The business of advertising is all about (a)What to say (b) How to
say and (c) Most ignored,yet very important WHERE to say.While the 'what to
say' (strategic planning) attracts brainstorming and 'how to say' (creative
execution) is considered glamorous,the 'where to say' does not receive
sufficient attention.Usually no one ever thinks it is important to involve the
media person at the strategic planning stage or the creative planning stage
while working on a campaign.Often there is just a cursory representation of
media in these meetings,in the form of a silent spectator who,if and when
decides to speak up will do so n terms of banal statistics and numbers and
jargon that often puts the 'creative' heads to sleep.
The Media-Creative marriage
Advertising is communication.Effective communication is a lot
about presentation of the message.One of the media planner's most important
jobs is to choose best vehicle for the exposure of this message.Entire budgets
may end up going down the drain if the valuable crores of rupees are not
allocated appropriately to reach out the message to the potential consumer.What
one needs to make brilliant campaign is to establish close communication
between the media planner and the copy group right from the early stages of
plans development.This will help in one,the copy group understanding the
exposure opportunities and limitations early on in the planning stage
and two,in the media planner understanding the intended creative approach to
guide in selection of media.
Today's media scene
The dynamic nature of today's media could be because of the
umpteen number of entertainment and infotainment options that are today
available to the consumers.Gone are the days of one Doordarshan,a few leading
publications,and even fewer options of entertainment and outings.The arrival of
he various satellite channels and publications and their ever-increasing
numbers makes a planner's job quite tricky
and skillful.Paradoxically,today's media fact is that though T.V viewing
has shot up(in terms of no. of hours),reading habits have not going down.The
high audience fragmentation;the 'freebie' survival tactics offered by
many channels and publications who are giving'free' sports and space to win
more advertising revenue from clients etc. all add to the complexities of media
planning.
No wonder,given this scenario,agencies often fall into the trap of
getting caught in the 'presented facts' rather than delving deep within to look
at and evaluate the core.For most agencies,making deals and bargains is the
order of the day and measure of their 'media' success,without adequate
attention to reach and frequency.The cost -benefit ratio has gone for a
toss,often ending up in the agencies spreading themselves thin.It's easier
or today's media person to be a part of a herd mentality('I must be on T.V.
because everyone else is on T.V.') than to turn the clock in
their favor with great plans and ideas.
Large Indian advertisers have gone one step ahead.They have
started negotiating with most channels and publications themselves with the
result huge amounts are being spent but these are hardly getting media
visibility.The entire focus is on media buying driven by better deals,rather
than fine tune planning.
The Science of Media Planning
So,what is scientific media planning? How can a campaign utilize
media planning to get more effective,rather than just media negotiation? A
simple 6-Step process could help in making the intended campaign reach more
incisively,or to put it more sportingly,you will hit a six with this super six
step process
Step 1: The situation analysis
As is the accepted 'given' in most agencies,a media person works
on a 'brief' that he is given by the client servicing person,or if
lucky,straight from the client,by being a part of the client meeting.A smart
planner would exercise his grey cells further and clearly understand
the marketing problem,delve into the company and its competitors,understand the
dynamics of size and share of market,study the sales history, distribution
practices(yes,it helps to know how the brand you are working on reaches its end
user),method of selling,before finally coming into
the identification of the media.Too much,is never really too
much,when it comes to gathering brand information,as the more we know,the more
innovative we can get,in generating cut-throat media plan.
Step 2:Getting to the market strategy
Advertising is the means to achieve marketing objectives.Some
ad professionals forget this and look at advertising as a creative field
for fulfillment of creative urges.Very few of us realize the
responsibilty that rests on our shoulders in this profession.Good media
planners however,do realise the value of millions of rupees entrusted to them
by their clients and judiciously spend each rupee to get the maximum mileage
off it.Your media plan,as a good planner,must stick to this essence and revolve
around activities that solve one or more marketing problem.To do this you must
put the marketing objective in focus before you arrive at any media
decisions.Based on these objectives you need to arrive at a 'Spending strategy'
which you would apply after the identification of best market
segment.
Step 3:Setting Media Objectives
Now that you have your spend strategy in line with the marketing
objectives,the next big step is to translate these marketing objectives and
spend strategies into goals that media can accomplish.To do this it is
important to state the media objective in as clear a term as possible.For
example if we are trying to sell a premium perfume that costs around Rs.3,500/-
for a 100 ml bottle,the media objective could probably be
"To reach 80% women in the age group of 25-44,in SEC A+ and
A,living in major metro towns(specify the towns),ensuring that they are exposed
to the message at least 4 times a week( average frequency)".
Compare this to a vague objective like "To reach all women in SEC A &
A+", where in you could lose your focus as it does not offer you any direction
to strategize.
Step 4: Determining the media strategy
Having set he objectives now comes the time to translate media
goals into general guidelines that will control the planners selection and use
of media.Analyse all possible data available and arrive at the best possible
media class that can deliver your message to the maximum of the audience set as
the target in our objective.Should this media class be
Television,Dailies,Radio,Internet,Outdoor,Magazines or do we need to innovate?
If any particular medium in unable to reach out to all 80%,then we llok at
alternative media classes that will fill in the gap.Simply put,this means you
need to choose broad media classes and determine the primary medium of message
delivery to achieve the marketing objectives.Work out various strategies that
can achieve our objectives,with the central point being simple audience
delivery! Having done this,zoom in and select on the best strategy alternative
that will lead you to your next step.
Step 5:Selection of media vehicles.
Having carefully picked and chosen the broad media
classes,now you need to freeze on the exact vehicles that will deliver to the
media objectives.It is best to know what you expect each of the medium and the
chose vehicles to deliver.Here you will address issues like,who is each of
these addressing from the targeted audience,what is he intended goal
behind using this particular vehicle etc.
After arriving at a probable shortlist,compare and select the best
media within the broad classes-If magazines which one?
If Television -which channel? If newspaper - which one? If radio-
which channels? Analyze these options and allocate approximate spends to each
of these.
Step 6: Media use decisions
Having chosen the channels/newspapers/radio channels/websites
etc.,now answer crucial questions like- what is the level of reach and
frequency you think is needed to reach out to the target audience? Are there
any specific days/months more important to help in achieving marketing
objectives? What is the optimum number of insertions/spots required per
week/month to fulfill the average frequency set in the media objective? Will
having any preferred positions/placements within media help deliver message
better? The more specific out questions and answers are the more bang-on our
plan will be!
Going through these Super Sixes greatly reduced
any weaknesses in planning.The more you use these steps to
plan, the more astute and precise you rill get at the job of
planning.With time you will realize that getting the best deal in media is not
always about the best price at which you have bought media.Rather it is about
how best you have got your target audience bought into your media selection so
they buy enough of the brand you have been made a custodian of.So happy planning
and may the New Year be a well planned year for you.
