What is advertising simulation? Introducing the key points for considering optimal marketing measures

Update date:2024.03.21 Column

table of contents

What is advertising simulation?
Why is advertising simulation important?
Key points of advertising simulation
- Clarifying marketing objectives and campaign goals
- Considering customer flow
Summary of advertising simulation

What is advertising simulation?

One of the biggest concerns that marketing managers have is "considering advertising budgets and measures." There are many concerns, such as how much budget is needed to maximize advertising effectiveness, how to allocate the budget to each measure (which media to focus on), etc. This is where "advertising simulation" comes in handy.

"Advertising simulation" is the process of simulating the effect of an advertising budget to determine optimal solutions for budget allocation, media considerations, etc. By performing a simulation, you can get an idea of how much advertising budget you will need. It is also useful when discussing the combination of media to maximize advertising effectiveness within a budget.

Why is advertising simulation important?

Currently, when deciding on a marketing budget, it is often the case that the person in charge relies on their experience and intuition to decide which measures to take and how to allocate the budget. Therefore, when no results are seen, it is difficult to identify the cause, such as whether the budget was insufficient or whether there was a problem with the measures themselves. This leads to problems such as "not being able to verify the effectiveness" and "not being able to plan the optimal advertising strategy."

Another problem is that when proposing measures within a company, there are cases where the proposal cannot be approved without providing solid evidence. For example, if you want to run a TV commercial, but the budget is large, you need internal approval, but you cannot show the specific advertising effects, so you may not be able to get approval.

"Advertising simulation" can solve these kinds of problems. By performing an "advertising simulation," it is possible to calculate the optimal budget, visualize effective media allocation, and visualize the effects of anticipated measures. The results of the simulation can be used as evidence of advertising effectiveness and can be used to plan highly effective and efficient advertising measures. In this way, "advertising simulation" is becoming indispensable as a means of solving the various problems of marketers.

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Key points of advertising simulation

So far, we have explained the importance of "advertising simulation," but we would like to introduce some key points to keep in mind when conducting an "advertising simulation."

Clarifying marketing objectives and campaign goals

Before conducting an "advertising simulation," be sure to clarify your marketing objectives. You need to determine the goal of your marketing measures, whether that be to increase brand awareness or to increase conversions such as inquiries or requests for information.

Once you have set your objective, organize the campaign goals to achieve that objective. For example, do you want to maximize your reach, increase the frequency of contact, or encourage a change in the target's attitude? Consider what kind of goal you can set to achieve your objective. Objectives are things you set to achieve your objective. Make sure to clearly distinguish between objectives and goals.

Depending on the campaign goal, we will consider the appropriate combination of media channels and how to use the media. For example, even with the same YouTube ad, the amount and method of advertising will be different depending on whether it is for increasing brand awareness or cultivating fans. In this way, it is important to organize your marketing objectives and campaign goals in preparation for an "advertising simulation."

Considering customer flow

When considering advertising measures, one of the key points is to determine the role of each media. In this case, a "customer flow" is an effective way to do so. A "customer flow" visualizes the actions that a target takes from becoming aware of a product to purchasing it. It illustrates what media the target came into contact with, how their awareness changed, and how they ended up purchasing.

By creating a "customer flow," you can define the role of each media. For example, a customer becomes aware of a product on television, then sees useful information on Facebook. From there, they become fans, and you can create a customer flow in which sampling is done at an in-store event. In this case, television will raise brand awareness, SNS will create fans, and the store will encourage purchases. By determining roles, you can make a more effective simulation, such as investing your budget in points that your company considers important.

In addition, by creating a "customer flow," contact with multiple media can be clarified. With the diversification of media, it is becoming increasingly important to take multiple media contacts into account in simulations.

Conventional simulations could only simulate each media separately. Therefore, precise planning and effect measurement based on the media mix were issues. There were problems with measures being biased towards online, where the results are easy to understand, and only effect measurement for each media was possible, making it difficult to understand the actual effect.

However, there are also cases where people who come into contact with an ad again digitally after watching it on TV have a greater change in attitude. In "advertising simulations," it is becoming increasingly important to integrate online and offline simulations in accordance with the behavior of the target audience.

Summary of advertising simulation

What is the optimal combination of advertising measures? If you want to run a TV commercial, you may not have the materials to gain internal approval. "Advertising Simulation" can help you find the optimal budget allocation and media measures for your company. It can also be used to visualize the results, allowing you to persuade your company.

However, with the recent diversification of media channels, it has become important to consider the combination of media and the effectiveness of each media in simulations. Conduct a simulation based on a media mix to consider optimal marketing measures.

Not only can you consider optimal budget allocation and media strategies, but you can also use it to persuade others within the company by making the information visible.