Monthly Archives: January 2016

Roaring into 2016

  Before you hire your next salesperson, decide what kind of sales culture you want in 2016, a productive culture or an efficient culture.

          To be efficient is to utilize a particular commodity or product with the least amount of resources or effort possible, as in a fuel efficient engine.

          To be productive is to have the power to abundantly produce, generate or create, as in a productive vineyard.

          Efficient media sales cultures assume the amount of available revenue is finite, and they initiate policies, systems and procedures to capture share of that finite revenue with the least resources and effort possible.

          Productive media sales cultures believe that revenue potential is infinite, and is generated and grown with creative effort and talent.

          Our friends in digital media were able to generate revenues from firms that initially had no digital media budgets with their creative new ideas and products.

          You must choose which culture you want in order to attract sales people that are a fit within that culture. To not choose is to create a lack of direction which eventually will lead to failure.

          Choosing an efficient culture has its merits as it is relatively easy to find people who will follow the policies and systems that make you efficient. Choosing a productive culture is much more challenging because you have to find and cultivate talent that can create revenue where there was none.

          Personally, I would choose a productive culture because revenue in that culture has no limits. While a fuel efficient engine has its merits, I don’t think NASCAR or Formula One would attract many fans to racing with efficiency as the goal.

          Let’s choose to start our engines and let them roar in 2016 and break all of the revenue records!

Sincerely,

Wayne Ens
705-484-9993

Happy Leap Year

Most of you probably did not account for the extra day in February in your budgeting for 2016. I’m not a big fan of broadcast ‘Inventory sales’ unless there is an unusual or legitimate justification for the sale.
Giving your advertisers the extra day in February, free, might be just the ticket to leverage some additional sales in February.
Simply sell a schedule for X number of spots per day, then offer that same frequency no charge on  your extra day of revenue, February 29.
For clients who have already booked their February Schedules, simply offer them to add a paid day to their schedule, and you’ll add the free day February 29th.
Happy Leap Year!
Sincerely,

Wayne Ens
705-484-9993

How to Win in 2016

 Have you ever wondered why the highest bidder at an auction is said to have “the winning bid?”
          In reality, this ‘winning bidder’ has paid more for their prize than anyone else in the market felt it was worth. In any other arena, when you’ve paid more than the marketplace value, you would not be considered a winner.
          Media sales executives who ‘win’ a bid by selling space and spots at a lower cost per unit (cost per line, cost per click, cost per point, cost per spot, cost per impression, etc.) than their competitors were willing to sell for aren’t really winners either.
          Commoditizing your product and selling at the lowest cost is a never ending downward spiral as your competitors lower their bid on the next submission.
          If you want to really win in 2016 and beyond, start selling value instead of cost. Value is seldom perceived in commodities where the price can be compared to competitor’s prices.
          The exclusive and incomparable proprietary benefits that you bring to the table are what actually create the value in the spots or space your sell.
          It is virtually impossible to compare the value of the insights, ideas, consulting, inspiration, proprietary research, and other benefits you can bring to the table in addition to the units, spots or space you have to sell.
          Ironically, it is ultimately the creative ideas, marketing insights, and consulting that you bring to the table that will deliver value from the commodities you sell.
P.S. Click here to inquire how our local Top Of Mind Awareness surveys can provide you with valuable research and insights to capture more appointments and generate more new revenues for your stations this year and next.
Sincerely,

Wayne Ens
705-484-9993

Being Productive in 2016

 I understand how busy multi-tasking sales managers can be today. I also understand it’s pretty easy to get bogged down pouring over spreadsheets, creating forecasts, reading fiction (a.k.a. call reports) and a long list of other paper-shuffling and data processing tasks.
            But there is one activity you should consider this year that will only take one hour per week that will produce more revenue for your stations.
            Simply identify your top 50 clients and meet with them face-to-face, one per week, without an account executive.
            You might do it over lunch, breakfast, or invite yourself for a tour of the client’s business.  During each meeting, plan to achieve the following three goals;
  1. Thank them for their business. Your top 50 clients want to feel like your top 50 clients, and feel their business is appreciated.
  2. Ask them how THEY are doing. Use these face-to-face meetings to keep your fingers on the pulse of the market. Look for bright spots you can share with your sales team, and problems your stations might help solve.
  3. Ask THEM how you are doing. How can your station, your rep, and you, serve them better in the coming months.
           Do this with one client per week, and I can guarantee you’ll be a better manager, and book more business in 2016.
Sincerely,

Wayne Ens

ENSMedia Inc.

705-484-9993