Advertising Works!

After a brisk weekend at the store here's what I know.

1. Advertising Works
2. Not all advertising is paid
3. The Free Stuff (just like traditional media) can provide immediate results.  The right message to the right target at the right time = direct response!
4. If you value your time, the Free Stuff isn't really free
5. Free Stuff for us includes Craigslist, MyBlueSofa, Facebook, Twitter, our Blog and email marketing (although I pay a small monthly fee to Constant Contact)
6. Referrals rock my world - they are an emotional paycheck
7. If I were selling media today, I would include Social Media and other Free Stuff (whatever makes sense) in my Idea and Recommendations page. 
8. I would help my clients get better results by sharing information, best practices and success stories.
9. I would remember to always be a resource and help my clients solve their problems. 
10. I would shock my clients by being so customer focused they had a hard time identifying what I was selling other than solutions to their marketing challenges.
11. I would shop consignment stores.  (sorry, couldn't resist)

Here's an article you might enjoy and pass along to your clients this morning with a simple note, letting them know you were thinking about them when you read this.

Good Read Here

Have a great week!

"We Don't Like To Be Sold"

How many sales people are pulling old presentations out of dusty old files and simply changing the names and emailing them to clients?

How many phone calls do suppose advertisers received last week from sales people asking to speak to the person handling the advertising or worse just launched into their spiel about a product or special opportunity they had to offer?

How many appointments did you book last week because you called with a compelling reason for your client or prospect to take time out of their schedule to meet with you?

When was the last time a client complimented you for helping them to navigate today's competitive marketplace and grow their business?

If you don't like your answers to the questions above, it might be time to throw out your old plan, your old "same old-same old" way of doing things and think about creating a new sales strategy.

A new strategy could start with you having a better reason for clients to meet with you.  A Valid Business Reason.   This article is full of compelling VBRs and content which could make your next Client Needs Analysis one of your best.  This one article, could result in you receiving several compliments from clients this next week.  This one article could be the tipping point in your Q4 billings.  Wouldn't that be cool!

As consumers we don't want to be sold by companies and their advertising campaigns and clients don't want to be sold by Advertising Sales people.  Yet both groups are buying and possibly spending more money than we might expect in a down economy.

Consumers are spending more money with Brands who promote an opportunity to save money. 
As I read this article, I couldn't help but think there might be a great opportunity for a sales organization or sales person to establish themselves as a money saving partner.  In fact, as I look back at the advertising investments I've make over the past few months I realize I spent substantially more with the companies who offered me a way to save. 

As I am also responsible for buying the inventory for our retail operation I realize we spend substantially more (as in thousands) when a showroom offers us a substantial savings off of the wholesale price.  I might spend $400 with a showroom who sells samples at regular wholesale and $4,000 with a showroom who offers a greater savings such as 50% off wholesale.  These showrooms are side by side and often their merchandise is almost identical.  Yet their sales strategy is very different. 

This article references a study conducted by University of Miami professor and his colleagues and the message is pretty straight forward; when we feel like we are saving money we typically spend more.

If you use this article and get a positive response from your clients - post your experience in our comments field.  I'd love to hear from you.

Cindy

Tweet This!

Seriously.  The Twittersphere is simple yet complicated and many of us are still trying to figure out how to use it as a marketing platform.  I love it as a resource - there are gobs of great ideas and articles being shared by the minute.  It's easy to scroll through the Timeline and catch the Tweets that appear to have meaningful content.  I can open the link on the spot or email it to my account to read at a later time.

As a resource - I'm all about Twitter.

As a marketing tool, I'm not as confident. But I'm not giving up.  I keep tweeting my observations and opinions in hopes that they are making an impression on someone, somewhere and those impressions will come back to us in the form of more customers. 

The other thing I do is try to read every article I come across on how to effectively use Twitter, such as the one HERE.  If you're an advertising sales person trying to establish yourself as a resource to your clients, there are a bunch of ways to do that OTHER than pitching and selling them an advertising campaign.  When you talk about your capabilities...are you including idea generation for Twitter and other Social Media capabilities? 

If not, this little Blue Bird may be flying right past you; leaving you in a cloud of old school dust.

Looking for a new gig?

A former client of mine is searching for outside sales people and passed this posting along.  I thought it worth sharing as so many are looking for new opportunities.  Please share with those in your network if you know of someone who may be a good candidate for Mike Bennett.

IWANNA JobSummary:

We bring buyers and sellers together with paid weekly print and on line shoppers in Upstate South Carolina and Western North Carolina. We offer free private party classified and paid commercial in column and display advertising both in print and online.

Click here to view job

Become a resource and I'll become a client

I am a small business owner desparately seeking marketing ideas which fall under this criteria:

• Creative and Targeted
• Effective
• EZ to execute

Three advertising sales people have called on me in the last 30 days.  None have asked me about my marketing objectives, what I hope to accomplish, what my ideas or dreams might be.  (And I have several of each!)  They really haven't even tried to sell me but rather hoped I would simply buy.

I recently sent emails to a few sales organizations communicating interest in advertising and requesting a media kits OR a sales person.  I got the Media Kit.  Two sales people followed up with calls to inquire if I had made a decision.  On what?  On their rates?  Yes, I've decided they are all too high - because there's no value behind the number on the rate card.  To be fair, one person did stop by the store to be sure I was aware she could cut her rates in half if I were to decide to buy. 

I really wish just one person took a few minutes to try and understand what my business is all about and what my biggest challenges are.  I would also love to have conversations with them about social marketing; accessing their fans on Facebook or reaching their followers on Twitter.  Instead, they want to sell me banner ads on their website.  Urrrrg.

Conversations develop relationships and help establish credibility and position us as resources. 

Become a resource and I'll become your client.

In the meantime, I'm reading and learning and sharing. 

 http://smallbiztrends.com/2010/08/how-to-participate-in-twitter-chat.html

3 Ways to Get More Business at Networking Events - Referral Networking Events - Entrepreneur.com

3 Ways to Get More Business at Networking Events - Referral Networking Events - Entrepreneur.com

The First Date

This analogy is dedicated to my buddy Kurt. He always sez: Selling isn’t much different than dating. Don’t ask for the girls’ phone number unless you’re sure she’ll give it to you. You have to earn the right to ask.

So here’s my Analogy:

You’ve been asked out on a first date and you meet for coffee. The first five minutes are great! He’s friendly, giving you all the signs that he’s interested in getting to know you, asking a lot of questions and listening! He’s awesome.

Then, it’s as if someone blew the whistle and it's his turn to talk. For the next 45 minutes he talks non-stop about himself. You try and get in a couple of words…but he's on a mission to let you know what a great catch he is. You start looking at your watch and at the top of the hour you interrupt and make your break.

I’m thinking the chances of a second date are pretty slim.

Today, I had this very experience with a representative from a publication I have interest in as a potential marketing partner. She contracted for the appointment a week ago and as we sat down and began to talk she was doing a nice job of establishing rapport. She was smiling and asking easy, comfortable questions. She was making me feel as though she was genuinely interested in learning more about our business. She spent 5 minutes (exactly) giving me hope.

Unfortunately, she spent the next 45 minutes talking about her product. The design concept, the front cover, the ad sizes on each page, the features, the special content, the supplemental products, the online options, the restrictions, the promotion, the demographic profile, the research, the mission, the rate card and the webinar on managing social media.

No different than a first date, there were several topics of interest which could have developed into rich conversation and spilled over into a second or third appointment(date) yet because I was being spoken to and not with, the likelihood of a second meeting is slim.

My advice is to slow down, have several concersations with your prospects just as you would if you were dating and trying to get to know someone. There's no rule(in spite of what your sales manager might say) that you have to pitch and try to close on the first date.

Your goal for the fist date? Secure the second date.

Chic flicks optional, highly recommended, but optional.

Call Me Back...

Quick Post: Some prospects may actually be interested in meeting with you!

Two weeks ago on a Friday morning, an ad sales person called the store while I was out and asked to speak with the person who handled the advertising. She was nicely told that I was out of the office until the following Tuesday, but I would be VERY interested in scheduling an appointment with her. She was asked to call back on Tuesday to speak with me.

This appt would have been a slam dunk except... she never called me back.

The reason I was so excited? I was previously a sales manager at this company and have been waiting and wondering who (if anyone) would finally call on me. It's fairly safe to say this sales person has no idea of my relationship with her company considering she didn't ask for me by name, yet I give her kudo's for prospecting and using a pretty decent Valid Business Reason as she spoke to the person working the store for us that day.

The person working the store that day also happens to be someone who worked with me at this same company. She worked in a neighboring department, her desk within ear shot of all the sales people calling prospects to set appointments; she knows what a decent VBR when she hears one.

I am disappointed she did not follow up as she said she would.
Why didn't she call me?

Requesting your feedback:

1. Your thoughts on why she didn't call back?

2. Your Opinion: Should I call her?

Who are you? And why should I invest in this sponsorship (what's in it for me)?

Greetings from Dallas.

Sorry I've been such a slacker blogger lately. I just haven't had content worthy of your time. My goal is to share my experiences and observations from the client's perspective - a fun twist from my 25 year career on the selling side!

Ad sales people in Dallas must be fatigued by our recent heat wave; as it's been very quiet out there until this morning when I opened this email from an advertising rep I have never met. She indicates a previous emIl proposal which I apparently missed completely. (Note, an email to/from an unknown has little opportunity to succeed when absent an introduction or a follow up phone call)

This post is self explanatory, so I won't bore you with the obvious. Might be a fun one to share with your teams/co-workers, asking them to critique this from a clients' perspective or coach this seller.

Have a great week! The email follows.

CJ

Hello!

I wanted to reach out to you because I sent you the email below last week regarding a Great sponsorship opportunity for you to take advantage of this Summer, but I haven't heard anything back from you. It's just as well though because now I have an even better deal available, provided you sign up by Friday.The first 8 sponsorships sold between now and Friday will receive everything listed in the attached document and in the email below, but for 50% off the original sponsorship price!!!

Please take a moment to review this opportunity. It's over $9,000 worth of promotion, now available to you for just $500!!!!!Please call or email me ASAP if you want to take advantage of this deal.

We would love to see you be part of Dallas' Largest Local Music Showcase, but these spots won't be available for long.Feel free to reach out to me with any questions.

The Drive By Proposal...

A Blog Worthy True Story

On Wednesday, March 3rd a young lady with a stack of prestigious local magazines and a business card came into my retail place of business to make a cold call on me. We spoke casually for about 10 minutes, she asked about my customers and told me how great it would be for me to advertise in her magazine. She took my card and told me she would follow up. As she walked out I wondered when/if I'd hear from her again and if so, what her "next step" might be.

The very next day, she emailed me a proposal. My first reaction: Wow! This should be interesting considering she has little knowledge of my target consumers, no idea of my marketing objectives and what size (if any) budget I might be working with.

I opened the document to find even more surprises. She has defined and outlined each of these for me:

Purpose:
Build brand recognition and obtain new consignors/customers by marketing to the most powerful and influential buying group in the Dallas Ft Worth area.

Achieve top of mind awareness among her dedicated paid readership who depend on each and every issue for trusted information and resources as it relates to home decorating and design.

Strategy:
Launch partnership with a consistent presence in each of the following bi-monthly issues

Investment:
Option 1
4 Full page ads
$16,116

Option 2
4 Half page ads
$10,608

I did not respond to her email/proposal nor has she followed up with me (since March 3rd) which is another missed opportunity in my opinion. Had she followed up and allowed me to reject her Drive By Proposal we may have actually engaged in a meaningful conversation. We could have discussed the fact that we have identified several target groups each with a much different motivation for buying consignment home furnishings. She would have learned that one group is most likely a good match with her readers and in fact I am currently developing an advertorial concept designed reach the very people who read her magazines, yet there's lots of ground to cover before I agree to buy four ads priced at $4,029.00 each.

Two pieces of Advice:

1. If you're considering a Drive By Proposal...keep driving.


2. If it's too late and you've already delivered the DBP have the courage and courtesy to follow up with the recipient.


Fail Forward! Turn a NO into a conversation and opportunity to learn more about how you may or may not help each client reach their goals and achieve the desired ROI. We all have goals and expectations. Find out what they are and be honest about your ability to help and add value to the relationship.

Clients are interested in solving problems much moreso than buying advertising. I promise.

Don't make the same mistake again!

It was this headline on a postcard (received in today's mail) from a Remax realtor that has my blood pressure up and my blog created.

I am a former advertising sales manager and vp/sr consultant for a media sales and management consulting firm. A few months ago I left corporate America to form a small business with my family.

I have created this blog to share my perspective from the other side of the desk which is now the client side.

My first post is courtesy of a local real estate agent.

We recently took our home off the market and asked our daughter (who is also our agent) to pull the listing from MLS. I'm assuming, as a result we rec'd this postcard in the mail today.

Headline: Don't Make the Same Mistake Again!
Referring to our bad judgement in selecting our Agent. The general message suggested if we smarten up and list with Remax everything will be wonderful. She obviously doesn't know our real estate agent is also our daughter and she has no idea that our listing is NOT expired - we have taken it off the market deliberately. She has made a very poor first impression for herself and on behalf of Remax.

As an outside sales person have you made this same mistake? The mistake of not researching your prospect before making contact? The mistake of not having a good business reason for reaching out to your prospect? The mistake of not taking the time/initiative to learn more of what your client is trying to accomplish because you're too busy trying to sell something?

As a new small business owner I can say with confidence that 99% of all sales people who have called on me have had the exact same business reason for doing so. They all want to sell me on their product or service and they all use the exact same reasons we should buy from them:

1. merchant services/ credit card processing - lower fees
2. business banking - free checking
3. advertising - best circulation, highest readership, best demographic profile
4. high speed internet - lowest rates, best bundle
5. power provider - rates
6. telephone/long distance -rates
7. SEM - first page search results
8. upholstery services -best prices, highest quality work
9. furniture repair - fix anything

These reasons are not compelling. They are not meaningful to me. In my opinion, these sellers keep making the same mistake over and over. They continue to try and sell me rather than helping me understand why I should buy.