Week 6: Media Strategy and Scheduling

Week 6 covers media planning: the basic concepts (medium, media vehicle, reach, coverage, frequency), the steps in developing a media plan, the criteria considered in media strategy (media mix, target market and geographic coverage, scheduling, reach versus frequency, creative aspects and mood, flexibility, budget), the factors that determine frequency levels, and evaluation and follow-up.

Media planning and the media plan

Definition: media planning

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: 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 specific media objectives and specific media strategies (plans of action) designed to attain them. Once the decisions are made and objectives and strategies formulated, this information is organised into the media plan.
The goal of the media plan is to find the combination of media that enables the marketer to communicate the message in the most effective manner to the largest number of potential customers at the lowest cost.

The lecture shows media plan templates (for example a digital media buying plan) in which, per media type (social media platforms, telemarketing, online, events, direct mail, traditional media), the planner enters the estimated number of impressions, cost per impression, fixed costs, estimated response rate and conversion rate. The template then calculates the number of responses and conversions, total cost, cost per impression, cost per response and cost per conversion.

Cost measures in a media plan template

Total cost = impressions x cost per impression + fixed cost

Responses = impressions x response rate; Conversions = responses x conversion rate

Cost per response = total cost / responses; Cost per conversion = total cost / conversions

Worked example: a social platform delivers 50,000 impressions at 0.002 euro per impression plus a fixed cost of 45 euro. Total cost = 50,000 x 0.002 + 45 = 145 euro. With a response rate of 0.5%, responses = 250; with 20% of respondents converting, conversions = 50. Cost per response = 145 / 250 = 0.58 euro; cost per conversion = 145 / 50 = 2.90 euro.

Medium versus media vehicle

The medium is the general category of available delivery systems: broadcast media (TV, radio), print media (newspapers, 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. Each vehicle has its own characteristics, advantages and disadvantages, and decisions must be made about the value of each in delivering the message.

Reach, coverage and frequency

Reach is the number of different audience members exposed at least once to a media vehicle in a given period of time.
Coverage is the potential audience that might receive the message through a vehicle. Coverage relates to the potential audience; reach refers to the actual audience delivered.
Frequency is the number of times the receiver is exposed to the media vehicle in a specified period.

Gross rating points (standard textbook measure, supplementary)

GRP = reach (in % of the target audience) x average frequency. GRPs express the total weight of a media schedule.

Worked example: a schedule reaches 60% of the target audience with an average frequency of 3: GRP = 60 x 3 = 180. A schedule reaching 45% with an average frequency of 4 also gives 180 GRPs, but trades reach for frequency.

Developing the media plan

Like the promotional planning model (identify target markets, establish objectives, formulate strategies), the media plan has four phases:

Market analysis
Establishment of media objectives
Media strategy development and implementation
Evaluation and follow-up

1. Market analysis

Purpose: to understand the marketing problem. The company and its competitors are analysed on the basis of:

Size and share of the total market.
Sales history, costs and profits.
Distribution practices.
Methods of selling.
Use of advertising.
Identification of prospects.
Nature of the product.

2. Media objectives

Media objectives are not ends in themselves: they are designed to lead to the attainment of communication and marketing objectives. They are the goals for the media program and should be limited to what can be accomplished through media strategies.

Example of media objectives

Create awareness in the target market through the following:

Use broadcast media to provide coverage of 80% of the target market over a six-month period.
Reach 60% of the target audience at least three times over the same six-month period.
Concentrate the heaviest advertising in winter and spring, with lighter emphasis in summer and fall.

Worked example: with a target market of 2,000,000 people, 80% coverage means 1,600,000 potential audience members, and the reach objective means 1,200,000 different people must see the message at least three times.

3. Media strategy: criteria considered in the development of media plans

The media mix
Target market coverage
Geographic coverage
Scheduling
Reach versus frequency
Creative aspects and mood
Flexibility
Budget considerations

The media mix

The objectives, the characteristics of the product or service, the size of the budget and individual preferences are some of the factors that determine the combination of media used. Examples:

A product that requires a visual demonstration: TV may be most effective.
A strategy using coupons to stimulate trial: print media may be necessary.
For in-depth information: the Internet may be best.

Target market coverage

Media strategy involves matching the most appropriate media to the target market by asking: "Through which media and media vehicles can I best get my message to prospective buyers?" The goal is to extend coverage to as many members of the target audience as possible while minimising waste coverage (exposure to people who are not in the target market). Geographic coverage similarly concerns where the target market is located.

Scheduling: continuity, flighting and pulsing

The primary objective of scheduling is to time promotional efforts so that they coincide with the highest potential buying times. For some products these times are hard to identify; for others they are obvious. There are three scheduling methods:

Method	Description	Best for / example
Continuity	A continuous, regular pattern of advertising (every day, week or month) without gaps or non-advertising periods.	Food products, laundry detergents and other products consumed on an ongoing basis regardless of season (e.g. Pantene shampoo).
Flighting	A less regular schedule with intermittent periods of advertising and non-advertising; heavy spending in some periods and none in others.	Seasonal products: snow skis (Rossignol) advertised heavily from October to April and not at all in June and July; ice cream.
Pulsing	A combination of the first two: continuity is maintained, but at certain times promotional efforts are stepped up.	Coca-Cola advertises continuously but steps up at Christmas; the same applies to Starbucks (holiday campaigns).

Reach versus frequency and effective reach

Because of budget constraints, marketers must decide whether to increase reach at the expense of frequency or to increase frequency to a smaller audience. Examples:

A new product or brand introduction tries to maximise reach, particularly unduplicated reach, to create awareness among as many people as possible as quickly as possible.
A high-involvement product, or one whose benefits are not obvious, needs a certain level of frequency to achieve effective reach.

Effective reach

Effective reach is the percentage of a vehicle's audience reached at each effective frequency increment. It is based on the assumption that one exposure may not be enough to convey the message. No one knows the exact number of exposures needed, but advertisers have settled on three as the minimum. Effective reach lies in the range of 3 to 10 exposures: fewer than 3 is insufficient reach; more than 10 is overexposure and thus ineffective.

Worked example: in the target audience, 15% are exposed once, 12% twice, 20% three to five times, 13% six to ten times and 5% more than ten times (35% are not reached). Total reach = 15 + 12 + 20 + 13 + 5 = 65%. Effective reach (3 to 10 exposures) = 20 + 13 = 33%. The 27% exposed once or twice are insufficiently reached, and the 5% above ten exposures are overexposed.

Creative aspects and mood

A strong creative campaign can significantly increase a product's success, but to implement the creativity you need a medium that supports that strategy.
Sometimes the media strategy is the driving force behind the creative strategy, with media and creative departments working closely together for maximum impact (examples: MINI's "Outside the box" billboard with a real car above a cut-out shape, and a MINI car "shot" onto a building-sized billboard with giant arrows, "Ban boredom").
Mood: certain media enhance the creativity of a message because they create a mood that carries over to the communication. Special-interest magazines such as Gourmet, Skiing, Travel and House Beautiful put readers in a particular mood, which enhances ads for fine wines, ski boots, luggage and home products.

Flexibility (the ability to adapt to opportunities, threats or changes in media availability) and budget considerations (matching the plan to the available budget and cost efficiency) complete the list of criteria.

Factors important in determining frequency levels

Marketing factors

Factor	Effect on required frequency
Brand history	New brands generally require higher frequency.
Brand share	Inverse relationship: the higher the brand share, the lower the frequency needed.
Brand loyalty	Inverse relationship: the higher the loyalty, the lower the frequency needed.
Purchase cycles	Shorter purchase cycles require higher frequency to maintain top-of-mind awareness.
Usage cycle	Products used daily or more often and replaced quickly need higher frequency.
Competitive share of voice	More competitive noise, or the goal to meet or beat competitors, requires higher frequency.
Target group	The target group's ability to learn and retain messages directly affects frequency.

Message or creative factors

Factor	Effect on required frequency
Message complexity	The simpler the message, the less frequency required.
Message uniqueness	The more unique the message, the lower the frequency required.
New versus continuing campaigns	New campaigns require higher frequency to register the message.
Image versus product sell	Creating an image requires higher frequency than a specific product sell.
Message variation	A single message requires less frequency; a variety of messages requires more.
Wearout	Higher frequency may lead to wearout; this must be tracked and used to evaluate frequency levels.
Advertising units	Larger ad units require less frequency than smaller ones.

Media factors

Factor	Effect on required frequency
Clutter	The more advertising in the media used, the more frequency is needed to break through.
Editorial environment	The more consistent the ad is with the editorial environment, the less frequency is needed.
Attentiveness	The higher the attention a vehicle achieves, the less frequency is required; low-attention media need more repetitions.
Scheduling	Continuous scheduling requires less frequency than flighting or pulsing.
Number of media used	The fewer media used, the lower the frequency required.
Repeat exposures	Media allowing more repeat exposures (e.g. monthly magazines) require less frequency.

4. Evaluation and follow-up

After implementing the strategies, marketers need to know whether they were successful. Measures of effectiveness must consider two factors:

How well did the strategies achieve the media objectives?
How well did the media plan contribute to attaining the overall marketing and communication objectives?

Successful strategies should be used in future plans; if not, their flaws should be analysed.

Summary

The media strategy must supplement and support the overall marketing and communication objectives and deliver the message the program has developed.
The basic task is to determine the best matching of media to the target market, given the budget constraints.
The media planner balances reach and frequency and delivers the message to the intended audience with a minimum of waste coverage.
Media strategy development is called more of an art than a science: much quantitative data is available, but the planner also relies on creativity and non-quantifiable factors.

Scheduling methods: advantages and disadvantages

The scheduling table above defines continuity, flighting and pulsing. When choosing a schedule the planner weighs their advantages and disadvantages:

Method	Advantages	Disadvantages
Continuity	Serves as a constant reminder; covers the entire buying cycle; allows media priorities (quantity discounts, preferred positions)	Higher costs; potential for overexposure and wearout; limited budget allocation flexibility
Flighting	Cost efficiency of advertising only during purchase cycles; may allow more weight in periods that matter, for example more than one medium or vehicle	Weighting may be heavier than needed; potential for lack of awareness, interest and retention during non-scheduled times; vulnerability to competitors who advertise in the gaps
Pulsing	Combines the advantages of the other two: constant presence plus extra weight at peak moments	Not required for seasonal products or other cyclical products; more complex to plan

Advertising scheduling with AI

Traditional scheduling is decided in advance: the planner fixes weeks, dayparts and budgets in a flowchart. In digital and programmatic media, many of these decisions are now taken continuously by algorithms that use real-time data on who is online, how they respond and what each impression costs. The planner sets objectives, budgets and limits; the system decides when, where and at what price each ad is shown.

1. Automated bidding. In programmatic buying, ad space is sold impression by impression through auctions; real-time bidding (RTB) means the auction takes place in the milliseconds while a page or app loads. With automated bidding an algorithm sets the bid for each auction based on the predicted value of that impression (for example the probability of a click or conversion). Advertisers choose a goal, such as maximising conversions, a target cost per acquisition or a target return on ad spend, and the system bids higher for valuable impressions and lower or not at all for others.

2. Budget pacing. Budget pacing controls how fast a budget is spent over the day or campaign period. Even pacing spreads spend evenly; accelerated pacing spends as quickly as opportunities appear. AI-driven pacing predicts traffic and competition and shifts spend toward periods with better expected results while preventing the budget from running out early or remaining unspent.

3. Dayparting with algorithms. Classic dayparting divides the broadcast day (morning, prime time, late night) and buys the parts where the target audience watches. Algorithmic dayparting works at hour level per platform and per audience: the algorithm learns at which hours and days a segment converts and raises or lowers bids accordingly, so the schedule becomes a fine-grained, data-driven form of pulsing.

4. Dynamic optimization. During the campaign the system keeps reallocating budget between channels, ad sets and audiences that perform better, applies frequency capping to limit wearout, and uses dynamic creative optimization (DCO): assembling and testing combinations of headlines, images and calls to action and showing the best combination to each audience.

Scheduling decision	Traditional approach	AI-driven approach
Timing	Fixed flights and dayparts planned in advance	Adjusted continuously based on predicted response
Price	Negotiated rates, fixed per spot or insertion	Bid per impression in an auction
Budget allocation	Set per medium and period in the media plan	Shifted automatically toward best-performing placements
Creative	One execution per flight	Variants tested and matched to audiences

Limitations and the role of the planner. Algorithms optimise for the metric they are given. If that metric is short-term (clicks, cheap conversions), the system may neglect brand building, reach among new customers or the effective frequency needed for awareness. Other risks are the black box problem (it is unclear why decisions are made), a learning period at the start of a campaign, dependence on data quality and privacy rules, and brand safety. The planner therefore remains responsible for the strategy: choosing the right objective, setting budgets, frequency caps and exclusions, combining automated digital buying with planned brand media, and checking results against the media objectives.

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