What Is Media Buying?

How do you get the right people to see a message that you know who it is for? Why not just send it to them? Can media buying achieve this? The good news is that there is a whole industry of experts dedicated to answering that question.

The essence of media buying is purchasing advertising space on a variety of channels to deliver a message to a specific audience. But done well, it's considerably more than a transactional process. Strategic media buying is about getting a precise message in front of a precise audience, in a context that makes that message land.

What Does a Media Buyer Actually Do?

A media buyer is able to learn and in many cases predict, where a desired audience is and will purchase advertising space to allow the message to be delivered. Beyond making the purchase, they manage the space and are responsible for making a return on investment. Sometimes media buyers help a customer purchase advertising space through a direct relationship with a media outlet and other times media buyers help purchase space through automated systems. Media buyers then help ensure that the customer’s message is being delivered efficiently and in the best way possible.

Difference Between Media Buying and Media Planning

There is a clear difference between media buying and media planning. Media planning concerns the definition of the target audience, the goals, the channels, the timing etc. Media buying concerns placing the advertisements, buying the inventory and conducting the campaign. They are separate components of a system, however the most effective media buyers understand how both of them support each other.

What Types of Media Can Be Bought?

There are multiple different types of media which can be bought, from digital advertising across websites or social media platforms, to broadcast and print and publish advertising. Media buyers can help gauge which type of advertising would benefit your business model.

Digital Advertising

In the UK, the bulk of advertising spend focuses on digital media. In the context of digital media, buying can be understood in a number of different ways. Display adverts can be purchased on websites and applications. Adverts can be placed programmatically, which involves automated technology making ad impressions in real time and targeting specific audiences. Adverts can be placed on social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Meta and X, as well as paid search. The digital buying media can be targeted geographically, demographically, behaviourally and importantly, based upon what content a user has consumed.

Print and Publish Advertising

Media buying in printed media such as newspapers and magazines, can still be a relevant method of communicating with a target audience. This is especially true when the audience is in a specific sector. In highly specialist communications, print media placement can offer a level of credibility and authority that online media cannot provide. An advertisement in a national quality newspaper, or a financial advertisement in a quality financial newspaper offers a specific and engaged readership.

Broadcast

Television and radio buying spans a diverse audience and makes buying advertising space easier. Advertising through broadcasts is great if you want to build your brand and increase awareness with a large audience. Connected TV (CTV) and addressable TV make broadcast advertising easier for advertisers that need the luxury of TV advertising combined with the precision of digital advertising.

Newsletters and Briefings

Newsletters and daily briefings are excellent advertising placement spots to reach targeted audiences. Politicians and those in the financial industry rely on daily briefings to keep up to date. By advertising where these targeted individuals are, you place your advertisement in front of an audience that really wants to see it.

Why Does the Context of Placement Matter?

Two advertisements with identical creative can produce very different results depending on where they appear. Context shapes how a message is received and for advertisers trying to build credibility with sophisticated, sceptical audiences, the editorial environment around an advertisement matters as much as the advertisement itself.

An advertisement appearing in a publication respected by its target audience benefits from association with that publication's authority. An advertisement appearing on a low-quality or misaligned platform risks damaging rather than building the brand it's meant to promote. This is particularly significant in sectors where trust and credibility are the primary currency, financial services, professional services and political communications among them.