ZIMSEC O Level Business Studies Notes: Marketing: Choice of Media in Advertising

  • An important factor in advertising is choosing the right media
  • Media refers to the communication channel through which data or information flows
  • Media includes every broadcasting and narrow-casting medium such as:
  • newspapers,
  • magazines,
  • TV, radio,
  • billboards,
  • direct mail,
  • telephone,
  • fax,
  • and internet.
  • Several factors have to be taken in consideration when choosing a medium

Factors to consider when choosing the most appropriate media

The reach of the media

  • That is the proportion of the target audince that can be covered by the media
  • For example is it a national newspaper e.g. Herald, a local/town newspaper such as H-Metro or a regional newspaper such as the Manicapost
  • The advertiser has to consider the extent of their market vis a vis the coverage of the media
  • It would be wasteful to advertise a local plumbing business in a regional newspaper

The selectivity of the media

  • That is whether the audience is general or mixed or specialist
  • For example niche magazines, blogs, channels might have a smaller but higher focused audience that will result in more sales
  • For example a fancy technological gadget will have better sales if advertised on TechZim rather than in the Herald even though the Herald has wider coverage and a wider audience
  • Similary advertising your travel agency in a travel magazine will probably result in higher sales than advertising in a general magazine
  • Advertising in a selective media will result in less wastage

The relative cost

  • While cost should not be the overriding metric in choosing the most appropriate media it should not be ignored
  • The advertiser should compare the cost  advertising in a given media against other media
  • It would be beneficial to compare the reach/cost of each media
  • Cost is a constraint as a business’s resources are likely to be limited
  • The most const effective media should be choose

The impact of the media

  • This refers to the extent to which the message is effectively absorbed by the audience
  • Some forms of advertising might be cheap and reach a wider audience but have little impact on the advertiser
  • For example outdoor advertising and classifieds
  • Customers respond better to media adverts such as on Television or Radio but these are more expensive

The Product itself

  • For example how complicated the product is, for whom it is intended etc
  • If it is necessary to demonstrate the product in use it might make better sense to use Television Advertising compared to more limited billboards
  • Simple products that are well known such as chicken feed can be effectively sold via billboards
  • Specialist products such as airplanes will fare better if they are advertised in niche publications for example

The permanence of the advertising media

  • When selling products that are not often used it is necessary to advertise in a more permanent medium
  • When selling products that are often used it is important to constantly advertise in non permanent forms of advertising such as T.V.

Advantages and disadvantages of various advertising media

To access more topics go to the O Level Business Notes