- Home
- Learning Resources
- Marketing College
- Channels & Platforms
Channels and Platforms
Channels & Platforms
2 December 2024
Optimise your channel and platform strategy, and learn how to measure media effectiveness to boost your return of investment.
Channel planning refers to the organisation of different touchpoints to achieve a set communication objective. It essentially answers the question: “Where do I show up to connect with my audience?”
With a wide variety of channels and platforms available, it is easy to be carried away by the latest and biggest platforms. Resist the temptation of jumping onto the bandwagon and stay focused on your objective — it will guide your channel planning.
How to optimise channel selection through the consumer journey?
To choose the right channels and platforms, revisit who your audience is and where they are in their consumer journey by using the Consumer Experience Tool. Doing so helps you to identify the most effective consumer touchpoints while giving you a higher return on investment.
If you are unsure how to allocate your budget across channels, follow the 70-20-10 rule:
Invest 70% into your tried and tested channels
20% into emerging channels
10% into new areas
Note these key points as well for identifying touchpoints and media planning:
Supports the objectives
Ensures clear consumer connection
Balances tried, trusted, and new channels
Integrates channels with clear roles
Uses data to make decisions
Incorporates digital in an integrated campaign
Leverages the consumer experience tool
Designs digital activation for people, not devices
Balances short- and long-term goals
Defines and monitors digital metrics against objectives
What are the differences between paid, earned, and owned media?
The distinction between paid, owned, and earned media has blurred. It’s important to understand how they interact and tailor content for each media type. Many platforms offer free resources to help you maximise their use and learn their functions, features, and best practices.
Media is typically categorised into three categories.
Paid | Owned | Earned |
|---|---|---|
Print, TV, radio, magazines, cinema, outdoor, digital display, search engine marketing, etc. | Company and brand websites or microsites, brochures, retail sites, communities, brand page on social media and apps, etc. | Word of mouth, social media (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and more), blogs, and forums, etc. |
How do you measure media effectiveness?
Measuring media effectiveness is essential for ensuring that your marketing campaigns yield the desired results. Get insights on the three key stages of measuring media effectiveness below.
Pre-Campaign Selection
Start monitoring media effectiveness at the start of the campaign. It should not be an afterthought! Select relevant metrics aligned with your set objectives before your campaign begins.
For example, if your goal is to create brand or product awareness, prioritise metrics such as impressions, which measure the number of times your content is displayed. The table below summarises the key metrics for each stage of the consumer journey. Click here for a glossary of metrics.
Common metrics used to measure media effectiveness.
Metrics | Description |
|---|---|
Impressions | Measures the number of times your content is displayed. The more times it is displayed, the more likely people are going to interact with it. |
Reach | The number of people that your content was displayed to. It can help you understand how far your content is disseminating and the size of your potential audience. |
Visits / Visitors | The number of visitors who arrive at your website and proceed to browse, or the total visits to any location relevant to your strategy, such as a landing page, giving you an idea of how well your campaign is driving traffic. |
Click or view through rate | The proportion of visitors who click through to a destination (e.g., website) or view a video, indicating interest and intent. |
Engagement rate | The proportion of users interacting with a piece of content (comments, shares, likes) without necessarily clicking through to another destination. |
Cost per action | The cost of your activity per specific action (views, engagements, clicks downloads), which can be useful for tracking conversions. |
Conversion rate | The percentage of users that perform a desired action, (e.g., signing up or making a purchase) (Total conversions is one of the most important metrics for measuring profitability of your overall marketing efforts. |
Return on investment | Calculates the effectiveness of your digital marketing spend against increased sales to assess success. It can only be easily calculated if a sale can be directly attributed to a digital activity. |
During Campaign Optimisation
As a rule of thumb, allocate approximately two weeks to assess performance and make necessary adjustments. Monitoring effectiveness during the campaign allows you to optimise your investment towards achieving desired outcomes.
Post Campaign Evaluation
Always review the campaign performance at the end to extract learnings. Compare your performance against industry benchmarks and past campaigns. If you have set clear metrics linked to your objectives, focus on the key performance indicators (KPIs) that matter most. Additional data from the campaign can provide additional learnings but should not distract you from your primary goals.
Tracking your KPIs can be stressful, especially if your campaign underperforms. However, tracking is the only way to know if your campaign delivers results and pinpoint areas that require fixing. If successful, analysing what worked can help you replicate those strategies in future campaigns.
More tips on channel planning
In addition to selecting the right media and metrics for marketing success, monitor brand safety and look out for advertisement (ad) fraud. Protect your campaigns and brand reputation from risky online content or environments. You can do so by creating an include and/or exclude list of websites, genres, and keywords.
Ad fraud involves deliberate activities by fraudsters to prevent the proper delivery of ads. Common forms of ad fraud include bots and falsely represented sites, which enable fraudsters to siphon off your marketing budget.
Find Out More
Next, learn about Marketing Partnerships.
Access more free marketing resources from STB on YouTube.