Media Scheduling - Definition & Meaning
What is Media Scheduling?
Media Scheduling refers to the pattern of timing of an advertising which is represented as plots on a flowchart on a yearly basis. The plots in the flowchart indicate the pattern of periods that matches with favorable selling periods. The classical scheduling models are commonly known as continuity, fighting, and pulsing.
Media scheduling depends upon a number of factors such as:
• The nature of product- whether it is consumer usable, durables or industrial
• The nature of sales- whether the sales is seasonal or regular
• The product lifecycle- whether the product introduction is in growth, maturity or decline
• The pattern of competitor’s programs
• The entry of new competitors in the market
• The availability of funds for advertising and marketing campaigns
Continuity
This model is primarily valid for non-seasonal products and some kind of seasonal products. Advertising usually runs steadily with little variation or change over the campaign period. There might be short gaps between advertising at regular intervals and also long gaps, for instance, one advertising every week for 12 months and then pause for a while. This pattern of media advertising prevalent in service and packaged goods requires continuous reinforcement on the customers for top of mind recollection at point of purchase.
The advantages are as follows -
• It works as a reminder.
• It covers the entire purchase cycle.
• It helps in achieving cost efficiencies in the form of large media discounts.
• It helps with positioning advantages within media.
• It incorporates a program or plan that helps identifies the media channels used in an advertising campaign, and specifies insertion or broadcast dates, positions, and duration of the messages.
Flighting
Flighting involves intermittent and irregular periods of advertising, alternating with shorter periods of no advertising at all in media scheduling for seasonal product categories. For example Halloween costumes are purchased mainly during the months of September and October and not the entire year round.
Advantages:
• For a relatively shorter period of time, the advertisers buy heavier weight than competitors.
• It results in little wastage, since this type of advertising concentrates on the best purchasing cycle period.
• The series of commercials as unified media campaigns appear on different media vehicles.
Pulsing
By using low advertising all the year round and heavy advertising during peak selling periods, Pulsing combines both flighting and continuous scheduling. The product categories that experience a surge in sale at intermittent periods are good candidates for pulsing product categories that are sold year round. For instance, under-arm deodorants, sell all year, but more during the summer months
Advantages:
• It covers different market situations possible
• It combines advantages of both continuity and flighting possible
Hence, this concludes the definition of Media Scheduling along with its overview.
This article has been researched & authored by the Business Concepts Team. It has been reviewed & published by the MBA Skool Team. The content on MBA Skool has been created for educational & academic purpose only.
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