The Media is the Message

Whatever marketing medium you use to deliver your message, choose wisely.

There are many types of media you can choose to deliver your message effectively. However, depending on your target market, you should select the media method that has a proven track record of performance and the best opportunity for a positive ROI.

A good example of this is the use of direct mail when targeting generation Y. This segment has a high readership of direct mail as compared to the newspaper. If you were executing a marketing campaign, putting your marketing dollars into newpaper ads would generate a less-than-optimal result. The same dollars spent on direct mail would show a much stronger ROI.

Companies with large advertising budgets are constantly weighing the pros and cons of various media types. The best place to start is by testing the media type that you believe will generate the greatest return with a sample campaign. Measure the result of multiple messages within this media type. Once you have quantified the results, try another form of media. Again, measure the results.

By completing some initial tests, you can quickly identify which media type is resonating with your prospective audience. The key is to commit to a sustained campaign. This will give your marketing enough time to take hold and for the specific media type to be fully optimized.

The key with and type of media, once selected, is to create a baseline of your marketing results - then attempt to outproduce your previous campaign. Once you take this approach, you can continually increase the results of your marketing efforts.