Outline of a Media Plan

1. Outline of a Media Plan

2. Executive Summary • A short presentation that goes at the beginning of a media plan • Shows only the main details of the plans that busy executives can quickly know the essence of the plan • So that busy executives can quickly know the essence of the plan • It should include a table of contents of your media plan

3. Situational Analysis • Research prepared in document format to provide background for a media planner to prepare a plan. • Provides perspective on where a brand has been and where its potential lies in the future.

4. Situational Analysis Includes • History of the market • Deals with sales of all brands in the market-including client (all pertinent brands) • Includes geographic sales distribution, (zip codes for Homevestors), market size in dollars and units (What type of market is this according to Homevestors…in presentation), market share, any seasonal effects and price effects

5. Situational Analysis Includes • Distribution channels • Objective is to learn how a brand and its competitors distribute products • Includes methods of selling, advertising budgets and how and why promotions may be used. Distribution information often affects media strategy because it can help planner decide where to advertise. • How this relates to you. If Homevestors was on the air all months last year, maybe they should consider heavying up in some months or cutting back in others. Contact Ms London for last years flowchart to see what they did.

6. Situational Analysis Includes • The consumer of the product • This profile of users of the product type (not just Homevestors) includes personal demographics such as age, sex, income, occupation and geographic location. Lifestyles and attitudes should be included • Profile of who buys this product vs who buys competitors product (mom and pop) if available.

7. Situational Analysis Includes • The product • A history of the product and how it was developed. • When and why any product changes were made and the effects of such changes • Consumer perceptions of the values of various brands can be important…how do consumers view Homevestors…they like to improve neighborhoods…vs competitors if known

8. Situational Analysis Includes • Advertising and media analysis • Analysis of media expenditures for competing brands (SOV) You have 4th quarter data…assume it’s the same for all quarters. • Includes media classes used…names of media (TV, RADIO) and dollar and % allocation of each medium.

9. Organizing your Plan • State the Marketing Challenge/Objective succinctly…what is your original problem, challenge or task? What the whole thing is about. • This was given to you by Homevestors…IT is the Marketing objective, NOT the Media objective

10. Organizing the Plan • Data tables • Are you going to have this at the end in an addendum or along side the presentation…media numbers are boring, so consider addendum or charts with colors. • Present an overview of competitive activity and elements…Include SOV data • Clients what to see what their competitors are doing and you might get them to increase budgets by doing this.

11. Organizing the Plan • Budget table-Provide one… • This is like an outline of spending: • Outdoor $300,000 • TV $150,000 • Radio $100,000 • DM $100,000 • YP $5000

12. Organizing the Plan • Provide a flow chart. • Start working on this NOW. This will take you a lot of time to do. You need to decide how you are going to spend the budget and whoever is putting this together needs to start working on it now. • Creative elements of a flowchart • Flighting • Different weight levels…heavier at start? • Different dayparts in TV • Placing certain medias on the air at the same time…outdoor and DM?

13. Organizing the Plan • Flowchart continued • Don’t do the same thing all year long month in and month out. Boring and not creative. • Do include interesting things…Are you tying into any promotions or tradeshows? Are you conducting any unique guerilla tactics that should be highlighted on flowchart? • Are you going to set aside any money for opportunistic purchases that may come up during the year? • Are you going to do a series of radio remotes with the radio hosts? • Are you proposing any promotions during the year to coincide with holidays or tax season or end of year? • Your flowchart should reflect all of these…and if there is a way you can make it interesting with color, do it.

14. Organizing the Plan • Write Media Objectives • Remember 2 elements of each objective • Each objective should relate to a marketing objective and/or strategy • Each media objective should be stated as completely as possible. • The more detail, the more likely the objectives will serve as guides for media strategies. • Your Media Objective might include: We need large reach and modest frequency (making that up) You need to define what “large” and “modest” are.

15. Organizing the Plan • The difference between media objectives and media strategies: Media objectives are goals that are related to the marketing objectives and strategies; media strategies are actions that can fulfill these objectives…many strategies can fulfill one objective…your job is to choose most effective strategy from all possibilities.

16. Organizing the Plan • Objectives: Example: Reach 60% of target audience a minimum of 3+ times if first 4 weeks of campaign with sustaining R/F of 50R, 3F (Making up) • Strategy: How you are going to reach 60% of target audience a minimum of 3+ times (combination of TV, radio, DM, yellow pages, etc.)

17. Organizing the Plan • Include rationale on why you didn’t include certain things…did not include newspaper due to declining readership levels. Phoenix paper costs have escalated 10% in past year while readership has declined 15%. Made this cost prohibitive when considering other alternatives.

18. Organizing the Plan • Tactics: How you will accomplish your strategies… Example Objective: 70 R, 15+ F Strategy: TV, Radio, outdoor, promotion Tactics: :30 and :15 second TV running M-W only, :60 second radio on news/talk only, :30 sheet pre-emptible outdoor, specific zip codes for DM, Radio and DM at same time

19. Organizing the Plan • Different tactical ways of scheduling broadcast • Continuity-same amount of weight throughout the plan (you might have some hiatus weeks, but all weeks with activity have same weight levels) • Pulsing-Just like a pulse. One week activity, next week nothing, next week activity, next week nothing. On again, off again tactic • Stair stepping Different weight levels by consecutive weeks. Example: 3 week flight- Week 1 = 125 grp’s. Week 2 = 100 GRP’s. Week 3 =75 GRP’s. Week 4 off the air. You might repeat this pattern throughout the plan.

20. Organizing the Plan • Graphic Elements • How can you make this stand out? • Colored charts on SOV? • Bar graphs on who their target audience is? • Web site presentation • Animation

21. Organizing the Plan • Make it cohesive • Practice your Presentation • Be creative and provide creative ideas • Provide information on how you interpreted the research. • Provide information on how you took any geographic considerations into account.