A Radio Response To Our Agency Questions

It’s been quite a week of back-and-forth about the relationship radio has with advertising agencies. On Thursday, we posted a list of questions several advertising agency executives have for radio stations. Today, we have answers from a radio representative. Plenty of answers…and perhaps a little anger and sarcasm thrown in.

Mark Davis says he’s not a manager but works in radio and wanted to answer the agency questions. Below, you’ll find the questions from yesterday along with Mark’s answers.

Enjoy!

Agency: If I’m a retailer with two locations and your station is winning in my marketing-area zip codes, I like it, but to run a schedule I have to pay a lot of money for audience that won’t drive 10 to 30 miles to shop at my locations. Why can’t you come up with a solution for that?
Mark Davis: Sure, here is the math. One hundred thousand listeners and 10,000 in your zip. CPM = $10 with a fantastic extended reach. Reach only 10,000 in your zip…. CPM = $110 with NO extended reach. I was adamant that my client record their own commercial. They had customers drive 70 miles to buy a piece of jewelry, because they trusted her voice.

Agency: How and when will radio compete in a world with Geo Targeting, SEO, and instant response?
Mark Davis: Already competes and exceeds. ZMOT is just the party, not the plan. Stop ignoring the branding and added reach that a business owner, planning to be in business longer than your agency relationship, truly needs to be successful. But, don’t worry, you will have the higher-priced option soon enough. By the way, I didn’t live in my current house, work in my current job, have my current income, have additional spousal income, or buy the same things now than I did in 2010. YOU?

Agency: If you can’t hire young people with potential in sales, all the training in the world isn’t going to make them successful.
Mark Davis: Not all of your buyers will be successful either. And while we’re on the subject, are CPPs the most effective way to gain results for your advertiser? Is it just too difficult or cost prohibitive to look at individual markets’ needs and promotions or is it the bonuses the buyer and agency make? Are YOU utilizing your reps’ talents? Can one rep handle eight of your markets? If so, you are under-utilizing them. Are you discussing your rep’s digital offerings and what they have available, possibly DIFFERENT from the last one? Buy the streaming ads — PEOPLE ARE LISTENING TO STREAMING and breaking out a buck or two won’t kill you. Contact your ratings provider and ask them why sample sizes are so low or nonexistent. I bet it’s money. You know, the stuff you spend after you negotiate the lowest price and not the best deal.

Agency: Are stations bringing young people on board and paying them enough money to live like humans, dress like they’re successful, and drive a decent car?
Mark Davis: I haven’t been young in quite some time, but I do work with new sellers, assist them in meetings, ideas, and closings, and I feel good about the guarantees my company offers to attract and keep good talent. When I started, it was keep what you kill, but only when it was paid. Why are you 45 or 90 days out paying your stations?

Agency: How much time do radio sales managers spend managing their people, teaching, encouraging, and listening to what the salesperson is running into out on the street and coming up with positive solutions.
Mark Davis: Wow, GOOD question — one that should be considered by every manager and owner. How much time do you spend discussing creative and promotions with them? Are you discussing the campaigns before or after you decide on market penetration, CPP, and creative? Does your rep know enough about what you are actually trying to achieve to discuss it with their management during those meetings?

Agency: How much of a salesperson’s day is taken up writing sales reports?
Mark Davis: Less and less, and why does that matter to an agency? You’re harder to reach, give the very least information, and great ideas should work ONLY with your decided time schedule. “How many times must a rep be ignored before you call them a resource?

Agency: Agency people are busy. Days are filled with everything from merchandising, photo shoots, commercial production, working with the buyers, running training sessions with store and department managers, in addition to planning and buying the advertising. Any seller who showed up and didn’t have their act together was gone in a minute. The sellers who get the buys were representing a station that fit the target, asked the right questions, made logical suggestions, and respected their time.
Mark Davis: Drop the photo shoots and spend more time discussing advertising objectives and solutions with your RADIO reps. MAYBE put a price on YOUR talents worthy of affording the time to work better for your clients and your reps.

Your radio reps are talented, hungry, and still offer the GREATEST REACH at the LOWEST COST. You’ll see your ROI improve greatly once you get to know them. And, if you knew them now, you would already know the answer to these questions.

None of this is easy. But it CAN be very rewarding. Let’s work together for the listener, the client, the agency, and the station. Put those four in order, love to see what you come up with.