Media Resources.

Adman — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 00:20:00 GMT

As I mentioned in a previous blog, my first exposure to media planning and buying was when, due to my focus (minor) on computer science and information systems at Georgia State University's Robinson School of Business, I was asked to research and purchase a turnkey computer system for media planning and buying. My college internship had turned into a full-time agency job and this was one of my first assignments. I purchased a $30,000 (circa 1987) PC based media planning system from Telmar®. The system was primarily based on Lotus 123® macros using downloaded ratings data. Learning the system motivated me to dig deeper into Lotus® macros and dBase® programming...extensive experience that later translated to Excel® (it is amazing how quickly Excel® replaced Lotus 123® as the industry standard).

I learned a great deal about media simply by learning and using the Telmar® system. I was also very fortunate to receive “on the job training” via veteran agency media professionals who suffered from chronic computer phobia. With Telmar®, you could instantly see how changes in spot selections affect the total cost and the reach and frequency of the buy, either for a single TV station or for all media in the buy. It was a great negotiating tool. You could instantly compare CPPs and CPMs between the same daypart on different stations while you have your station sales representative on the phone. The media mix capability included additional media such as radio, print and outdoor. In addition to Telmar®, I later used Broadcast Management Plus® and other software for media planning and buying. I also developed my own spreadsheets and a dBase program for entering and printing insertion orders.

In addition to turnkey media planning and buying software, online research databases such as Dialog®, Nexis®, Lexis®, Dow Jones® and Dun & Bradstreet® are useful for doing media research and preparing media rationales. Other comprehensive tools are available through media providers – television/radio stations, media representation firms (media reps) such as Katz®, spot cable reps such as NCC®, and major newspapers. Here is a quick overview of a few media resources, many of which can be accessed via media providers:

Scarborough® Research. Developed as a newspaper measurement tool, Scarborough® provides data on lifestyles, shopping patterns, media behaviors and demographics at local, regional and national levels. Founded in 1975, its services span 2,000 categories and brands which include retail shopping, lifestyle characteristics, consumer demographics and media usage patterns. You can have access to Scarborough via any major newspaper sales rep.

Experian® Simmons® – formerly Simmons Market Research Bureau (SMRB). A leading provider of consumer behavior demographics information, Simmons® provides detailed brand, service and media usage information on over 8,000 brands and over 450 product categories. It provides data for Microsoft® MapPoint® software which can map profiles of consumer data by state and down to census tracts. Consumer usage of thousands of brands and services can be profiled via Simmons BrandTract® from any of six levels of geography – Total US, State, MSA, County, ZIP Code and Census Tract.

ESRI GIS® -- formerly CACI®. This GIS and mapping software combines demographic data and mapping software which can be used for market analysis to determine which products and promotions can match the lifestyles and buying patterns of potential customers in specific geographic areas.

STRATA®. STRATA® Marketing, Inc. develops premiere software for media planning and buying. They offer Spot TV, Spot Radio, Print, Outdoor, Local Cable, National Cable and Network TV Media Buying and agency products which provide in-depth Pre-buy, Buy, Posting, Reporting, media Billing and qualitative research capabilities. The agency media buying system, STRATA View handles the entire media planning and buying process from "A" to "Z." It includes multi-media Reach and Frequency allowing every combination of TV, Radio and Print Media -- Reach, Frequency, GRP's, CPP's and more.

TAPSCAN™. TAPSCAN™ is a suite of software for local market radio that is used extensively by radio station salespeople. It provides access to customized demos, geographies, dayparts and multibook averages. It includes qualitative (80 categories of Retail Spending) as well as quantitative (Ratings, CPP, CPM, etc.) data. You can enter GRP targets for specific dayparts and demos and the system will indicate the number of spots required to achieve them.

SRDS®. Owned by Nielsen®, SRDS® (Standard Rate & Data Service) is the leading provider of media rates and data....offering comprehensive coverage of traditional media (magazines, newspapers, television, direct marketing and radio) as well as online and out of home. With 95% of advertising agencies served, it is the largest and most comprehensive database of media rates in the world. It provides an immediate, single source of rates for agency media planners for all media.

SQAD®. An acronym for Spot Quotations And Data, Inc., SQAD® provides advertising agencies, media buying services, broadcast and cable stations, etc., instant access to real cost CPMs and CPPs by network and daypart, unit costs, CPMs and CPPs by program category and time period. Cost data is based on actual transactions.

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I was honored to serve as the final judge in the 2008 DECA, International Career Development Conference (ICDC) in Atlanta this past Monday and Tuesday in the “Advertising Campaign” category. The events were held at the Georgia World Congress Center and the awards session was at the Georgia Dome.
It was an awesome experience. On Tuesday, I evaluated twenty 20-minute advertising campaign final presentations from the top high school marketing students in the world.
This was a truly humbling experience and I was impressed to say the least. It was virtually impossible to determine which of these student teams best deserved to be in the top ten -- much less the top three finalists! But, ties were not allowed and there had to be three top teams selected. ALL of the students who made it to Atlanta should be VERY proud!
There was a relatively clear first place winner. This team's "situation analysis" actually included a “SWOT” (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities & Threats) analysis based on their "secondary research." As did most of the others, they defined their primary and secondary target markets in demographic, psychographic and geographic terms. Their objective was specific, workable, measurable and attainable. Their budget was realistic and comprehensive -- including development costs, production costs, media costs and agency commissions. They certainly showed evidence that they understood some of the basics of the “Journey from Concept to Creation!”

Of course, I was thinking about how these high school students could have REALLY impressed me if only they had been reading my blogs! Hopefully next year’s students are reading?

One thing that really impressed me, in addition to the SWOT analysis, was that they mentioned running television spots in the “early fringe” time period. Plus, they actually spoke in terms of FREQUENCY! – gasp! They also referred to radio formats as Contemporary Hit Radio (CHR), Adult Contemporary (AC), Album Oriented Rock (AOR), etc. They certainly knew how to impress the Adman with advertising industry terminology.
Regarding my blog topic -- I am convinced that there are gazillions (possibly even googillons) of dollars totally wasted by those who are not educated on a few basic principles of media planning and buying. I have heard comments from inexperienced prospective clients (who could use a lesson or two from high school DECA kids) that go something like, “We think we should buy 30 spots on WXYZ TV.” After recovering from my “client from hell red flag alert,” I attempt to educate them. Puhleeze listen carefully -- it AIN'T about how many spots you are buying! 30 spots on one station is NOT the equivalent of 30 spots on another. Plus, different dayparts (Early Fringe vs Primetime for example) can reach dramatically different numbers of viewers! It IS about how many impressions (as measured by ACNielsen) you are making on your target market (reach). And it is also about reaching your target market a sufficient number of times (frequency).
This leads to the basic, fundamental formula of broadcast media buying – Reach x Frequency = Gross Rating Points (GRP’s). So, when establishing a broadcast television media budget, it is prudent to first determine the average cost per rating point (CPP) for your target market in your market(s) -- as defined by the Nielsen Designated Market Area (DMA). Then determine how many impressions you can afford to make with sufficient frequency (generally a minimum of three times). Then figure on the conversion rate (generally in the two or three percent range) that is typical for your industry…while considering the added value of BRANDING your product or service in the market.
Now, when I hear something like, “We are budgeting for XXX GRP’s per week, based on the average CPP of $XXX (according to SQAD) in the target DMA for our Adults 25-54 demo…” I am as pleased as a DECA student after winning first place in the DECA ICDC awards session at the Georgia Dome in the Advertising Campaign category... celebrating by getting wet from the fountains at the Centennial Olympic Park after visiting the Georgia Aquarium and the World of Coke... with a front row seat at the NBA playoffs in the Phillips Arena watching the Atlanta Hawks beat the Boston Celtics... while enjoying Georgia peanuts and a Coke... with tickets for the studio tour at CNN..followed by tickets for "The Lion King" at the Atlanta Civic Center... or perhaps another show at the Fabulous Fox Theater...or Six Flags over Georgia...or the Stone Mountain Laser (and fireworks) Show? -- While it may sound like alphabet soup to you -- to the seasoned media professional it is music to the ears…

To be continued...

Journey from Concept to Creation : Media buying

Media Resources.

Media (Introduction).