Teaching Your AE’s How Much to Ask For

We’re often asked, “How do you determine how much you should ask a client for?”  We were asked that by one of our clients recently, and I wrote him this email: 

There are a lot of ways we try to get to the "ask" number.  Let me outline a few:

1.     Analyze what the client tells us is not working during the Diagnosis

2.     Call.  Clients are quick to cancel things they don't believe in if they have

3.     A compelling idea supported by success stories. (During this step we’re also looking at where money is being spent that IS working.)

4.     What is the cost of doing nothing?  For example, an eye doctor had just built a $4M surgery center.  Almost as soon as it opened, he learned of changes in Medicare reimbursement for his #1 procedure, which REQUIRED his volume level to go up.  His total budget the previous year was $40K.  We asked for $125K since if he did nothing he was in big trouble.

5.     Is there an economic equation?  Alcohol rehab has 35 beds.  The average fee is $8000 for a month.  Occupancy rates are 65%.  10 unsold beds per month = $80,000 in lost revenue opportunity.  They'd spend a ton to get that.

6.     Are they in a lot of glasses?  Are we one of them?  It's all working or it’s all not working.  They're not sure.  We would consolidate to 2-4 glasses and see what the $$ might be.

7.     Do they have a big dream or a big problem on the horizon?  What’s it worth to deal with that?

8.     And then there are two biggies:

a.     Our personal comfort zone.  I'll bet you and I regularly ask for more than our newer reps will!!

b.    Our personal level of belief.  Do we believe in the power of our product to make a difference in their business?

Hope this answers your question!

I'm done with Lance and others who dont take responsibility for their actions!

Okay, I’m headed to the soapbox. Sorry.

I want nothing to do with Lance Armstrong. Not only did he lie for 15 years, but he vehemently trashed anybody who suggested that he might not be clean from drugs. Trashed them. The wife of a teammate was called a “harridan with a vendetta.” Former teammate Floyd Landis was accused of harassment.

His denials were so intense that Nike even used them in ads. “This is my body and I can do whatever I want to it,” he says in the commercial—inspirational at the time but hollowly ironic now. “I can push it, and study it, tweak it, listen to it,” he continues. “Everybody wants to know what I’m on? I’m on my bike, busting my ass six hours a day. What are you on?”

And in his interview with Oprah this week, all he could do was talk about how the system made him do it. I’ll bet when he was in third grade he said, “The dog ate my homework.”

So what really bothers me about Lance? It’s his failure to accept personal responsibility for his actions. Lance Armstrong took every drug. You and I didn’t have any vote in that. It wasn’t the system, it was his own lack of integrity. And it negates every single thing he did, even what seemed to be his heroic comeback from testicular cancer.

I have a pet peeve about this. I’ve watched AE’s over the years who never believe anything is their fault. It’s the company they work for… the account list they have… the buyers they call on… the economy we’re in… the birth sign they were born under. They fail to take personal responsibility. It seems to be an epidemic in our country.

I believe in the old motto, “If it is to be, it’s up to me.” So, I salute people who take personal responsibility for their lives.

In Jack Canfield’s amazing book, The Success Principles, he says the number one principle is to take 100% responsibility for your life.

So, am I sad that Lance is going to lose millions? Absolutely not. He did it to himself.

Tips to pull yourself out of the pile of mediocrity

“In the land of the blind… the one-eyed man is king.”

I have always loved that quote, written by 14th Century scholar Desiderius Erasmus. I love the quote because it describes to me one of the biggest secrets of success. You don’t have to do a lot more to stand out, because there are so many of your competitors who are working hard to be average.

A few years ago, I was asked by a local car dealer for some advice on his advertising. While the dealer and I were in discussions – a 5-week process – he must have told everyone that he was talking to me, as I was besieged by media reps.

Quite frankly, most were pretty bad. Perry Kapiloff, one of the JDA Senior Consultants, has an ad agency in his spare time. He is constantly scaring me with stories of terrible selling, even from major market reps in Boston where he lives.

On the one hand this should bother all of us. After all, it makes our entire business look bad, and sometimes we end up getting put in the same pile of mediocrity just because we share a business with the idiots.But it’s also good news for you. It means that all you have to do is a little bit more and you’ll really stand out.

It’s the sales rep who brings donuts for the employees at 5AM for a client promoting the Opening Day of hunting season.

Or the rep who teaches her medical client’s staff a script to answer the phone so that leads are converted to patients.

How about the TV rep we heard about during our November Auto Satellite conference who gets through to the COO of a major auto group because he regularly sends links to TV ads on YouTube that he thinks the COO might like.

Or the sales rep who did 3 one-hour meetings for a client who had some sales staff issues.
Yes, all of those stories, and dozens more I’ve heard, are true. And all of those reps have built big businesses with that level of commitment to their clients.

I believe that each of us has to consciously think about how we separate ourselves from our competitors. And I think this is WAY more than tickets and food. It’s information… extra effort… giving a damn… being focused on our clients’ needs more than our own.

It is specific actions. But it’s probably more than that. It’s an attitude of genuine caring. In my opinion, the superstars have it.

I’m betting most of you have it, as well. I’d encourage you to take a one-hour break this week to do the following exercise:

-Write down your 15 largest clients
-Ask yourself what you can do to show them your concern for their business
-Be sure to pay attention to anyone with whom you haven’t engaged recently
-Take action!!!

Is Your Digital Sales Manager Great?

During Call In Day this week, someone told me that in their market at least 3 TV stations are looking for Digital Sales Managers. The ads in the trades seem to confirm that this is a tough job to fill. It seems there are a lot of people who talk a good game, but don’t have the drive and sense of urgency to turn their knowledge into sales growth. And, with all the pressure from our companies to grow this side of our business, it’s critical.

So how do you know you have the right leader?

In the last 6 weeks I’ve had the chance to be around some absolute digital superstars. I won’t mention their names because you’ll all be like vultures, but these people are great. They work in large markets and smaller ones. Some were Digital AE’s, most were Sales Managers. And all of them possessed 3 things:

#1 – They bring a tremendous amount of ENERGY to their work. They are passionate about these products, totally believe they work, and are positive, upbeat people.
#2 – They have the abilty to ENERGIZE the other people on their teams. These stars have done a great job selling and continuing to sell the other AE’s they work with. And they realize that is job #1.
#3 – They sell (with and without the AE’s) products and grow the business. They are EFFECTIVE.

Energy. Energize. Effectiveness. That’s a great way to rank any manager on your team.

PS: As I wrote this, I wondered if because this job is so critical, we should TEST every finalist on their sales aptitude. My 20-year-old daughter understands digital media and loves it. She’s a great personality. But she’d be the first to tell you that she doesn’t think she can sell.Knowledge and passion for these products isn’t enough.

John Hannon joins the JDA team!

Jim Doyle and Associates is excited to announce that John Hannon, Executive Vice President of ACME Communications, Inc., has joined Jim Doyle and Associates as Senior Vice President.

While at ACME, John most recently oversaw operations of their station, WBXX, in Knoxville, TN, and syndicated distribution of The Daily Buzz a national morning news program originating from Orlando, FL, as well as assisting with ACME’s sale of assets. Prior to that, John managed ACME’s CW station in Dayton, OH. During his leadership, WBDT was the #1 rated CW affiliate in the nation for four consecutive years. Ironically, it lost that position this year to WBXX while John was running the Knoxville station on an interim basis.

Prior to ACME, John spent time as an AE, LSM, and GSM in Dayton and oversaw the Quorum Broadcasting, ABC and FOX stations in Billings, MT.

“I’ve been a fan of John’s for years,” said Jim Doyle, President of Jim Doyle and Associates. “His station experience and passion for local sales and for TV will make him a critical part of our future.” In addition to working with JDA clients and consultants, John’s number one priority is to bring a brand new Basic Selling program to market in 2012. “I’ve been to Jim’s Sales Manager Boot Camps, watched his national satellite conferences, and participated in his training sessions,” Hannon said. “I am a huge believer in the value JDA provides to broadcasting companies and am thrilled at the opportunity to join the team and launch Basic Selling, a product specifically designed to satisfy an ongoing broadcasting industry need.”

Jim Doyle and Associates is a Sarasota, FL, based Sales Training firm. Hannon joins Jim, Tom Ray, and nine Senior Consultants in providing revenue development and training to TV stations and Cable systems across America.

Characteristics I look for in a new hire

This article originally appeared in The Leaders Edge, Jim's coaching program for managers. For more details, on The Leaders Edge, go to: jimdoyle.com/MediaSalesManager/The-Leaders-Edge

From Tom Ray, Executive Vice President of Jim Doyle and Associates

Here are some of the things I think you should hire for since you can't teach them easily:

-Positive Personality. I want upbeat, energetic, glass-is-half-full people on my team, not Debbie and Donnie Downers.

-Strong understanding of how business works. I want team members who "get" business and are able to determine the win for a client and work towards it.

-Competitive and like to win. I like former athletes and individuals who have excelled in competitions because they are driven to win.

-Naturally curious. Hire people who want to know how things work, how a client's business operates, and who enjoy learning from others.

-Learners. Readers. Self-Improvers. The best AE's I encounter always want to know more.

-Ideal AE's have a firm grasp on technology. They use the tools available to them, they don't fear the computer or smart phone, but embrace it and end up teaching everyone else the tips and tricks they learn.

-Finally, closers. When the work is done and done well, they aren't afraid to ask for the business. Not "closers" who start with the close, but professionals who expect to be rewarded for their efforts, and who know the only way they will be is when the client says, "Let's do it."

Jim weighs in on what he looks for when hiring an AE:

-Are they driven? What Caliper calls Ego drive, which is the deep desire to win. In selling, winning is defined as closing the sale. Ego drive causes sellers to work harder, come in earlier, come back one more time, make cold calls even when they aren't comfortable, work hard to overcome objections.

-Do they have great EMPATHY? That's the ability to put yourself in someone else's shoes. Empathy without drive can become sympathy. With drive, empathy is powerful. "I'm so sorry that business is bad, what do you think we could do about it?"

-Resiliency. Especially for new-to-the-business AE's. Do they have the ability to bounce back from rejection and not take it personally? New AE's face more rejection than I've faced since my 7th grade dance. (Trust me, it was ugly!)

-Are they smart? This is becoming more and more important. AE's today need to analyze both the client situations and the AE's arsenal of products to determine what is the RIGHT solution for a client. We need smarter, more analytical people. I'm told that IQ testing is okay for applicants as long as it's gender/race neutral. I think it's time to do that.

-Are they students and learners? I agree with Tom here. The desire to learn is critical to continuing to be relevant. It also suggest whether they're a curious person. I think curious, interested people do well in sales (if they have strong Ego drive!).

-Are they likeable? I am more and more focused on this. A good AE has to get the client engaged quickly. Do I want to hang out with them?

-What about follow through? We require more attention to detail than ever.

-Do they love the business?

Are we losing clients because of weak production?

Are we losing customers after we’ve made the sale?

The folks at our company look at hundreds… maybe thousands of TV ads every year. That’s what we do!

We just viewed a bunch more at our most recent Senior Consultant meeting. And want to hear something REALLY scary?

Most of the commercials that we see look great. They’re well-edited and have a professional look. But, most of the commercials we see probably won’t work for the client. At least they won’t work with all the potential of a truly effective message.

My friend and colleague, Don Fitzgibbons, a.k.a. the Guru of Ads, does a fun and powerful seminar. During the seminar, he shows a horrid-looking ad and asks the audience, “Good ad or bad ad?” The audience responds to their emotional sense and says, “Bad ad.” Don, however, goes on to report that this ad was responsible for a huge growth in sales for the advertiser and asks again, “Good ad or bad ad?”

There’s just one thing that makes an ad good. Good ads produce good, measurable good results for our clients. Bad ads don’t. No matter how creative or how well-produced the ad is, if it doesn’t produce results for the customer, it’s a bad ad.

We spend hours and hours of our time working on new business. We make new business a major priority of our sales effort—and then create commercials that don’t work for our advertisers.

What an incredible tragedy!

Leaders know that today we MUST succeed with new business development. Our new business efforts have to be more effective than they have ever been.

But there’s a dirty little secret about new business development: it's profitable for the company, and for the AE, only when we get repeat business. The amount of time it takes to generate one new business sale makes it a very unprofitable deal. Renew the 2nd or 3rd time and and ROI grows dramatically. And, if the client keeps going for a couple of years? Wow.

Unfortunately, a massive percentage of the time we never get that 2nd order because our client doesn’t get results during their first schedule. And yes, that’s often caused by under-selling. But far more often, the problem is a nice-looking ad that isn’t effective and doesn’t get results.

If we’re going to develop local business, our AE’s and producers must become better at marketing. That’s true for our core TV business and digital products alike.

Here’s a real-life example. Ask yourself if your AE’s and Producers could help a client in this way.

An assisted living center was advertising on a station’s dot.com. The banner ad:

Southwood Assisted Living, click here

We suggested they apply the marketing principle of focus, a basic marketing concept. The ad was changed to:

Assisted Living Programs for Veterans, click here

The click-through rates quadrupled overnight. (The same idea would have dramatically improved the results for the core TV product, as well.)

Before that change, the client probably would have cancelled. But not now!!

This is a big deal. If our new business efforts get better and better, but we lose clients as fast as we bring them in because of poor production, we’re cooked. We’ll have clients who now believe TV doesn’t work and won’t come back anytime soon. And, we’ll have AE’s who don’t believe in the power our products.

I can think of few industry issues that are as critical to our long-term success as this one. Too bad it’s one we don’t talk about very often.

It’s a problem we need to fix!