Understand the differences between paid media, owned media and earned media.

Understand the differences between paid media, owned media and earned media.

Understand the differences between paid, owned, and earned media and learn how they can help boost your business!

With this article, you will understand the concepts of paid, owned, and earned media and know how to use each in your business.

Today, the Internet is an indispensable mechanism for promoting products, services and brands, and increasingly, companies and institutions have combined online and offline campaigns for an even more effective marketing strategy to reach their target audiences in the virtual and real world. Given this context, it is essential to understand that there are different media, whether online or offline, and the most used are paid media, proprietary media and earned media (also known as spontaneous media).

It is essential to keep in mind that there is no wrong media or communication vehicle, but rather those that are not compatible with the size or branch of your business; therefore, strategies must be minimally thought out, especially considering your audience, where it is present with greater frequency and intensity, among other factors.

The media described above can significantly increase leads, prospects, access and even sales, which most companies aim for. Therefore, below, we will learn a little about the definition of each of these media and understand what they include.

Paid media

Paid media is one of the best-known and most used. It is one in which space is purchased so that your brand can make advertisements, whether in commercial breaks on television, radio spots, banners and promotions on social media, sponsorships, materials in specific points of sale, etc.

Based on the examples described, paid media can be done online and offline. Still, one caveat is worth mentioning: offline paid press cannot be as optimized as online media, where we have an extensive range of segmentations to achieve our goals—target Audience. When we advertise on bright displays at bus stops or on street clocks, for example, there is no way to segment the audience that will receive that ad.

Proprietary Media

When we talk about proprietary media, it refers to the company or organization’s communication channels and everything that is owned by the brand, such as websites, pages on social networks such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube, applications, in addition to its magazines and newspapers, uniforms, badges, email signatures, among others. Proprietary media can be used on demand but with some caution to not bore or saturate your audience.

Owned media has the advantage of greater authority that it conveys to its audience (after all, it’s different if you have a page on Instagram and Facebook than having a website itself); in addition, the brand has total control over when and how the message will be conveyed, unlike the paid campaign, which remains on air during a contracting period, and if you want to advertise again, you will have to contact the space previously provided again.

Earned Media

Finally, earned media, also known as spontaneous or even made media, is one brand most want to have. It is the famous “word-of-mouth” marketing, in which people exchange information, feedback and opinions about its products and services spontaneously, and here, the consumer plays a fundamental role, fulfilling the function of being the vehicle of communication alone.

Another essential factor to consider about spontaneous media is that, in recent times, it has been a little less… spontaneous. When we think about YouTubers and digital influencers in general, there may be advertising actions in conjunction with brands, in which they play a role in “spontaneous media”, influencing and promoting products and services to their respective audiences.

This strategy is correct, but it is essential to assess whether the audience of the digital influencers you intend to work with is exciting or compatible with your brand, products and services. A practical example of spontaneous media with digital influencers is when a cosmetics brand partners with YouTubers who review beauty products.

Given the spontaneity of conventional earned media (that is, among the general public), there is no control over what will be said. The opinions and feedback shared can be positive and negative, so companies must be attentive to their customers’ and potential customers’ needs and demands, optimizing their resources and accepting consumers’ active role in marketing.

When we truly understand customer demands and offer high-quality products/services with an advantageous cost-benefit, the probability that spontaneous media will favour the brand is excellent.
best media

What is the best media, after all?

As a result, there is no best media for promoting your brand, products and services, and if you have the resources ($), you can combine them all in your strategy. Therefore, it is essential to understand each media described above and evaluate how compatible they are with the reality of your current business. And if you have to choose one or two, consider the one that makes the most sense in your context.

Discover the work of Quality SMI!

We are Quality SMI, a company specialized in digital marketing with more than ten years of activity in the market that works mainly with proprietary media and paid media, carrying out campaigns with assertive segmentations so that your resources are optimized, with a focus on organic search and management of social networks. Furthermore, we work on your brand’s authority with the responsive structuring of your website, developing responsive layouts and respecting UI and UX principles for better navigability.

Click here to learn more about our work and how we can help your company grow.

 

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