What is media planning and buying?
Media planning and buying is two jobs that work as one. Planning is the strategy: which channels (television, streaming, out of home, print, radio, search, social, digital display, podcasts) will reach the target audience, in what mix, at what times and with what budget. Buying is the execution: negotiating rates, securing placements, booking programmatic campaigns and making sure the ads actually run where and when they should.
Media is usually the largest part of an advertising budget, often several times the cost of making the ads themselves, which is why the discipline has its own specialists, agencies and tools.
Why it matters
Why media planning and buying matter
The best creative in the world fails if it runs in the wrong place, at the wrong time, to the wrong people. Good planning puts the message where the audience actually is and builds enough frequency for it to be remembered without becoming annoying. Good buying stretches the budget, through negotiation, smart timing and cutting waste, so the same money reaches more of the right people.
Planning and buying also shape the creative. A plan built around connected TV, vertical social and out of home needs different assets from one built around print and radio, which is why the media plan and the creative brief should be written side by side.
In practice
How media planning and buying work in practice
- 01
Planning starts with the objective and the audience. The planner uses research and data to understand what the audience watches, reads, listens to and scrolls, then builds a plan that sets out channels, budget split, timing, reach and frequency targets and the measures of success. The plan is reviewed with the client and the creative team so the assets match the placements.
- 02
Buying turns the plan into bookings. Buyers negotiate with publishers, broadcasters and platforms, book direct deals and run programmatic campaigns through demand-side platforms. Once the campaign is live, the team monitors delivery and performance, shifts budget toward what is working, checks placements for brand safety and reports results against the targets.
At RIOT
Media planning and buying at RIOT
We sit on the creative side of the plan, making the work it carries. "Real Life, Worry Free", our CTV spot for Bogg Bags, and the Meta ad engine we built for Homebase from February to April 2025 are two different answers to the same question: what does this placement need from the film?
Watch out
What people get wrong about media planning and buying
Buying the cheapest impressions. Low-cost placements often come with poor visibility, fraud or audiences that do not matter, and a cheap campaign nobody remembers is not a bargain.
The second mistake is separating media from creative. When the plan is set after the ads are made, the assets rarely fit the channels, and the brand ends up cropping and resizing its way into placements the work was never designed for.
Finally, brands often change plans too quickly. Some channels, especially brand-building ones, need time to show results, and pulling budget after two weeks can waste the money already spent.
