NONE: RE: negotiating ad rates
RE: negotiating ad rates
Jim Waltz (jwaltz_at_dmn.com)
Thu, 8 Aug 1996 13:14:56 -0400
Donna wrote:
>>>
Many of the people I'll be approaching about advertising on my site are
newbee advertisers who may not realize negotiation is possible, and may
just not be responsive if the price is too high for them.
I've got some ideas on this, but I;ve never actually sold ads (for my site
or anywhere else), so I'd appreciate some pointers.
>>>
One of the keys to successfully selling ads at the highest price is to
learn what the advertiser's budget is. You can usually find out by just
asking- but always try to get it in rough terms, like 'between $8,000.00
and $12,000.00' instead of $9,750.00. You should also try to find out what
their advertising goals are, as well as their target markets. If you can't
meet these goals or don't have a comparable market, then don't waste time
and move on to the next lead. Just like any other sales situation, you
need to qualify your prospects.
If they have placed ads in the past, either online or otherwise, find out
what rates they agreed to, again in rough numbers. Often, you will find
that they spent more per impression in traditional advertising than what
you are asking online (35-50 CPM as opposed to 15-35 CPM online).
Now that you have this information, what do you do with it? If you have
asked the right questions and got the right answers, all you have to do now
is explain why it makes sense to advertise on your site, comparing the
different numbers, values, and benefits. If they have the budget, their
target market is close to your site's demographics, and the price is
reasonable relative to what they have spent in the past, then you just have
to close the sale.
Donna, if you can get all of this information from each prospective
advertiser, then it reduces the need for negotiation on both ends. After
all, the goal is for each party to gain something by working together- the
advertiser achieves either brand awareness or increased sales, and the site
gets precious ad revenue. Of course, if you find out that they have paid
only 20 CPM for previous ads, then you know they will probably balk at a 50
CPM rate for your site unless you can give a few great reasons why you are
worth the extra investment.
If a newbie sounds unconvinced about spending money online, you can hit
them with all of the positive numbers and results from banner advertising.
Check out Webtrack's Adspend and other research by Jupiter Communications.
Most of the larger companies have already joined the fray, and online
advertising has achieved tremendous success and wide acceptance among many
of the established advertising agencies, and rightly so- banner ads combine
powerful image branding with the response and measurability of direct
marketing.
One last tactic to use if you feel lowering your price or adding extra
value is necessary. Try packaging your ad slots specially for first-time
advertisers. You can give them an introductory rate, essentially getting
your foot in the door. If you want to get 30 CPM, try offering an ad for
20 CPM for the first month. Make sure that you guarantee impressions and
limit their risk as much as possible. You could also explore what options
might exist for working together on another level, such as sharing content
or exchanging links from parts of your sites.
It's a brave new advertising world, but as long as you approach prospective
advertisers with the goal of helping to connect them with their target
audience at a reasonable investment, your site can make it in the ever more
competitive online advertising game.
"Casbah--if music is your life's passion, we've got the aphrodisiac."
Casbah- http://casbah.dmn.com/
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Jim Waltz, Director Sales & Marketing Digital Music Network
jwaltz_at_dmn.com 319 Main Street,
Stoneham, MA 02180 p: 617.279.2895 f: 617.279.3507
DMN Media- reach 30 million raving online music fans. http://www.dmn.com/media
