What Are The Different Types of Media?

Media is the vehicle that delivers a brand’s message to their target audience.

And, just like there are different vehicles on the road, there are different types of media that help brands get to their destination of building awareness and maximizing their messaging.

Examples of media include:



• Blogs
• Magazines
• Newspapers
• Online publications
• Radio
• Television

Though the end goal is the same, to build brand awareness and generate a buzz, there are three types of media -- owned media, paid media, and earned media.

In this blog post, we dig into the details and discuss:

• What is paid media?
• What is owned media?
• What is earned media?

What’s a paid media?

Paid media refers to the marketing tactics a company pays for. Usually, a company will pay a third party to distribute its content on their platform to an audience.

Examples of paid media include:

• Digital advertising
• Display ads (banner ads, eblasts, etc.)
• Google AdWords (pay-per-click, search, etc.)
• Influencer, native, and sponsored content
• YouTube pre-roll ads
• Social media advertising
• Radio commercials
• TV commercials
• Print advertising
• Billboards
• Newspaper and magazine ads
• Signage

Think of paid media like a speed boost in Mario Kart. It’s designed to help brands accelerate their ability to speak directly to their target audience and quickly generate traffic and build brand awareness.

Paid media gives companies the ability to target their audience based on interests, keywords, zip codes, and more.

This level of granular targeting helps brands focus their content to address specific messaging points that speak directly to their audience’s needs, problems, and questions.

What’s better is that paid media, unlike traditional forms of advertising, provides brands with detailed analytics. This data empowers brands, especially small businesses, to make the most of their budgets.
‍
Through the data these paid advertising formats provide, brands can see how many people (and the demographics) viewed their ad, engagement numbers, and more.

All this information helps marketers efficiently allocate their budgets and refine their strategies over time.

What is owned media?

Owned media is media you’ve created and control.

This blog post is an example of owned media as it’s a piece of content we’ve created and published on our website.

Other examples of owned media include:

• Brochures
• Email marketing campaigns
• Newsletters
• Sales sheets
• Website content

Creating and distributing a consistent flow of owned media comes with several benefits including:

‍ Control
At the time we’re writing this, there are talks of banning TikTok in the United States. While building a strategic presence on social media channels is a must, it shouldn’t be the end-all-be-all of a brand’s marketing approach.

When you build your house on someone else’s land, you run the risk of losing it if they change their minds.

The same applies to social media. If a company builds its entire marketing presence on one channel and that channel disappears, they have no other way of reaching its target audience and have to start from scratch.

Diversifying your efforts is a must.

And it starts with owned media.

Blog posts, email marketing campaigns, and more give brands full control over their messaging and where the content is published.

‍Cost-effective
‍We didn’t have to pay anyone to publish this blog on our website. Other than the time spent crafting this piece, owned media is free.

‍ Reach
Search engine optimization (SEO)-focused content helps expand a company’s reach to better connect with its target audience and relevant media sources.

What is earned media?

Unlike paid and owned media, earned media is publicity a company gains from content they didn’t pay for or produce on their own.

Examples of earned media include:

• Features
• Interviews
• Mentions
• Reposts

A tried-and-true method of securing earned media mentions is starting with a newsworthy press release as it bridges the gap between your brand and the media.

Earned media is word-of-mouth marketing.

‍It’s like a vote of confidence when a journalist finds a brand’s story so interesting that they pursue it, create their own content about it, and share it with their audience.

Earned media also adds a layer of unbiased credibility since the content wasn’t paid for and the brand didn’t create it on its own.

Not to mention, companies can generate relevant backlinks that can boost SEO performance and position the brand as an expert in their industry.

Earned media and press release distribution

Consistent and strategic press release distribution is the gateway to earned media.
‍
And, as a newswire service standout, we provide regional, national and global news to thousands of clients worldwide.

Our cutting-edge technology and network of journalists and media outlets ensure that your story will be seen by the right people.

In fact, in 2022 alone our Media Advantage Platform (MAP) clients earned media mentions in top-tier publications such as Allure, Bloomberg, Business Insider, Cheddar, Forbes, TechCrunch, The Wall Street Journal, and many more.

If you’d like to learn more about our flat-fee pricing and global distribution,  schedule a complimentary demo .