Re:Media Buying - 2006/03/23 16:01In my experience, you will get a better buy working with a media planner/buyer than by working with the stations directly, even if the stations offer to give you the agency 15% discount.
Lessons learned the hard way: --Don't buy based on spots per week. A spot in drive time does not equal a spot at 8 p.m. --If your budget will handle it, buy a mix of stations, not just one or two. Listeners typically have several stations they skip to and from and you'll get more repetition this way. --Plan and buy based on Target Rating Points (TRPs), again, not spots per week, and not based on what stations your friends listen to. It's a numbers game. --Watch out for "rotators." The station will tell you that you get 8 spots per week (yikes) that run between 6 am and, say 10 pm. They will be less expensive, but you need to make sure that they do, indeed, rotate between day parts and that you don't get most of your spots dumped in the weaker dayparts.
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Claudia P.
Visitor
Re:Media Buying - 2006/03/23 16:02Small radio markets can be bought directly through the local radio station(s) effectively (if you have a good sales rep). However, if there are media buying firms or ad agencies in the (small) market, then don't hesitate to use one. Typically, it doesn't cost the client anything "extra" in the form of media expense. Most radio stations build a 15% commission into their fees -- a commission that goes to the agency. Better still, if your friend uses an ad agency, they are likely to get a better radio commercial produced -- which can improve results. (Yes, there are costs associated; but the return should warrant the expense.)
As for medium to large markets -- you are definitely better off using an ad agency or a marketing communications firm. They can not only give an unbiased media recommendation for the campaign, but can expand the campaign beyond the simple 30- or 60-second commercial message. There are lots of promotional opportunities available through radio (and other media). The agency will know the "who's who" of the radio stations and the market in general, and will be able to build a campaign that integrates communication inside the business and throughout the marketplace.
(A simple answer to a more complex question.... Hope it helps.)
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Zane H
Visitor
Re:Media Buying - 2006/03/23 16:06Ok, I have to step in here. As an agency person, I have to say that buying directly may work, but often does not.
1. Stations are in this to make money. As a buyer representing several clients, I know what other advertisers are paying on stations. Does your rep give you this information if you work directly with them? 2. As a buyer, it is my job to negotiate. That is, the station comes to me with a plan and cost. I tell them it's too much money or the rates and audience delivery are not as good as what I can get from other stations. Therefore when they offer X, I tell them I need X-Y because that's what I can get elsewhere. If you have an agency doing this for you, I don't see how you save time by doing this yourself. 3. Reps are paid commissions. Do you really expect them to field offers from other stations and then forward them to you if the other station has a better deal?
This is a buyer-beware situation. I understand both the Agency and the Radio Station perspectives presented in this discussion. However, as someone pointed out, a radio sales rep has no incentive to show you how well other stations deliver your target audience, nor do they have the power to negotiate rates on other stations. Even the big conglomerates like Clear Channel will not allow one rep to sell time on all their sister-stations. It's because the result would be commissioned-Sales Reps could earn more money than their General Managers.
An Agency on the other hand is interested in handling all your communications- creative, PR, media, etc... The bigger Agencies won't even consider working for you unless you have a substantial budget.
There are several small to mid-sized agencies that would be glad to take your account in the hopes that they can "grow" the account in the future. As far as an Agency being able to negotiate better rates for you based on their size it simply isn't true. The dirty little secret in the Agency business is that media is their cash cow. They generally earn anywhere between 7%-15% commission on the total media purchase. An agency's true strength lies in the tools they utilize to negotiate the media buy - do they have access to Arbitron ratings? Do they subscribe to SQAD data (this report tells you what the average CPP is in your market)? Will they guarantee delivery of at least 90% of your purchased points? Will they provide you with a post-buy analysis report to make sure your spots ran as promised? Do they negotiate make-goods when the station doesn't deliver? A good Agency does all of the above and should have no problem getting the best possible deal for you.
And finally, a free-lance media buyer is usually only interested in buying the media for you. They don't write ad copy or produce commercials. They only buy media. This isn't a bad thing. I know several businesses like franchisees that buy the creative from their national agency but use local free-lance media buyers to buy all their media. It's very efficient if you have access to pre-produced creative.
I don't recommend dealing directly with a Radio Station if you can't answer the following questions:
-What station format do my customers prefer (Jazz, Rock, News/Talk)? -What is my target demo (Adults 25-54)? -What are the top 10 stations in my target demo for my market? -What is the average CPP (cost-per-point) in each daypart for the stations in my market?
If you can answer those questions, you should have no problem negotiating directly with the top 10 stations for your target demo in your market. It's simply a numbers game - you want the lowest CPP with the maximum reach and frequency. Keep in mind you can't increase reach and frequency proportionately. If reach goes up, frequency comes down and vice-versa. I don't recommend you negotiate less than 10 stations, unless your market has fewer than 10 stations total.
One last word of advice - A basic principle you need to understand about Radio is that it is a very targeted medium, like Cable TV. For example, Album-Oriented-Rock stations traditionally reach young Adults 18-34. News/Talk formats traditionally reach older Adults 45+ or 55+. Traditional Country stations generally reach Adults 35-54 etc... This allows every station in the market to be #1 in something! You need to know what you're negotiating in Media to avoid being sold a pig-in-a-poke.
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DO IT YOURSELF TOOLS 
