Today’s journey back in time through the blogosphere is not a long one – just four years ago in August of 2019. But its theme has become a universal one in radio.
The “sales problem” has dogged radio for eons – in the 90’s, the 00’s, pre and post-pandemic, during the analog years and now since the advent of digital.
You might expect this sort of rant from a programmer. But the fact is, radio’s content creators have always been capable of making audio products that appeal to anyone – older people, teens, jazz fans, or those who just love 50’s and 60’s oldies. The age-old problem has been, “But can they sell it?” And in recent years, “Are they willing to sell it?”
It’s a puzzler, to be sure, exacerbated these days by salespeople perhaps having TOO MUCH to sell. This post elicited a lot of comments when it first published. Perhaps four years later, it will unleash even fresher insights from JacoBLOG readers that help address this chronic conundrum. – FJ
August 2019
If you’re in sales and management and today’s blog post title pisses you off, I’m sorry. After all, what does a guy who’s spent his entire career on the content side know about sales?
Well, the truthful answer is, “Probably not a whole lot.” But I would turn the question back around and ask: “What do YOU know about radio sales these days?”
Or perhaps we should say media sales.
That’s because the world of marketing has been rocked by the Internet, and all the options it has spawned. It wasn’t enough that there was SEO, SEM, Google Adwords, Facebook ads, and the other tools that have been around for years. Now AI – Artificial Intelligence – is being deployed to better predict ad spending and audience targeting patterns.
If you recognize the artifacts pictured above, you’ve been around the radio business for a long time. It’s an old rate card, the pricing device radio stations used back in the days when they could demand – and often get – their aspirational advertising rates.
If some of those rates from an AM radio station in Detroit in 1963 actually look attractive to you today, well, that says a lot about how far we’ve come. Or fallen.
I spent a night in Philadelphia this week, and I started thinking about a famous Philadelphian – John Wanamaker.
You’ve never heard of him? He was a fascinating guy, something of a Renaissance man. Back in the 1880s through the early 20th century, Wanamaker was a businessman, a political force, and even a religious leader,
And he became something of an advertising/marketing guru because of his ownership of Philly’s iconic department store – yes, Wanamaker’s. He opened his first store as the Civil War was getting started.
Wanamaker’s slogan? “One price and goods refundable.” Simple, to the point, and very marketable. But the question back in the 1860s, the advertising scene was confusing. Merchants like Wanamaker tried various ad platforms (they weren’t called platforms back then), but often were unable to determine which were effective.
And that led Wanamaker to make this statement that every advertising maven from David Ogilvy to Don Draper has uttered at one time or another:
And here we are, some 120 years later, and advertisers are even more clueless and confused about the effectiveness of their marketing dollars.
This, despite so-called “accountability,” ROI, artificial intelligence, and all the other data-driven tools now available to any media buyer with a laptop.
Somehow, the debate rages. And one of the biggest advertisers in the world – Procter & Gamble – continues to test the marketing waters, trying to find the right balance between digital and traditional advertising tools.
And if P&G is struggling to answer Wanamaker’s existential question, just imagine what media buyers, local merchants, and even large agencies are experiencing.
There are no “best practices.” There is no yardstick. There are no rules. As I participate in budget meetings at both the local cluster level and with some of radio’s leading broadcasters, the sales conundrum has only intensified.
Radio exces can’t find qualified, strategic sales managers, much less salespeople. They are unable to settle on how individual stations and clusters should be sold and marketed. They continually debate the configuration of sales teams, and whether there should be dedicated digital sellers.
Many assets – podcasts, streams, websites, apps – are going unsold. Or they’re packaged as remnant advertisements where the going rates are downright embarrassing.
Many stations are facing low demands on their inventories – despite outstanding ratings. The time-honored equation: great ratings = strong demand and high rates is breaking down.
Advertisers are correspondingly roiling in confusion as a result. This came through loud and clear when staring at this chart produced by Borrell Associates this week.
Not surprisingly, the digital tool kit is clustered near the top of this chart. Digital video ads are most in favor – to the chagrin of radio sales managers. While two-thirds of Borrell’s more than 2,000 local advertisers say they’ll increase spending in this hot sector, only 8% are in the trimming mode.
Where it gets interesting is when you look at traditional media other than print. Look at broadcast TV, direct mail, outdoor, and yes, radio. Talk about a schizophrenic advertising mindset. It seems that for every local media figure eager to advertise on radio, another is running away from AM/FM.
So, how would John Wanamaker explain this dichotomy? How can the efficacy of advertising platforms that have been around for decades and decades be a debatable issue in 2019?
Borrell’s thought is an interesting one:
“Hands-down it’s the sales rep. High compliments go to the ones who are helping the advertisers with other forms of marketing and creative ideas.”
As for reps who don’t have a clue, they can be the make/break that determine whether the station (and the company that owns it) ends up with the business.
In his survey, Borrell included this open-ended question:
“What has the greatest influence on your advertising buys?”
Interestingly, more than one-third of the respondents – 800+ – commented. Gordon shared some representative comments. And as you’ll read, reps often are the difference-makers. Some even mention them by name:
“If I can know, like, and trust my salesperson, I will always buy from them. When they are pushy I wouldn’t buy from them regardless of how badly I want what they have to offer.”
“I definitely favor certain ad reps and probably buy more based on the person I am working with, but my primary concern is reaching the specific customer we are targeting.”
“A rep can make all the difference, those who get involved and learn a prospective business have everything to gain.”
“(The) sales rep certainly is part of the influence, and cost, of course.”
“I would say the sales rep/expert does influence. Also, having had a previous negative experience with the rep influences future purchases from the company. The rep was not knowledgeable about the product/service she sold. She seemed offended or surprised that I asked so many questions. I ended up paying someone else to help me understand the product/service. Then found out the company did not provide social media advertising as targeted as we wanted.”
“Sales reps come and go too fast. They are the first line in presenting it though, and do influence us. The company’s rep is big also, but the type of media is what will drive the ultimate sale. Value versus cost.”
And Borrell has the stats that strongly suggest that when a sales rep drops the ball or doesn’t represent their company well, the advertiser doesn’t drop radio. Instead, they’re more likely to give their business to another station/cluster in town.
Radio selling used to be a one-size-fits-all proposition. Buying :30s and :60s was the “secret sauce” for every advertiser – the only question was how many spots over how many weeks and their rate.
Today, savvy sellers are able to truly assess a client’s need, and architect an integrated plan that includes both traditional advertising as well as a menu of other assets – websites, apps, event marketing, podcasts, and more.
Problem is, their supply is quite a bit smaller than the outsized demand for sales reps who “get it.”
And as Borrell’s research indicates, advertisers are increasingly mixed about traditional media and its necessity in their marketing programs.
You have to wonder what John Wanamaker would make of the current conundrum.
Rumor is, he was a fan of radio.
Thanks to Keener 13 fanatic & steward, Scott Westerman, for the WKMH rate card.
Jacobs Media has consistently walked the walk in the digital space, providing insights and guidance through its well-read national Techsurveys.
In 2008, jacapps was launched - a mobile apps company that has designed and built more than 1,300 apps for both the Apple and Android platforms. In 2013, the DASH Conference was created - a mashup of radio and automotive, designed to foster better understanding of the "connected car" and its impact.
Along with providing the creative and intellectual direction for the company, Fred consults many of Jacobs Media's commercial and public radio clients, in addition to media brands looking to thrive in the rapidly changing tech environment.
Fred was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2018.
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A good foundation for sales is not having station management see advertising/underwriting as a privilege they offer to clients by allowing them to occupy space on the station’s airwaves. Follow that with focusing on benefitting the client. By making their needs the priority, the station will benefit from the resulting trust and loyalty in the long run. And never forget to ask them to tell you their stories.
Solid advice here. Thanks for enggaging with this post.
As confusion grows from advertisers trying to figure out what works in their marketing, the demand is for good business minds to work the problem. 99% of our industry’s training is focused on products, not on understanding industry structure, the nature of competition and what job consumers are hiring the product or service to do for them. The rep who has the mind to figure those issues out is the rep who will win the business for life.
The question is, do we have the courage to spend time training business people or simply teach them the basics of the next shiny thing in our toolbox>
Sean, great to hear from you. And we’re on the same page. A rep who truly “gets it,” a problem-solver, and someone who knows his brand’s strengths can definitely help advertisers and be very successful. I agree it’s a matter of training in some cases, but I do worry that as time marches on, fewer of the “best * brightest” are going to want to make a career stop here. I fear the talent pool is shrinking. Thanks for engaging on this #TBT post.
Couldn’t agree more with Sean. In today’s ever-competitive business environment, it is incumbent on reps to understand a client’s business problems and help them devise strategic solutions, rather than selling “spots and dots.”
In helping sellers develop their “USX” – their Unique Selling Experience – we’ve learned that, according to Gartner, 72% of today’s buyers prefer a rep-free experience, due to readily accessible information from any number of sources. (By comparison, only 62% of American adults are afraid to visit the dentist!) Further, according to the same study, 65% of B2B buyers self-navigated the purchasing process, while only 24% of their processes were led by the rep.
Even more startling is that, according to Salesforce, 85% of B2B buyers expect reps to have a clear understanding of their business and needs. But 72% of B2B decision-makers voiced that most sales discussions feel transactional rather than relational or consultative.
The bottom line here is that, to be competitive in today’s world where ratings, formats, delivery platforms and potential solutions for advertisers and business owners (which might not even include media), reps need to focus on creating value, building trust and credibility and becoming a business thought leader.
The premise that high ratings = results for advertisers is a slippery slope.
Unfortunately, we live in a world that operates strictly on metrics that are based on a questionable audience measurement system, to which we program, vigorously.
We program utility jukeboxes that are just that.
Utilities…
I talk with groups of advertisers weekly.
When discussing radio stations (particularly those that have great ratings success), the top comment I get is “We don’t get results.”
I keep going – and invariably will hear them spout off the names of stations that actually DO get them results.
These are not jukeboxes, and generally don’t perform in the ratings as well as the jukeboxes do!
Yet, somehow, they get results.
Why?
Because they are engaging and people use these kinds of stations to be better connected to their communities.
Again. These stations often don’t do well in the ratings!
Surprised?
If you want to get a little insight into how this looks, and you want to use ratings metrics, just look at Power Ratios.
There, you will see stations that perform incredibly from a ratings standpoint, but don’t have the revenue to match those ratings.
Does it have something to do with results?
Go figure…
You program and sell radio as a commodity, and not something that achieves great outcomes for advertisers, you’re doing a disservice.
Hey, but who cares, right?!? You packaged for CPP. You gave them what they wanted. Right?
Perhaps for the buyer, you got the job done. However, for the advertiser, not so much.
Radio, when at its best is fundamentally a local business. It’s a local business that connects listeners and engages them.
A very large part of that engagement is connecting them with advertisers that have what they want.
As we look at a new model, I view ratings as a mere tool.
We highly value sales and marketing professionals who are able to connect local advertisers on several different levels.
They intimately get to know their advertisers’ businesses and their challenges. From there, they build engaging solutions that activate consumers. That usually involves employing people that actually create things and do things within a given market.
We should expect more than having “sellers.”
You create a compelling product and build an audience of truly loyal fans to an engaging station, and you hire marketing professionals who can create solutions and achieve high outcomes for advertisers, you will absolutely crush ratings and fallacy that they = results.
Radio has a choice:
Hire people with great voices, who can read well – or hire personalities that connect based having a loyal following, based on saying things that are meaningful and important to people.
Hire salespeople who can read numbers and add up points – or hire smart, interested and dedicated marketing professionals who have the ideas and the follow-through to create great advertiser results.
Fred I totally agree with you awesome insight.. I’ve been in the media sales side of our business..lots of good companies with lots of old & new ways to help us connect our clients with consumers cash in hand..However its what I bring to the table personally & professionally that makes a difference..I love my clients, sincerely helping them be successful..I think thats why Im still doing it at 55 yrs of age..If you have anything upcoming webinars podcasts that talks about how to grow your business in 2023 let me know.. anything I can absorb & soak up that will benefit my clients Im all for..One of the things that really make radio & audio a great marketing medium still is Echoic Retention..remember sleep is the reason clients need to continuously market themselves because sleep cleanses the conscious mind of interuptions and marketing messages..Audio via radio you can still tell a story, plant a seed, and get people to remember something they heard in the past..music is a perfect example you hear the meoldy the words the singing music and you feel something..when you recall the music you associate feelings with that…radio can still penetrate the soul & is an emotional driver to help sell products & services on behalf of our clients..many mediums are limited in creating an emotional connection..radio & audio can still do it..I think the challenge in our biz is to get enough people listening engaging loyally in a world thats moving towards streaming on demand than to wait around for what song comes next & to get people to actually pay attention to what our advertisers have to say & stand for ..in a very over communicated distracted society..Sincerely, Matt Donohue 845-220-7472 or [email protected]