From media planner to media expert: The digital effect in advertising

The increase in online audience and the development of Big Data in organizations modify the media planning activity and, consequently, the profile of the planner. Following the digital expansion, more information has become available to perform this task, but also, more complexity is observed in the work processes and in their agents' structures. This paper analyzes the changes produced in the management of the media planner within the digital society. Through triangular research, comprising quantitative and qualitative methods, including a questionnaire that was administered to 140 media planners, and 5 interviews conducted with agency experts we examine the variations that have occurred in this professional role in terms of knowledge, the tools used and the skills they have had to maintain or update. It is noted that the adaptation to the digital context has required a substantial change in their work mechanics, the integration of off- and online strategies and digital specialization. Furthermore, with the help of current technology, immediate actions and reviews are implemented. Consequently, the media expert activity requires mastery of digital media planning tools, greater doses of innovation, analysis, business acumen and the ability to work effectively in multidisciplinary teams for multimedia environments.