There Are No Surprises
Are you hearing the dreaded “c” words; ‘cancellations’ and ‘cutbacks’?
If you are surprised by a cutback or a cancellation, I’m sorry, but you have NOT been doing your job!
Account executives who truly know and super-serve their accounts are NEVER surprised buy cancellations and cutbacks. Their intimate knowledge of their accounts actually gives them warning signs before the client even considers cutting back.
I recently had an account executive call me to ask how to handle a ‘surprise cancellation’ for a chain of restaurants.
My first question was, “Are their stores corporately owned or are they franchises?”
The account executive didn’t know! (I happened to know they were franchises)
But the question revealed that the A/E didn’t know who the corporation’s most important customers were. Their most important customers are NOT the people eating in the restaurants. Their most important customers are the ones who send them checks every month….their franchisees. Unhappy franchisees don’t make good customers and will demand cutbacks, cancellations and changes from head office.
This was a classic case of not knowing the customer, not serving the customer, and not earning their business. I have seldom seen a professional account executive who is surprised by the ‘c’ word if they have been super-serving their clients.
In fact, most are able to prevent the ‘c’ word.
Here is the ENS Media Inc. two step approach to preventing the ‘c’ word.
Step One: Answer these four questions every month;
1.) What wasthe last valid business contact I had with the client?
2.) When?
3.) What is the next valid business contact I’m preparing for?
4.) When?
A valid business contact is defined as a contact which benefits the client in some measurable way. It may be providing them with valuable market trend data for their business category, a great new idea or a lead for a new sale. But it MUST benefit the client, and validate you as a valuable sustaining resource.
If your answer to questions 2 or 4 are ‘longer than 30 days’, be prepared to hear the ‘c’ word, and don’t act surprised…..you’ve got it coming.
Step Two: Learn who the Three D’sare and answer our four questions for all three:
A.) The Real Decision Maker. There is only one real decision maker. They sign the checks and are the only ones who can increase the total ad budget.
B.) The ‘Decision Allocator’. Theymight be some middle managers or agency buyers or planners.
C.) The Decision Influencers. Every decision maker has advisors and key influencers in their decision making process. It may be franchisees, sales managers, sometimes even spouses. But you need to know who they are, and you need to have a plan to get them on your side.
Some of your clients may be considering cutbacks or cancellations right now. Use this two-step ENS Media formula to ensure it is your competition, not you, who gets the dreaded ‘c’ phone call.
PS: If the franchisees in your market don’t even know they are on the air with you, they sure aren’t going to come to your defense at cutback time. And don’t think they noticed the ad schedule head office sent them amongst all of the other memos and emails they received from head office.
PPS: The ENS Media Inc. Guided Discovery Selling training package includes 22 different valid business contact tactics. Email Wayne.