What is a Media Planner
The process through which marketers decide where, when, and how frequently they will run an advertisement in order to optimise engagement and return on investment is known as media planning. The media strategy may distribute advertising expenditure and resources across a variety of online and offline platforms, including broadcast, print, paid advertisements, video advertisements, and native content.
To see interactions in today’s competitive marketing environment, marketers must provide customers with the right message, at the right time, on the appropriate channel. Marketers use media planning to figure out what these “rights” are.
A successful media strategy will provide a collection of advertising possibilities that are tailored to a particular audience and fit within the marketing budget of the company. Marketers often consider the following factors when creating a media plan:
- Who is the target audience for the advertisement?
- How much money do you have set aside for marketing?
- Conversion goals
- The message’s frequency
- The message’s reach
- What does it mean to be successful?
What exactly does a Media Planner do?
Media planners at advertising firms are the most common people who conduct media planning. To optimise ROI on media expenditure, media planners must collaborate with media buyers and the client organisation to create a strategy. Media planners must be well-versed on the organisation’s brand and target audience, as well as different media channels and emerging media trends.
Media planning is primarily concerned with developing a strategy, assessing its success, and making adjustments, while media purchasing is concerned with putting the strategy into action.
As previously said, the media planner will assess the brand and target demographic to identify the best message and media mix to use in order to reach customers in a favourable and effective manner.
Modern marketing often demands the use of many kinds of media, and a data-driven media strategy gives marketers access to consolidated data across all channels. This aids in the optimization of campaigns and messages, as well as the streamlining of the campaign evaluation process.
Skills and Traits required to work as a Media Planner
A desire to learn about the world of advertising is the most important need for a media planner, but a few additional skills and knowledge bases may help applicants stand out, such as:
- Strong organisational and analytical abilities.
- Commercial Potential.
- Social skills: Because the profession involves dealing with and entertaining clients, an interest in and ability to interact with coworkers and clients is essential.
- Marketing knowledge: Understanding how marketing and advertising operate is also essential. The first thing to consider is: How can a client — whether it’s a large consumer goods business like Starbucks or a nationwide non-profit service organisation like Planned Parenthood — the best brand itself?
- Knowledge of the entertainment media: Following that, media strategists must have a thorough understanding of the entertainment industry (from network TV shows to niche TV shows). Media planners can’t position advertisements properly until they know what type of audience is drawn to what type of program.
Because the media landscape in the 21st century is vastly different from that of the twentieth, media planners must be familiar with not only which national TV shows, large magazines, and newspapers to target, but also all of the websites, blogs, and social media offerings available to consumers.
- Computer skills: The work of a media planner entails conducting research utilising a variety of internet resources.
- For interacting with coworkers, clients, and media owners, good interpersonal, negotiating, and communication skills are required.
Future Career Prospects:
It’s common to begin as a trainee, working alongside a group of senior planners and purchasers. Working on a portfolio of accounts will allow you to learn on the job.
After approximately a year, you may go from the position of planning executive to that of a more experienced established planner or buyer. Senior or management jobs come with increased responsibilities, such as managing numerous accounts and overseeing the work of others. After a few years of experience, you should be able to advance to the position of account director. You may want to expand your career options by working in a bigger organisation or in similar areas like data planning, research, or marketing. In the media business, headhunting is frequent, and you may be able to shift between companies to improve your income and expand your expertise.
As a media planner, you could work for the following companies:
- Full-service advertising agencies, which cover all media.
- New media agencies, which cover advertising through digital media, text messaging, and the internet.
- Media agencies that cover all media.
Although some businesses have dedicated new media departments, the majority of media planning work is outsourced, and the number of external firms is growing. Because these firms are often tiny, job responsibilities often overlap, and although workers must have a strong knowledge of and passion for new media, they must also have a strong interest in business and advertising.
