Media Research (Advertising Research)

1. Definition
Advertising research is part of the broader concept of marketing research which deals with the evaluation of advertising as a mean of mass communication and a way to influence consumer behaviour. Advertising research can be divided into three sub-categories – advertising content research, advertising media research and advertising effectiveness research.
Two definitions can be found in the internet about media research. The first one states that media research is ‘a study of radio, television and print media for the purpose of reaching the optimal consumer audience.’ This definition takes a consumer-based approach and emphasises on the aspect of media planning which is connected to finding the best target group for advertising a product or service. However, the definition is not full as this is only one aspect of media research. Media research is mainly but not only concentrated on television, radio and print media, there are also cinema, outdoor and internet advertisement for which also a media research can be conducted.
A second definition on the web takes more a company-bases view of media research stating that it is a ‘marketing research that focuses on issues of media selection and frequency’. This definition is important because it shows the relationship between marketing and media research – media research is part of the marketing research. It also shows another two of its aspects – the process of choosing the most suitable type of media and analysing statistical data in order to receive the media frequency. Then the different media available are compared in order to determine which one is the best for the goals the company wants to achieve.
A term of high importance concerning media research is the so called readership. Readership is the audience reached by written communication such as newspapers, magazines, books, letter etc. It is a tool often used in media research for comparison of the different media penetration.

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