Sales in the Digital Marketing Age
When I try to sell something, it typically goes like this:
“Excuse me, sorry to bother you, but would you be interested in something like this at all?”
“No, thank you.”
“OK, sorry for interrupting, I appreciate your time. Bye.”
Thus, when I sought insight into publisher strategies for selling digital, I turned to someone who sits 20 feet from my desk, someone who has revolutionized the way traditional media organizations launch and manage digital agencies, Dream Local Digital’s, Shannon Kinney.
As we gear up for the Local Media Revenue Summit this week, where publishers, media executives, and advertising managers will gather to hear the latest in revenue strategies, I asked Shannon to provide some tips for sales teams and managers that are working to incorporate digital products into their portfolios. Why is it so different? What can sales managers do to help in the transition?
Here Are 3 Actionable Tips for Better Sales Management:
What you measure moves.
Too often we focus on generating leads, on talking with potential customers, on perfecting our pitch. All of these are important – but even more important is creating a culture of accountability. And what you measure (i.e. number of calls, number of customer touchpoints, time to create a proposal, follow ups), will move. If you don’t currently have a CRM or sales system managing your leads, get one – and keep the data in front of your team all the time. Good salespeople want to be measured, they want to win. Create a clear culture of accountability and talk about the numbers often.
Put tools in your toolbelt.
Give your salespeople business intelligence to help them identify good prospects. What motivates people to do business with you? How can you assist your salespeople in creating and stimulating that motivation? At Dream Local Digital, we use business intelligence on how our prospects are performing online so that we can show them in real time on sales calls how we can help. That’s powerful for the sales rep and also for the prospect.
Know your industry, and that of your prospects.
It’s important for salespeople to be prepared for a call. Understand your prospect, their industry, identify potential needs ahead of time. Then LISTEN to them. Be a resource to your prospects, and to your sales team, by keeping them abreast of industry trends and how your services may be helpful to the prospect. Get specific, know their language and your own, and translate for your prospect what a difference your service or product will make to their business.
Do you want to learn more about how we’re helping publishers and media organizations generate revenue with digital services? Dream Local Digital is your one-stop solution!
