Media planning helps brands determine what type of media advertising to use to achieve marketing campaign objectives. The problem is a media plan cannot be developed without first knowing whom you want to reach. “You cannot develop a good media plan without having the right target audience. You cannot develop a GREAT media playout without having deep consumer insights” (Geskey 2015). Properly identifying a target audience helps a brand develop content that resonates with that audience.

Through target marketing, brands are identifying groups of individuals that are separated by distinguishable aspects. Target markets can be separated based on certain segmentations such as demographic, socialgraphic, behavioral, geographic, and psychographic. Demographics or socioeconomic segmentation focuses certain factors such as gender, age, occupation, income, education, and household size. Geographic segmentation is based on an address or the location of a certain region. Psychographic segmentation focuses on individuals sharing common attitudes, values, and lifestyles. Behavioral segmentation focuses on dividing populations based on how they respond to, use, or know of a product.  Through the use of target marketing, brands are able to allocate resources properly and choose the best media outlet. Choosing the right media and using the right content helps a brand reach its target audience.

References

Boundless. “Identifying the Target Market.” Boundless Marketing. Boundless, 21 Jul. 2015. Retrieved from https://www.boundless.com/marketing/textbooks/boundless-marketing-textbook/advertising-and-public-relations-13/the-advertising-campaign-88/identifying-the-target-market-436-4153

Geskey, R. (2015). Media buying & planning in the 21st century (3rd edition). 2020: Marketing Communications LLC