Does anyone know if Jack McGann is still around, or Lou Krone?
Way back when W-I-N-S became the first all-news radio station in the world, these fellows had to transition from selling the huge Pulse (bigger than Arbitron back then) numbers associated with Murray the K and his dancing girls (who were they?) to the non-numbers of "You Give Us Twenty-Two Minutes and We'll Give You the World." Jack and Lou had about five other selling colleagues at "1010 WINS" during the transition, but five different ones several months later, and roughly those kind of changes until the ratings said, "wow!"
You see, back then most broadcast sales executives relied upon their ratings, pricing and relationships (lunches and golfing) to get "their fair share" of business. Amazing how much we have evolved as sellers, no?
The truth is that broadcasting has always favored experience over talent to sell its wares. A "list" opens and the raiding party attacks a neighboring tribe. And so the industry recycles "experienced" if unremarkable sellers, over and over again. So decade after decade the RFP goes out; "we have $25,000/week to spend and our CPP is $0.18, please tell us what you can do?" And the seller comes back at $.20 and they settle at $.19. The only piece of selling left is to the manager and his manager that "we got our fair share."
What Jack McGann and Lou Krone were able to do was sit with the buyer, more often than not, the real buyer (the business owner), and explain that the audience for this new format (all-news) was an engaged audience. That research showed it was a better educated and higher socio-economic audience. They effectively made the case that the format was of no value to any listener unless he or she truly listened. And because extraordinary attention was paid to the newscasters, the business' message would be heard. Moreover they produced research that substantiated that there was a transfer of credibility from the broadcasting of news, to a commercial aired within that programming. And finally that if together they paid attention to the offering and the "creative," the products being offered would sell, and therefore the client would grow his business.
Now I'm pretty sure Jack or Lou (and some others), were they working for Discovery, National Geographic, BBC, Weather Channel, FOX News, CNBC, etc. would outsell the NBC Television Network to many, many accounts. And it would have nothing to do with golf, lunches or cheap spots.
"And the CPP is irrelevant don't you think, Mr. Jones? Aren't you really interested in return on investment?"
Oh, what if the conversation was at a media buyer's desk you ask? Well it started the same way, but when it bogged down, as it inevitably did, Jack or Lou would invite the buyer to join them in a meeting they would be having with the client.
You can do this. Become who you are, not what convention says you should be.
Feel free to call or write, if you'd like to talk more about this.
Great Selling!
Love Your Work and Work Tirelessly
Communicate Honestly and Fearlessly
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Serve, Don't Sell
Teamwork
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Lessons from the Mountain Top
For twenty-six years, from early middle age, until early old age, he fought his courageous battle imprisoned. His ultimate victory brought freedom to the people of half a continent.
He waged his "war" with a conviction that his cause was right; that all would benefit if they could break through their biases, their habits and ingrained cultures and "buy" into his vision.
He adopted a direct, honest, yet respectful mode of communication to friend and foe alike, helping to create a continuing discourse which would not exacerbate existing distrust and hostility.
He never allowed himself to be distracted or shied from the difficulty of success.
Nelson Mandela, in his new release Nelson Mandela, Conversations with Myself, tells of " a man whose house was haunted by evil spirits." He decided to leave his rural home, packed all his belongings in a wagon to settle elsewhere. A friend stopped and asked him where he was off to? Before he answered a voice came out of the wagon. "We are leaving here," it said. It was the voice of one of the evil spirits. The moral is, "Don't run away from your problems. Face them. Because if you don't deal with them, they will always be with you. Deal with a problem which arises; face it courageously."
Here's the takeaway, at least for me.
Greatness at any level, toward any end and in any endeavor requires uncommon thoughtfulness, tenacity, courage and honesty. And that applies to both Seller and Buyer. But the responsibility for clearing the playing field of dead leaves and fallen branches, much less the leavings of all who preceded us, lies with the Seller. His courage, his honesty and his indefatigable will define the outcome.
Great Selling!
Love Your Work and Work Tirelessly
Communicate Honestly and Fearlessly
Serve, Don't Sell
Collapse Time
Teamwork
He waged his "war" with a conviction that his cause was right; that all would benefit if they could break through their biases, their habits and ingrained cultures and "buy" into his vision.
He adopted a direct, honest, yet respectful mode of communication to friend and foe alike, helping to create a continuing discourse which would not exacerbate existing distrust and hostility.
He never allowed himself to be distracted or shied from the difficulty of success.
Nelson Mandela, in his new release Nelson Mandela, Conversations with Myself, tells of " a man whose house was haunted by evil spirits." He decided to leave his rural home, packed all his belongings in a wagon to settle elsewhere. A friend stopped and asked him where he was off to? Before he answered a voice came out of the wagon. "We are leaving here," it said. It was the voice of one of the evil spirits. The moral is, "Don't run away from your problems. Face them. Because if you don't deal with them, they will always be with you. Deal with a problem which arises; face it courageously."
Here's the takeaway, at least for me.
Greatness at any level, toward any end and in any endeavor requires uncommon thoughtfulness, tenacity, courage and honesty. And that applies to both Seller and Buyer. But the responsibility for clearing the playing field of dead leaves and fallen branches, much less the leavings of all who preceded us, lies with the Seller. His courage, his honesty and his indefatigable will define the outcome.
Great Selling!
Love Your Work and Work Tirelessly
Communicate Honestly and Fearlessly
Serve, Don't Sell
Collapse Time
Teamwork
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Great Sellers are Courageous People
How early in your last sales presentation did the subject of price come up? And please tell me that you were not the one to start that part of the conversation. How soon in your next sales presentation will you and your buyer get around to a discussion of price?
Here's the deal. The decision should never be about price. It's about what? It's about why? It's about when and who?
When all the above questions are answered after a forensic look by a partnering buyer and seller, it's time to negotiate the equities. Before then, for both of the parties, it's a pig in a poke. That's because before the work neither have a reality based clue about what the maximum opportunity to further the buyer's interest might be. So without serious examination, it's clear what the risk is to the buyer. And the seller? A one time sale, a disappointed buyer, another one who "tried it and it doesn't work."
So, what do courageous sellers do? They suggest at the beginning of the conversation that their intention is to help the buyer probe all of his critical assumptions regarding pathways to success. Together they need to compare experience, learning's and be willing, each of them, to bow to greater wisdom's or logic. "Mr. Jones, these are tough and confusing times. The information flow is all but overwhelming. There used to be a time when I felt I was completely on top of the marketing of goods and services. Now I'm convinced that no one is. Not me, and not you--even about your own business." Do you dare? "Together, Mr. Jones," you continue, "we have a shot."
A friend of mine who manages several billion dollars of institutional investment funds, and whose intelligence and wisdom is beyond question, said to me recently, that he believes most thoughtful people feel guilty these days about their inability to stay on top of everything. That's a real change for many and how could it be otherwise? Today there's almost nothing we can't get answered within minutes using "search." And yet, there isn't nearly the time available to search all the new bits of information that pop up every ten minutes of every day.
"Don't you think that's true Mr. Jones? Shouldn't we get started digging in and prioritizing what you believe are the obstacles to continued or renewed growth? Will you remember when I challenge you and question your assumptions that I'm here to help?""
"The real question is, how much truth can I stand."--Nietzsche
You can do this work.
Great Selling!
Love Your Work and Work Tirelessly
Communicate Honestly and Fearlessly
Serve, Don't Sell
Collapse Time
Teamwork
Here's the deal. The decision should never be about price. It's about what? It's about why? It's about when and who?
When all the above questions are answered after a forensic look by a partnering buyer and seller, it's time to negotiate the equities. Before then, for both of the parties, it's a pig in a poke. That's because before the work neither have a reality based clue about what the maximum opportunity to further the buyer's interest might be. So without serious examination, it's clear what the risk is to the buyer. And the seller? A one time sale, a disappointed buyer, another one who "tried it and it doesn't work."
So, what do courageous sellers do? They suggest at the beginning of the conversation that their intention is to help the buyer probe all of his critical assumptions regarding pathways to success. Together they need to compare experience, learning's and be willing, each of them, to bow to greater wisdom's or logic. "Mr. Jones, these are tough and confusing times. The information flow is all but overwhelming. There used to be a time when I felt I was completely on top of the marketing of goods and services. Now I'm convinced that no one is. Not me, and not you--even about your own business." Do you dare? "Together, Mr. Jones," you continue, "we have a shot."
A friend of mine who manages several billion dollars of institutional investment funds, and whose intelligence and wisdom is beyond question, said to me recently, that he believes most thoughtful people feel guilty these days about their inability to stay on top of everything. That's a real change for many and how could it be otherwise? Today there's almost nothing we can't get answered within minutes using "search." And yet, there isn't nearly the time available to search all the new bits of information that pop up every ten minutes of every day.
"Don't you think that's true Mr. Jones? Shouldn't we get started digging in and prioritizing what you believe are the obstacles to continued or renewed growth? Will you remember when I challenge you and question your assumptions that I'm here to help?""
"The real question is, how much truth can I stand."--Nietzsche
You can do this work.
Great Selling!
Love Your Work and Work Tirelessly
Communicate Honestly and Fearlessly
Serve, Don't Sell
Collapse Time
Teamwork
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Why Should You Network? Maybe and maybe not.
You are likely a member of Linkedin. There's almost no chance you don't have a Facebook account. A few of you, and many more later, will spend time with Gen.Connect.com (a nascent "expert" and "community" sight) and others.
All of you have a roll-a dex of one thickness or another. Many use Salesforce.com and/or Constant Contact. Why do "we" commit to those activities? Some do it out of fear or loneliness. Most do it to seek out opportunities; a job, a better job or perhaps a consultancy. Most, when offered the opportunity to "connect" with someone new, check out the requester profile first, to ascertain what potential benefit might accrue with an acceptance.
So what do we have here? It appears that the prism through which any professional "networking" activity must pass through is "what's in it for me?".
There's another way to think about this. The more people with whom you intereact, the more people may benefit from their association with you. If your true mindset is "what can I do to help?" and your behavior reflects that, what do you think that says about you? You hit the "accept" button and in your reply, the message you send is along the lines of, "I'm delighted you reached out to me. I look forward to connecting with you and seeing how I may be of service." Corny? Only if you don't mean it.
Think about the reputation you acquire by relating this way. You become the default person, when the question comes up, "who might be a good source of work, advice, counsel," etc. for this unique work, I need to fill.
Great Selling!
Love Your Work and Work Tirelessly
Communicate Honestly and Fearlessly
Serve, Don't Sell
Collapse Time
Teamwork
All of you have a roll-a dex of one thickness or another. Many use Salesforce.com and/or Constant Contact. Why do "we" commit to those activities? Some do it out of fear or loneliness. Most do it to seek out opportunities; a job, a better job or perhaps a consultancy. Most, when offered the opportunity to "connect" with someone new, check out the requester profile first, to ascertain what potential benefit might accrue with an acceptance.
So what do we have here? It appears that the prism through which any professional "networking" activity must pass through is "what's in it for me?".
There's another way to think about this. The more people with whom you intereact, the more people may benefit from their association with you. If your true mindset is "what can I do to help?" and your behavior reflects that, what do you think that says about you? You hit the "accept" button and in your reply, the message you send is along the lines of, "I'm delighted you reached out to me. I look forward to connecting with you and seeing how I may be of service." Corny? Only if you don't mean it.
Think about the reputation you acquire by relating this way. You become the default person, when the question comes up, "who might be a good source of work, advice, counsel," etc. for this unique work, I need to fill.
Great Selling!
Love Your Work and Work Tirelessly
Communicate Honestly and Fearlessly
Serve, Don't Sell
Collapse Time
Teamwork
Monday, October 4, 2010
Might Makes Right, or Does it?
I'd have to say "no!" I am convinced that great sellers know that "right makes might."
"What am I missing here," you might ask. "Do you mean to tell me that the person who can write the check doesn't have the ultimate power in a sales interaction?" Yes, that's what I mean to tell you unless the potential check writer is the sole owner-proprietor (and often, not even then).
If you have astutely targeted a customer who you "know" can meaningfully benefit from your product or service, and you are practised enough to be able to clearly articulate that benefit, then you have a powerful, other-directed mandate to sell it through. To some degree, the health, welfare and growth of that customer will hinge on a favorable decision by the check writer to take pen in hand.
Let's take a few scenarios:
1) He/she won't take your first or second call: In this case you call his/her boss and ask them for meeting and when you are directed back to "he/she" you say, "I'm happy to do that but notwithstanding the potential importance to your company, "he/she" wouldn't take my call. May I see you or would you like me to try them again and let you know how I make out?"
Either way, you get the meeting. At the very least, the "boss" will tell the check writer to see you and get you off "his/her" back, at which point you do and make your case. Of course, if by some chance that doesn't work, you go up another rung in the hierarchical ladder.
2) Here's a more interesting scenario: This time you've had a meeting or two. The issue is still in doubt, and each party agrees there are remaining questions to be answered that require thought or research and agree on a follow-up meeting. When you are prepared to present your findings, after a sensible number of attempts to make contact without any luck, it's clear you are being ducked.
At that juncture you write, the following: "Hi, Mr. Jones notwithstanding what seemed to be a productive first meeting at the conclusion of which we agreed to meet again, I haven't been able to get through. Out of respect, and appreciation for your time last month, I want to tell you that I believe our services to be of such importance to your company, that I will be reaching out to meet with someone up the corporate ladder."
You'll be called back by the end of the day, for meeting number two.
3) Sole Proprietor: You did the research. You got the meeting. It convinced you that you were not only right in the value you bring to the table, it's thrice what you imagined and THE ONLY CHECK WRITER SAYS "No can/won't do."
Now because you are so sure you can help; You are so sure that you can be impactful for his business; You are so sure "you're RIGHT," you say, "Mr. Jones, I too have been afraid to pull the trigger on opportunities in the past and passage of time made me wish that I'd been a little more rational and courageous. The operative word of course was "too" and there's a pretty good chance you'll have reopened the conversation.
Being other-directed and RIGHT gives you all the power you need to be Great!
Great Selling!
Love Your Work and Work Tirelessly
Communicate Honestly and Fearlessly
Serve, Don't Sell
Collapse Time
Teamwork
"What am I missing here," you might ask. "Do you mean to tell me that the person who can write the check doesn't have the ultimate power in a sales interaction?" Yes, that's what I mean to tell you unless the potential check writer is the sole owner-proprietor (and often, not even then).
If you have astutely targeted a customer who you "know" can meaningfully benefit from your product or service, and you are practised enough to be able to clearly articulate that benefit, then you have a powerful, other-directed mandate to sell it through. To some degree, the health, welfare and growth of that customer will hinge on a favorable decision by the check writer to take pen in hand.
Let's take a few scenarios:
1) He/she won't take your first or second call: In this case you call his/her boss and ask them for meeting and when you are directed back to "he/she" you say, "I'm happy to do that but notwithstanding the potential importance to your company, "he/she" wouldn't take my call. May I see you or would you like me to try them again and let you know how I make out?"
Either way, you get the meeting. At the very least, the "boss" will tell the check writer to see you and get you off "his/her" back, at which point you do and make your case. Of course, if by some chance that doesn't work, you go up another rung in the hierarchical ladder.
2) Here's a more interesting scenario: This time you've had a meeting or two. The issue is still in doubt, and each party agrees there are remaining questions to be answered that require thought or research and agree on a follow-up meeting. When you are prepared to present your findings, after a sensible number of attempts to make contact without any luck, it's clear you are being ducked.
At that juncture you write, the following: "Hi, Mr. Jones notwithstanding what seemed to be a productive first meeting at the conclusion of which we agreed to meet again, I haven't been able to get through. Out of respect, and appreciation for your time last month, I want to tell you that I believe our services to be of such importance to your company, that I will be reaching out to meet with someone up the corporate ladder."
You'll be called back by the end of the day, for meeting number two.
3) Sole Proprietor: You did the research. You got the meeting. It convinced you that you were not only right in the value you bring to the table, it's thrice what you imagined and THE ONLY CHECK WRITER SAYS "No can/won't do."
Now because you are so sure you can help; You are so sure that you can be impactful for his business; You are so sure "you're RIGHT," you say, "Mr. Jones, I too have been afraid to pull the trigger on opportunities in the past and passage of time made me wish that I'd been a little more rational and courageous. The operative word of course was "too" and there's a pretty good chance you'll have reopened the conversation.
Being other-directed and RIGHT gives you all the power you need to be Great!
Great Selling!
Love Your Work and Work Tirelessly
Communicate Honestly and Fearlessly
Serve, Don't Sell
Collapse Time
Teamwork
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