What is a media plan?
A media plan is a document that sets where, when and for what goal your ad budget will be spent. For Facebook and Instagram ads it means, in practice: the list of campaigns, the stage of the customer journey each one serves, the daily and total budget, and the expected result from each. The benefit: you make the allocation decision once, calmly, instead of every day under pressure from the numbers.
What's inside the media plan template?
- Plan sheet: enter the campaign, phase, objective, audience, placements, start date, days, daily budget and expected cost per result. The template calculates each campaign's total budget, expected results and share of the total.
- Phase summary sheet: totals budget and results per phase automatically, and compares the total with your available budget to show the unplanned remainder.
- How to use: short steps inside the file itself, handy when you send it to a client or colleague.
White columns are for input; calculated columns update on their own. The file includes six sample campaigns; delete them and add yours.
How to fill in your media plan step by step
- Start with the available budget for the period, then split it across phases. You can test the percentages first in the budget allocation calculator.
- Add only one or two campaigns per phase; too many campaigns spread the budget thin and drag out the learning phase.
- Enter the expected cost per result from past results. Without data, start with a conservative estimate and update it after a week.
- Review the expected results: are they enough to hit the client's goal? If not, the problem is the budget or the expectations, and it's better to say so before launch.
Using the media plan with clients
Send the plan to the client before launch so they approve the budget and expected results in writing. It protects you later when they ask "why did we spend this much?". After launch, compare actual spend and results with the plan every week using the budget tracker template, and present them in a clear report. Read Facebook Ads Launch Checklist: 25 Points That Prevent Costly Mistakes before launch, and Facebook Ads Client Report: What to Include and How to Stop Rebuilding It Every Week for presenting results.