Crafting and implementing a winning media strategy is part business savvy, a fair amount of math, and a lot of research. If planned and executed properly, any medium will work. Skip a step in your planning and research and those customers might just pass you by.

Business Savvy: Most business owners and media buyers alike find this the most enjoyable component when developing the media plan. This is the negotiation stage where everyone wants to win.

Math: This is rather simple…you can’t spend more than you have. If you spend it, they will come…provided you remain consistent and present a compelling reason to buy.

Research: Often underrated and usually overlooked, this is the most important step when crafting your media plan. The difference between a successful or disastrous media campaign boils down to putting your message in front of those who would be your most likely customer. And to know where this person spends their media time, you have to do some research.

First, get to know is your customer. While this sounds a bit trite and will offend most business owners, not everyone is a potential customer. Researching your customer goes beyond the demographics of age, gender and income. You need to really know this person. What makes them tick? Why do they do the things they do? What will cause them to buy from you and not your competitor? Before calling in the media rep, spend some time on this.

Once you know who this person is and what it will take to convince them you are the obvious choice, it’s time to research the media. And since it all works, the mediums you buy are often dictated by how much money you have. Here’s a breakdown of the most popular mediums:

● Broadcast TV: This medium reaches the vast majority of adult consumers each week. The greatest use of broadcast TV is to inform, educate and build your brand on a mass scale.

● Cable TV: While cable TV will boast more viewers than broadcast, its strength is found with niche-based programming. Regardless of what you sell, cable TV has a channel that will reach that particular audience.

● Radio: One of the best mediums for sales events, special promotions and messages of urgency. Like cable TV, radio also allows you to target your message to a specific demographic group.

● Internet: As the fastest-growing medium, harnessing an effective media plan via the web still eludes most marketers. Consumers love the Internet as it provides an endless stream of information and user-generated content. The web is the medium of information.

● Direct Mail: In the midst of ever-increasing postage rates, direct mail remains one of the most effective and cost-efficient means of communicating with your current customers.

● Newspaper: As the most traditional ad medium available, newspaper is best used for delivering price & item information.

Regardless of which medium you use, make the commitment to stick with it. There’s no silver bullet in advertising and certainly not with your media campaign. Consumers are inundated with messages to buy. Most of these messages go unheard as the consumer has no need for the product or, what is typically more accurate, the advertiser failed to deliver a meaningful message with a real benefit. Either way, it’s going to take time for your messages to break through and start making an impact.

Consider your business as a “Hot-Air Balloon”. Your advertising campaign is the flame that will inflate the balloon and set you sailing high above the trees (a.k.a. your competitors). It takes a lot of time and energy to get your balloon inflated and rising. Once aloft, consumers can see you and be able to better receive your offer. Shut off the flame that feeds the balloon and you’ll quickly fall to the ground.

When times are good, consumers will see lots of balloons. With a meaningful, compelling and different message, they’ll see you. If you simply say the same thing your competitor does, all they’ll see is a bunch of balloons, one no different than the other.

A compelling message wrapped in a big promise will deliver those prized customers provided you remain consistent and make good on your offer.

Author Bio: Ronald A. Heider is the founder & owner of HMA – Heider Marketing and Advertising based in Norfolk, VA. He can be reached at http://www.ronaldaheider.com or by calling (757) 288-9957.

Category: Marketing
Keywords: advertising, marketing, media, TV, radio, direct mail, internet