Emerson College Library: Advertising: Costs & Expenditures

Media Costs

Most of the sources below concentrate on local spot buying. National network television rates are often a little harder to find. Some generalized costs are displayed in SRDS TV & Cable. Marketer's Guide to Media gives figures that may help you estimate costs. Costs for ads on specific shows usually show up in articles in the broadcast trade press. For digital media costs, see the IAB Glossary for Digital Media Buying and Planning.

General BusinessFile ASAP This link opens in a new window
Business trends, technologies, products, and company profiles. Includes some full text.

Media Market Guide
Reference Desk HF5826.5 .M4
Rates for TV, cable, radio, newspapers, magazines, and outdoor advertising (CPP, CPM)

SRDS Online This link opens in a new window
Advertising rates, circulation, and contact info for newspapers, magazines, TV and cable, radio, and online services. Also provides Claritas consumer demographics data by state, county and DMA - Boston data included. For definitions of advertising terms on digital platforms (like cost-per-click, cost-per-impression, etc.) see Glossary for Digital Media and Planning, standardized and published by Internet Advertising Bureau.

Ad Expenditures

See what a client or competitors have spent on advertising in different media.

Winmo (previously Advertising Red Books) This link opens in a new window
Contains information about national and international agencies and advertisers, such as business classification, agency of record, media expenditures, to which brands are owned by what company, client lists, and billings.
WARC This link opens in a new window
Includes advertising campaign case studies, marketing best practices by platform, company & brand analysis, media consumption, media allocation, adspend data and forecasts, ad to sales ratios. Incorporates some Euromonitor and The Futures Company content. Affiliated with Journal of Market Research and International Journal of Market Research.

Budgeting & Math

Advertising media A to Z : the definitive resource for media planning, buying, and research
Call Number: Emerson Reference [X] HF5826.5 .S848 2004
Intermedia dimensions : a media planning guide
Call Number: [X ReadyRef] HF5813.U6 I57 2016
"Intermedia Dimensions is designed to facilitate the process of making intermedia comparisons and, more importantly, reviewing the synergies and interactions that various media mixes can generate. In addition to the basics (demographics, CPMs, reach & frequency, timing, etc.), Intermedia Dimensions presents many qualitative indicators reflecting the ability of ads in each medium to register sales messages, including the vital aspect of ad receptivity."
The Media Handbook : a complete guide to advertising media selection, planning, research, and buying by Helen Katz
Call Number: HF5826.5 .K38 2017
ISBN: 9781138689152
Publication Date: 2016-09-16
Provides a practical introduction to the advertising media planning and buying processes. Emphasizing basic calculations and the practical realities of offering alternatives and evaluating the plan, this sixth edition reflects the critical changes in how advertising in various media is planned, bought, and sold by today's industry professionals.