Remember that General Sales Manager job I wrote about two weeks ago that was open in a Midwest city?
It’s taken.
Union Broadcasting has their manager, and they went in-house for the hire. Union Broadcasting has stations in Louisville (93.9 ‘The Ville’, ESPN 680), Shelbyville/Frankfort (ESPN 105.7 FM), Kansas City (Sports Radio 810 WHB, ESPN Kansas City 94.5 FM and 1510 AM), and Wichita (ESPN Wichita 92.3 FM). The stations all feature sports talk.
Chad Cory is the new GSM and Digital Sales Manager in Kansas City, Louisville, and Wichita. In Kansas City, where Cory lives, he sold for Sports Radio 810 WHB and ESPN Kansas City 1510AM/94.5FM KCTE and managed the Chiefs’ sales efforts. The VP of Sales for Union, Sandy Cohen, made the hire and went with the familiar. Cohen hired Cory 21 years ago and felt the time to promote him was now after a rigorous interview process. I spoke to Cory about his new position, what he will do, how he will manage, and why selling digital has him excited.
Jeff Caves: Your job is more than just GSM. What will you be handling?
Chad Cory: I will oversee and develop digital sales in all our markets, including Kansas City, Louisville, and Wichita. I will continue to lead NFL sales, mentor new account executives, and help manage the sports marketing sales team.
JC: How many sellers will you manage? And what kind of experience do they have?
CC: There are currently nine members of our Kansas City sales team. We feel it’s a good combination of veteran sellers and new talent. We have a teamwork culture that provides fresh ideas and solutions daily. Most of our team has been together for 15 plus years, a few of us over 20. Experience is not lacking in our weekly meetings. We are always looking for the right people to expand our team, it’s not a top priority right now, but you are always looking for that special fit if it’s there.
JC: How will it be managing people you worked with in the sales pit?
CC: Managing former sales associates isn’t difficult when everyone respects and understands their role for the company. I believe in the “hands-on” approach. Two heads are always better than one, and more than ever, creative ideas and customer service are the number one priority for our advertising partners. We are very much a team.
JC: With all these new responsibilities, will you still carry a list in Kansas City?
CC: I’ve been creating great relationships with advertising partners for over 20 years. I’ll always have a hand in the list I’ve built.
JC: What do you look forward to the most?
CC: We are expanding our digital marketing opportunities. Union Broadcasting has been providing premium local sports content since the late 90s over the air. We have the hardest working on-air talent in the country. They love Kansas City, and they love their listeners. Now we are expanding that original content into the digital world. Social Media, podcast, and streaming creates so many different ways for advertisers to connect with our sports fans. Our sales team has embraced that and now provides multi-media options that we didn’t have in the past to our advertisers.
Jeff Caves is a sales columnist for BSM working in radio and digital sales for Cumulus Media in Dallas, Texas and Boise, Idaho. He is credited with helping launch, build, and develop Sports Radio The Ticket in Boise, into the market’s top sports radio station. During his 26 year stay at KTIK, Caves hosted drive time, programmed the station, and excelled as a top seller. You can reach him by email at jeffcaves54@gmail.com or find him on LinkedIn.
