Advertising Media Strategy

The Strategic Planning Process… 2

A sub-component of the overall marketing communications plan…

Gather all relevant information… fill in the gaps!

Strategic advertising plan

Start from what you know or need to find out.

…which in turn is part of the overall marketing plan.

information gathering…

Product description

Market assessment

Source of business

Competitive evaluation

Marketing objectives

Percy and Elliott (2009 p. 83)

Marketing background issues in strategic planning…

What are you marketing?

What is your assessment of the competitive market?

Where do you expect business to come from?

What is your competition and their position?

What are the marketing objectives for the brand?

Can then progress on to strategic thinking…

How can advertising link the target audience to the marketing objectives?

What effect does what we know about the target market have on the messages we

want to communicate?

How can we make our brand stand out positively against competing brands?

What would be the most effective creative strategy?

Which media would be the best choices for carrying the advertising?

Percy and Elliott’s Five Steps…

Step One… Select the target audience based up the marketing strategy

Step Two… Understand how the target audience makes decisions in the category

Step Three… Determine the best positioning for the brand in the marketing communications

Step Four… Develop a communications strategy based upon the communication objective selected

Step Five… Set the media strategy to deliver the message and satisfy the communications objectives

Percy and Elliott, 2009

Step One… Select the target audience based up the marketing strategy

Where are sales or usage to come from?

What is known about the target audience?

Where do intermediaries fit in?

users or non-users… trial or repeat purchasers… new to or already using the category… loyal or promiscuous users

need to build a profile… demographics alone not enough… need to know attitudes, motivations, behaviour

advertising can have secondary target audiences… retailers, wholesalers, other stockists

Step Two… Understand how the target audience makes decisions in the category

Who is involved in the buying decision?

How does the buyer go about making the decision?

Understanding why… motives that drive behaviour

initiators, influencers, deciders, purchasers, users

choosing, purchasing, using

How can the advertising fit into this process?

Step Three… Determine the best positioning for the brand in the marketing communications

Positioning is about competitive stance within a category

What can this brand offer that others don’t?

Is repositioning necessary?

Giving the brand a differential advantage

Often already set by the overall marketing plan

Is a particular communication positioning needed?

Step Four… Develop a communications strategy based upon the communication objective selected

Communication effects…

Brand awareness and brand attitude strategy

Promotion strategy

Fulfills a category need… Brand awareness… Brand attitude… Brand purchase intention

Step Five… Set the media strategy to deliver the message and satisfy the communications objectives

Select best communication channels (media) for wanted effects

Compare and contrast strengths and weaknesses of options

Choices made must be consistent with objectives

Budget needs to be taken into account

Percy and Elliott’s Five Steps…

Select the target audience

Understand target audience decision making

Determine the best positioning

Develop a communications strategy

Setting a media strategy

Percy and Elliott, 2009

Identify media options, in terms of specific brand awareness and brand attitude strategy

Establish communications objectives and determine recall vs. recognition brand awareness strategy, and brand attitude strategy in terms of involvement and motivation

Link to brand category need to guide brand awareness strategy, and link brand to benefit to guide brand attitude strategy

Determine level of involvement and motivation to guide communication strategy and identify where media can effectively reach the tart audience

Identify target audience and establish a trial vs. repeat purchase target audience action objectives

Percy and Elliott’s Five Steps…

Select the target audience

Understand target audience decision making

Determine the best positioning

Develop a communications strategy

Setting a media strategy

Percy and Elliott, 2009

Advertising campaign…

What media strategy seems to have

been used? Exposure

How does the brand appear to have

been positioned? Effects

What communication strategy seems

to have been used? Processing

What target market decision making process is being tapped into?

Who is the target audience? Target

Advertising Tripartite

Advertiser

Media

Advertising Agency

Advertisers

Pay for advertising, but not their principal activity… manufacturers, retailers, charities, government, etc.

Advertising is a means to an end

May be the main way they communicate with their target market, but for many it is not

The final decision is theirs

Advertising Agencies

Create the advertising - creative agencies

Buy the media space – media buyers/ agencies

Receive the remaining 10% of the advertising spend

Not a big industry – but a valuable one

UK adspend in 2013 circa £13.9billion – WPP

Media

Carry advertising in return for payment… television, radio, newspapers, magazines, internet, etc.

Receive about 90% of what is spent by advertisers

Rely on advertising revenue to subsidise their output

See themselves as producing entertainment, news, information, documentaries, journalistic content, etc.

References and reading

Fletcher, W. (2010) Advertising: a very short introduction. Oxford: Oxford

University Press.

Percy, L. and Elliott, R. (2012) Strategic Advertising Management. Oxford,

Oxford University Press.

Yeshin, T. (2006). Advertising. London: Thomson

http://www.theguardian.com/media/2013/nov/25/uk-advertising-

spend-hit-pre-crash-high (accessed 12.09.2014)

http://www.wpp.com/wpp/ (accessed 12.09.2014)

http://www.brandrepublic.com/news/1314618/grey-london-unveils-

first-global-volvo-ad/ (accessed 1.10.2014)