Challenge: Winning over an advertiser who hadn’t advertised in more than 10 years

Brittany Smith was fairly new to her position as an account executive at the Statesville Record & Landmark when she approached a local furniture store about purchasing ads in her newspaper. It sounded like the typical sales call, but there was a catch.

“When the recession hit in 2008, [the owner] pulled all of his advertising with our newspaper,” said Smith. In addition to that, the store owner was working two jobs just to keep his furniture business open. In short, the advertising budget was nonexistent.

Solution: Emphasize top-​of-​mind awareness

Though new to AdMall, Smith was quick to take advantage of the AudienceSCAN profiles, Local Account Intelligence Report and Digital Audit. Using the data acquired from each, she was able to craft a comprehensive, intelligent proposal to submit to the owner.

“I had been working [with this advertiser] for about 30 days before I used AdMall to help him see what I know as a marketing professional,” said Smith.

That insider knowledge is what makes AdMall stand apart. Armed with real data, clients can feel like they are tuned into what the advertising professionals already know, rather than just being told where to spend their money without knowing why. In addition, AdMall can act as a problem solver, highlighting previously unknown areas where tweaks can be made for more effective advertising.

Result: Client purchases advertising for first time in years

Smith’s tactic of putting herself in the store owner’s shoes really paid off. As she put it, “AdMall helped me make this prospect a client because AdMall is great for helping business owners see an analytical point of view.”

Smith also helped the owner understand how advertising had shifted over the past decade, mainly to a more prominent online presence. The store now regularly runs email blasts in order to promote in-​store sales. “Originally he ran print ads with email blasts, but decided digital had a better ROI,” said Smith. “He just recently agreed to a contest sponsorship.”

A second success story could be dedicated to the owner himself, who was finally able to step down to working part-​time at his second job, with the goal of quitting altogether by the end of the year.