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Media buyers buy media. Sounds pretty basic right? Media is the plural of medium, a means of mass communication. Newspapers, television, the Internet-these are all forms of media. So a media buyer buys advertising space in various media. A print media buyer would focus on newspapers and magazines, online media buying would consist of Internet and Web site advertising space and so on. A media buying company will have different divisions to handle all aspects of media buying. The media buying process is where a media buyer buys spots, pages, or space in media and then turns around and sells it at a marked up price to a business wanting to communicate their message. Media buying services work on speculation. If you can't find anyone to re-buy the spots you have purchased you lose money. There are basically two types of media buyers--the in house media buyers or those who work with separate agencies with multiple clients. Media buyers get special discounts that allow them to buy in bulk. They can then turn a profit by selling to an advertiser. Those media buyers who work in house are hired to find the best media and then negotiate the terms. They also verify that the ads have been placed as purchased. Media buying services play an important role for their clients. The time involved is the biggest factor in the ability for a client to try and buy media themselves. The media buyers make the process cost effective while ensuring the right publications are being used, the right audiences are being reached and at a competitive rate, and that the client is getting what they paid for. Media buyers can be paid by commission or as an employee with an hourly or salaried compensation. Traditionally, media buyers get paid a commission of 15% that is calculated on the gross price of an advertising piece purchased from a publisher. It usually works in this way. The media buyer gets a 15% discount on media purchased and then turns around and sells it for full price to the advertiser, netting his 15% fee. The reason advertisers work with media buyers is they often get better prices from the media based on frequency or bulk pricing, a better deal than the advertiser could get even with paying the media buyers fee. A recent trend is seeing many companies housing their own in-house media buyers to net that savings themselves. As a result many media buyers have had to reduce their commissions or work on a flat-fee or per advertisement fee basis.
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Online Media Buying
