Your Media Plan Has a Sequencing Problem

Most media plans fail not because the channels are wrong, but because the sequence is. Instead of designing a connected journey that moves a person step by step from awareness to action, teams often optimize channels in isolation, creating budget battles, broken handoffs, and a disjointed consumer experience. The result is a “collection of tactics” rather than a true end-to-end plan.

Right now, media plans behave less like a connected journey and more like scattered dominoes—each piece standing alone, without a clear trigger for what comes next.

In a recent MediaPost article, Ilona Ritoch,, SVP Biddable Strategy & Optimization, argues media planning should be treated like storytelling, where each channel is a “scene” in a larger film. CTV introduces the story, programmatic builds familiarity, search captures intent, and site experience closes the loop, but only if each moment is designed to lead to the next.

She calls out how channel teams often compete for budget and credit instead of focusing on how work connects. Search wins because it sits closest to conversion, while upper-funnel channels are often cut despite driving demand.

Her core point is that media effectiveness is not about optimizing channels individually, but designing a deliberate sequence where each step sets up the next. Measurement often reinforces the issue by rewarding isolated performance over connected outcomes.

Read the full piece in MediaPost to explore her take on why sequencing, not channels, drives impact.