I’ve had some good questions thrown my way recently, so I thought I would share the answers with you:
What are good tips to minimize distractions when in the office?
A couple of things come to mind. First off, I’m a big believer in scheduling as much as possible. Phone time, paperwork and copy time, servicing time, etc. If I schedule it, I’m more likely to stay on task and get it done.
Personally, I couldn’t sit at a cubicle and make calls. I’d need a quiet room, if at all possible, so that I could stand, walk around, toss a ball against the wall, anything to make me more relaxed. This would also limit distractions since I would be away from my area and nobody can suck me in to a time-wasting conversation.
Lastly, many years ago a sales manager suggested everyone pick things they wanted, like cars and boats and big houses, and print pictures to put up in the cubes. The idea was that when there were distractions or when there was time when you just didn’t feel like doing what you’re supposed to be doing, you would see these items and stay on track.
What advice would you give an older seller who is having trouble grasping digital?
Fair question, as let’s face it, some people in our industry have been doing this for some time, are great at selling radio, but just don’t get the new technology. Unfortunately, this leaves too much money on the table, so these sellers have to know the basics, so we at least get a swing at it (and we know the TV and newspaper sellers are chomping at the bit to go get it).
I believe the best thing any seller can do when it comes to digital, at first, is to take it one product at a time and draw a comparison to something that makes more sense. For example, if it’s targeted display advertising, you can compare it to billboards, except the billboard is only seen by people you want it to be seen by. You can also look at re-targeting and compare it to someone walking in a store for a short period of time but something in life distracted them away from the store abruptly. However, before they left, something was attached to their shoulder that popped out every now and then and reminded the person they were recently interested in whatever product they looked at in the store.
What lesson do you think media sellers seem to always learn the hard way?
Easy answer – hold on to clients like they’re gold, because they are.
I don’t think selling today is any harder than it was twenty years ago, but I do think that retaining clients is significantly harder than it used to be. There’s a lot more competition today than ever before, which means a lot more people in your client’s ears “picking at the wound.”
Consider this from a recent Inside Radio article about a webinar hosted by Borrell Associates, “Borrell Webinar: 90% of Advertisers Now Bundle Traditional With Digital”:
“Meanwhile in the past three years, advertisers have increased buying different types of media, from 5.5 types of media to 8—although with that, they have decreased the number of companies they buy, from 5 to 3.5.”
You may think your relationship with your client is rock solid, however, your clients are basically cutting out two of the companies they currently buy media from. What are you doing to make sure one of them is not you?
If the answer is “I don’t know” or “Good question” you really need to think about a plan that allows for you to strengthen the relationship with the decision maker and bind your stations and their business together as much as possible.
Dave Greene is the Chief Media Officer for Barrett Media. His background includes over 25 years in media and content creation. A former sports talk host and play-by-play broadcaster, Dave transitioned to station and sales management, co-founded and created a monthly sports publication and led an ownership group as the operating partner. He has managed stations and sales teams for Townsquare Media, Cumulus Media and Audacy. Upon leaving broadcast media he co-founded Podcast Heat, a sports and entertainment podcasting network specializing in pro wrestling nostalgia. To interact, find him on Twitter @mr_podcasting. You can also reach him by email at Dave@BarrettMedia.com.
