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Feature Guide - Media (1.88MB)

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Media FAQs

Media Link FAQs

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Radio, cable, and broadcast television spots ordered on behalf of a client should be tracked with broadcast orders.  

Like purchase and insertion orders, they are essential for accurate job costing. They allow media costs to be committed to a job ticket before the station’s invoice is posted. This way you’ll know at any given time how many media spots have been ordered.

Broadcast orders can be added one-by-one by media buyers, created automatically from media estimates, or imported from media buying systems like TAPSCAN, SmartPlus, or Strata using the optional C&P Media Link. Once broadcast orders are saved, they can be pre-billed immediately or billed on a media invoice. For easy reconciliation, each buy on the broadcast order is updated with the A/R invoice number and the billed amount once the broadcast order is invoiced. When the media buys eventually run, they will be invoiced by the station. The station’s invoices are entered into Accounts Payable, referencing their broadcast orders. As the media A/P invoice is posted, the broadcast order’s balance decreases.

Anyone can add a broadcast order if they have the access privileges to purchase orders. Also, broadcast orders can be added from any computer running Clients & Profits X. Many media buyers can add orders at the same time. The same general rules for adding, editing, and printing purchase orders apply to insertion orders and broadcast orders.

	Learn how to add and edit broadcast orders in this Clients & Profits classroom video training session. Running time: 5:07

To add a broadcast order

Broadcast orders are added, edited, revised, printed, and billed like purchase orders and insertion orders. Dozens of separate media buys can be added for the same station on a broadcast order. Like insertion orders, broadcast orders are added in two steps: first the header then the media buys. The order’s header contains the vendor, date, ad name, flight dates, and description. Click here for step-by-step instructions.

To clone a broadcast order

Broadcast orders can be cloned, like purchase orders. Cloning an existing broadcast order makes an exact duplicate that you can modify then print. Changing the new broadcast order doesn't affect the original broadcast order.

1 Find a broadcast order you wish to clone, then click the clone button.

The Clone Broadcast Order window opens, displaying the details of the cloned broadcast order.

2 Make the necessary changes, then click Save.

To edit a broadcast order

An broadcast order can be edited and reprinted as many times as needed. The Edit Broadcast Order window lets you change the vendor, order date, and other details. If a broadcast order has only one media buy (i.e., line item), everything about the order, including amounts, can be edited. Click here for step-by-step instructions.

Broadcast orders can be approved by authorized users. Once a broadcast order has been approved it cannot be changed. Only the user who approved the insertion order can unapprove it.

To add a media buy to a broadcast order

An broadcast order can contain dozens of different media buys for one vendor. Each media buy can specify a different ad to run, another set of run dates, or a special space buy for a certain ad. Each media buy will appear as a separate line on the printed broadcast order, as well as the client's A/R invoice. Click here for step-by-step instructions.

To remove a media buy

1 From the Broadcast Order window, select the media buy you wish to remove by clicking once to highlight it.

2 Once the media buy is selected, click the remove buy button.

3 An alert appears, asking you to confirm the removal of the media buy.

Pre-Billing Media

The pre-bill function lets you bill selected media buys from a broadcast or insertion order immediately after the order is saved. This lets you bill the client prior to the ads actually running so that you get paid closer to when the media invoice from the publication or station is due. Click here for step-by-step instructions.

When the ad eventually runs, it will be invoiced by the pub. As the pub's invoice is posted, the insertion order's balance decreases. The open purchase/insertion order report keeps a running balance of open commitments, showing how much you've ordered that hasn't been invoiced by its pubs. Once the invoice is posted into A/P, an insertion order can't be changed.

To close a broadcast order

There are two ways to close an order.  Click the Closed checkbox to close one at a time, or select Edit > Update Order Status to close many at one time.  Closing an order will set any remaining balance to zero, which is good to do after the A/P invoice has been applied against it.  Closing an order will also remove it from the Open Orders lookup list and remove it from various reports such as the Open Orders or Over & Under Orders reports.  Be aware that closing an order that has not been completely billed will remove any unbilled buys on the order from the list of unbilled orders when generating a media billing.

Broadcast order approvals

Various records in C&P can require an approval before C&P allows the next step in the workflow process.  In the case of orders, this would be to allow it to be printed.  Please reference the online user guide about the Approval Manger and Approval Preferences for more information.

To view a vendor diary

The vendor diary does not keep an automatic log of every vendor activity. That would create an immense number of entries. Instead, the vendor diary is used like a daily log. Anyone who works with one vendor account can make notes about phone calls, meetings, etc. Click here for step-by-step instructions.

To add a make good

Make goods are compensation for ads that either never ran or ran incorrectly. There are many different ways a print ad or radio/tv spot can be compromised, providing less value for your client. For example, you ordered for a guaranteed position in a magazine, but the ad actually ran in a different, less desirable place. Click here for step-by-step instructions.


Broadcast orders have separate preferences from purchase orders. The agency name, address, disclaimer, and logo can be different than purchase orders. (This is especially useful for in-house agencies that need to maintain a separate identity from the corporation in order to get agency discounts.) Insertion orders are numbered separately from purchase orders, and have a unique numbering sequence to keep them apart.