Selling Radio

Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
Why is it so hard to get people's full meaning when we converse by telephone or through email? It's because much of what we communicate with one another is not what we SAY or write.
Albert Mehrabian, who was a research pioneer in body language, found that the total impact of a message is about 7% verbal (words only), 38%...

Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
John Wanamaker is credited with saying, "Half of my advertising is wasted: I just don't know which half."
Whether or not this is true, we know that successful advertising campaigns contain three elements:
1. Enough repetition weekly so that half of your audience hears the message a minimum of three times.
2. Enough consistency (read:long...

Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
I was working with my newspaper client a few weeks ago discussing the most common objections they hear. Undoubtedly, it was this, "Nobody reads the newspaper anymore." I found this interesting because I also hear from my radio clients, "Nobody listens to radio anymore. They listen to satellite or podcasts." I hear from my TV people, "Everyone fast-forwards...

Do It Today! Ever heard that bit of wisdom, "Never put off till tomorrow, what you can do today"?
One of the attributes of great sales people is a trait we call "urgency". They want it done yesterday...or now at the latest. They never put things off.
As sales people, we keep many plates spinning wildly at all times. We need to be able to multi-task, and, we need to get things done. Today is better than tomorrow.
Sometimes,...

Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
The best sales people are story-tellers. They use stories about previous clients to help future clients to feel comfortable with giving them money.
Every time we approach new, prospective clients, they are asking themselves, "If I spend money with this person, will my opportunity for reward be greater than my risk?" As salespeople, we are in the business of removing risk and creating...

Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
Last newsletter we talked about selling long-term. Part of the process of selling long-term is managing our clients' expectations by teaching them what advertising CAN and CANNOT do at the time we sell them. If we wait until later, when they don't see immediate response and want to cancel, it sounds as though we are making excuses.
Explaining the results UP FRONT puts us in the position of...

Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
"I'm not sure radio works: You'll have to prove it to me with this week's schedule."
"I want to test you. I'll agree to three months."
"Business is too uncertain to plan my advertising 6 months in advance."
"I never sign up for one year!"
Selling long-term advertising has always been a challenge. Clients are hesitant to agree to more...

Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
In an earlier newsletter, we talked about how to deal with Mr. Not-So-Big if we could not get to Mr. Big. To continue that discussion, there are some steps we can take to move our prospects through the Marketing Channel to a positive conclusion for us. One of those steps is to send a letter of confirmation to our prospects between...

Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
All too often, we fail to close business because we are speaking to a person who can say, "No" but can't say, "Yes". I call that person Mr. Not-So-Big. As companies have multiple decision-makers or ultimate decision-makers in another geographic location, getting to the person who can make a final decision gets harder.
Sometimes, we just can't get to Mr. Big. When that...

Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
Many of us will have already done our revenue projections for the New Year. But, just in case you haven't, let's talk about some guidelines for coming up with challenging, but realistic, goals.
You might start with how much you wish to earn next year. The amount you wish to earn, divided by your commission rate, will tell you how much you need to bill. You can divide that by 12...

Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
How does radio affect the brain?
The answer to this question is the secret weapon in our arsenal.
Westwood One commissioned some biometric studies to help answer that question. In this study, they found that video produced the least amount of brain activity. Text-based ads brought a bit more brain activity, but audio advertising elicited the most.
They credit this...

Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
Zipf's Law. Ever heard of it? This natural phenomena is important to anyone who is selling a product. Mr. Zipf found that "the", the most- used English word, occurred about twice as often as "of", the second most- used word, and about three times as often as "and", the third most used.
Zipf's Law also applies to the brand preference...
Pat Bryson selling radio direct
Much of what we communicate to our clients is not what we SAY. Albert Mehrabian, who was a research pioneer in body language, found that the total impact of a message is about 7% verbal (words only), 38% vocal (tone, inflection) and 55% nonverbal. Many times, our bodies tell...
Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
We don't sell radio, newspaper or TV. We sell marketing solutions. Our clients will be glad to see us if they view us as unpaid staff members. We know we've arrived when our clients call us to help them plan their marketing.
Our advertising is only one piece of the marketing puzzle...
Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
What makes a GREAT salesperson? They have the highest billing on the station, right? They are constantly bringing in new accounts and upselling the old ones. But, what makes them special?
• They have a love for selling. Period. Exclamation point!...
Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
Why do our prospects buy from us? As we move prospects through the stages of a sale, we know that the buying process can be complicated. Much of the time, we are dealing with more than one decision maker. We are always dealing with complex emotions (remember, people buy emotionally and justify it with logic...
My "I" Controls My "R"
We've all had a salesperson who has excellent sales skills, seems to enjoy selling and yet consistently underperforms. At least, they underperform in OUR estimation. But they are performing within their comfort zone. They are performing as they see themselves being able to perform.
The good...
Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
Well, I got another letter from Les. Remember him? He's the buying service for radio and TV that spends millions each year with broadcast. He's also been a friend of mine for some years. Even though I no longer do battle with him over rates and schedules, we still keep in touch. When Les speaks, we should listen. And...
Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
I recently returned from the Radiodays Conference held in Milan, Italy. Over 1300 radio broadcasters from 50 different countries convened for 3 days to learn, discuss, interact and enjoy the hospitality of this wonderful city.
You would think that radio people in Iceland or Ukraine would have different problems than those in...
Selling Radio Direct with Pat Bryson
What's the latest number you've heard for how many advertising impressions bombard us each day? 5,000? 6,000? A lot, and more each year. So many, in fact, that it makes us wonder why businesses should continue to spend money on advertising. Why should they join the...