It Takes a Village: The Rapidly Shifting Media Landscape and Profession white paper
November 2011
How We Consume, How We Buy, and How We Create
The Ad Club’s Second Annual Media Innovation Day was a fitting venue to examine media’s rapidly changing landscape. And what better way to do so than to survey the audience. In a study that covered the day’s three primary topics – How We Consume, How We Buy, and How We Create – Allen & Gerritsen, in conjunction with the Ad Club, developed insights that shed light on the fluctuating media environment and the profession itself.
We found: ›› Media professionals say that the largest challenge the profession faces is rapidly evolving consumer habits. ›› Yet, they rate decreasing client budgets as their own greatest challenge. ›› New channels, including mobile, social, and location-based, are gaining momentum. ›› Media professionals are working increasingly with other departments within their companies to do more with less.
Keeping up with a Changing Landscape Media professionals feel that the largest challenge the profession faces is keeping up with the rapidly evolving habits of today’s consumers. At 42%, this eclipses other factors, such as a saturated environment (17%) and a lack of understanding of digital technology (14%). To meet this need, it is increasingly important for media professionals to exude constant curiosity and energy, as well as a willingness to try new strategies.
Methodology Who:
Media and Marketing Professionals at the Ad Club’s 2nd Annual Media Innovation Day
When: September 22, 2011 through October 7, 2011 What: Eight-minute online survey Why: To uncover trends in media planning and buying
It Takes a Village: The Rapidly Shifting Media Landscape and Profession page 2
Which of the following is the largest professional challenge facing media buyers and planners as a whole?
Which of the following is your largest professional challenge? Rapidly evolving consumer habits
17%
42%
A saturated media environment
22%
17%
A lack of understanding of digital technology
17%
14%
Decreasing client budgets
31% 11%
Other (please specify)
3%
Creating point-of-sale campaigns
14% 8% 6%
More Expected from Less When asked what they rate as their own greatest challenge, 31% chose decreasing client budgets. Although 17% named changing consumer habits, just as many selected a lack of understanding of digital technology. So, while they recognize that changing consumer habits are the main industrywide problem, media professionals are clearly struggling with how to stretch budgets in this time of increased demand. They are simply expected to do more with less.
It Takes a Village: The Rapidly Shifting Media Landscape and Profession page 3
New Media Channels Gathering Momentum With the rise in social media and mobile phone adoption, media professionals are rapidly shifting dollars to emergent channels. Ninety-four percent expect to produce more social campaigns in the next few years, and 91% percent anticipate running more mobile campaigns during that period. Also, location-based marketing has quickly emerged as both a highly utilized and mature channel. Almost 60% foresee creating more location-based campaigns in the next few years. The adoption of these channels arrives at the expense of more established channels like television and online programs.
In the next few years, how often do you anticipate running the following types of campaigns for your clients?
More often
About the same
Less often
Mobile campaigns Social media campaigns Location based campaigns Standard online campaigns Television campaigns
An interesting dynamic arises: in order to keep up with rapidly changing consumer habits, media professionals are expanding into relatively new and untested channels — with smaller budgets. Yet, despite this predicament, many are thriving. But how?
It Takes a Village: The Rapidly Shifting Media Landscape and Profession page 4
It Takes a Village They are working increasingly with other departments within their companies. When asked which departments they work with “very often,” 31% included their brand planning department and a quarter cited their creative departments. Over half described the use of other departments within their company to develop client campaigns as “very important.” And 32% use their analytics departments to measure every client campaign.
Media
32
%
Work with their analytics departments to measure all client campaigns
28
%
Work with their vendor partners very often when developing client campaigns
25
%
Work with their creative departments very often when developing client campaigns
31
%
Work with their brand planning departments very often when developing client campaigns
In today’s media landscape, with constantly changing consumer habits, decreasing budgets, and emergent channels, media’s success is tied directly to its ability to work with other departments in order to develop imaginative, influential campaigns. It is the only way to stay competitive and to do more with less. Let’s face it — it now takes a village to raise an award-winning media campaign.
Food for Thought ›› How integrated is your media department? ›› What strategies have you adopted to cope with declining budgets and saturated media markets? ›› How is your company helping its media department keep up with shifting media landscapes? ›› What role does testing into new media channels play in your media recommendations? ›› Visit a-g.com or adclub.org to continue the conversation.
The Arsenal on the Charles • 311 Arsenal Street, Watertown MA 02472 www.a-g.com • twitter.com/allengerritsen • url.a-g.com/facebook
benjamin Y. seldin Strategic Planner
catherine kolodij SVP, Strategy