A Great Way to Get Ready for the New Year

RAB members are the best radio professionals. Last week, we shared a resource in our sales tip called the Four Levels of Selling. This tool can help you measure things you don’t often measure. We are really good at measuring the sales process metrics. Things like dials, contacts, meetings, presentations and conversions. Rarely, however, do we measure the QUALITY of the relationships we have with clients and prospects. The Four Levels of Selling Chart is the tool for that measurement.

When we shared the tip and offered the tool last week, Lauri Wingle, from Midwest Communications in Kalamazoo, Michigan, responded after receiving the tool. It’s always an honor to see how RAB members use the tools and resources we provide, and Lauri’s use of the Four Levels of Selling was worthy of sharing it as a tip so others might do the same:

Jeff-

Thank you again for providing the chart. Any tool of this caliber is thought-provoking.

I ran through my account list assigning a level, and then calculated the percentages of each client at each level. Here are my results: 2% at Level One...37% at Level Two...49% at Level Three...12% at Level Four. The one account at Level One has a decision-maker that keeps me at arm’s length, and I think only does occasional business with us is because of our Black A/C station with weekend local talk and church programming. Her business is the Black Arts Council, a nonprofit.

The common thread with Level Four accounts is the length of time I've been working with them (with one of them, I'm with the second generation) and our combined work in creating their brand over the years, and then staying true to that brand with all our messaging. And those were the easiest clients to help pivot back in March and April in the pandemic’s early weeks because we had that solid brand foundation from which to work. I’m proud to say all of my Level Fours are still on the air or with digital plans today.

My thoughts for my next step — pick at least five Level twos and five Level threes to elevate those trust levels and resource levels for the next six months. And move all 10 to their next level within that time.

What do you think, Jeff?

Lauri Wingle, RMM

Senior Marketing Consultant

As we near the end of a grueling year, it might be a great idea for you to spend some time analyzing your accounts through the lens of the chart like Lauri did. The best part about her strategy is that she now has a roadmap to get those 10 accounts to the next level, and I have no doubt she will do it.