25 Ways to Be a Better Media Buyer in 2025

Media buying isn’t just about placing ads. It’s not just about some simple copy, a relative picture, and some audience that may or may not work. It’s about understanding human behavior. The most successful media buyers don’t just rely on data; they dive deep into psychology, cognitive biases, and consumer decision-making patterns. Mastering these principles will help you craft more persuasive, engaging, and effective campaigns. Whether you’re optimizing ad spend, refining messaging, or leveraging AI, understanding why people make the decisions they do is the ultimate game-changer.?

Now this is not some easy 1 minute read, these are real efforts and media buy laws to get you started to understand how to understand the customers better. In my next blog we will specifically go over the specific cognitive bias’s you will need to always keep in mind. Now here are 25 strategies to elevate your media buying in 2025! Enjoy!

1. Leverage the Mere Exposure Effect

Consumers favor brands they see repeatedly. This psychological phenomenon means that repeated exposure builds trust and familiarity. Optimize your frequency capping to balance exposure without causing ad fatigue. Retargeting campaigns are a great way to reinforce brand recognition. Use consistent branding across all platforms so that your audience continuously sees and remembers your brand. Combining this strategy with engaging content can lead to higher conversion rates. I will cap my frequency on 12 for a single ad on meta before i march them down the line of learning my brand.?

2. Understand Loss Aversion Bias

People fear losing something more than they desire gaining something of equal value. This means your ad messaging should emphasize preventing loss rather than just highlighting benefits. Phrases like "Don’t miss out on this exclusive deal!" or "Last chance before prices go up!" can be highly effective in ad copy but also extremely cheesy in a lot of situations so be very mindful and dance around that phrase instead of using it directly. By creating a sense of urgency and potential loss, you can drive higher engagement and conversion rates. Limited-time offers and scarcity-driven messaging are proven strategies to leverage this bias effectively.

3. Optimize for the Peak-End Rule

Consumers remember the most intense emotional moment and the ending of an experience. Ensure your ads deliver a strong emotional punch and a compelling closing CTA. Use storytelling and high-impact visuals to leave a lasting impression. Whether it's humor, nostalgia, a captivating emotion, or excitement, make sure your ad has a peak emotional moment that stands out. Then, end with a powerful call to action that reinforces that emotion, making your brand more memorable.

4. Use Dynamic Creatives and AI-Powered Personalization

AI-driven ad personalization can adapt in real-time to consumer behavior, increasing engagement and conversion rates. Platforms like Meta and Google offer automated tools that adjust creatives based on user interactions. Dynamic creatives allow you to serve the most relevant ad variations to different audience segments, improving performance. Testing different elements like headlines, images, and CTAs through AI-driven optimization ensures your ads always remain effective. If you are looking for addition AI plugins to use let me know and I will write up another article on the most popular ones.?

5. Leverage Social Proof and Authority Bias

Consumers trust peer reviews and endorsements more than branded content. Incorporate testimonials, influencer partnerships, and user-generated content to increase trust and credibility. Featuring authoritative figures in your industry or leveraging case studies can significantly boost conversion rates. If a well-known expert or satisfied customer endorses your product, people are more likely to trust and purchase from you–be sure to use these in your advertising but get permission first!!

6. Implement Micro-Moment Targeting

Consumers make split-second decisions on mobile. Google identifies micro-moments as instances when consumers turn to their devices for quick information or decision-making. Optimize your ads for these high-intent interactions by using mobile-friendly formats, clear CTAs, and concise messaging. Ensure your site loads quickly and offers a seamless experience, as users will abandon slow pages almost instantly. Check your site speed monthly and go through a CRO process monthly as well, keep shopify apps low. Speed is efficiency.

7. Utilize the Decoy Effect

Introduce a third option in pricing strategies that makes your primary offer seem more attractive. For example, if you're selling a product with two pricing tiers, adding a third, slightly less valuable option can make your mid-tier option appear like the best value. This strategy subtly influences consumer perception and can significantly boost sales.

8. Tap into Hyper-Personalization with First-Party Data

With increasing privacy restrictions, first-party data is your best asset for targeted campaigns. Leverage attribution/cohort insights and website behavior to create highly personalized ad experiences. Delivering highly relevant content, offers, and messaging based on user data ensures better engagement and higher conversion rates.?

9. Structure Campaigns Around Emotional Triggers

Ads that evoke emotions: joy, fear, and nostalgia resonate better and increase conversions. Use imagery, music, and storytelling that align with the emotional state of your target audience. Consumers are more likely to remember and connect with brands that make them feel something meaningful. People can sense if you are being fake, be as authentic as humanly possible. You need to believe your own message.?

10. Implement AI-Powered Budget Allocation

AI can help optimize ad spend distribution across channels based on real-time performance data. Utilize tools like Google’s Performance Max campaigns for automated budget allocation. This ensures that your budget is always being used in the most efficient way possible to drive results.

11. Use the Commitment and Consistency Principle

Encourage small commitments (micro-conversions) to increase the likelihood of a final purchase. Free trials, email signups, or interactive quizzes help initiate consumer engagement. Once a user has taken a small step, they are more likely to continue engaging with your brand. This is true as much in sales as it is in marketing. It’s a way to lower the resistance easily.?

12. Optimize for Voice Search Advertising

As voice search grows, tailor your ad copy and keyword strategy for conversational queries. Use natural language and question-based keywords. This ensures your brand remains discoverable as search behaviors evolve. It must sound as you would naturally say it, but be SEO optimized as well for searchability.?

13. Leverage FOMO

Limited-time offers and countdown timers(can be cheesy if its not real and they notice) can drive urgency and action. Scarcity marketing can enhance consumer motivation. If people believe they might miss out on a great opportunity, they are more likely to take immediate action.

14. Implement Conversational Ads and Chatbots

Interactive ad experiences increase engagement and move users down the funnel faster. Chatbots can provide immediate responses and guide users to conversions. AI-powered chat experiences allow brands to provide personalized assistance at scale.

15. Utilize Predictive Analytics for Better Targeting

Leverage machine learning to predict user behavior and refine targeting strategies. Predictive modeling helps in budget efficiency and audience expansion. This is best paired with a solid attribution software to increase effectiveness.?

16. Retarget with Sequential Messaging

Move consumers through the funnel with ads that evolve based on previous interactions. Storytelling ads that build upon each other improve retention and action rates. This is an absolute must for education, respect, and recognition.

17. Use Reciprocity to Drive Action

Offering free value (guides, trials, exclusive content) increases consumer goodwill and conversions. People feel compelled to give back when they receive something first and if the free value actually contains a lot of value than they will have no problem with paying you for the next step.

18. Master the Anchoring Effect in Pricing

Start with a higher price reference before introducing your main offer to make it seem more valuable. Discounts framed against an original price enhance perceived value.

19. Optimize for Attention Span Shrinkage

Short-form video and snackable content continue to dominate; optimize your ads for quick impact. The first few seconds should capture attention immediately. With average attention spans decreasing, your creatives must be engaging, visually striking, and emotionally compelling from the start. Utilize bold text overlays, fast-paced edits, and clear value propositions early in the content. Additionally, consider platform-specific best practices—what works on TikTok may not work on YouTube Shorts or Instagram Reels. Test different hooks to identify what resonates most with your audience, and refine based on performance data to maximize engagement.

20. Utilize Behavioral Segmentation Over Demographics

Segment users by behavior and intent rather than broad demographic categories. Behavioral data provides more accurate targeting and higher conversion rates. Traditional demographic targeting, such as age and gender, often makes assumptions that don’t align with real consumer behavior. Instead, focus on user actions what they click on, how they interact with your website, what content they engage with, and their purchasing habits. Platforms like Google and Meta allow you to create highly specific audience segments based on in-platform behavior. By leveraging behavioral segmentation, you can deliver more relevant messaging that aligns with where the consumer is in their decision-making journey. This approach increases engagement, improves ad efficiency, and ultimately drives higher ROI.

21. Tap into Cultural and Social Trends in Real-Time

Stay agile and adjust creatives to align with trending topics and cultural moments. Social listening tools help identify emerging trends for timely ad relevance.

22. Strengthen Cross-Channel Attribution Modeling

Develop a holistic approach to measuring touchpoints across platforms. Attribution modeling ensures accurate performance tracking and budget allocation.

23. Balance Short-Term and Long-Term Brand Growth

Allocate budget to both direct-response campaigns and brand-building efforts. Brand awareness campaigns pay off in long-term customer loyalty.

24. Use Gamification Elements in Ads

Interactive polls, quizzes, and rewards increase engagement and ad recall. Gamified experiences keep users entertained and more likely to convert.

25. Test, Test, and Test Again

Run continuous A/B testing on creatives, audiences, and placements to refine performance. The best media buyers never stop optimizing.

Media buying is both an art and a science. Understanding cognitive biases, consumer psychology, and the latest AI-driven tools will keep you ahead of the competition. Keep testing, learning, and adapting to new trends because in this fast-moving space, staying stagnant is not an option.

Thank you for reading, and here’s to making 2025 your most successful media buying year yet!

Cheers,

Kyle Begner