Media Sales: Fighting Numbers Is Better Than Fighting Value

For over forty years, in the process of personally engaging in sales work and management (including Asia) advertising sales teams, I have noticed a phenomenon that many Chinese media sales staff are clear about the value proposition of their own media. ) are all insufficiently prepared.

The first step in the value proposition begins with the statement of the editorial mission, that is, the difference between the media and other media, and highlights the unique and counterpart quality of the media in the eyes of consumers and in the eyes of advertisers. Due to inadequate preparation in this area, China's media salespeople are often only satisfied with selling by price rather than promoting their value in terms of content, service, and brand strength.

Establishing a value proposition is the foundation for market positioning. It reflects the high level of commitment that the media delivers to consumers and advertisers.

Today’s Chinese consumers are their own portfolio managers—what they choose in their own form (web, mobile, tablet, or print media), on which day, or even when they learn about information or entertainment. pastime. Therefore, in today's highly complex communications world, the value and market positioning across all platforms is the key to reaching consumers.

Value orientation can allow the media to go beyond product attributes, reduce price negotiations as much as possible, and focus its promotion on brand strength.

People often say: "Without value, prices are just empty talk!" If consumers can't understand the media's value in terms of content, brand power, and services, media salespeople may have to rely on price promotions. In order to effectively sell value, salespeople need to grasp the needs of their customers and sell to their customers the benefits of their own media in meeting their needs. What are the distinctive features of media layouts, designs, or photos that impress consumers? Is the editorial fair and trustworthy? Whether the person writing the editorial has sufficient experience and creativity? Can you win the trust of your customers or agents and convince them that your own media is competent enough to serve as their marketing partner?

In my experience in sales and managing media advertising, I found that too many people love to compare some data with other media to establish their own brand advantage. This practice is wrong! This can only allow us to gain a superficial data advantage, which masks the practical benefits we can bring in meeting customer needs. It should be noted that I am advertising and managing the advertising sales team for the "TIME" weekly (TIME), the most expensive publication in the news magazine sector. I always try to use as little data comparison as the primary consideration, while highlighting our value positioning in quality editorials, brand strengths, and our desire to be a partner in marketing. Due to the higher circulation of Time magazine than competitors (which are the result of consumer preferences), our advertising page number is even more expensive. Therefore, I often include a famous quote by a late 19th-century philosopher in my marketing model.