Your Ad Reps Can Be Your Greatest Advocates- Cultivate The Relationships

If you’re like a lot of people that manage a marketing budget, the thought of answering another call from an advertising representative is something you simply don’t want to do.  People are turned off by the typical ‘hard sell’ mentality.  Fortunately, the majority of advertising representatives are now trained as consultative sales.  And, if you’re in a specific B2B or technology niche, they are, many times, folks that have been in the industry for years.  It’s because of this that you can turn ad reps into great advocates for you and your brand.

Ad reps can be a wonderful resource— especially when your budget has been slashed and the economy doesn’t show signs of getting better.  The last thing you want to do is turn another person down for yet another potentially great opportunity.  However, you can work toward building a relationship that will stand the test of good times and bad.

By working on a relationship beyond signing sales orders or quick ‘yes’ or ‘no’ conversations, you can garner many benefits:

-       Getting a pulse on the industry- few people talk to a variety of businesses as a sales rep does

-       Having someone that understands your marketing strategies so they work harder with management to create the right tactics that are right for your business

-       Gaining an internal advocate for your products and services- editors cannot be in all places at the same time and they do ask their ad reps what innovative things they’ve seen.  NOTE: There are no guarantees and you shouldn’t push this because there is clear separation between sales and editorial

So, now that you want to cultivate this relationship, how can you?

-       Go to lunch. If they are close by this is easily done and gets your both out of the office to develop more of a rapport

-       Meet at trade show.  If you’re only in the same place a couple times a year, schedule time, make the time, and be on time. It’s also a good time for dinners or entertainment

-       Answer emails and voice mails in a warm, timely manner.

-       Focus when you’re talking. Don’t multi-task, but engage in a real conversation.

-       Make serious consideration to what they are pitching and give honest, meaningful feedback on why it will or will not work.

You might be asking, “How does this help your advertising sales representative?”  Here are a few benefits they gain from the relationship:

-       Understand your business better

-       Create packages tailored to your business

-       Get an even better understanding of the market overall

-       Give them information to management on where sales stand and why

Keep these tips in mind the next time you meet with your ad rep and you will be on your way to cultivating a solid relationship that will prove to be one of your most valuable.

Gain Market Share Even In Tough Times

In order to gain that market share, you need to ensure that your brand is top of mind with potential clients. Tough times are a good time to increase market share. There are a few things you can do either inexpensively or at a cost savings.

Continue to market yourself
Avoid the temptation to slash your marketing budget. Because that’s exactly what so many other companies do, this will put you far ahead of the competition and at the forefront of customer’s minds when the time comes to start buying again.

Co-op advertising
If you’re a manufacturer, you can partner with your distributors and/or retailers on advertising. If you’re a retailer, you can look into manufacturers that do co-op advertising. Otherwise, find another company that has the same ideal client and share advertising costs.

Joint venture on events or promotions
Got a trade show where you’d really to like exhibit, but are choking on the costs? Think of a partner that could benefit from sharing expenses and share the expense. If you have a great idea for a promotion, but are afraid the budget isn’t there. Figure out how you can make in an irresistible promotion for both yours and another company. Joint ventures create win-wins for everyone involved.

Build relationships
Get out and be seen. Now isn’t the time to crawl back into your shell like a turtle. It’s a time to go to events, meet people in person, and talk to them eye-to-eye. There will never be a replacement for the human touch.

Offer new and/or creative payment terms
All companies are looking to streamline costs. Look at how you can get creative with payment plans or offer new ways to pay.

Keep Innovating
Continuing to do research and development of new products not only gives you the ability to sell more products, but also demonstrates that your company is always looking for ways to make life easier for your customers.

By employing these strategies, you’ll be well on your way to gaining market share— even during a tough economy.