S P E C I A L R E P O R T 2 0 1 4 Ad Mall MEDIA $ALES TODAY ADMALL.COM
REPORT PREPARED BY: Beth Frederick Faye Oney Lead Analysts Sales Development Services, Inc. Kathy Crosett Research Director Ad-ology Research Barry Shawgo Vice President of Sales Sales Development Services, Inc. C. Lee Smith President/CEO Sales Development Services, Inc. COPYRIGHT 2013 Sales Development Services, Inc. COPYRIGHT STRICTLY ENFORCED All information contained herein is copyrighted by Sales Development Services, Inc. and none of such information may be copied or otherwise reproduced, repackaged, or further transmitted, transferred, or disseminated, redistributed, or resold, or stored for subsequent use for any purpose in whole or part in any form or manner or by any means whatsoever, by any person without prior written consent from Sales Development Services, Inc. MEDIA DISTRIBUTION RIGHTS Public use of the executive summary from this study is permitted provided that no more than three paragraphs and one chart are used; the media is a legitimate and recognized publication, blog, podcast, video program, or mass media outlet accessible to the public without payment or password; and full copyright credit is included with an active link to www.admall.com. Permission for use of additional charts or findings may be granted upon written request to pressrelations@admall.com. TRADEMARKS AdMall is a registered trademark of Sales Development Services, Inc. Local Media Sales Forecast is a trademark of SDS. DISCLAIMER All information contained herein is obtained by Sales Development Services, Inc. from sources believed by it to be accurate and reliable. Because of the possibility of human and mechanical error, among other factors, however, such information is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind. NO WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO THE ACCURACY, TIMELINESS, COMPLETENESS, MERCHANTABILITY, OR FITNESS FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE OF ANY INFORMATION IS GIVEN OR MADE BY SALES DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, INC. IN ANY FORM OR MANNER WHATSOEVER. Under no circumstances shall Sales Development Services, Inc. have any liability to any person or any entity for (a) any loss or damage in whole or in part caused by, resulting from, or relating to, any error (negligent or otherwise) or other circumstance involved in procuring, collecting, compiling, interpreting, analyzing, editing, transcribing, transmitting, communicating, or delivering, any such information, or (b) any direct, indirect, special, consequential, incidental damages whatsoever, even if Sales Development Services, Inc. is advised in advance of the possibility of such damages, resulting from the use of, or inability to use, any such information. 2014 Local Media Sales Forecast, AdMall, admall.com, November 2013. 1 Copyright 2013 Sales Development Services Inc. - All Rights Reserved.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In November 2013, AdMall - in partnership with NetNewsCheck, TVNewsCheck, Media Sales Today and the Media Sales Professionals group on LinkedIn - conducted a survey of 1,073 media sales professionals about their revenue performance for the year, how their revenue compares to their established sales goals and what they expect for advertising sales in 2014. This study also examines the challenges they face and the sectors in which they expect to see growth or decline. This executive summary analyzes the trends from this forecast relative to previous studies and provides recommendations for media sales teams to capitalize on these trends. TOP TEN TAKEAWAYS FOR 2014 1. Half of the executive managers and sales managers surveyed predict a revenue increase of 6% or more in 2014. Just 5.3% forecasted any decline. Among the legacy media, cable television, direct response and city/regional magazines are the most optimistic. Metro dailies and alternative newspapers are the most likely to project slight revenue losses for 2014. More on pages 12-13. When all media sales/marketing personnel were asked to describe their forecast for 2014 in one word or phrase, the general mood was found to be cautiously optimistic. Their responses are shown in the word cloud to the right. 2. Digital is projected to account for 19.1% of overall revenue (on average) in 2014. This would be up from 12.2% in 2013. Those selling online display/banner ads are up 11% from a year ago. Mobile advertising is now being sold by 48.1% more media sellers than in 2013, with online video and social media advertising also growing significantly in popularity. Daily Deals remains flat. More on pages 5-6 and 10-11. 2014 Local Media Sales Forecast, AdMall, admall.com, November 2013. 2 Copyright 2013 Sales Development Services Inc. - All Rights Reserved.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY TOP TEN TAKEAWAYS FOR 2014 (continued) 3. Expect gains from the Healthcare and Automotive sectors in 2014. Political will be a plus in markets with key state and Congressional races. Olympics will again be a boon to some broadcast TV stations and cable. Optimism for recruiting remains low, but the grocery sector is even lower. More on pages 14 and 20. 4. Many salespeople - across all media - feel it s getting harder to make money in media sales. 31.1% of account executives say it s harder to make money now than a year ago. This is despite the fact that 35% also say it s getting easier to sell online/digital advertising than it was in 2012. Dealing with internal processes and not having enough time for making actual sales calls are also cited as key frustrations. More on page 17. 5. 25% of media salespeople have been in the industry three (3) years or less. AEs were asked for their total time at current and past jobs in media sales/marketing. Somewhat surprisingly, newspaper and broadcast TV sales staffs rank as the greenest. More on page 21. 6. Local advertisers want media sales reps who know my company/line of business. This trait is the most desired by nearly two-thirds (64.2%) of small business owners who spend at least $1,000 on advertising. An increasing number (now 51.1% - up from 45% in 2012) also listed Knows my customers as one of their desired media rep traits. More on pages 27-31. 7. Advertiser churn is getting harder to overcome. Both managers and account executives consider making up for lost accounts as one of the top three challenges. 38.6% of executive managers and sales managers believe it is getting harder to overcome advertiser churn than it was one year ago. 36.6% of AEs feel the same challenge. More on pages 9 and 17. 8. 4 of 5 use the same sales staff to sell both digital and legacy advertising. 35.5% of executive managers and sales managers indicate they are paying higher commission rates for digital sales. More on pages 10-11. 9. Nearly 40% of media companies are now selling digital marketing services in addition to digital and legacy media advertising. The most popular offerings are: SEO services, online ad retargeting and website development. More on pages 5-6. 10. Nearly half of media sales and marketing personnel now use an ipad or other touchscreen tablet on the job. The number is now 46.6% (November 2013) compared to 34.1% in 2012. Nearly 9 out of 10 also use an iphone or Android smartphone. More on pages 24-25. Additional advertising forecasts for 2014 will be posted at MediaSalesTODAY.com and the free Media Sales Mobile mobile app for ios and Android. 2014 Local Media Sales Forecast, AdMall, admall.com, November 2013. 3 Copyright 2013 Sales Development Services Inc. - All Rights Reserved.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ONE MORE THOUGHT... The most recent two years of this study reveal a trend that is both growing and troubling in the media industry. Advertisers continue to strongly desire account executives who understand their business, have industry expertise and who can give sound marketing advice. This becomes harder to accomplish when there continues to be less experience amongst the media sales ranks. A sizable number of account executives acknowledge they have three years or less experience in media sales or marketing (24.7%). As for sales managers, the newspaper industry has the unique challenge of either inexperienced managers or managers who could potentially be behind the curve of industry disruption due to their long tenure. An astonishing 26.6% have only five years or less media sales or marketing experience, while 32.8% have more than 20 years of experience. We are also seeing an exodus of talent from the media industry and a growing dissatisfaction of account executives regarding their ability to earn money. Notably, nearly one-third (31.1%) of account executives feel that it is harder to make money now than it was during the past year, and nearly the same number (28.2%) believed they would not achieve their 2013 goals as they finished out the year. A significant number of media sales managers (60.7%) expect it to be harder to attract and retain quality salespeople, their biggest challenge to achieving revenue goals. Media sales organizations need to improve efforts to recruit and keep quality salespeople - even if that means having fewer, better compensated, more effectively-trained "outside salespeople." Local advertising continues to be a service that is sold rather than bought, and advertisers are often cutting or abandoning traditional media outlets due to what they feel is a lack of value and direction. This is evidenced by the high concern among both sellers and managers toward managing advertiser churn, because it is more and more difficult to outsell these revenue losses from existing advertisers with new business efforts. Media sales managers and account executives can share ideas with others in their field through the Media Sales Professionals group on LinkedIn. 2014 Local Media Sales Forecast, AdMall, admall.com, November 2013. 4 Copyright 2013 Sales Development Services Inc. - All Rights Reserved.
EXECUTIVE MANAGERS AND SALES MANAGERS: In regards to the sales you're responsible for, how much revenue growth do you expect for calendar year 2014 versus calendar year 2013? 2014 Local Media Sales Forecast, AdMall, admall.com, November 2013. 13 Copyright 2013 Sales Development Services Inc. - All Rights Reserved.
SALES MANAGERS: How many years experience do you have in media sales or marketing? (total for all media companies you've worked for) 2014 Local Media Sales Forecast, AdMall, admall.com, November 2013. 15 Copyright 2013 Sales Development Services Inc. - All Rights Reserved.
ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES: How many years experience do you have in media sales or marketing? (total for all media companies you've worked for) 2014 Local Media Sales Forecast, AdMall, admall.com, November 2013. 21 Copyright 2013 Sales Development Services Inc. - All Rights Reserved.
METHODOLOGY The AdMall Local Media Sales Forecast was conducted November 11-22, 2013. The sample size for this online survey was 1,073 across the United States, including 114 in executive management, 171 advertising sales managers with at least one report, 643 account executives and 145 in marketing/research or sales support. Respondents by media type sold include: Broadcast TV: Local Spot Cable TV: Local Spot Cinema Advertising Digital: Daily Deals Digital: Display/Banner Ads Digital: Email Advertising Digital: Search Engine Ads Digital: Video/Podcasts Direct Mail/Direct Response Event Marketing/Sponsorships Magazines: City/Regional Mobile Advertising Newspapers: Alternative Newspapers: Daily/Sunday Newspapers: Weekly/Suburban Out-of-Home Radio: Local Spot Yellow Pages/Local Search 2014 Local Media Sales Forecast, AdMall, admall.com, November 2013. Copyright 2013 Sales Development Services Inc. - All Rights Reserved. 32
ABOUT THE SPONSORS OF THIS STUDY ABOUT ADMALL AdMall is the most powerful sales intelligence database available for consultative local and digital advertising professionals. And AdMall PRO takes your sales team to a whole new level with additional timesaving, powerful sales tools for generating digital and traditional media revenue. Create presentations for more than 400 types of business categories in less than two minutes customizable specifically for the advertisers needs and goals gleaned from the Diagnosis Call needs analysis. Use thematic maps to show how well your media reaches your advertisers best customers using consumer spending data from AdMall. Pinpoint locations on maps for more than 700 major accounts to use in presentations for major and local accounts. AdMall is a division of Sales Development Services, Inc. Based in Westerville, Ohio. SDS has been the leading provider of Internet-based applications for developing sales and new business in the advertising industry since 1989. Website: AdMall.com. Phone: 877-4-ADMALL ABOUT NEWSCHECKMEDIA NetNewsCheck.com covers the local digital media industry where newspapers, TV, radio and online-only publications compete online and on mobile. Its parent company, NewsCheckMedia LLC, also publishes TVNewsCheck.com, the leading source of business news for the broadcast television industry, and TVNewsCheck s Executive Outlook, a premium quarterly about the future of the broadcasting industry. Websites: NetNewsCheck.com and TVNewsCheck.com ABOUT MEDIA SALES TODAY Media Sales Today provides insights, ideas, research and sales tips for local advertising and digital sales professionals across North America. MST features sales and presentation tips, media revenue forecasts, hot advertising topics and the Media Sales Monthly video briefing. Comments and story ideas are welcome from representatives, managers and ownership of all types of ad-supported media of all sizes. Website: MediaSalesToday.com ABOUT THE MEDIA SALES PROFESSIONALS GROUP ON LINKEDIN Media Sales Professionals is a professional group on LinkedIn for all media advertising managers and sales reps from any media type. The group is a forum for networking, sharing tips/challenges and initiating discussions relevant to the industry. There are more than 6,500 members worldwide. Website: www.linkedin.com and search for Media Sales Professionals 2014 Local Media Sales Forecast, AdMall, admall.com, November 2013. 33 Copyright 2013 Sales Development Services Inc. - All Rights Reserved.
with these Mobile Apps Media Sales Mobile Continuous stream of advertising opportunities, sales tips and conversation starters from Media $ales Today. Your current location drives local prospect lists for top local advertising categories, nearby demographics, weather, and traffic. FREE - No subscription required AdMall Mobile AdMall delivers instant business intelligence for consultative local and digital advertising sales. AdMall Mobile allows you to prospect by ad budget, best selling products, co-op, peak sales seasons, or business type-based on your exact location. FREE with your AdMall subscription Marketing Forecast Ad-ology Marketing Forecast provides strategic marketers with the latest industry research, news, and trends. Marketing Forecast also offers advertising projections and consumer insights from Ad-ology and other top research firms. FREE - No subscription required SalesTouch CRM SalesTouch is the smarter CRM for media sales. More than just reporting, SalesTouch helps media AEs manage their sales time, even via mobile devices, using predictive analytics that focus them on growth accounts and those in danger of churn. FREE with your SalesTouch seat Copyright 2013 Sales Development Services, Inc. All rights reserved. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners. SDSMA092313
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