I’ve written before about the importance of relevance in selling out of home. Several reps have asked me “how can I be relevant?”. Here are 6 ways to be relevant when selling out of home.
- Get in your prospect’s customer stream. Sign up for the customer’s website notices, get their customer loyalty cards, etc. (Use a dedicated email address to keep your personal email uncluttered.)
- Be a student of your local business marketplace by using local business publications. Note the challenges of local advertisers; a problem for one advertiser in a category is very likely a problem for all. Send relevant information to the prospect to address needs you discovered.
- Google “challenges of XXXX” (business category). You will find websites/publications that address your prospect needs in these trade publication links. Business trade publications success hinges on identifying/reporting on the top needs. Scroll down until you find a marketing challenge/need, then address it with your prospects and you’ll be relevant! Find a need for one in a category, it will likely be the same for all advertisers in the category.
- Propose to your sales management a speaker’s bureau for sales meetings. Invite representatives from your biggest target categories to speak to your sales team. It may be current clients in categories where you want to expand your sales. Appeal to their ego by telling them they were selected because of their industry leadership. You want their insights and a chance for your reps to ask questions about their business category. You may need to offer them an incentive, possibly some bonus space on your digital boards, in exchange for their time. It’s a group Customer Needs Analysis that can pay huge dividends!
- Shop the store and/or client events and talk to the salespeople/clerks firsthand. There is no substitute for being in the place of business that you’re trying to target. Ask them about their biggest challenges on the sales floor. You may uncover things even their management hasn’t fully realized/analyzed. (BTW, this is also the best place to get relevant creative copy info once you have sold them—no one knows the client’s customers’ needs better than their front-line salespeople. A billboard ad is a salesperson magnified several thousand times).
- Check the company website and/or the annual report. If they’re publicly traded, the annual report will give you great insight into their challenges. If you are targeting a privately owned business, research one of their publicly traded competitors to gain insight.
Please send me other ways you have used to be relevant. I’d love to hear your comments
Kevin Gephart spent 35+ years selling advertising including 12 years at Clear Channel Outdoor in Minneapolis. He welcomes your sales questions or comments. You can reach him at kevinjgephart@gmail.com or by using the form below.
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