Chasing digital ad dollars requires different seller thinking. So says Beasley’s Mike Martin. Coming from the Denver Post’s digital sales department to radio, he told attendees at NAB 2016 this week that radio stations are three to five years behind other businesses in terms of sophistication. He says 30% of the typical station’s sales budget is moving to digital.
Martin says as companies have downsized, many have eliminated their marketing departments. “The radio reps all come in and say ‘We have an event, a package, and here’s the digital guy.’ Are you in?” True incremental business drives value. Stations need to stop giving it away. You can’t just say to a potential client ‘Every body’s got it.’ Know your numbers. That’s wearing thin on clients.”
Martin says the first meeting should be to uncover the client’s needs, and then you follow-up with a true solution, positioning your station as helping the client fill in the gaps. “If stations want to move up into larger deals, sellers need to create detailed, customized presentations; and digital sales too, must be treated like other sales with a defined process. Commercial and industrial wholesale businesses are great prospects. Unlike car dealers, they don’t have a lot of reps calling on them. We use multimedia in our presentations. This is much better than 12 slides that say ‘We looked at your market.’”
Experienced minds are working on better and more organized solutions. Better stuff to sell is coming down the pike and that’s all I can say besides…wait for it.