As a former radio salesperson, and now sitting on the other side of the desk, I hope whomever ends up running the RAB (
10/20/05 RBR #206) understands what a problem radio sales people really have. Namely, they don't know how to sell radio. Their general managers, sales mangers, and market managers and the RAB are pushing everything but RADIO SALES.
Instead of teaching radio and radio sales, there seems to be a huge emphasis on teaching NTR. Time after time we receive calls from salespeople at radio stations saying the entire sales department has been locked in, doing the phone bank selling NTR ideas. Golf tournaments, pet shows, and everything other than radio time.
Today's radio sales people and managers just don't get it. The turnover and poorly educated radio sales person is hurting the industry, not helping. Quit blaming Clear Channel and their Less Is More for everything under the sun. The problem is, today's radio sales person isn't nearly as well trained in selling RADIO as they need to be. They are constantly being forced to switch hats. Today we'll sell radio..... tomorrow we'll be in lock down selling NTR...... tomorrow we'll be selling promotions...... and the day after that we'll be washing windows at a neighborhood garage.
Radio sales people have stopped selling "their" product and insist on bad mouthing other stations and advertisers. Just look at what's being said by, and I use the term "Radio People" loosely, by the local sales people who have slammed Home Depot for their decision. These local radio people have no idea in the world what the Home Depot made Network Radio do to land the account. All they know is, they've lost a cash cow and instead of working on a new account by selling their own advantages, they'll sit around bitching and moaning about what they've lost and how the client is being screwed.
Maybe if they had done a better job selling their local product to Home Depot in the first place, network radio wouldn't have scored the business. But then again, the local stations were probably pushing NTR instead of radio time and the real advantages of local and regional spot. ROI is far more important to Home Depot than having a DJ in the parking lot handing our CD's and T-shirts. What's important is at the end of the day the cash register be heavy, not the amount of people in the parking lot picking up crap from some poorly dressed local station employee.
So, RAB get with it. I've been to your conventions and have been disgusted with the extra emphasis on NTR. Sure you have your CRMC's but when they're locked into a room selling NTR what good does their certification really do? Start pushing and selling the real advantages of local radio. Start pushing stations into real sales training of their staff. Explain to all the managers in the radio world that the excessive turn over of sales people is hurting the business. The bad mouthing between stations is turning the stomachs of agency people to the point where they don't want to see radio people any longer, and will recommend those dollars be allocated to TV, Cable, Internet, and now IPOD.
When I sold radio, and I was good at it, in fact I still am ... there was no bad mouthing coming from my lips. I was taught to sell my station and our advantages. We didn't talk about the other stations in the market in our presentations. We made convincing presentations, answered questions / objections, and then performed the proper service. But then, that's how we were taught to sell radio. There was no NTR in our radio sales department, and our station was a true Cash Cow for our owners.
Oh, our owners ... Clear Channel Communications, and I was their number one salesperson in the chain for over 2 consecutive years. And by the way, we didn't have 11 minutes of avails, or 9, or even 7. But what we did have was pride in a job well done and radio sales education. L. Lowry Mays, Stan Webb, and Jim Smith made sure of that. We also had their full backing and support, and for most of the time, no Arbitron Book. So it can be done.
Are you listening RAB? Find someone to place at the helm that understands the business of radio and radio sales. Just a pretty face and popular name isn't going to cut it. Then get working on the chains and stations showing them the real advantage or radio time and reduce their reliance on NTR. Otherwise, local radio will become a vast wasteland and IPODs and Satellites will win, and you'll be without clients.
Howard F. Price
President / Multi-Net Marketing, Inc.
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