Selling ads only hard sell?

[Improv]

I've been sheltered in public and community radio and am trying to get a fix on the actual nature of selling ads on radio. Do people think that reaching quotas makes it a business where "anything goes" to make the sale, including convincing businesses it's the right thing for them to do even if you're not sure or even don't believe it yourself? It would seem to me that businesses would need to see some tangible proof and that the station you work for should be able to provide it (without fudging numbers). True? Naive?

Thanks for your responses.

Steve

 

[carmen]

i'll run your ad in exchange for some jerk chicken & oxtails

it will be 22 milliwatts at 76.0 MHz. hope thats enough for at least a wing..

 

[JIBGUY]

actual nature of selling ads on radio. Do people think that reaching quotas makes it a business where "anything goes" to make the sale, including convincing businesses it's the right thing for them to do even if you're not sure or even don't believe it yourself?

If a radio salesperson is totally honest towards potential advertisers, he/she will fail. ---because the stations' other salespeople won't think that way, and the more honest one will have the lowest billing in the Sales Dep't.

 

[JIBGUY]

I have to add another one to this.... On "WKRP in Cincinnati", Herb Tarlek got a trade for the station.... for processed turkey meat. After he brought the meat to the station, Carlson asked him why Herb didn't put it in the fridge. Herb replied: "It doesn't need that cause it isn't real meat". - So sometimes the advertiser gets the last laugh.

 

[reelyreal]

I'd say none of these responses actually answers the question. I've been on the programming, engineering, and sales side of the business. I currently sell in a small market. It's different in the small markets than the big markets, but I'll tell you how I roll:

Lying is only necessary if you're selling a lousy product. If you're selling a lousy product, time to reassess what you're doing. The key is to believe in the product you're selling. If you believe in the product, there's no need to lie. I know my product isn't perfect, but I'm not going to go in there and say "hey! want to buy my little graveyard AM you can't hear at night?" I'm going to tell you why you SHOULD buy the station.

We don't "sell the numbers." We sell based on how our listeners fit with the business. We sell on our heritage, on our creativity, and we sell on results. If you take our recommendations, you'll see results. Radio works, the biggest hurdle is teaching people about buying radio.

 

[MarcB]

I know of one station where the GM charged Infomercial programmers the day rate for the airtime even though the were buying 12AM-6AM and the stations night signal barely makes it out of the parking lot.

 

[faderraider]

I remember giving it my all for 13 weeks...no one believes in radio advertising as much as I do. It was the hardest 13 weeks of my life, thought for sure I would have them lined up ten deep to buy the product......boy, did that come crashing to the ground like a "lead Zepplin". I take my hat off and take a deep bow to radio sales people who can go out day after day and sell a product that you can hear .....but not touch, hold ,see. Here's to you Radio Sales Professionals. The Bucks Start There!!

 

[DToTheJ]

i'll run your ad in exchange for some jerk chicken & oxtails... it will be 22 milliwatts at 76.0 MHz. hope thats enough for at least a wing...

How much for one rib? ;D

@MarcB: Is it WXCT? :

 

[Sales Reptile]

After selling radio advertising in Boston for nearly 30 years, I believe those that "lie" are destined to fail. I have sold big major stations and small community ones. Three things guarantee a successful campaign:

1) My listeners buy what you sell. There is a match between the advertisers product or service and what my station's listeners consume or purchase.
2) The offer must be compelling with a real call to action. Some retailers offer loss leaders, products they sell at a loss to get you in the store to buy something else.
3) Tell them about it enough times that listeners will respond. Frequency sells.

It is my belief that if you have all 3 of these elements, the campaign can't fail. If you're misssing one element, it very well may fail. But more importantly, a true professional radio sales rep who wants to remain in business will not and should not lie. I tell my clients: I don't want to sell you something to pay my mortgage this month, I want to pay my mortgage for the next 30 years. If I do my job right, we both win.

Thanks.

 

[Signpost]

One problem is when a company lays off production people. An ad agency may field a large staff and take several weeks to produce a spot for an advertiser, while radio stations have a single underpaid person to bang out dozens of spots every day.

Given the average US citizen's exposure to advertising is about 5000 "messages" a day, it takes strategy to cut through the clutter. A well positioned and creatively executed message can yield far better results for an advertiser than a poorly (salesperson) written straight read that swims with 9 other spots in a cluster.

I would submit that good production people can bring many times their salary back to a station's bottom line - in clients eager to renew when they get great results.

 

[ned]

One problem is when a company lays off production people. An ad agency may field a large staff and take several weeks to produce a spot for an advertiser, while radio stations have a single underpaid person to bang out dozens of spots every day.

I would submit that good production people can bring many times their salary back to a station's bottom line - in clients eager to renew when they get great results.

I agree with this post. I worked as production director at a suburban Boston AM/FM in the early 80s. One of the major problems that I had was getting inundated with copy on Friday afternoon that had to be ready to air on the weekend. I was the only one there to produce them, so there was very little creativity and the spots were all voiced by me. I wasn't happy with the product, but the bottom line for the station was that the spots aired.

 

[Improv]

Not surprisingly, there are many points of view about this. Some think dishonesty is fairly endemic. On the other hand, it's difficult to think that a station which is dishonest about the payoff for its advertisers can stay around very long. It also seems self-evident that an ad which is under-produced and is part of a block of ads can ever cut through the clutter. No one addressed this directly, but how many stations in a given market can expect good ad sales with so much migrating to the internet? Seems like the kinds of hurdles that would cause a pretty constant turnover of staff.

Sales Reptile: apart from believing in your product, what personal qualities do you think you have that have made you last so long in the business? Have you sold in businesses other than radio?

Thanks for your responses.

 

[Sales Reptile]

The most important quality is concern for the advertiser. If I don't have something that is going to produce the desired result. If another station is a better fit or has a solid plan, I encourage my client to go for it. There is no magic bullet. A number of stations or mediums can produce results, better than just one medium.

The original question I believe was about sales people lying. The bottom line is that if a sales person lies, it will come back to haunt them. Now, if a sales person truly believes that what they are selling will work for a client, but it doesn't, don't hide. Go straight back to the client and figure out what went right and what didn't. That's honesty and integrity.

 

[Signpost]

The most important quality is concern for the advertiser .... Go straight back to the client and figure out what went right and what didn't. That's honesty and integrity.

That's a great attitude. You'll build long term relationships, way less stressful than always looking for new business, and will contribute more to your station's bottom line over the long term.

What's always been frustrating is radio's share of the advertising pie. Usually around 6%. When the penetration of radio was higher compared to newspapers, magazines, billboards, even TV. Newspapers in particular took a disproportionate share of ad dollars. I hate seeing newspapers suffer today, but their revenue is simply moving to where it should have been in the first place.