March 31, 2010

Spec spot is not a dirty word ... it's a great tool. I know. Production directors grimace and if not managed, AEs can abuse it, but like we talked about last week, you should always lead with an idea.

Learning a bit about a client's business, then taking the liberty of producing a commercial for them, frames the discussion in a completely different way -- plus you send a great message that you are putting some work into it.

If playing that for them turns to, "I'd really like to focus more on the value," or "Is there any way to use more upbeat music?" turns the discussion to creative, read as: Buying signal and not selling them on radio or your station.

Try thisl make it a requirement for each of your reps to pitch two specs a week for the next two weeks and see what happens!

I think you'll like the outcome!