Need To Know Differences Between UK & International Media Buying

In the digital age, brands have truly global audiences; and a properly evaluated media plan should look at the whole picture. But to calculate the market potential of the entire world may seem like a colossally daunting task, especially where there are different practises and systems for buying advertising on TV from country to country. Not to mention the headaches and hair-pulling that result from arduous compliance procedures with disparate clearance requirements. It can seem difficult to even know where to start.

Fortunately for us, we’ve been buying media, in the UK and across the world, since our inception. So we do know exactly where to start: with a list of all the things to be mindful of if implementing a global plan…

Differences Between UK & International Media Buying

Each country has a different method of selling and buying TV advertising: and if you’re not familiar with these, they can bewilder; especially compared to the broadly similar terms and processes involved with online buying. As importantly, these differences can also make direct comparison between placements harder to assess.

Different countries use different terminologies: Again, this can be time-consuming to decipher, and makes comparisons (or ‘intra-analogical-relationship-suppositions’) less clear.

Time zones/language barriers: You knew this already, but if you want to make adjustments to a live campaign on the other side of the world and need to break into Portugese at 2 in the morning, best have your wits about you.

Cultural differences across borders and within regions: You say potato, I say potahto. You say tomato, I say tomahto. Let’s not call the whole thing off, let’s just make sure we have the correct regional variations in place.

Localisation requirements can escalate quickly: You say potato, I say patata, she says pomme de terre, he says aaloo…. and so on and so forth. Advert production needs to fit the regional plan.

Different clearance requirements between countries: There can be many hoops to jump through to make sure your advert adheres to all local TV advertising regulations, some of which can prove quite complex – especially in heavily regulated industries such as gambling. A TV advertising specialist will already understand these, thus accelerating the process.

Value can vary wildly between countries: £50,000 spent here almost certainly won’t equate to £50,000 there. It’s worth shopping around if you want the highest possible ROI.

There are countless advantages to looking at your marketing plans on an international basis – not least economies of scale. And because cultures and brand-values rarely respect national borders, there’s no reason to restrict your media plans to a specific locality. The rewards are likely to be greater if you view your campaign through a global lens; the complications cited above needn’t be a deterrent… after all, you can just get your favourite media buying agency to sort it all out for you.