What Does a Media Planner Do?

The media planner's salary is diverse in the film industry, whether a senior planner or an assistant media planner. Most media planners work in the marketing departments of film distributors like Sony, Dreamworks, Universal, Lionsgate, and MGM. Working with such companies can be rewarding because marketing these films is imperative to their success. That is where a digital or social media planner comes to work with the advertising rolling on all fronts: television, magazines, newspapers, the Internet, and radio.

The media planner job is an entry-level profession in the film industry, and some consider it the place where you "pay your dues." I see it as where you "learn the ropes."

As a graduate media planner, you work very closely with the professionals who market the films. You learn and understand what it takes to create interest in the weekend blockbuster, the coveted streaming series or movie, or the instant download.

In summary, it takes long hours and perseverance to ensure that all the media outlets are covered. Those outlets include movie websites, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.

Sometimes, millions of dollars are spent promoting and marketing a movie. Understanding the media as a promotional tool is vital. You need to know where to place the commercials that effectively promote your film—it's called demographics. A media planner needs to be able to determine editorial content and programming for potential media use.

For example, the studios put their advertising dollars into the Superbowl, Olympics, World Series, Oscars, and high-ranking network television shows. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google, and Snapchat are social media outlets that effectively promote films because the demographics are easy to keep score. The media planner follows up and ensures the ads run during their allotted time because the studios paid big bucks for that coveted spot.

As a media planner, you are not in charge but get the job done. The studio's executives tell you where, when, and what to air the commercials for the next movie coming out. A whole department team counts on you to book the media for the film's promotion and marketing.

A media planner needs to know the math to turn the information to media buyers for the new film. They track the media space and slots available for purchase, negotiate and ensure ads appear as scheduled and air exactly per the agreement.

You wouldn't promote a children's Disney movie on the Evening News. You market the film on kid programs or sports shows, like when kids watch television on Saturday mornings.

Media planners work in cities like San Francisco, New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. Most film distributors have offices in larger communities and promote major films that reflect those cities. Most of the work originates from Los Angeles or New York because that is where the market happens.

I remember trying to meet with the director of an independent film and dealing with both offices in New York and Los Angeles. I got the interview, which was a successful interview and article all around.

To find any assistant media planner job, you must have excellent people skills, be willing to solve problems, be creative, have excellent communication skills, and use common sense. A media planner for the film industry needs to be in tune with the trades, culture, values, Internet, social media, and audiences. They need to know and implement the latest technology for their customer's advantage and success. Working for the film industry as a freelance media planner, you work 50-plus hours a week—it's expected. You have to organize and put together proposals for your department seniors in a short amount of time. Advertising is a high-stress, competitive business, but there is a pay-off—a successful movie and a great future in the film business.

The variety of media available to promote a film seems endless. When you approach the field and are looking for assistant media planner jobs, you would benefit from looking into media planning subdivisions like social media planner, digital media planner, Facebook media planner, Google media planner, and so forth. A graduate media planner must know their options and be familiar with each media.