Communication
Leveraging Audience Gratification In Media Buying
By Anthony Taiti
Every organization has an innate desire to be seen and heard by the ‘ right people ’, or target audience . This is especially true given their substantial investment in buying media space to achieve their corporate goal amidst the indisputable reality of audience fragmentation . Unfortunately , this has proven to be a mirage for many of them .
In October of last year , I was invited to a debrief for an event held in Nairobi , where I sat in a cosy boardroom with members of the planning and execution committee . According to the brief , my task was simple : deconstruct the various aspects of the event and provide expert scrutiny . The discussions flowed smoothly until the topic of audience mobilization came up . The mood in the room changed , and there was a palpable sense of disappointment . Having participated in such evaluation meetings before , the grim faces in the room did not surprise me at all . Nonetheless , my antennas were up , eager to hear the obvious narratives .
The matter was discussed extensively , and as I had anticipated , it all boiled down to ignorance in media buying , which ultimately led to the wrong choice of media platforms for publicity campaigns . I interrogated the committee ’ s media plan , and my attention was drawn to their obsession with the so-called top media houses , which consumed a lion ’ s share of their publicity budget . They argued that media rankings informed their decisions .
We evaluated their target audiences , and at the end of the day , we all agreed that they did not consider their media consumption habits , which is a critical aspect of media buying . As a result , their media buying strategy was ineffective , hence the low audience attraction score . This was a costly blunder that may have been avoided by leveraging audience gratification .
Gratification is such a significant factor in media consumption that in 1974 , Jay G . Blumler and Elihu Katz did research on this phenomenon and published a paper titled “ The uses of mass communication : Current perspectives on gratifications research .” It provided a comprehensive introduction to the Uses and Gratification Theory of Communication .
The premise of this theory is that people deliberately choose media that fulfil their needs in life . When the audience ' s needs are met , they naturally develop a strong media affinity for the platform that helps them achieve this . Such needs could be cognitive ( for example , listening to the radio to gain knowledge or information about a particular subject matter ), affective ( for example , watching a soap opera that evokes your emotions and puts you “ in touch ” with your inner feelings ), or social integrative ( for example , watching a particular series with a friend so that you can discuss it when you meet ).
The theory , which applies to various media contexts , such as print , television , radio , and online platforms , has been investigated using a variety of research approaches , including surveys and interviews , to better understand audience motivations and media consumption habits . It posits that the medium that provides the greatest satisfaction to a person will be used more often than others .
Different media research firms across the world rank media platforms ' market share of viewership , readership , and listenership using a range of parameters , including time , geographical regions , and audience demographics . As expected , those at the top beat their drums all day and night , highlighting their numerical dominance
in a bid to attract more advertisers . While ranking top is admirable and applaudable , media buyers should be cautious of this bait that , more often than not , fails to consider the all-important aspect of audience gratification . Regrettably , many organizations are enthralled by the rankings and overlook this aspect , causing them to spend top dollar on flopped advertising .
Interestingly , the Uses and Gratification Theory highlights that people can build a very strong dependency on media to gratify their needs . As such , when developing a plan for media buying , the most important element to consider to achieve optimum impact is the preferred media of your target audience . The million-dollar question you should always ask is , “ What is the relationship between our target audience and the media we want to use ?”
Since it is clear that audiences have the power to choose media , when doing audience analysis , delve deeper , understand their most important needs , and identify which media gratifies them . In essence , the media buying process transcends media rankings . You may be pleasantly surprised to discover that the top-ranked TV , Radio , or Newspaper does not feature in the list of their preferred media because it does not satisfy their needs .
To achieve optimum results in media buying , go beyond the norm and leverage audience gratification .
Anthony Taiti is Public Relations and Communication professional , currently heading Corporate Affairs at Pan Africa Christian University . You can connect with him via mail at : ATaiti09 @ gmail . com .
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