Perception is Reality

Perception is Reality

          The easiest decision maker to sell your advertising to is one who listens to your station. They listen because they like what you do, and they become part of your culture; familiar with your features, your announcers and your music.
          And demographics and psychographics dictate that most of their friends have the same likes and dislikes and listen to you too, creating the perception among them that ‘everyone’ listens to you.
          But how do you create the perception that your station has a huge and loyal following if your prospect doesn’t listen to you?
          Never underestimate the power of in-market visibility and one-on-one connecting!
          You may be facilitating promotions that place you front and center in various communities within your community to build audience, but I would submit to you these promotions do as much or more for advertiser perceptions of your station.
          That block party promotion that placed your street team and your sponsors front and center where your prospect lives can create an invaluable perception for your station.
          And the business owner who sees your station’s window sticker in dozens of cars on her way to work every morning perceives their prospects are listening to you.
          A recent Inside Radio article said, “Increasingly, it’s what happens off-air, not ‘between the records’, that differentiates stations. Differentiating a station’s brand from its competitors’ has become increasingly difficult in an era when most stations have access to the same music and research tools”.
          DMR President Jim Eldredge says, "Differentiate by connecting in new ways and by connecting holistically, so that you’re setting yourself apart from competitors in deeply meaningful ways. It’s that connection off the air that builds mind share”.
          And this is even more important when it comes to branding your station with business owners who do not listen to your station. What perception does your remote set-up create in the mind of a business owner who doesn’t listen to your station, but sees your set-up?
          What perception does the announcer who meets a business owner at a community event create? And how often is your street team really visible and on the street?
          These off-air promotions might not win a business owner over as a listener, but they certainly increase your odds of being able to discuss including your station in their next ad campaign.
 
Randy’s “what if” you arranged to have your street team set up at a prospect’s place of business for a short period, announcing give-aways.

Budgets Vs Targets

Budgets Versus Targets

           All the signs are there….our economy is slowly on the rise. I’m reading stories about things like a projected 8.7% increase in advertising this year, and talking to happier media people every day.
          Many of the stations I’m talking to are telling me they’ve hit budget three months in a row. But when someone tells me they are consistently at 100 or 101% of budget, I often wonder if they’d still be at budget if the budget was higher. I think they would.
          Many of our budgets were set during less optimistic times. And the problem I see today is not that we are setting our targets too high and missing them, but that we are setting our targets too low and hitting them!
          If you set a 5% increase in your budget, but the market is up 8%, you’re actually falling behind.
          Budgets are usually set for accounting purposes, and keeping them low helps keep our costs low as well. But there should be a difference between your budget and your target.
          Targets can be a great motivational tool to push people to new heights beyond their comfort zones. Targets need to be fluid, not fixed like budgets, to ensure maximum performance and productivity. See the ‘Even Eagles Need a Push’ three-minute video at this link;
            The thrill of soaring can be greater than the fear of falling.
 
Randy’s What If; What if you had additional incentives for achieving realistic targets that pushed your people beyond your budgets?

Clients by Design

Clients by Design

          Over the last few weeks I’ve been reflecting on how ‘lucky’ I am to have such a progressive and honorable bunch of clients.
          Recently I had made a mistake and grossly under quoted a client on a project, but I was willing to live with my mistake. The client found out about my mistake and stepped up to the plate and offered to pay the proper rate.
          Other clients, even though they’ve been in ‘the biz’ for years, continue to surprise me with their willingness to change and grow.
          Upon further reflection, I‘ve come to the conclusion that all of us get the kinds of clients we deserve by design!
          If we’re hard selling, slick talking, or underhanded in our business practices, we’re going to attract low-life clients. If the only way we capture business is through self-interest packages or deep discounts, we’re probably attracting hard to please, low profit and slow pay clients.
          ENS Media Inc. has literally NO slow pay clients! And while I was thinking about my good fortune, my wife and business partner (who used to be a car salesperson J) said, “I’ve never met anyone in business with as much integrity as you.”
          Maybe we have great clients by design?
          Think about the kind of clients you enjoy doing business with and the way they do business. Then do business with the same ethics and principles your best clients exhibit. I’m betting you’ll attract the clients you deserve…clients by design! 
 
P.S. Thanks great clients!!
 
Randy Redden’s What If: What if instead of fighting about rate with your bottom feeders, you focused on super-service and a premium customer loyalty program that rewarded your best customers?

Momentum in Sales

Momentum in Sales

          Momentum is defined as, ‘an impelling force or strength’; i.e. “the car’s momentum shot it off the road”.
          In scientific terms, momentum is the product of mass and velocity (p=mv).
          At ENS Media Inc. we have made a science out of observing sales best practices and passing those practices on to our clients. One of the scientific formulas which dramatically affects sales is the science of ‘momentum’.
          In sales, ‘mass’ is the number of valid business contacts you make. And ‘velocity’ is the conviction, confidence, speed and proficiency with which you make those contacts.
          Momentum can be a very powerful self-perpetuating force!
Once you’ve made a great sale, resist the urge to take your foot off of the accelerator to bask in your victory. Instead, keep the petal to the metal while you have momentum on your side.
          The energy and confidence you exude with momentum on your side can be your impelling force or strength!
                    
Randy’s What If
            What if you made two more valid business contacts after every sale, instead of running back to the office or stopping to fill out the order?

Management Churn

Management Churn

            It’s that time of year. Old managers are retiring, up and comers seek to advance their careers, senior management changes strategies or consolidates and requires new managers.   Whatever the reason, both managers and employees are establishing new internal relationships. And often, managers tend to subconsciously favor those people they have hired themselves.
This may be because they have hired exactly the kinds of people they prefer to work with, they have past loyalties to previous employees, or they simply feel morally obligated to ensure their recruits succeed.  Whatever the reason, we’ve all seen it happen to varying degrees.
            So what’s the solution if you’re not one of the new manager’s personal recruits? Or for that matter, if you’re a manager who wants to ensure that you are working with the best people and are not prejudiced towards your hires?
            The solution, according to Priscilla Claman, President of Career Strategies, is for employees to ‘re-apply’ for their position with the new manager. Claman suggests, “If management churn occurs above you, don’t wait for the new boss to make the first move — or worse — go into hiding until the next change in management. Those who keep their heads down lose out, and those who take initiative survive. So take positive action, and get the closest you can to being hired; simulate it.”
            Here’s what we suggest. For New Managers; tell your ‘inherited employees’, you want to get to know them better and request an interview.
For Employees; be proactive and request an interview.
          In either case, take the following steps. Make an appointment for the interview. Update your resume, outlining the successes, achievements and contributions you have made and can make for the new leader. Always be positive and future focused.
Make it a 360 process. Managers should use the occasion to learn what people expect of them, and employees should use the interview to uncover what changes or expectations the new manager expects from them.
            The bottom line? New management is never ‘business as usual’ and it’s up to you to proactively be a part of the new regime and strategies, or suffer the consequences. Neither new bosses nor new employees can expect to rely on past achievements!
 
Randy’s What If’s 
What if you made an appointment for an interview every quarter…after all, conditions and strategies change quickly in the new economy?