Advertising impact: Why "cheap media" can be very expensive

Anyone who takes a closer look at the terms "effectiveness" and "efficiency", which are quickly thrown around but always cause confusion, quickly realizes that the two terms are close in terms of communication, but can nevertheless be used in opposite or even competing directions.

But what is more important in communication? One thing is certain: effectiveness before efficiency. Too much focus on efficiency can even be disastrous for brands (a tiresome topic - especially in media audits!). Many brands focus on what they can measure quickly and easily and not on what is important for their brand. Research (e.g. the IPA) shows that pure direct response or performance campaigns are a good way to achieve maximum efficiency - with the downside that the impact on sales is very short term, falls away quickly and contributes little to sustainable brand building (and sales).

Dependency for performance campaigns

Performance campaigns are important. But anyone who invests too much of their budget in them runs the risk of becoming highly dependent. And any brand that tries to constantly push its sales figures via performance marketing will find it difficult to let go. This requires the courage to change strategy.

In contrast, longer-term branding campaigns are usually highly effective, but less efficient if they are not supported by activating channels. Ideally, powerful communication strategies should combine effectiveness with efficiency. Here too, it's all about finding the right mix for your brand.

10 steps on how to get a good deal closer to the impact of your campaigns:

1. Clear strategy: Do not confuse "strategy" with "goal". Unfortunately, this is a common mistake.
2. Clear goals: Define clear communication and media goals and start with a well thought-out briefing. Often underestimated, but essential for strategy development.
3. KPIs: Measure and evaluate the success of the campaign with the right key performance indicators. These should not contradict each other. And here too: Less is more!
4. Clear target group: These can be identified and defined according to various criteria and should be neither too narrow nor too broad. Be careful with so-called "desired target groups".
5. Channel selection: Select the most suitable media channels to reach the target group and objectives. Justify the choice of channel and assign a clear role to each medium.
6. Message: The choice of channels should go hand in hand with the creation.
7. Creation: 50 -60 percent of the advertising impact comes from the creation! One of the biggest (and most underestimated) levers. Or as advertising guru Dave Trott said: "Creativity is the last unfair competitive advantage".
8. Budget distribution: Invest the available media budget in the channels so that they complement and reinforce each other in order to achieve the best possible effect.
9. Range: Place significantly more emphasis on reach than on CPM.
10. Effectiveness: Make this the primary goal. Efficiency comes second. If efficiency were your sole goal in the long term, the logical consequence would be drastic budget cuts and falling sales figures.

Advertising effectiveness is therefore not an incidental goal, but a necessity. Further information and tips on how to avoid falling into the efficiency trap can be downloaded here in the white paper "Advertising effectiveness".

*After holding various positions at media and creative agencies and as marketing manager of an outdoor advertising company, he took over Oliver Schönfeld took up the position of Managing Director at TWmedia in Basel in 2018. He has acquired his knowledge through a great deal of curiosity, many years of experience and by studying marketing and psychology on the windy Baltic coast and in vibrant Manchester.

To the whitepaper series on Werbewoche.ch

• Article 1: Whitepaper "Strategic process"
• Article 2: Whitepaper "Target group"
• Article 3: Whitepaper "Target definition"