Small Market Sales

    • 21 posts
    July 9, 2015 7:48 AM PDT

    Can anyone tell me why sales struggle in a small market? Having a hard time keeping a sales person in this small market. Is it because the newspaper sucks it all up? Maybe, the format isn't pleasing to potential clients? Why is so difficult to find a sales person and keep them in small town, small market radio? (country music is favored in the small area, but classic rock has its listeners too) We are a classic rock station.

    Austin

    • 58 posts
    July 10, 2015 5:51 PM PDT

    Hi Austin,

    As a 15 year sales veteran of a classic rock station in a very small market...14,000 people on an island...in Alaska!  I will take a stab at answering your question.

    Even if you were born and raised in a small market and know everyone, it still takes 6-12 months for people to trust you in handling the marketing of their business.  Salespeople have to sell themselves first and that means training.  When I first started out, I got very little training so I spent many evenings at the local library devouring everything I could on radio sales.  I read back issues of Advertising Age and countless books too.  I would practice new techniques on my family and friends that owned businesses and I kept track of what worked and what didn't.  I also went after non traditional revenue with a passion landing 65 non profit organizations as advertisers in the first year.  People still buy from people and it is all about relationships. Persistence pays off.  Once I found Sean Luce, Paul Weyland and Joe Bonura and started using their techniques, my sales really took off.  A salesperson has to find a way to stand out and under promise and over deliver.  There are only 2 degrees of separation in a small town so I think of my job as visiting friends with a purpose.  I give the same attention to small clients as I do to big ones and I have grown small clients into much larger clients.  There is a finite number of advertising dollars in a small market and the salesperson has to have a compelling reason to get them to try radio.  I sell results, not ads.

    Bottom line...it just takes time and education to get there.  Lastly, if I was paid on commission only...the first year, I would have quit.  I just didn't start making much money until about 9 months in.  I hope that helps.

    Julie Lekwauwa

    KFMJ 99.9 FM

    Ketchikan, Alaska

    • 74 posts
    July 12, 2015 10:20 AM PDT

    Julie is right. We have been on the air for 18 months (a new station pop, count about10,000) and we have under promised and over delivered. We don't sell. We market their business.  We ask what can we do for you. We are involved with every community event. We have a open door policy, and invite everyone to our station (and morning show) to have a cup of coffee, and chat. Have a campaign or solution for everyone when you visit, don't just throw them a rate card or package. Be honest, candid, and ask the person how your station can help them.

    • 118 posts
    January 14, 2016 3:07 PM PST

    I will take a stab at this.  Keeping people is tough in a small market because they see what they think is low hanging fruit in a bigger town.  We know that's not reality.

    Second, many told me 'everybody knows me and I don't need to advertise'.  In many respects they were right at least somewhat (ie: only tire shop in 30 miles or only hardware store, etc.).

    I was taught small market selling is more about showing you are part of the community.  By this, sponsoring school sports, local news, weather and other community activities and maybe even underwriting a daily devotional from their Church pastor is the key to their ad dollars.  Keeping your name out there and demonstrating the business is active in the community that keeps them in business is the typical thinking of many small businesses.

    Many small markets do not have many competitors nor aggressive sales to win customers so selling the spot is less successful without another reason to buy.