3-10-2014
I still hear our Sports radio format referred to as niche.And it is a specialized but profitable corner of the market. So by pure definition, I?m sort of OK with that. But when I log off my dictionary app (no old school reference resources here), I feel the need to put condiments on that. Let?s call it a ?turbocharged niche.? Now we?re talking.
At 800-plus Sports stations in the U.S. and five full-time sports radio networks crackling through the day and night, special conferences, and a special issue of Radio Ink dedicated to it annually, it feels and is bigger than an ?everyday? niche.
One would expect full-throated agreement from the passion players of the industry that Sports radio is darned good at selling stuff for customers too, with possibly no equal relative to its audience size. Yet there is so much headroom for what the format can do.
But how much more utility can we flog out of the typical Sports radio property, with the traditional allotment of sales and sales management firepower? The X factor could be something called the sports strategist. The sports strategist is the technician who weaves together the relevant elements of the portfolio in an unbiased manner, with the group mission in mind.
Picture the typical, constantly evolving cluster-selling operation. We all know what that looks like. A portion of your sales staff can really get their heads around the Sports format, are warriors who have passion and creativity ? without which your audience would hear a lot more Ad Council public service spots (which go down better in moderation).
Then there are the folks who are the opportunistic rating-point grabbers, hitting lower in the lineup, counted on to get on base with moderate regularity, but who much of the time take the path of least resistance and sell the Adult Contemporary station with the 5 share. And ultimately there are the sales team members who give you what I call the ?nursing home stare? when you are talking Sports radio.
Of course, there are some who have a stable full of bustass fire-breathing sports sales studs. But you know what I mean. I sense that some of you are out there nodding your heads. Having a co-op sales flashback, are we?
A championship-grade sports sales lineup would include a dreamy blend of pure sellers ? i.e., ?rainmakers? and closers, technicians, creatives, skilled writers, presenters, digital hosses, strategists, and eagle-eyed promotional visionaries. Not saying it doesn?t happen, but if you?ve got all that, get ?em bronzed.
How does your sales organization?s structure optimize your chances to get results for a business that is concerned with moving goods and services? How do we inject those skills and capabilities more efficiently into our sports sales teams to deliver what customers are saying they need and want? I submit that there are people out there who come equipped with a lot of these skills in one package.
Are we describing the sales manager? If we?re lucky, maybe, but the demands on management today unfortunately sometimes keep full use of these strategic skills, and mentoring of same, in cold storage or out of reach.
Let?s look in the front offices of sports franchises, athletic departments at universities, account executives and coordinators at sports marketing agencies, sports producers, media planners, etc., for the sports strategist who can provide that vision and develop relationships with people involved in planning and decisions ? someone who can be instrumental at the idea-generation phase. This is someone who uses research, market information, and case studies perhaps, who understands the digital applications, who can see the wide range of components available and can convey their advantages and value.
Another handy byproduct of having someone with a comprehensive understanding of how to use all the assets under our noses comes into play on rights negotiations with organizations and in assembling compelling promotional models for those deals and others. While participating in rights negotiations and various promotions, this reporter has watched heaping helpings of real meaningful cash get sliced right off or saved because there was fluency in how to wring real value out of every tool in the bag.
You?d be tempted to put these folks on the streets right away on their own and stand back, wouldn?t you? When you find one of these racehorses, resist that. Think differently. Think bigger. Lever this up. Think multiples. The Sports strategist is the ringmaster. Give them the run of the place. And of course, incentivize their role in the group?s success. They are the go-to for all involved, but because they have the rainmaker pedigree, they are out there early, prospecting with the sellers, making it happen, and leading the team. They are the ?secret sauce? that makes every seller like two.
Bob Cohen is the founder of Bob Cohen Strategies LLC. Learn more at bobcohenstrategies.com or e-mail him at bc@bobcohenstrategies.com. You can also find him on Twitter @BCohenStrategy.
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