Planners contribute strategic insights to help guide the development of advertising campaigns.
Advertising planners are also referred to as account planners and media planners in advertising agencies. No matter the title, they play a vital and important role in helping to guide and shape the success of advertising agency clients. A planner must possess the ability to understand four primary advertising department disciplines: account management, creative, marketing research and media buying. The planner works with team members in each respective department to develop winning strategies that incorporate all four elements for the agency's accounts and clients.
Incorporation of Marketing Research
Planners incorporate research from focus groups, surveys, questionnaires and more. Results are used to assist in developing the positioning for brands in the marketplace and developing the advertising creative works. For example, if results from a focus group for a new brand of potato chips indicate that the research participants find the brand holds up better for dips, the planners might identify that as a strong selling point to be used in creative development. If consumers in the South prefer chips with a spicy flavor and those on the West Coast prefer all-natural chips, the planner might recommend separate strategies that align with consumer tastes and preferences in different regions.
Advertising Strategy Development
Planners incorporate marketing research and brand positioning information to assist in the development of the overall advertising strategy. They work in collaboration with the account management team to solidify the agency recommendation to present for client approval. Once the client approves the strategy, the planners work with all agency stakeholders (account management, creative, media buying and research) to make sure that their efforts are in alignment with the strategy that the client has approved.
Strategic Creative Involvement
Planners work closely with creative directors assigned to agency accounts to make sure that the concepts and ideas that the creative team develops are "on strategy" with what the client has approves and expects. This can sometimes mean that a planner will be required to voice disapproval of an idea if it is not on strategy. In this instance, a planner should explain the reasons why and offer guidance on how the idea might be revised to meet the strategic objectives. If an idea does meet the strategy, the planner then prepares information to help support, sell and recommend executing the idea for production to the client.
Media Innovation
Planners stay on top of the latest trends and use of technology to reach target consumers to demonstrate their expertise to agencies and clients and to achieve their career goals. They achieve this by taking extra steps to take a "deep dive" exploration to uncover innovative ways to use media and advertising ideas to create a unique position for brands and services for clients that will resonate with customers. This can include looking at retail stores and business locations as a form of media and exploring opportunities to use those venues for advertising purposes with unique in-store displays and online advertising.
Analyzing Results
Planners assess results from prior advertising campaigns to explore areas for improvement. They track sales information to compare results based on prior advertising campaigns. Recommendations could include testing different strategies, creative executions and use of media. The results are then used to provide and recommend the final strategic direction to advertise the client's brands or services.
Salary Potential and Career Path
Salaries for advertising planners range from a starting salary of approximately $40,000 per year for entry-level positions to $80,000 for senior-level planners. The career path progresses from planner to senior planner and director. Positions are typically found in advertising agencies and the marketing or consumer research departments of major consumer products companies.
Tags: account management, advertising campaigns, account management creative, advertising agencies, agency accounts