NONE: Re: ONLINE-ADS>> A Rant About Online Sales Reps
Re: ONLINE-ADS>> A Rant About Online Sales Reps
Rob Van Slyke _at_ Year2000.com (_at_)
Tue, 6 Oct 1998 17:49:43 -0500 (CDT)
<koconnor_at_upside.com> wrote:
>But...I also couldn't resist mentioning how many times I
>have planners out there who send me RFPs that I return (on
>time!) and then never return my calls when I try to follow
>up! This is not counting the calls I make trying to find out
>when you will be doing planning so I can be sure to not miss
>out on that....so I guess this is a problem on both ends.
I agree. Buyers and properties have to learn how to work
together. There are too many ways various properties sell
and too many ways media buyers buy.
If I've got 15 emails in my inbox and 10 of them have their
own special requests, weird ways of placing a buy or, bottom
line, just a lot of chit-chat, I'm just gonna go to the easy
ones first. I've gotta prioritize my replies and get to the
ones I can get out of the way first.
This is going to sound strange, but make it easy on the
seller to take your order. If you've got 15 people
surrounding you with checks in their hands, how do you
decide? This buyer has strings attached to their check.
That one has got a novels worth of chit-chat before their
order. I'm going with the one that is going to make it
easiest on me. I don't mean that selfishly either. It's a
fact. Sure I'll reply to the novelist and the one that
doesn't have a clue of how to place a buy, but their coming
at the end of the day.
I come from the publishers (Sales Rep) side. I get phone
call after phone call requesting rate sheets, proposals (not
so small ones either) and available inventory. I may be
unique but I reply to every email I get. I have to. And
this is a story for another day, but our site only sells ads
to "members" of the site. I have to reply to all of them
because they are already members, but, even then, I reply
and forget. 99% of them:
--aren't serious
--have no idea of what a banner even is
--have no idea of my rates and freak when they see them
--lose my email in the trillion other rate sheets they get.
It is possible that, if our site didn't only sell to
members, I would be less likely to educate or tolerate a
difficult buyer.
This may help you - maybe not, but here's an insight into a
sellers routine.
I scan my inbox by sender then subject. Current advertisers
get first priority and then subject lines that *look* like
buyers get second priority. The rest get filed for the end
of the day or for when I have time. Either way, you'll get
a phone call or an email from me by the end of the day. As
for these other properties, they too are probably drowning
in orders, but they will most probably reply to the most
profitable and "easiest orders".
State at the top of your email that you are ready to fax an
insertion order. State the location of the placement and
dollar figure or number of impressions. State your phone
number and whatever else that rep needs to complete the
sale. And, by all means, READ THEIR LITERATURE. The most
irritating thing I go through, day in and day out, is
explaining something I've emailed to someone five times. If
I give them the most simple or the most detailed
instructions (I've experimented), inevitably they don't read
it and make my job difficult. If they don't offer
literature or instructions, ask for it. Even if you have a
process through which your firm is required to go to submit
insertion orders, add that little extra at the top and make
it easy.
That's my two cents from a Li'l Ole Site Sales Rep,
Rob Van Slyke, rob_at_year2000.com
Sponsorship Coordinator
(281) 480-6300 ph, (281) 480-7715 fx
The Year 2000 Information Center, Inc.
http://www.year2000.com/
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