Hello everyone, I'm currently under my fiance's screen name. In the future I will posting as ron paul nyc liberty HQ (can't post yet due to pending approval) so keep an eye out for me under that account name over the weekend. I was directed to this thread by RonPaulHawaii from NYC liberty HQ.
I might be the guy everyone's looking for. I'm a media planner here in NYC at one of the major agencies. I've done plans for major and local advertisers (Hershey's, Legg Mason, local Casinos.. to name a few.) I have advertising data available and tons of research at my finger tips. I would love to put together a plan for this or provide direction where I can.
First off I would not recommend contacting any media companies yet, as they will eat you alive and inflate the rates because they know you are most likely unfamiliar/uneducated in media. Make/create a temporary agency, or contact a local agency in Iowa(or anywhere) and work out a deal. I say this because, if you buy through an agency (or say you are a media buying agency, create one etc.) you receive a 15% commission, or discount, however you want to look at it. These media buying agencies will/should cut you in on most of the commission. My current client receives 12% of the commission in the form of a discount as well as takes advantage of the negotiation skills we provide. Second, pricing is crucial, with the right money you can leverage your buy and negotiate the rates. If any of this is confusing, I'll be happy to elaborate and answer any questions. So, before you get into pricing etc, I would suggest taking this media planning process in steps.
First understand and define the target audience. Since the current focus is winning a republican primary, the target is republicans voters. Based on research I've collected, 70% of primary republican voters in the last elections were 50+ years of age. So I feel it's safe to say, to make an major impact, the target audience for this effort should be adults 50+ (I'll call this A50+).
Next, understand where the A50+ consume their TV (broadcast, cable, etc.). I need to do some research for Iowa tomorrow but I can say based on my media knowledge that this campaign should focus it's efforts on cable TV. Cable will give you the most bang for you buck. I haven't looked at the cost per rating point in Iowa but in Miami one of my current clients is currently paying around $650 per rating point (for prime access and prime time) for Broadcast compared to around $175 per rating point for cable TV (on average). That's a huge difference when reaching the same audience. Also, generally older audiences subscribe to cable more than younger. Once again I'll need to pull some research, but I will be able to provide which cable channels will provide the biggest impact on the A50+ target.
Sorry for the long winded post. Again, let me know if I can be of assistance. Let me know if there are questions. I'll post more research over the weekend. If I can express anything, find a way take advantage of the 15% commission/discount somehow, negotiate the rates, and advertise on the most effect and efficient channels (bang for your buck). I highly suggest cable TV. Hope I can help facilitate this.
Also, it depends on your message, but I would recommend nothing longer than a 30 second commercial. Research shows viewing audiences generally lose interest very quickly and you will also get the most bang for you buck for 30s. Longer commercials are also worn out faster (ex. by the 3rd or 4th time they've seen it, they hate the commercial, so it can have a negative impact, esp for long winded messages) The TV stations will also try to convince you 60s are a better approach. I really recommend against it.
Edit: Bookends are also neat. This is when the first of a message begins at the beginning of a commercial pod, right after the break begins and the rest of the ad continues at the end of the pod.
Also, sorry for any grammatical/spelling errors. It's pretty late and I'm exhausted.
