Advertising Media Planning

Rating:
Summary: A must for any individual interested in advertising
Review: 'Advertising media planning' is a must read for any individual intersted in entering the advertising world or even for those seasoned veterans who would like to brush up on the finer aspects of media planning. While the book is somewhat dry at times, the basics are black and white. I liked that this book can also be used as a reference guide for media terms and definitions and highly recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: Advertising Students Must Not Be Without This
Review: As a student, and soon to be graduate of Boston University's College of Communication under advertising, I found that this book (along with the study guide) were essential in learning the life of media planning for the first time. WHile others complain of its being out of date, it still provides important inside strategies and roller-coaster feeling involved with advertising and media. It's information, key terms, and vehicle breakdowns clarify questions. This is the best intro/how to book concerning media planning because of its in-depth analysis and numerous case studies-what if scenerios. It is a great starting point!

Rating:
Summary: A great primer and information resource!
Review: I've worked in the media departments of two major advertisers and a major advertising agency--and I use this book all the time when I need help on any training sessions I am conducting. It is very thorough with all information you need, but also concise enough not to get bogged down.

For my own use, I find the section on Media Planning Resources on the Internet and invaluable tool to find more information.

A must for any media planner's or buyer's bookshelf!

Rating:
Summary: A great primer and information resource!
Review: I've worked in the media departments of two major advertisers and a major advertising agency--and I use this book all the time when I need help on any training sessions I am conducting. It is very thorough with all information you need, but also concise enough not to get bogged down.

For my own use, I find the section on Media Planning Resources on the Internet and invaluable tool to find more information.

A must for any media planner's or buyer's bookshelf!

Rating:
Summary: Sound Media Basics
Review: One of the mysteries of the UK ad scene is that there is no good, up-to-date, practitioner-written textbook on media planning, so the arrival of an updated version of an established US text is doubly welcome.

Jack Sissors and (mostly, as a result of Mr Sissor's ill-health) Roger Baron have done a very thorough and comprehensive job of explaining and illustrating the basics, from how to get information about any given medium to how to put together a strategy and a detailed plan.

Unsurprisingly, the material is purely US-based, and therefore includes, for example, considerable discussion of the problems of reconciling different area definitions; but analyses such as how to weight a plan by region or medium can apply, suitably modified, anywhere.

There is a wide range of suggestions for (mostly) websites from which to seek detailed information, some of which may be both unfamiliar and useful to non-US readers - the MPA's analysis of the effects of position and ad size in magazines is a good example....

Many of the references may seem old, but, as the authors make clear, they have gone back to the classic originals of basic thinking - and much of this still holds good today.

The new edition is up-to-date, with quite extensive discussion of the internet as a medium, and slightly more limited coverage of cross-media and multi-media planning. Conversely, data fusion barely gets a mention - and is not in the index. Nor are optimisers, which are not discussed in any detail - merely treated as a tool of the trade - or modelling, which gets a brief half page on p374.

If the book has a weakness, it is in the area of evaluation, which gets several mentions, but little detailed discussion. In an era where effectiveness has marched up advertisers' list of priorities, this may need addressing next time.

Nonetheless, any would-be media person should read it, and learn.

Rating:
Summary: A Must Read for Anyone Getting Started in Media Planning
Review: Roger Baron's book goes to great lengths to cover all the basics having to do with the media planning discipline. This book should be required reading for all entry level media professionalls as well as those considering a career in media planning. Well written, good flow. Highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Do Not Buy!! Waste of Money!!
Review: This book is totally outdated, not detailed enough, and completely vague. I had to refer to other advertising books when I read this book because it was so BAD! Everthing in this book was really vague and the authors contradict themselves. One minute they reccommend a particular stragety--the next minute they say the strategy doesn't work--therefore it becomes confusing and not detailed enough. Do not buy this book because it is a waste of money and it is completely outdated--old school information, which is useless.

Rating:
Summary: Great for beginners... but for directors and managers... not
Review: Unless you want to refresh your memory on what GRPs, impressions, and reach and frequency are, or unless you want to know the definitions of these terms, this book isn't for you.

An earlier edition of this book was one of my first books when I have just entered the ad media planning field and I found it really interesting.

However, now that I have more than 8 years of working in the field, it seems to be a bit superficial. There's limited information on the debates between effective frequency, recency, and the proposed 'mid-point' of effective recency. There's also limited discussions on the role of ad media research as the media world explodes (e.g., R&F for the Net?), or the role of different channels/media beyond TV, radio, press, direct mails, and magazines.