It’s a scientific fact, that for every negative, there is a positive. Unfortunately, our friends across the hall in news and editorial seem to get an adrenaline rush from focusing on the negative.
A recent Associated Press release was headlined, “US Job Growth Drops to 142K, Slowest in 18 Months.” The first sentence began with, “A surprising drop in hiring…..” The writer didn’t get to the positive until deeper in the article when he said that the unemployment rate fell to 6.1% from 6.2%.
My headline would have read, ‘US Economy Continues to Add Jobs’ and I’m more likely to focus on the employment rate, at 93.9%, rather than the unemployment rate of 6.1%… But that’s why I’m in sales.
When your client expresses a negative, it’s up to you to find the corresponding positive. It is almost impossible to persuade a prospect the negative does not exist, but it is possible to help them see the positive in that negative.
For example, a prospect might say your station “doesn’t reach everyone” and they’ve decided to use direct mail because it “reaches every household.” It’s an uphill battle to change that belief. But, you can talk about the difference between ‘reach’ and ‘influence.’ While a direct sales mail package might be thrown in every mailbox, only those that are welcomed and opened can influence the household.
You can quickly turn your perceived negative into a positive by admitting your station doesn’t reach everyone. You can then explain that those who do tune in welcome your station and its advertisers, as opposed to receiving unwelcome junk mail… It’s called ‘junk’ mail for a reason.
You’ve probably seen signs that say, ‘No flyers please’… I’ve never seen a sign saying, ‘No radio please’.
Every negative or objection you face has a corresponding positive. Click here to arrange a free online demo to learn to learn how you can become a member of the SoundADvice radio e-marketing system systematically makes radio’s case to your prospects positively and convincingly every week.