Start with the one number
Not a list of KPIs. The single business outcome next year is judged on, agreed before anything is planned against it.
Planning season is now.
Most 2027 media budgets get set between October and January, and most agency reviews start in the same window. If next year’s plan is still a spreadsheet of last year’s numbers, this is the moment to change that.
Why the annual plan is usually the expensive mistake
An annual plan built by rolling last year forward carries every inefficiency of last year with it, plus a year of rate inflation. The channels that quietly stopped working keep their budget because nobody re-litigated them, and the channels that could have worked never get tested.
We start from the business outcome and the one number that actually matters, then build the channel mix to reach it. Sometimes that means a smaller budget placed better. We would rather tell you that in October than defend a plan in June.
What annual planning with us looks like
Four to six weeks, depending on how much history there is to work through and how many stakeholders need to agree.
Audit what this year actually did
Spend against return by channel and market, including the parts nobody wants to look at. This is where most of the savings are.
Build the mix, not the list
Channels planned as one system with the interactions modelled, rather than separate budgets defended by separate people.
Price it honestly
Real rates from real negotiations, not rate-card estimates that fall apart in January.
Plan the tests
A defined share of budget held for testing, with what counts as a win agreed in advance so the result is not argued about later.
Set the reporting
The dashboard and the cadence agreed before launch, so nobody spends the first quarter building reports instead of optimizing.
Questions we get asked
When should we start annual media planning?
Most organizations should start between September and November to have a plan ready for a January launch. If you are running an agency review or an RFP as part of it, start earlier: a review typically adds six to ten weeks before planning can even begin. Fiscal years that do not follow the calendar should work back the same way from whenever their year starts.
How long does annual media planning take?
Four to six weeks for the plan itself, assuming reasonable access to last year’s spend and performance data. Add time if multiple business units or markets need to be reconciled, and add six to ten weeks if an agency review runs first.
How much of a marketing budget should go to paid media?
It varies by category and by how much of the goal is new customer acquisition versus retention, but a common planning range is 25 to 45 percent of total marketing budget. The more useful question is what the current mix is returning, which an audit answers before the split is argued about.
Is it too late to change this year’s media plan?
Almost never. Most annual plans have more flexibility in them than the people running them believe, particularly in digital and in anything bought quarterly. A mid-year audit usually finds money that can move without breaking a commitment.
Do you respond to media agency RFPs?
Yes, regularly. We can work to a standard RFP, a scorecard, or a less formal conversation. If you are writing the RFP now, we are happy to look at the draft and tell you which questions will get you comparable answers between agencies.
Can you review a plan another agency built?
Yes. A plan audit is often where a relationship starts. Send the plan and the rates and we will tell you what we would do differently and why, whether or not we end up working together.