Lisbeth Wiley Chapman

Creating a Target Media List

 

Step 4. Organize Your Clients' Media Response

You now know what media your best clients turn to for information. It is logical that you will find other prospects there. You now need to organize your clients' media response.

Organizing Variables

There are five critical variables to help you organize your information into a media list:

  1. Reach: how widely the media are read, seen, or listened to and by whom
  2. Frequency: daily, weekly, monthly, bimonthly, semiannually, annually
  3. Local: media outlets in your town, city, county, region
  4. National: media outlets throughout the country
  5. International: media outlets outside the country

Examples:

S. Snow reads the Family Business Journal, a business quarterly print magazine for closely held business owners. Reach is 1,000.

P. Golden reads USA Today, a consumer print newspaper. Frequency is daily. Reach is 1.5 million.

K. Pratt reads Pensions & Investments, a print business magazine. It is biweekly with a reach of 50,000.

Client Media Outlet Media Category Media Market Reach Frequency
S. Snow Family Business Journal Print/Business Magazine Closely Held Business Owners 1,000 Quarterly
P. Golden USA Today Print Newspaper Consumer 1.5 million Daily
K. Pratt Pensions & Investments Trade Publication Institutional Money Managers 50,000 Biweekly

Step 5. Analyze Your Clients' Data

  • What media categories do your best clients turn to the most: print, broadcast, or Web?
  • What media outlets were mentioned most frequently: newspapers, magazines, newsletters, TV shows, radio, or online magazines?
  • Are they local or national media?
  • What are the avocational interests of your clients?

Step 6. Select Media Appropriate to Your Business Objectives

Design your target media list so that it gives you both reach and frequency. Do not ignore a publication with a small circulation. It could have a reach highly targeted to your market. Its readers could be more advantageous to your business than a larger publication's reach and frequency. What media do you want to cover your company?

Tip: It is often easier to become a source for a national publication than a metropolitan newspaper. Metropolitan newspapers' business sections often focus on regional and local business of a certain size, not on concepts, such as investment management or personal finance.

Step 7. Add Different Types of Media

The research you conduct with your clients will give you an excellent foundation for a targeted media list. A complete list needs to include media that may be unfamiliar to your clients yet are read by colleagues and other professionals.

Targeting some of these additional media outlets will enhance your credibility and visibility and expand the value of your media campaign. The following is a list of media categories with specific media outlets. This particular list was prepared for the financial services industry.

Use the five organizing variables mentioned above, and keep your business objectives in mind when selecting additional media. Revise your list as changes occur in your business and as you become more familiar with the media world.

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Copyright © Ink&Air 1998

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