Curated OOH Sales Insights

What’s Important Now? 3Q OOH Prospecting

For Q3 determine if you are on track to make your sales budget. A key to selling more 00H faster is planning for a sufficient prospecting/sales cycle…
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Talk About the Client’s Business, Not Advertising

Here are some excerpts from OOH Sales expert Kevin Gephart’s conversation with Chris Lytle who has trained sales professionals for 44 years. Last week Kevin and Chris discussed the importance of sales manager courtesy calls. Today they explain the importance of talking about the client’s business…
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Gephart and Lytle on Sales Management Courtesy Calls

Gephart and Lytle on the OOH Sales Management Trap

Here are some excerpts from OOH Sales expert Kevin Gephart’s conversation with Chris Lytle who has trained sales professionals for 44 years. Last week Kevin and Chris explained what’s wrong with a sales manager carrying a book of business. Today Kevin and Chris discuss the sales management trap…
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Should Sales Managers Also Be Sales Reps?

Billboard Insider sales columnist Kevin Gephart is running a series of conversations with Chris Lytle who has trained sales professionals for 44 years. Today Kevin and Chris discuss whether a sales manager should be a sales rep…
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OOH Companies can Win 2 Ways this Political Season

A reader asks, “Do you have any tips or best practices on how to get out in front of the political ad dollars…” Billboard Insider put the question out of home sale expert Kevin Gephart…
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Selling More Faster in 2Q 24

Local media sales thought leader, Mike Anderson (ServeThePurpose.com), brings fresh thinking to the sales funnel. He asserts the stage before the “awareness” top of the funnel, is really a “precipitating event” something that triggers a need that didn’t exist earlier and focuses “awareness”…
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Release Your Sales Management Brake

It is impossible to maximize success without focus. Expecting sales managers to also carry an account list dilutes their focus. You can’t be a good sales manager AND a competent salesperson at the same time…
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How big a book should an out of home sales rep have?

A reader asks how big a book should an out of home sales rep have? Billboard Insider put the question to out of home sales expert Kevin Gephart and he said this…
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Kevin Gephart on Why People Buy DOOH

This is the second part of a series by out of home sales expert Kevin Gephart on how to sell digital out of home. Two weeks ago Kevin talked about the unique benefits of digital out of home. Today he talks about why people buy digital out of home…
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A Comp Plan that Hurts One Party Eventually Hurts Both Parties

Having 37+ years in media sales for 2 of the largest media companies as well as small market media companies, and a third of my career was in management, gives me insights about rep compensation both from the rep side and the management perspective…
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Kevin Gephart on Unique Benefits of Digital Out of Home

Billboard Insider is running a series by out of home sales expert Kevin Gephart on how to sell digital out of home. Today Kevin talks about how digital out of home is unique…
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Selling More Faster Right Now for Q1

It’s very hard to make your 2024 numbers if you don’t hit your Q1 numbers. The first six weeks of every new year represent a sales slump for most OOH sales makers/companies…
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Kevin Gephart on Managing Sales Reps

Today, Out of Home Sales Expert, Kevin Gephart talks about how to pay and manage sales reps. Kevin how do you adjust a compensation plan for someone’s current book of business versus additional business…
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The two most painful and career-changing lessons I have learned

You lost your out of home sales job – now what? I can speak from experience because I’ve been fired twice in my career. I will tell you they were the two worst days in my professional life…
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Kevin Gephart on the Best Tool for Preparing Out of Home Sales People

On last week’s Billboard Insider podcast out of home sales expert Kevin Gephart talked about a must for sales meetings, how to coach sales reps effectively and whether the company off-site is worth it…
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Kevin Gephart says Out of Home cold calling isn’t dead

On today’s Billboard Insider podcast, out of some sales expert Kevin Gephart answers reader questions on cold calls, sales compensation, finding a job after a layoff and how best to coach out of home sales reps…
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What’s Important Now…Hot 4Q Advertiser categories

Fourth quarter total ad spend is 23% greater, on average, than the rest of the year. It’s a make-or-break time. Right now advertisers are tweaking their ad plans and sales strategies, evaluating whether or not they’ll meet their 2023 goals…
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Selling More Faster by Getting Rate Increases

Thanks to Sean Reilly (CEO, Lamar Advertising) for his recent comments at the JP Morgan Conference about the challenges of getting a rate increase in this current ad sales climate…
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12 Ways to Get a Client or Prospect to Meet Face-to-Face

Thanks to Kevin Gleason (CEO of Adams Outdoor) for his insights a couple weeks ago in BI about the importance of meeting out of home clients for face-to-face…
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What’s important now?…Q3 Prospecting

As we approach mid-year, assess your sales pacing to determine if you are on track to make your sales budget. A key to selling more 00H faster is to plan for a sufficient prospecting/sales cycle…
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21 Ways to Assure Ad Contract Renewal

Annual advertiser contracts are renewed 52 weeks a year. I am surprised by the number of OOH sales reps who wait to engage annual advertisers until just a month or two prior to renewal…
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The Biggest Objection to Selling Billboard Ads and How to Overcome It

I was curious to face off against ChatGPT’s artificial intelligence to see if, in fact, a billboard sales consultant can be replaced by an algorithm. I asked ChatGPT: “What is the biggest objection to selling billboard ads and how do you overcome it?” Here are two answers…
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Kevin Gephart on Standards, Technology, CRM and OOH Sales

Chris Lytle (InstantSalesTraining.com) is one the most influential people in my career. He is a world class trainer/educator/mentor, primarily serving the radio industry…
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Kevin Gephart talks 5 Big Changes in Local Out of Home and Radio Sales

One of the most influential people in my sales career was Chris Lytle, a trainer/educator/mentor (InstantSalesTraining.com). Chris is a world class resource who primarily serves the radio industry…
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Kevin Gephart’s Hot 2nd Quarter Out of Home Advertising Categories

This week focus on new business development for the second quarter. Don’t waste valuable, limited sales time pursuing new business with too short of a sales cycle…
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Gephart On Handling Rate Pressure and Getting the Long Term Buy

Last fall I was honored to do a webinar for IBO, during which two important questions were posed: How do you handle competitors who are lowering their rates in a recession? Don’t make it an either/or conversation…
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5 Strategies to Sell More Faster in a Recession

Asset management giant, BlackRock, wrote in its 2023 Global Outlook report that a recession is “foretold.” In December, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon reiterated a prediction that a recession is coming in 2023…
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In a Recession, High Performers Sell More Faster by Leveraging Other’s Experience

Top OOH salespeople learn lessons from the past in order to propel their future. A good reason to learn about past recession case studies is to understand how they have shaped the ad world we see today…
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An important High Gain question to sell more OOH faster in a recession

Ask both your clients and prospects: “If we slide into a recession, how will it affect your business.” The answer well likely be: “I will have to do more with less.” That’s what a recession could force on us…
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Kevin Gephart: What’s Important to Know Now to Sell More Faster In a Recession

A bold thought from Tony Robbins: “Winners anticipate, others are doomed to “re-act”. Your job as an out of home sales rep is to be the very best businessperson you can be that just happens to sell out of home…
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70 Categories to Sell More Faster in Q1

Typically, the first six weeks of every new year represents a sales slump for most OOH sales makers/companies. It’s believed to be due to client spending being down during those weeks. However, The Radio Advertising Bureau Statistics dispute that…
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Selling Contract Renewals Faster

Just like the pumpkin spice lattes, contract renewal time is here. Begin the conversation with your client no later than 90 days before the end of the contract, allowing time for the process and, if need be, time to get the unit(s) back in inventory…
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Kevin Gephart on Clear Channel Outdoor’s Sales Initiatives

Every out of home executive or investor should watch the Clear Channel Outdoor Investor Day presentation. It delivers rare insights into one of the country‘s largest out of home companies…
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Kevin Gephart on Creativity and Out of Home Sales

Defining creativity for the purpose of selling OOH is the ability to generate ideas. These thoughts are adapted from a breakthrough book A Technique for Producing Ideas by James Webb Young…
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Selling More OOH Sales Faster in a Recession

The IBO held an online webinar earlier this month hosted by Beck Smith with special guest, Kevin Gephart. If you did not get a chance to sign up for the class, we wanted to provide a video of the discussion below…
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Selling Political Candidates on OOH

“All politics are local” is an axiom that proves OOH is the most powerful media to drive political campaigns. Now is the time to pursue political candidates for the mid-term primary elections…
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A Shocking Simple Idea to Sell More Faster

A reader asked me for some strategies to grow sales in 2022. I appreciate their understanding of 2022 sales not hinging on external forces, but rather on developing and executing their own plan…
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Gephart on Relevance in Selling Out of Home

Last week I wrote that persistence is the key to selling out of home. But relevance is important as well, because persistence without relevance is annoyance…
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Gephart’s 3 Tips for Out of Home Prospecting

Kevin Gephart spent 35+ years selling advertising including 12 years at Clear Channel Outdoor in Minneapolis. Last week he discussed the importance of being relevant to customers. Today he discusses prospecting…
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Gephart on Using Social Media to Sell OOH

Kevin Gephart spent 35+ years selling advertising including 12 years at Clear Channel Outdoor in Minneapolis. Last week he gave 3 tips for effective out of home prospecting. Today he’ll discuss how social media fits into out of home prospecting…
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Alternative Channels for Out of Home Prospecting

In previous posts I’ve talked about prospecting via social media. Today I’ll talk about generating prospects via associations, Dun and Bradstreet and client referrals. Associations: Pros: They can lift your profile and add credibility especially as a new sales rep…
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Overlooked Out of Home Prospecting Techniques (Part One)

Kevin Gephart spent 35+ years selling advertising including 12 years at Clear Channel Outdoor in Minneapolis. Last week he discussed how to use social media to sell out of home. Today he discusses overlooked prospecting techniques…
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Overlooked Out of Home Prospecting Techniques (Part Two)

Kevin Gephart spent 35+ years selling advertising including 12 years at Clear Channel Outdoor in Minneapolis. Last week he discussed 5 overlooked out of home prospecting techniques. Today he discusses 4 more overlooked prospecting techniques…
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Kevin’s Gephart’s 6 Ways to be Relevant When Selling Out of Home

I’ve written before about the importance of relevance in selling out of home. Several reps have asked me “how can I be relevant?”. Here are 6 ways to be relevant when selling out of home. Get in your prospect’s customer stream…
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Gephart on Prospecting During Tough Times

Thanks to Clayton Stark of Porlier Outdoor for asking about the best sources of prospects during the pandemic. These strategies work for any challenging economic time. For the Dot-com bubble/recession, the mortgage crisis/recession, the formula was the same…
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Gephart On the Importance of Sales Call Preparation

Experience is a great teacher but the tuition is too high. Sales managers expect you to get out and “sell something!”. I don’t know any sales manager who challenged someone to “get out and solve some problems…
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Kevin Gephart’s 35 High Gain Sales Questions

Last week I discussed the importance of sales call preparation. Today I identify 35 high gain sales questions you can use in your first meeting with a prospect. As you prepare questions for your initial call organize your note pad into three sections…
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Killer OOH Sales Proposals (Part 1)

Selling is the changing of minds; a sales proposal is the playbook for that change. After the data gathering meeting return with a proposal for the client within 2 to 4 business days. Get the client’s agreement about timing…
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Killer Sales Proposals (Part 2)

Last week I reviewed the first 4 parts of a killer OOH sales proposal: Needs and Objectives Rationale. Why Out of Home Why Your Company Today I’ll cover the last four parts of a killer sales proposal…
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The Top OOH Sales Objection and How to Handle It

If you’re batting 1,000 you’re playing in the little leagues. Objections are minimized with thorough data gathering and an effective proposal, but there will always be some unforeseen hurdles…
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5 More Sales Objections and How to Handle Them

Last week I discussed the top out of home sales objection – it costs too much. Today I’ll discuss 5 more out of home sales objections and how to handle them. I need more time to tell my story…
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6 Sales Objections and How to Handle Them

In my last column 5 more sales objections and how to handle them I asked readers to identify sales objections. Thanks for all the comments. I’ll address the objections which readers raised today…
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Kevin Gephart on Dealing with Agencies

My thoughts about dealing with ad agencies are confined to local agencies. Ad agencies are not clients; they are spokespeople for clients. They are due all the respect, ideas, follow-through, and accountability afforded any spokespeople…
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Out of Home Delivers 3 Recruiting Audiences for the Price of 1

With all of the pandemic gyrations businesses need OOH now more than ever. Virtually every business is being stymied by the labor shortage. OOH can help in a way that no other medium can…
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Gephart on Selling Out of Home Versus Local TV

This review of media choices is for your own edification. Use leading questions in the data gathering stage to determine dissatisfaction with any of their current media choices…
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Gephart On Selling Against Local Cable TV

Last week I discussed how to sell out of home versus local TV. Today I’ll talk about selling out of home versus local cable TV. Remember: Use leading questions in the data gathering stage to determine dissatisfaction with any of their current media choices…
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Gephart on Selling Out of Home Against Local Radio

Last week I discussed how to to sell out of home versus local cable TV. Today I’ll talk about how to sell out of home versus local radio. To sell against various media, begin with the data-gathering stage…
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Gephart on Selling OOH Against Print Advertising

Last week I discussed how to sell out of home versus local radio. Today I’ll talk about selling out of home versus print advertising. Consumer print advertising encompasses many forms, including but not limited to newspapers, magazines, journals…
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Gephart On Selling OOH Versus Direct Mail

Direct mail has two distinct categories: An advertisers’ current customer base/list “Prospecting” direct mail; targeting people that don’t have a nexus with the advertiser. This column will cover selling against…
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Fueling An Ad Revolution With Digital OOH

Roadside digital billboards are as old as US commercial TV was in 1971. Its mind boggling to imagine the growth ahead of us!! Sadly, little has changed with advertiser’s creative use of DOOH ad space…
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15 Rules For A Persuasive OOH Sales Presentation

If the thought of delivering a presentation makes you nervous, you’re in very good company. Beyoncé, Barbara Streisand, Prince Harry, Tiger Woods, and Adele all have stage fright…
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Making a Market Ride the Ultimate Sales Call

(For this column I surveyed some buyers of OOH about their “likes” / “dislikes” about market rides. A giant “thank you” for your contributions!) A big OOH sales competitive advantage is the market ride…
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What Are We Really Selling?

These thoughts are adapted from a breakthrough book “A Technique for Producing Ideas” by James Webb Young. To paraphrase, we aren’t selling OOH space, we are selling ideas…
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21 rules for winning the OOH negotiating game.

Be sure you’re talking to the “true” decision maker. Some “decision makers” can decide an ad size but don’t have the authority to move print dollars to OOH. Help prospects buy. Advertisers only negotiate for what they want…
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Closing the Out of Home Advertising Sale

Closing a sale isn’t a magical recipe of words/phrases; it is a strategic conclusion to a specific process. Identify the decision-maker, ask good questions, design an intelligent solution, use spec creative, include a service contract, display a concise summary page and the close should be natural…
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13 Steps For Executing An OOH Sale

Your renewal window starts now! How you execute your new OOH sale will competition-proof, and either secure or hinder, your renewal. Every client, in the back of their mind, wonders if the program will go off as planned…
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Getting Your Renewal And The Rate Increase

Begin the renewal no later than 100 days before the end of the contract. It allows time for the process and, if need be, puts the unit(s) back in inventory no later than 60 days before the end of the contract…
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The Best Way to Compensate Sales Reps

(I hope any sales rep readers will forgive me if I put on my management hat. I spent over a third of my career in management.) Any compensation plan that disadvantages either party will eventually disadvantage both parties…
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Strategies for Assigning Accounts

Assuming you have diversity of personality-types within your sales department, make a formal determination of which rep fits into which of the four basic personality types: drivers, expressives, amiables, or analyticals…
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Handling Collections During a Recession or Disrupted Market

Here are my thoughts for maximizing collections during a recession or a disrupted market (e.g. covid). If, as a sales rep, you are subject to a commission/compensation charge-back for uncollectible accounts, take full responsibility for the process/outcome…
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Gephart on Handling a Renewal on a Past Due Account

My post on Handling Handling Collections During a Disrupted Market generated this question from a reader. I have a client that has had a perm’d billboard for a while…
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Leveraging Management to Help You Sell

High performing out of home sales reps use all the sales tools at their disposal. One under-utilized tool is management involvement in the sales process…
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Four Reasons To Recruit Specialized Sales Reps

Most of your sales staff should be composed of generalists but having a couple of key specialists in advertiser categories can be very profitable. Newspapers have practiced this for years…
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11 Rules for Sales Driven Team Meetings

Highly effective sales meetings require critical management self-examination: a.) would you attend your sales meetings if it wasn’t required? b.) consultants determine everything they need to know about a sales team by attending a sales meeting…
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Collecting Delinquent Out of Home Accounts

Part of being a good out of home sales rep is knowing when and how to turn up the heat on an account. Here’s a sequence of collection letters which does that in a thorough and direct way…
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Using a Service Guarantee as a Sales Tool

While you are proposing the ideas and elements of an advertisers’ OOH campaign, particularly to a new prospect, in the back of their mind their biggest concern is, “will I be satisfied?” You can alleviate fears…
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