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Is it Too Early for “Jingle Bells”?

In just a few weeks, back to school shopping will be over. Department stores will be re-imaged and restocked, and as quickly as you can blink an eye, you’ll see the Fall and Winter merchandise occupy the shelves. Yes, when it comes to retail, thoughts of ghosts, goblins, turkeys, snowflakes and sugarplums are already dancing in their heads.

If you have annual contracts with your clients, you are in good shape. But, we all have clients and prospects that buy advertising on an “as needed” basis. In these cases, the old analogy, “the early bird gets the worm” couldn’t be more true. Is now too early? Not at all. In fact, if you’re thinking Halloween, you had better hurry.

We all know that one of the worst feelings in the world is having to come back to the station and tell your manager your client placed the buy with your competition.  Retailers are planning earlier, so it only makes sense for us to start to plan earlier as well. While your salespeople are still enjoying the summer, as Sales Managers, it’s our job to give them the tools and the gentle reminders that there is no time like the present!

We suggest presenting your seasonal packages earlier. Make them fun, make them special, make them early! If you haven’t done this before, it’ll be a refreshing surprise. Go BIG, dress up in a Halloween Costume (I understand the T’Challa Black Panther costume is expected to be a hit along with Wonder Woman and Michael Myers) or have Santa Claus come to the meeting bearing gifts.

You might get some push back from the reps saying it’s too early, but really, wouldn’t you rather be a bit early than too late?

If you would like to see ENS Media’s 12 Tips and Tactics For a Successful Early Christmas Sales Meeting, click here.

One last gentle reminder, January and February are typically your worst two months of the year. When you present your holiday proposals, you may find it easier and more successful to plan, present, and sell the post-season sales and events as part of your package NOW! Even if they are an “as needed based” advertiser. It’s worth a shot!

Also, if you want to increase your local-direct revenues in 2019 and beyond, email [email protected], or make an appointment to see him in the Consultant’s Corner at the RAB Radio Show in Orlando in September.

Never STOP Learning!

If you’re a regular reader of our ENS on Sales, you know that one of the topics we continually write about is the importance of learning, training, and “GETTING BETTER” every day!

One of the best opportunities to learn and “GET BETTER” each year is only eight weeks away. It’s Radio Show 2018, presented by RAB/NAB. This year’s Radio Show is being held in Orlando, Florida, September 25th-28th. Not only is it a great place to learn, but a great place to mingle with our peers. If you are the outgoing type, I suspect you can learn as much in the hallways as you will in the meeting rooms.

ENS Media is excited to announce that Rick Fink has been extended an invitation to speak at the Sales Consultants Series. This session will be held on Wednesday morning, September 26th at 8:00 a.m.  Rick, along with four other trainers and consultants, will offer sales and management tips that you can take back to the office and implement immediately.

We always welcome any opportunity to meet our ENS on Sales readers, so if you are planning on attending Radio Show, let us know!!! We would love to arrange a time to visit and say hello!

Hope to see you in Orlando – and in the meantime – Never STOP Learning!

An Ounce of Prevention

So one of your biggest accounts has just announced they intend to cut some of their traditional media in favor of digital. They currently use outdoor, radio, newspaper and TV in their traditional media portfolio. How much time and effort will you invest to present your stations to avoid becoming one of the victims of the pending cuts?

Allow me to share a hidden truth in pending cuts… long before that cut-back announcement was made, the client was already forming hard to change perceptions on which media they should cut.

“Preventive maintenance” is always more effective, and less costly, than “damage control”.

Do you have a preventive maintenance program or does all of your energy go into making the sale, looking for new business, and damage control?

A well-planned system of regularly thanking your customers, a continuous education system like our SoundADvice highlighting broadcasts’ relevance, and regular post-campaign analysis and wrap up reports can put you in the driver’s seat when advertisers hungry for change begin to wield their cut-back knives.

If you’re surprised by a cancellation or cutback, it’s probably because you didn’t have a preventive maintenance program.

The Secret to More 52-Week Business!

Many of the stations we consult are surprised when they discover the number one reason advertisers don’t often schedule 52-week or 12-month campaigns.

So, what would you guess is the number one reason advertisers do not schedule 52-week campaigns?  I’ll give you a hint. It’s not because they don’t have enough of a budget to advertise 52-weeks of the year.

Here is a countdown of the top four reasons!

Reason #4: They believe their business to be seasonal and want to invest their budget only during peak sales periods.

Reason #3: Because they’re not sure what their inventory levels will be, or what they’ll have to sell, ten or eleven months from now.

Reason #2: (this is often disgustingly true) because they believe radio stations will offer much better “deals” on sold inventory if they wait until the last minute to schedule each month.

The #1 reason why businesses don’t schedule 52-week or 12-month campaigns is … “we don’t ask them to”.

Advertisers tell us that most radio account executives have never shown them a 52-week plan or validated a solid benefit to booking 52-week schedules.

So, there you have it, the number one reason you don’t have more 52-week business is because you don’t ask for more 52-week business. It truly is that simple.

Ask and you just might receive!

Are you planning a company sales conference or association convention? If so, click here to inquire about scheduling our Selling Advertiser Annuities Workshop to help your salespeople capture more 52-week business.

Opportunity is Knocking!

Are you willing to open the door and see what’s on the other side? If so, follow the two easy steps at the end of this post.

At ENS Media, we work with broadcast companies across the US and Canada and have several markets that are looking for salespeople, sales managers and even general managers. These are located in small and medium-sized markets.

If you or someone you know is looking for a new challenge or looking to move upward and even onward to another market, please forward your complete resume to [email protected].

All resumes are held in the strictest confidence and never presented or discussed with any of our clients without your advanced permission.

                                 Knock – Knock – Knock!  Interested?

Step 1: Send your resume to [email protected].

Step 2: We will reach out to you and discuss each of the opportunities. Then, you can determine if you would like us to present your resume to the available markets and if so, which ones.

Come on in! We look forward to receiving your resume!