DWS Associates Media Advantages & Disadvantages Checklist

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DWS Associates - Media Advantages Disadvantages Checklist

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Media Advantages and Disadvantages Checklist

Use this Advertising Media Advantages & Disadvantages Checklist as a guide for selecting the appropriate media to achieve your marketing objectives. This checklist covers all forms of advertising media and is applicable to both business-to-consumer (B2C) and business-to-business marketing programs. Depending on your target market, your message and offer, certain types of media may be better suited to your marketing program and overall media mix, and offer a better chance of success. All types of media are covered in the checklist. (Click on the "+" sign or medium name to see the list of advantages and disadvantages for each medium.)

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Medium

Advantages

Disadvantages

Cable Television

Powerful image/awareness
Intrusive
Impactful with sight, sound and movement
Highly selective programming to zero-in on highly selective target audiences
Sponsorship opportunities
Upscale audiences with higher incomes, more education and larger families
Ability to test creative commercial ideas at low media costs
Flexible commercial message lengths and forms
National-network and local-spot flexibility
Ability to tag commercials locally on some networks
Lows costs per commercial announcement
Ability to build high frequency of exposure
Medium CPM
Local target market programming
Inexpensive production costs
High frequency potential
Dozens of different cable networks to choose from
Ability to build extremely long formats for highly demonstrable products and offers.

Coverage deficiencies in certain markets
Local cable buys generally expensive with high CPMs
Less research than on broadcast TV
Proof of performance problems
Cable monopoly in all markets
Many time shifters with digital video recording capability can and do eliminate all advertising when they replay - - or at least fast forward through it

Card Decks

Low cost, low CPM
Good targeting capabilities

Junk mail image
Low response rates

Coupon Packs

Low cost, low CPM
Good targeting capabilities

Junk mail image
Low response rates

Direct Mail

High degree of targeting possible (geographic, demographic and psychographic)
Flexible format options
Intrusive
Numerous response options
Excellent reproduction
High reach potential against selected targets
Ability to build frequency through multiple mailings
Timing not subject to media availability
Reaches target at home or at work
Unlimited format options for message and layout
Private medium
Easy to personalize

Not a requested or purchased and must stand on its own for recognition
Often regarded as “junk mail”
A short life
Impacted by postal regulations
High CPM
High up-front costs
Low response rates
High postal rates
Slow delivery times

Electronic (Digital) advertisements (e.g., banner ads, etc.)

Many sponsorship opportunities
Impactful with sight, sound, movement
National/international network
Messages can be customized for different sites.
Banners can be placed on outbound transactional emails such as order acknowledgments and shipment verifications - - almost guaranteed to be opened and read

Relatively new unproven advertising medium, “What’s the value of a hit?”
Non intrusive
Limited control
Reproduction qualities depend on capabilities of end user system
High CPMs
Limited audience
Skewed demographics of audience
Audience is invariably looking for something else and may not even notice the banner as anything but a nuisance

Email

Low cost of email campaign.
Measurability - easily track the effectiveness of your campaign.
Email marketing is fast.
Opt-in email marketing is very effective.
More than ½ of Internet users check their email mail box every day.
Increased interactivity.
Fast response to both marketers and end user
Reduction in costs through automation and use of electronic media.
Has the highest return on investment of any marketing media method.
Highly customizable.
Still the most effective tactic for reaching your customer file.
Flexibility in tailoring your campaign to customer specifics.
Adjustability – can make timely changes to email campaign to improve effectiveness.
Relatively low cost of fulfillment.
Faster campaign deployment.
Encourages immediate action.
Ease of personalization.
Options for testing.
Integration with other direct media which can be personalized - micro website, landing page, mobile messages, direct mail.

"SPAM" perception
Deliverability issues caused spam filters
Engagement – email requires constant tweaking to keep your subscribers engaged.
Unreliable graphics delivery.
Email response decay – not easy to keep subscribers engaged.
Email overload.
Resource intensive and expenses – people and technology resources required to deliver sophisticated email.
Many emails are deleted by the receiver even being unread.
Security, privacy issues.
Can be the transmitter of viruses.
Harder to target than direct mail.
Unlike direct mail, your messages have to be short, quick and to the point, limiting message content.
Because of mass of email being sent, it’s hard to differentiate between spam and legitimate email.
Different communications preferences of recipients.

Free Standing Inserts

Low cost. low CPM
Good for coupons and mail order
Good local market coverage
Good for catalog-type advertising
Good color reproduction

Clutter problem
Low targeting capabilities
Discount image
Potential junk mail image
Long lead time for insertions
Most newspapers circulation is decreasing as information is more readily available online
Usually very promotional and therefore not too good for full price or positioning advertisements

Magazines

High reader involvement.
Significant audience selectivity against various demographic and psychographic groups
Compatible editorial environment
Long life with opportunity for repeat exposure
Potentially high rate of pass alongs depending on the publication and audience
Excellent color reproduction
Creative opportunities with a variety of different space units
Wide geographic and demographic flexibility
Broad reach potential through use of large circulation magazines and/or a variety of different category books
Strong reach among upscale targets
Excellent efficiencies relative to other media among very selective, upscale targets
Moderate to excellent targeting
Great image medium
Good direct-response capability
Longer message shelf life
Multiple readers per issue
High-quality reproduction
Weekly or monthly frequency

Non intrusive relative to broadcast
Growing clutter in ad banks and low editorial ratios in certain magazines
Single visual dimension only
Moderate to low frequency builder
Some regional delivery deficiencies
Continuing question of print communication value relative to TV and Internet
High regional and metro rate premiums
Uncertainties created with rate negotiating
High CPM
Long lead time (60 to 90 days)
Incomplete control over ad location
Higher cost for special positioning
Circulation is down for almost all magazines therefore C/P/M ‘s have gradually increased
Many people getting “magazine type” info online now

Newspapers

Ad size flexibility
Split-run test are available in some newspapers
Short leads times to get ads in
Immediate, announcement value
Benefits from established reader habits
Geographic targeting
Merchandisable to local dealers
High local market penetration
Some targeting by section
Direct response capabilities
Short lead time to place ad
Medium-high to low CPM

A price-oriented medium - most ads are for sales
Limited targeting capabilities
Highly visible medium which allows competitors to see and react to your message quickly
Short lifespan, with little repeat exposure opportunities
Retail ad clutter with little competitive separation
Declining readership
High cost of running multi-market campaign
High CPMs except for small space units
Difficult to attain true national coverage due to concentration in major urban areas
Limited rate negotiability
Premiums for special positions
Significant premiums for national vs. local advertisers
Limited color reproduction (improving)
Impact affected by size of ad
Most newspapers circulation is decreasing as information is more readily available online

Outdoor Advertising Signage / Transit-Mobile Advertising (Digital and Non Digital)

Excellent reminder medium supporting other vehicles
24-hour exposure
Graphic flexibility
Strong local market presence
Broad reach and high frequency potential
Opportunity to rotate locations to maximize audience delivery
Positioning opportunities near the point of purchase
Very high repeat exposure
Very low CPM
Large, colorful medium
Can target different geographic areas, neighborhoods, and highways
Length of time to show message: 30 days

Limited to short, simple message
Increasingly restricted availability’s due to zoning laws
High out-of-pocket costs for multi-market coverage
High total cost for large showings
High cost of “painted spectacular” billboard locations
Highway “clutter” problem
Limited format options for creative message
Difficult to reach specific target market
Viewed in many parts of the country as an environmental problem with billboards

Radio

National-network and local-spot flexibility
Intrusive
Wide variety of formats
Re-enforces TV and print campaigns
Significant local market identification
Ability to build high frequency of exposure
Good reach potential through multiple station buyers
High summer listening when TV viewing is lowest
Low costs per commercial announcement
Low CPM
Target selection by programming and by station formats
Good support medium
Reaches broad market
Reaches captive audience, i.e., commuters
Excellent creative medium by creating mental images
Merchandisable to local dealers

Often used as background medium for other activities
Limited to single audio dimension
Clutter
30-second commercials priced expensively relative to 60s
No visual capability
Considered background noise by some listeners
Must purchase lots of different stations and sports to reach large market
Poor reception in some markets
Audiences with Sirius and XM do not get commercials and most new cars come equipped

Search (Paid, SEM )

Easily accessible – search is the go to method of finding anything that people are seeking information on – the digital Yellow Pages
Targeting
Direct ROI measurement and tracking possible
Instant – or relatively quickly

Click fraud
High cost depending on key words being purchased and if the bidding is not done correctly
Complexity of managing campaigns
Lack of trust by consumer of sponsored links – people are skeptical
Choosing wrong PPC marketing firm
No visual elements
Copy limited to meta data tag

Search (Organic, SEO)

Easily accessible - search go to method of finding anything that people are seeking information on - the digital Yellow Pages
Free
Trust worthy - people trust organic search

Lack of control
Unknown factors – Google guidelines and algorithms change frequently
Long term investment – can take a long time to become the most relevant site and appear at the top of organic search results
Requires a strong focus on SEO to be effective and there may be high costs associated with optimizing site depending on content, number of pages, etc.
Can't target
Competing for attention with the world
No visual elements
Copy limited to meta data tag
Lots of competition depending on word or search criteria

SMS Text Messaging (Twitter)

Instant
Impossible to ignore
Absolutely mobile – not requiring any particular location to be able to reach the target

May require recipient to pay for the text message
Opt-in status is questionable
Low response rates
Junk message image

Social Media (e.g., Facebook, Google +, MySpace, LinkedIn, etc.

Free (or very low media cost)
Easily accessible
Can be customized / personalized
Can be targeted

Low response rates
Depending on format and type of advertisement, difficult to track results to ROI level

Specialty Advertising

Can be attention grabbers if they are done well
Can give top-of-mind awareness
Get your name in front of people

Difficult to target your market
Difficult to measure the effectiveness of in producing measurable results
Can be an inappropriate medium for some businesses
It’s difficult to find items that are appropriate for certain businesses

Sunday Supplements

High local market coverage due to newspaper carrier penetration
In-home, relaxed readership
Good color reproduction
Highly merchandisable
Broad reach potential
Local market impact with a magazine format

Little secondary or pass-along audience
Limited audience selectivity due to means of distribution
High out-of-pocket cost and CPM for national coverage
Most newspapers circulation is decreasing as information is more readily available online

Telemarketing

Effective, in conjunction with existing advertising
Instant customer feedback
Can easily answer questions about your product/service
Highly measurable results
Highly personal
Easy to implement
Timely
Cost effective compared to direct sales
You can get a lot of information if your script is properly structured

Very high CPM
Format limitations
Poor image
Very intrusive
Low close rates
Lots of businesses use telemarketing
Can be extremely expensive
Most appropriate for high-ticket retail sales, professional services, fund raising

Television (Network)

Most powerful image/awareness advertising vehicle
Intrusive
Impactful with sight, sound, movement
Highly merchandisable to the trade
National-network and local-spot flexibility
Sponsorship/program control potential
High frequency potential
Mass market reach
Ability to build long formats for highly demonstrable products and offers

Very high cost per spot
Difficult to buy specific target markets
Very competitive market
All time can be sold out
Need top-quality commercial production values, very expensive to produce spots
Limited number of major networks
Clutter and zapping
High absolute costs for network
Subject to sudden price escalation due to laws of supply and demand
Short-term delivery risk due to continuous programming changes
Many time shifters with digital video recording capability can and do eliminate all advertising when they replay - - or at least fast forward through it

Yellow Pages (Phone Directories, etc.)

Low CPM
High potential exposure
Very localized

High lead acquisition costs
Limited to active shopper only
Limited ad placement control
All competitors in one place
Limited creative options
Ad lasts for long periods and can’t be changed - typically a year

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