Media generally takes up most of the marketing budget for a company, as they pay to have their adverts on the TV, radio, internet ads, as well as sponsored posts on social media. In some cases, this is one of the biggest spending areas a company will make. Apple, for example, increased its ad spend by a massive 50 per cent in 2015, to a record breaking $1.8 billion.

A media audit allows companies to check the adverts and media they’ve paid for have appeared in the right places, at a competitive price. For example, it’s not worth having an advert for dentures play in the middle of a children’s TV programme, regardless of how cheap the airtime is.

But how can you tell whether the spend was worth it? Thankfully, this is where media audit companies come in, to help big and small businesses to analyse the effectiveness of marketing campaigns, and how to target the right audiences.

Media audits measure campaign effectiveness

Media auditors can analyse how effective a media marketing campaign has been for a business, considering the marketing at the time of the advertising and platform. Global agency Auditstar advise that an in-depth analysis from a media audit assess the media performance and compare it to any competitors, taking into account any deflation or inflation, along with market norms.

Tools like Google Analytics can track your customers, and help you find your real target audience so you can target them more efficiently and effectively. Media audits also help a business set attainable goals and performance targets for those customers, ensuring it stays on track to grow and develop over time.

By tracking the success of the advert, as well as the effectiveness of the media spend,

companies can work closely with businesses to target the right media in their next campaigns.

Small businesses can maximise even restricted budgets

Media audits offer key data on your previous media campaigns. Whether carried out in-house or through a specialist agency, small businesses benefit from this media management as it allows for more careful tracking of their spend.

As a small business, your overall marketing budget is going to restrictive. While you want to leave room to experiment, knowing what was financially worth it, in terms of media outreach, will indicate when you can take risks in your next media campaign, and where you can succeed by playing it safe.

Media audits take into account what competitors are doing, and how they are targeting their audiences. Comparing marketing campaigns gives you the chance to find new angles to attract an audience, and fill any gaps in the market.

A media audit will help you shape a realistic budget for your next campaign

It’s also important to work out a budget for each campaign, and examine how much money a business can afford to put into each advert. A media audit can help a business analyse the most effective marketing strategies, and work out the best way to invest any working capital.

A media audit company will also work alongside and motivate a media agency too. Using this, they can help you to target incentive linked KPI’s, develop the right contact, and implement an efficient working process.

The more campaigns and audits you carry out each year, the better your chances are of maximising your budget, and finding the most beneficial media for your small business.

Media auditors have added benefits

One of the biggest pros of working with a specialist media audit company is that they will look over any contracts, and ensure they are appropriate for the business, giving the advertiser and business a common understanding of the detailed content of the contract.

Consultants can also offer media training to businesses, keeping their clients up to date on the ever-changing media market. They can customise the media training to suit the advertiser’s needs, and advise on the working process, so you always know how to effectively target your audience. This can be a particularly useful service for small businesses who aren’t sure if they can run their own media strategies.

Seeing the effectiveness of a marketing campaign can massively help a business plan its future strategies, targeting specific areas and customers. Future campaigns can be targeted, in order to drive as much business to a website as possible.