Unlocking Hidden Potential: Strategic Services and the Revenue-Boosting Power of Your Staff’s Underutilized Skill Sets
Andrea Hampe
3 Tips for Optimizing Your Collections
According to Experian, debt collection is expected to increase in 2023, and publishers are prioritizing collection strategies to reduce outstanding liabilities. Personalized and transparent communication, automation, and making it easy to pay are three key tips for optimizing collections. Keeping communication personal and transparent, providing tear sheets and analytics, and emphasizing transparency in pricing can improve collections. Automation can increase efficiency by reducing manual tasks and providing consistent communication with debtors. Implementing autopay and offering payment plans can make it easier for advertisers to pay.
Benefits of In-Person Onboarding
In-person onboarding has several benefits, including the ability to ask questions, receive immediate answers and feedback, and build a stronger relationship with clients. It also provides the opportunity to connect with others in the industry and learn additional functions and tasks. On the other hand, self-led onboarding allows for learning at one’s own pace and the ability to start using products sooner without the need for travel. Overall, a combination of both methods can cater to different learning styles and technological levels within a team.
Best Practices – Sales Commissions
Implementing an effective sales commission structure is crucial for optimizing the bottom line and retaining a top-performing sales team in the publishing industry. Three industry-leading publishers, including 417 Magazine, Innovative Designs Publishing, and Omaha Magazine, have shared their experiences with commission structures. They emphasize the need for flexibility, simplicity, and aligning the structure with the evolving digital landscape. Strategies include a flat rate commission structure, bonuses for exceeding sales goals, and allowing account executives to set their own goals. Understanding the company’s averages and considering input from accounting, sales managers, and senior reps is key to designing an effective commission structure.
Advantages of Sticking to Rate Card
Sticking to the rate card in advertising sales has several advantages. It promotes transparency and fairness in pricing, eliminates the need to adjust commission structures or seek approval for discounts, and ensures that goals and bottom line are met. Deviating from the rate card can lead to customer reliance on discounts, damage to brand reputation, price wars with competitors, and complications with bookkeeping. Advertisers may also become frustrated if they do not receive the same deal as others.
