Understanding the Media Buying Process Step-by-Step

I love good news and I have a little to share with you today. Advertising Age is reporting a possible blue sky on the economic horizon. This blue sky has been long awaited by many of us in the advertising and marketing world.

I'm not saying we are out of the woods, but optimism is bound to be fueled after the Dow Jones Industrial Average hit the 10,000 mark last week. If you listen carefully, I'm sure in the background you can hear the faint sigh of relief from an industry that I love - marketing.

A new report is out by ZenithOptimedia that states that we should see global ad spending increase by .05% in 2010. While .05% seems like such a dismal number after such a pathetic year in ad spending and cost cutting, it doesn't take much to get us to breathe out a sigh of relief; it's like a drink of water in a drought.

As I proceed with cautious optimism, I felt the need to write on media buying and how to be effective when placing media buys. I know many companies have let go of their marketing teams, even though I advised against it. I also know that there are small businesses that are looking to do more on their own and, while I won't say that this media buying guideline article will replace an experienced media buying professional, it will at least give you the necessary information that you need to know.

Media buying takes knowledge, attention to detail, negotiating power and a calculating mind. It's something that I love to do and I think as you look at the steps involved, you will see why. My goal in creating this step-by-step media buying guide is to equip you with what you need to know and give you the confidence to start buying media to promote your business.