What is Media Buying?

Media buying is the process of buying advertising space or time in order to display a company’s advertising message.

There are two basic types of media buys – directly from the media seller or through an agency or network. Third-party media buyers can help companies purchase directly from the source and can often get better rates on behalf of their clients.

Media buyers can help simplify the process for clients. In addition to purchasing the advertising space, media buyers can also help develop advertising campaigns on behalf of clients. Their role is to research the market and find the most cost effective and targeted way for their client to reach the intended audience.

Traditionally, when someone works as a media buyer for a company (either as a direct employee of the company or a third party provider) they would research and purchase ads directly from the source – radio stations, television stations and print advertising. Although these channels are definitely still viable, there are several other options available today.

Media buyers can help with:

• Newspaper advertising
• Online Advertising
• Radio Advertising
• Billboard Advertising
• Mobile Advertising
• Television advertising
• Direct response advertising 

No matter what type of advertising a company is involved in, a media buyer tries to find and negotiate the best deal on behalf of its clients. When a media buyer looks for the best price, there are several key factors involved. It’s important to remember that the lowest price doesn’t always mean the best exposure for the advertising. There’s got to be a balance between the level of exposure and the costs involved.

If a company is spending too much on advertising without seeing a return, their media buying days will be over pretty quickly. In contrast, if they aren’t spending enough their advertising is going to fall flat and they won’t see any results.

With the rise of online advertising, media buying has been changed forever – but the same principles apply. Getting the most exposure for the best price is the mark of a successful media buy.