Читать книгу Media Selling - Warner Charles Dudley - Страница 80

Some media salespeople, especially those from magazines and television networks, frequently make sales calls on both the advertising agency and the agency’s clients with the blessing, or at least the grudging cooperation, of an agency. Generally, the larger the agency, the more secure it is with its relationship with clients. The higher the position of a person in the agency hierarchy, the less that person usually objects to media salespeople calling on the agency’s clients because they hope the salesperson can convince the client to increase the client’s advertising budget. However, buyers, who are far down on the organizational ladder, normally do not like salespeople calling on their clients, especially if it is to complain about a buy or to make waves of any sort.

If you feel it is necessary to stir things up to get your message across to a client, and a buyer has told you not to call on the client, then sell your way up through the agency’s media department (through the associate media director to the media director to the vice president in charge of media). All along the way, tell your medium’s story; tell the agency why you want to see its client and exactly what you are going to tell the client. Someone higher up will finally give you permission to see the client because he or she will realize that, in the final analysis, the agency cannot keep you away if the client agrees to see you, plus, you might get the client to invest more in advertising.

The secret of getting agencies’ permission to call on their clients is to keep the agencies involved all along the way and to go over your proposals with them so they will be assured you are not going to make them look bad.