Your media plan shouldn’t need defending.
But if the C-suite still sees it as spend, not strategy, your biggest growth lever might be at risk.
And that risk is growing. In a 2025 YouGov survey, only 29% of Americans said they trust the media to state the facts fully, accurately, and fairly (yougov.com). Trust in media is eroding, scrutiny on marketing budgets is rising, and leadership teams want clear ROI, not just reach.
Yet many still treat media as a broadcast function: deliver the message, tick the box, move on.
It’s time to challenge that mindset.
Smart media planning isn’t about pushing content into channels.
It’s about pulling business objectives into focus.
What the C-suite really wants to hear
CMOs already know this: the language of the boardroom is not impressions, CTR or CPM. It’s revenue, market expansion, and operational efficiency.
To win buy-in, media needs to connect to outcomes the C-suite cares about:
- Speed to market
- Share of voice in competitive categories
- Cost of acquisition, not just cost per lead
- Market confidence for product launches or funding rounds
Media becomes easier to support when it’s positioned as a lever to manage commercial risk, improve decision-making, and drive momentum across the business.
Modern media planning is business planning
It’s time to retire the idea that media is just an amplification tactic.
That mindset is dated, and expensive.
Modern media planning is about:
- Orchestration, not just execution
- Market intelligence, not just media buying
- Strategic positioning, not just placement
The best media plans today are cross-functional tools, built in step with product, sales, PR and demand generation.
That shift includes:
- Starting earlier: media shaping creative and messaging, not just amplifying it
- Integrating insights: using media data to influence targeting, segmentation and sales timing
- Planning holistically: factoring brand presence, lead acceleration and content influence together
This kind of planning reduces waste, sharpens messaging, and increases market readiness – all of which matter to any C-level leader trying to drive impact with finite resources.
How to sell your media plan upwards
If your board sees media as a reporting line, give them a reason to see it as a strategic line.
Here’s how:
1. From activity to outcomes
Don’t just report campaign metrics. Tie media to sales pipeline, brand preference, hiring visibility or investor interest. Show how awareness drives action.
2. From metrics to momentum
Use commercial language. Talk about market traction, visibility, velocity, impact. Show how consistent presence builds competitive edge and drives conversations that matter.
3. From plan to advantage
Position media as your edge. It’s not just where you show up, it’s where competitors don’t. The right strategy builds salience and trust – fast.
“Your media strategy is often your first impression – and your last chance to be remembered.”
When media wins board-level confidence
Through our time working with many B2B tech firms, quite often media is initially seen as a delivery tactic – something to layer on after content was finalised.
But we can flip that approach:
- Media intelligence shapes content angles
- Placement strategy that’s aligned to key market narratives
- Messaging cadence adjusted based on competitor noise levels
This approach can help shape a better end-result – clear C-suite backing to scale media into new categories, regions or audiences. Why? Because we don’t sell media to just fill the funnel. It’s building confidence in market opportunity.
Media deserves a seat at the table
If your media plan still lives in a silo, or is fighting for relevance at every quarterly review, it’s time to rethink its narrative.
Smart media strategy does more than spend budget – it protects it.
It drives traction.
Increases visibility.
Fuels better decisions.
And it’s exactly the kind of asset your board wants, if it’s framed the right way.
Let’s turn your media plan into a board-level asset.
Work with a team who understands how to bridge creative execution and commercial impact.
Kiri Craig, Managing Partner
Kiri has been working in marketing agencies for almost 20 years, and in that time she has worked across a range of B2B and B2C sectors, from large enterprise clients to SMEs.
For the last decade, Kiri has been focused solely on B2B marketing, and as Managing Partner of onebite, Kiri draws on this experience to feed into B2B demand generation strategies for our clients and prospects, and to oversee onebite’s delivery.
At onebite, she’s curated a team of B2B demand generation specialists from the best talent on the market, helping our tech and telco clients launch, refine and amplify their brands to generate long-term revenue growth. Kiri’s passion and drive to deliver exceptional work for our clients is evident to everyone who meets her.
