selected popular programs on American national television networks, broadcast during prime time viewing hours.

Advertising rates, selected US TV programs, 2010 [28]
Program/ NetworkNetworkBroadcast Day / TimeRate (per 30 second spot)
American Idol *FoxDay not stated, prime-time$360,000 - $490,000
Sunday Night FootballNBCSunday, prime-time$435,000
Family GuyFoxSunday, prime-time$215,000
Saturday Night College FootballABCSaturday, prime-time$140,000
SurvivorCBSThursday, prime-time$152,000
The Biggest LoserNBCTuesday, prime-time$128,000
Jay Leno **NBCMon-Fri, Late-night$48,800 - $65,000

Notes:

* Rates for programs such as American Idol increase as the program moves closer to finals
** Rates for Mon-Fri programs such as Jay Leno vary depending on the day of the week and the expected audience size

See also

Related Research Articles

Mass marketing is a marketing strategy in which a firm decides to ignore market segment differences and appeal the whole market with one offer or one strategy, which supports the idea of broadcasting a message that will reach the largest number of people possible. Traditionally, mass marketing has focused on radio, television and newspapers as the media used to reach this broad audience. By reaching the largest audience possible, exposure to the product is maximized, and in theory this would directly correlate with a larger number of sales or buys into the product.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Direct marketing</span> Model of communicating discounts and other sales offers

Direct marketing is a form of communicating an offer, where organizations communicate directly to a pre-selected customer and supply a method for a direct response. Among practitioners, it is also known as direct response marketing. In contrast to direct marketing, advertising is more of a mass-message nature.

Marketing communications refers to the use of different marketing channels and tools in combination. Marketing communication channels focus on how businesses communicate a message to its desired market, or the market in general. It is also in charge of the internal communications of the organization. Marketing communication tools include advertising, personal selling, direct marketing, sponsorship, communication, public relations, social media, customer journey and promotion.

Email marketing is the act of sending a commercial message, typically to a group of people, using email. In its broadest sense, every email sent to a potential or current customer could be considered email marketing. It involves using email to send advertisements, request business, or solicit sales or donations. Email marketing strategies commonly seek to achieve one or more of three primary objectives: build loyalty, trust, or brand awareness. The term usually refers to sending email messages with the purpose of enhancing a merchant's relationship with current or previous customers, encouraging customer loyalty and repeat business, acquiring new customers or convincing current customers to purchase something immediately, and sharing third-party ads.

Online advertising, also known as online marketing, Internet advertising, digital advertising or web advertising, is a form of marketing and advertising that uses the Internet to promote products and services to audiences and platform users. Online advertising includes email marketing, search engine marketing (SEM), social media marketing, many types of display advertising, and mobile advertising. Advertisements are increasingly being delivered via automated software systems operating across multiple websites, media services and platforms, known as programmatic advertising.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Advertising management</span> Part of the advertising industry

Advertising management is a planned managerial process designed to oversee and control the various advertising activities involved in a program to communicate with a firm's target market and which is ultimately designed to influence the consumer's purchase decisions. Advertising is just one element in a company's promotional mix and as such, must be integrated with the overall marketing communications program. Advertising is, however, the most expensive of all the promotional elements and therefore must be managed with care and accountability. Advertising management process also helps in defining the outline of the media campaign and in deciding which type of advertising would be used before the launch of a product.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Advertising campaign</span> Advertisements based on a theme

An advertising campaign is a series of advertisement messages that share a single idea and theme which make up an integrated marketing communication (IMC). An IMC is a platform in which a group of people can group their ideas, beliefs, and concepts into one large media base. Advertising campaigns utilize diverse media channels over a particular time frame and target identified audiences.

Click-through rate (CTR) is the ratio of clicks on a specific link to the number of times a page, email, or advertisement is shown. It is commonly used to measure the success of an online advertising campaign for a particular website, as well as the effectiveness of email campaigns.

The target audience is the intended audience or readership of a publication, advertisement, or other message catered specifically to the previously intended audience. In marketing and advertising, the target audience is a particular group of consumer within the predetermined target market, identified as the targets or recipients for a particular advertisement or message.

A mobile campaign is a campaign, usually marketing, advertising, or public relations-related, through which organizations contact their audience through SMS. This form of campaigning allows organizations to reach out and establish relationships with an audience in a more individualized, intimate way. The foundational function of mobile campaigns is regularly referred to as mobile marketing. A campaign's goal can have varied consumer consumption objectives including flashing, informing or engaging. Mobile campaigns have developed from the periphery of advertising to being an integral part of an effective marketing strategy. Online advertising is the second largest advertising spend at $113 billion, next to television's $196.5 billion. Near the introduction of mobile campaigns, they were primarily created to boost the impact of primary campaigns. A good example of one of the first mobile campaigns is the viewer voting system employed in American Idol. Using the American Idol example, the primary campaign was television, and the engagement was mobile, “watch this show, and text to vote”. In 2012, there were over 131 million votes in a single night, setting the world mobile voting record. With over 90% of Americans having cell phones, and there being over 6.8 billion cell phones in circulation globally versus 2.4 billion with internet access, mobile campaigns are evolving to be the way of the future in advertising and consumer engagement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Digital marketing</span> Marketing of products or services using digital technologies or digital tools

Digital marketing is the component of marketing that uses the Internet and online-based digital technologies such as desktop computers, mobile phones, and other digital media and platforms to promote products and services. Its development during the 1990s and 2000s changed the way brands and businesses use technology for marketing. As digital platforms became increasingly incorporated into marketing plans and everyday life, and as people increasingly used digital devices instead of visiting physical shops, digital marketing campaigns have become prevalent, employing combinations of search engine optimization (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), content marketing, influencer marketing, content automation, campaign marketing, data-driven marketing, e-commerce marketing, social media marketing, social media optimization, e-mail direct marketing, display advertising, e-books, and optical disks and games have become commonplace. Digital marketing extends to non-Internet channels that provide digital media, such as television, mobile phones, callbacks, and on-hold mobile ringtones. The extension to non-Internet channels differentiates digital marketing from online marketing.

A target market, also known as serviceable obtainable market (SOM), is a group of customers within a business's serviceable available market at which a business aims its marketing efforts and resources. A target market is a subset of the total market for a product or service.

Media buying refers to the procurement of advertising on mediums such as a television, newspapers, commercial radio, magazines, websites, mobile apps, over-the-top media services, out-of-home advertising etc. It also includes price negotiation and the appropriate placement of ads based on research to reach the right audiences considering the product, service and message being advertised. A media buyer is tasked to perform such activities.

Media planning is generally outsourced and entails sourcing and selecting optimal media platforms for a client's brand or product to use. The goal of media planning is to determine the best combination of media to achieve the clients objectives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Targeted advertising</span> Form of advertising

Targeted advertising is a form of advertising, including online advertising, that is directed towards an audience with certain traits, based on the product or person the advertiser is promoting.

Social network advertising, also known as social media targeting, is a group of terms used to describe forms of online advertising and digital marketing focusing on social networking services. A significant aspect of this type of advertising is that advertisers can take advantage of users' demographic information, psychographics, and other data points to target their ads.

Performance-based advertising, also known as pay for performance advertising, is a form of advertising in which the purchaser pays only when there are measurable results. Its objective is to drive a specific action, and advertisers only pay when that action, such as an acquisition or sale, is completed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Social media marketing</span> Promotion of products or services on social media

Social media marketing is the use of social media platforms and websites to promote a product or service. Although the terms e-marketing and digital marketing are still dominant in academia, social media marketing is becoming more popular for both practitioners and researchers.

Call to action (CTA) is a marketing term for any text designed to prompt an immediate response or encourage an immediate sale. A CTA most often refers to the use of words or phrases that can be incorporated into sales scripts, advertising messages, or web pages, which compel an audience to act in a specific way.

The United States food and beverage industry has increased the amount of advertising that intensively and aggressively targets children through multiple channels. Food marketers know that the youth consumers have equal if not more spending power than adults, they hold purchasing influence, and have the potential to be lifelong consumers. The advertisements for products predominantly high in sugar and fat have increased and have had an effect on the major health epidemic in the US of Childhood obesity, and as such are inconsistent with national dietary recommendations. Food advertisements have moved from the television into the classroom. Marketing companies are exploring new creative techniques to reach their target audience, young children, through promotions, contests, and incentive programs. As a result, the US has progressively been placing regulations on how much advertising is allowed during children's programming.

References

  1. Brierly, S., The Advertising Handbook, London, Routledge, 1995, p. 102
  2. Deng, Yiting; Mela, C.F. (2018). "TV Viewing and Advertising Targeting" (PDF). Journal of Marketing Research. 55 (1): 99–118. doi:10.1509/jmr.15.0421. S2CID   168983012.
  3. Based on Kotler,P., Burton, S., Deans, K., Brown,L. and Armstrong, G., Marketing, 9th ed., French's Forest, NSW, Pearson Australia, p.477
  4. Stenovec, Tim. "Traditional TV just got bashed by an influential expert". Business Insider. Retrieved 2022-11-30.
  5. "Who says print is dead?". the Guardian. 2012-06-03. Retrieved 2022-11-30.
  6. McDonald, J., "The global adspend outlook," WARC, 22 December 2015 <Online: https://www.warc.com/Blogs/The_global_adspend_outlook.blog?ID=2213 Archived 2017-02-11 at the Wayback Machine >
  7. Rodgers, S and Thorson, E., (eds) Internet Advertising: Theory and Research, 2nd ed.,Hove, East Sussex, Psychology Press, 2012
  8. Plummer, J. Rappaport, S., Hall, T. and Barroci, R., The Online Advertising Playbook: Proven Strategies and Tested Tactics, 1st ed., Advertising Research Foundation, 2007
  9. Plummer, J. Rappaport, S., Hall, T. and Barroci, R., The Online Advertising Playbook: Proven Strategies and Tested Tactics, 1st ed., Advertising Research Foundation, 2007, pp 242-257
  10. Zeff, R., Advertising on the Internet, 2nd ed., Wiley, 1999, pp 70-71
  11. Plummer, J. Rappaport, S., Hall, T. and Barroci, R., The Online Advertising Playbook: Proven Strategies and Tested Tactics, 1st ed., Advertising Research Foundation, 2007, pp 7-30
  12. Brierly, S., The Advertising Handbook, London, Routledge, 1995, p.101
  13. Nielsen Media Research, <Online: www.nielsenmedia.co.nz/en/pdf/mri/28/mediaterms.pdf>
  14. Bermejo, F., The Internet Audience: Constitution & Measurement, New York, Peter Lang, 2007, pp 75-101
  15. "Surveys". Archived from the original on 5 October 2017. Retrieved 11 January 2017.
  16. "About OzTAM". Archived from the original on 15 January 2015. Retrieved 11 January 2017.
  17. ""Moving on: RBA ends its long-term relationship with TNS--UPDATED "". 23 July 2015. Retrieved 11 January 2017.
  18. Albarran, Alan B. (2016). Management of Electronic and Digital Media. Cengage Learning. p. 148. ISBN   9781305077560 . Retrieved 11 January 2017.
  19. Business Dictionary,http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/media-schedule.html Archived 2016-12-20 at the Wayback Machine
  20. Pickton, D. and Broderick, A., Integrated Marketing Communications, Prentice-Hall,2001. p. 671
  21. Rossiter, J.R and Danaher, P.J., Advanced Media Planning, Volume 1, Kluwer Academic, 1998, p.8
  22. Pickton, D. and Broderick, A., Integrated Marketing Communications, Prentice-Hall,2001. p. 671
  23. Clow, Kenneth, Concise Encyclopedia of Advertising, Haworth, March 2005, ISBN   0-7890-2211-7, pp 83–86.
  24. Vakratas, D. and Naik, P. "Essentials of Media Planning Schedules", in The SAGE Handbook of Advertising, Gerard J. Tellis and Tim Ambler (eds), London, Sage, 2007, pp 333-348
  25. Longman, K. A. "If not effective frequency, then what?" Journal of Advertising Research, July-Aug. 1997, p. 44
  26. Brierly, S., The Advertising Handbook, London, Routledge, 1995, p. 68
  27. Steinberg, B., "Sunday Night Football' Remains Costliest TV Show: Prices Overall See Decline," AdAge, 26 October 2009
  28. Maddox,K., “Steinberg, B., "Sunday Night Football' Remains Costliest TV Show: Prices Overall See Decline," AdAge, 26 October 2009

Further reading