By Steve Lapa
Lapcom Communications Corp
President
PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — No doubt you’ve been reading about The Great Resignation.
Seems we’ve hit a 20-year high in workers throwing in the towel and calling it quits. Who can blame them, with stipend checks and readily available job openings. The Pew survey says the top three reasons for The Great Resignation are: low pay, lack of advancement opportunity, and feeling disrespected at work.
Does it sound like the grumbling before the Monday morning sales meeting? My marketing work puts me in direct contact with sales reps across the country and The Great Resignation did extend into our radio/audio sales community. On the radio side more so in the larger market stations: New York, San Francisco, Boston, Philadelphia, San Diego, Hartford, and several more.
One theory is the newer acceptance of work-from-home changed the work environment culture, motivating thousands to simply resign and move on to the next opportunity.
Another theory is that pandemic impacted ad budgets made life miserable for sellers accustomed to a work flow that relied on account stability that was rocked to the core.
And now a new threat is looming that once again can threaten your precious account base that brings in those monthly commissions. This one is more familiar and has the markings of an old nemesis we’ve battled before. A dreaded recession now combined with rising prices. Stand by for shrinking ad budgets and even staff cutbacks. What to do?
Gloom and doom are bad for sales so please push that out of the way and let’s roll up our sleeves and get to work.
- No surprises. Connect with your current advertisers more regularly so you are in the flow and in the know on budgets, planning and goals.
- Be proactive. Open new categories today. Don’t wait until cancellations begin.
- Be creative. Newer concept packaging including social media assets can move the needle.
- Go deep. Mainstay talk radio categories are predictable. Sometimes it takes a few more calls to get where you need to be.
- Manager or Mentor. Ask questions. If your leadership has been through these cycles before look for guidance and input. If not, look around. You may find a teammate with helpful experience.
- Watch collections. A slowdown is a slowdown. Business conditions may extend into areas that are challenging.
The Great Resignation may have impacted your work environment in ways yet to be seen. The beauty of being a pro-level seller is your ability to earn your way to a brighter day.
Steve Lapa is the president of Lapcom Communications Corp. based in Palm Beach Gardens, FL. Lapcom is a media sales, marketing, and development consultancy. Contact Steve Lapa via email at: Steve@Lapcomventures.com