In planning which media to use, here are eight questions to answer to properly formulate your objectives, with some tips to answering them.
- WHOM do you want to reach? Make sure this is the correct target, and that you haven’t missed anyone who might be a significant prospect or user of your service.
- WHEN do you want to reach them? If it was known WHEN people need our service, all would be too easy! Are there other clues that may indicate when they would be interested in our service? Is your service seasonal?
- WHERE do you want to reach them? Consider geography. Is that important? Should you reach your target at their home…at their place of business…both?
- HOW MANY of them do you want to reach? Is your media buy encompassing enough prospects? Is there a time period involved?
- HOW FREQUENTLY do you want to reach them? Saying something once hardly is media penetration. You have to factor in frequency, repetition, yet not so often that you waste money.
- WHAT MEDIA should you use to reach them? Once you determine the first five questions, you can get an idea from the Advantages and Disadvantage section on which media to use.
- AT WHAT COST do you want to reach them? Everything has a cost. This is where you should figure out your cost per exposure or impression. You don’t want to spend so little that you are not even noticed. Look at your competitors and see how often they are in the media.
- IS ANYTHING MISSING? Double check yourself! Make sure you haven’t overlooked anything.