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Belch: Advertising and
Promotion, Sixth Edition
V. Developing the
Integrated Marketing
Communications Program
10. Media Planning and
Strategy
© The McGraw−Hill
Companies, 2003
An Overview of Media Planning
The media planning process is not an easy one.
Options include mass media such as television,
newspapers, radio, and magazines (and the
choices available within each of these categories) as well as out-of-the-home media
such as outdoor advertising, transit advertising, and electronic billboards. A variety of
support media such as direct marketing, interactive media, promotional products
advertising, and in-store point-of-purchase options must also be considered. The Internet
and interactive media such as those described in the chapter lead-in increase the
complexity of this process.
While at first glance the choices among these alternatives might seem relatively
straightforward, this is rarely the case. Part of the reason media selection becomes so
involved is the nature of the media themselves. TV combines both sight and sound, an
advantage not offered by other media. Magazines can convey more information and
may keep the message available to the potential buyer for a much longer time. Newspapers
also offer their own advantages, as do outdoor, direct media, and each of the
others. The Internet offers many of the advantages of other media but is also limited in
its capabilities. The characteristics of each alternative must be considered, along with
many other factors. This process becomes even more complicated when the manager
has to choose between alternatives within the same medium—for example, between
Time and Newsweek or between Alias and Friends.
The potential for achieving effective communications through a well-designed
media strategy warrants the added attention. The power of an effective media strategy
was demonstrated by PC Flowers, at one time the smallest of the 25,000 members in
the Florists’ Transworld Delivery Association. The company then started to advertise
its services on the Internet. Within four months, PC Flowers moved into the top 10;
now it consistently ranks as one of the top two FTD members in the world. 1 Likewise,
an online advertising and e-mail campaign with a budget of only $300,000 was effective
enough to get 12,000 new members to sign up for British Air’s frequent-flyer program
(40 percent more than its goal) in only two weeks. 2
The product and/or service being advertised affects the media planning process.
As demonstrated in Figure 10-1, firms have found some media more useful than others
in conveying their messages to specific target audiences. For example, GM and
Procter & Gamble tend to rely more heavily on broadcast media, while others like
JCPenney and Federated Department Stores (not shown) place more emphasis on
print media. The result is placement of advertising dollars in these preferred media—
and significantly different media strategies.
Some Basic Terms and Concepts
Before beginning our discussion of media planning, we review some basic terms and
concepts used in the media planning and strategy process.
Media planning is the series of decisions involved in delivering the promotional
message to the prospective purchasers and/or users of the product or brand. Media
planning is a process, which means a number of decisions are made, each of which
may be altered or abandoned as the plan develops.
The media plan is the guide for media selection. It requires development of specific
media objectives and specific media strategies (plans of action) designed to attain
these objectives. Once the decisions have been made and the objectives and strategies
formulated, this information is organized into the media plan.
The medium is the general category of available delivery systems, which includes
broadcast media (like TV and radio), print media (like newspapers and magazines),
direct mail, outdoor advertising, and other support media. The media vehicle is the
specific carrier within a medium category. For example, Time and Newsweek are print
vehicles; 20/20 and 60 Minutes are broadcast vehicles. As you will see in later chapters,
each vehicle has its own characteristics as well as its own relative advantages and
disadvantages. Specific decisions must be made as to the value of each in delivering
the message.
Reach is a measure of the number of different audience members exposed at least
once to a media vehicle in a given period of time. Coverage refers to the potential audience
that might receive the message through a vehicle. Coverage relates to potential
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Chapter Ten Media Planning and Strategy