Media exists primarily to deliver a message, content- entertainment, information & advertisements to a vast audience. Media is considered both as a carrier & delivery7 system. Advertisers find media convenient & inexpensive as compared to direct mail or other channels. This applies to both online & traditional media. Marketers need to place their advertisements on proper media so that they can catch the eyes of the target audience. 

 

Meaning of Media Buying

Media buying is the process of identifying & selecting media outlets mainly newspapers, magazines, websites, TV & radio stations & outdoor placements -in which to place advertisements. Media buying term is generally includes purchasing ad time and ad space, the placement of ads in various media channels It is in which the advertiser needs to be smart enough to decide where to place his advertisement placements to target the accurate audience & reach a larger audience. It is a process in which the marketer needs to buy different placements for his ad on various media at the best affordable prices with a target to reach a wider audience. It can also be referred to as the advertiser looking to rent a placement over different media channels which will increase conversion rates, sales, & also help with brand awareness. It helps your business to expand & make its name in every part of the world wherever you decide to. Media acts as a bridge to connect the advertiser as well as the audience with each other.  

Media Buying Process

 

The media buying process can be discussed in the below steps

1. Making a strategy

Advertisers need to plan their strategy for media buying. They need to decide whether they want their ad placement in newspaper, radio, Tv, banner, or maybe Digital media. They need to indirectly focus on Media planning. Media buying strategies are essential to succeed. 

2. Negotiating & Buying

Media buyers need to negotiate with the media outlets to determine the best buying options considering the competitive rates of other advertisers. This will help you with your budget to utilize on other platforms for more media exposure.

3. Launching the ad Campaign

This is the step where your ad starts appearing on various websites or maybe on Tv ads, magazines, etc. In this step, you need to take care of evaluating your campaigns about how successful they are & how well they are performing. In case if they don’t work well you can switch to other media options after evaluating for a while.

4. Optimizing & Analyze Results

Once the evaluation is done you should start optimizing your ads & monitor them every day on the data provided. Detecting problems & solving them at the earliest will save you money, time & efforts. Make all the adjustments required for the campaigns to work well & to ensure better results. 

Some of the most broadly used media channels are –

1. Print Media

The earliest forms of print communications are newspapers, magazines, newsletters & other printed matter. These publications are collectively known as Print Media. In other word’s print media is the printed version of telling news. 

Newspapers are nowadays divided into segments containing information & news on various topics which gives a high involvement of readers were alongside the ads can be placed. However, it is extremely cost-effective as the message reaches out to a large audience at very low costs. As newspapers are also available in various languages if a marketer wants to advertise a particular region & culture this medium would help them. The advertisement in the local language will help them to connect with their target audience. 

The word magazine itself refers to a collection. They are purchased by a specialized group of people who can be identified & used as a target audience. It also helps to improve the prestige, reputation & image of the firm when they place their ad in one of the top magazines. 

2. Television

Tv is a vast source of information & entertainment exposed to people. Tv advertising in India is one of the most popular options used for decades. By placing an ad on the Tv the brand can reach out to all the country in a single instance. It also creates a deep impact & catches the viewers’ attention. Colorful advertisements show the products in their true authentic form. It is an ideal medium to exhibit products, services, including its demonstration. 

The Tv advertisements of a particular brand/ product help the distributors & dealers to judge its demand. Unlike other media options which have limitations, Tv doesn’t possess any. TV ads could contain music, jingles, pictures, text, audio, animations, etc. 

3. Billboards

Billboards ads come in various sizes & can be deployed at strategically targeted outdoor locations. They strive to target consumers on the move & engage them in an entirely non-intrusive way. At popular locations, the billboard is to be slightly expensive but will provide the brand with huge visibility to the audience. 

4. Posters

They are similar to billboards. The quality of the posters is less as compared to the billboards. The posters are smaller in size & comparatively have less cost. 

 

 

Challenges in Media Buying

It is considered to be very easy to buy media & place the advertisements by dealing with the sales representatives & get offers & deals. But certain challenges exist in Media Buying. Do you know what & who? Your Competitors! AS you know there is always competition & along with that it also becomes the client to give you approval for your ad on your preferred time, placement & budget.

1. Brand Image

Brand image plays a very important role in influencing customer’s decisions. If your ad appears on sites which are not relevant or inappropriate in the minds of customers it will affect their buying decision & also have a long-lasting bad impact of the brand in customer’s mind which may also lead to controversies

2. Avoid Ad Frauds

Ad fraud is when you pay the advertiser to place your ad on a particular website or media which do not exist. This occurs most with online media. Other cases could be where your ads can be placed on inappropriate sites which weren’t promised. Masked URLs, fake websites or ads layering on top of each other can be considered ad frauds.

3. Selecting the Media

It becomes difficult for the advertiser to choose on which medium he should place his ad to reach a wide audience. In such cases, an advertiser can choose a single medium or a mix of media to take his message to the target audience. In media mix, creative execution becomes varied when a media is used. In this process, one medium can be used to promote a product & the other as a reminder. 

4. Lack of Transparency

Sometimes there is a lack of transparency with the media outlets so it is important to get everything on documents signed & verified. This will also create mutual trust & understanding & neither of the parties will cheat or make false promises to each other.