How important are ratings?
	Vital. The word, "rating" is the most important word in broadcasting. We use rating to understand audience size, age, and most importantly, to calculate frequency of exposure and cost.
	I keep hearing about the word, "share." What does it mean?
	Share usually means a percentage of the households using TV or the percentage of people using radio.
	Are ratings important in newspaper and magazines?
	Yes. Most of the time we rely on the Audit Bureau of Circulations. This is an independent firm that calculates subscriptions etc.
	How come the number of total impressions is so high?
	"Impressions" are misleading. Most effective media buyers are not concerned with impressions. Here's the basic formula: add the audience delivered for each spot in the entire schedule - these are your gross impressions.
	What is "reach?"
	While impressions do not indicate how many different people will be exposed to your ad, reach gives us the number of different people (or homes) that are exposed to your schedule within a given period of time.
	How important is frequency?
	Frequency is critical. Most ad sales reps ignore the value of frequency as do many buyers. Frequency is the number of times a person is exposed to your advertising message. While media sales people keep trying to convince buyers that 3x (exposure) is adequate in a 1 week schedule, maximum mind penetration does not take place until your frequency is at a 5x - 7x per week.
	What medium is best or most efficient for my advertising dollar?
	It really depends on your objectives. Newspaper is powerful for people already in the buying universe. Someone looking for a car may end up in the back section or Classifieds of the daily newspaper. Radio and TV are effective in expanding your universe. They are intrusive forms of advertising, thus people not ready to buy can be motivated or persuaded. In addition, TV especially builds credibility and trust. Thus, each medium has its own advantages.
	Are ratings important for outdoor advertising?
	Absolutely. You need to know more than just the gross number, you need to understand the demographics of people who drive the highway.

The FAQ was written by Robert Zink of Adstar Marketing and Advertising. For more info on our media buying services call: (206) 686-1044 Seattle or (253) 537-6877 Tacoma or write us.