Sales Tips For Hyper Competitive Markets, with Rafe D’Amico, Episode #119

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On this episode of the #SellingWithSocial podcast, I am picking the brain of The Modern Sale Magazine’s #1 Sales Influencer and Leader on their top 100 list — Rafe D’Amico. He provides amazing insights into the radio industry and gives us his most effective sales tips. He’s #1 on the list and he’s a first for the podcast!

Rafe is the Vice President of Sales with Cumulus Media and creates integrated marketing programs, developing non-traditional revenue through multi-platform integration to develop partnerships with clients and media companies. Listen to this episode to learn executable sales tips that apply no matter what industry you’re in. 

How Statistics Debunk The Myth Of Radio Sales Decline

Radio as a medium has been in use since the 1920s when the first commercial broadcasts were transmitted. As Rafe artfully explains, radio is not a new up-and-coming medium with a fresh face and possibilities. Through the invention of the 8-track, the cassette tape, CDs, and now digital media, radio continues to be the leading source of consumable information. 

Rafe provides amazing statistics detailing how radio reaches more millennials than any social media platform, including Facebook. The staying power of radio is astonishing given everything the industry and platform have faced in the years since the recession. Don’t count AM/FM radio out of your marketing strategy. The reach and audience share for radio is more than quadruple that of Pandora and the gap is even greater over Spotify. 

Why Sales Tips And Tactics Remain The Same No Matter Your Industry

The same sales tactics and tricks that Rafe uses in radio sales apply across industries. No matter your industry, doing real market research and understanding the view of your buyers is the key to proven sales and marketing. Rather than depending on his own myopic view of his industry, Rafe relies on data provided by survey companies like Nielsen and Kantar to dig into the reality of his industry and his buyer.

For instance, Rafe mentions that he lives in New York, which means he can’t rely on his personal opinion and experience to make marketing decisions. Why? Because the majority of people living and working in New York do not drive. Instead, they use public transportation and are likely not listening to the radio in their car. But dependence on statistics helps him avoid taking that as the norm — more than 80% of Americans drive to work, alone, in their own cars (very much unlike New York). For the radio industry, that number is huge and has nothing to do with the general view that Rafe has from living in a big city.

How To Win Business In A Hyper Competitive Environment

Build your brand and your client base through relationships. This is the best sales tip anyone can give to a salesperson looking to increase sales. In a commodity-based business, where consumers have many options, the relationship a sales leader has with the community is the key to increased sales. While automation continues to remove the role of the true salesperson from an administrative perspective, the need for authentic relationship building remains high.

Rafe uses the example of wine to illustrate the need for relationship building. He is passionate about wine, the process of creating it and the product. He used his passion for wine to create an annual event where he takes several of his key investors and buyers on a wine tour. He then later used a picture from the event to create custom labels for gifted bottles. It’s little things like this that build relationships and set you apart from the crowd of your industry. 

Are You “Managing Your Team Up” For Increased Sales?

Recognizing that your salespeople have strengths and weaknesses and helping them play to their strengths leads to outstanding sales. By allowing your sales team to work on the accounts and in the space that they excel in, you further build authority and credibility in your community. Maintain realistic expectations for your team and the work environment will stay positive and sales will increase.

I can’t believe this is the first time I’ve had a radio executive on the show considering radio and podcasts are related. Rafe provided fantastic insights into the radio industry and how the tactics he uses are universal and should be applied to sales in general, no matter the niche. Check out this episode to learn some surprising radio statistics and actionable sales tips you can use in your business.

Outline of This Episode [1:26] Meet Rafe D’amico, one of Modern Sales Magazine’s Top 100 Sales Leaders. [8:57] Rafe shares the state of the radio industry and what the future holds. [15:14] Will digital disruption be the demise of AM/FM radio?  [22:06] How has the challenge of digital disruption affected radio sales tactics? [31:07] Relationships remain one of the most important aspects of sales. [42:52] Managing your team up to their peak leads to sales success.  Resources Mentioned The Modern Sale Magazine - The Top 100 Global Sales Leaders Rafe on LinkedIn Rafe on Instagram Ozymandias Wines on Instagram Rafe’s all-time favorite movie: The Godfather Rafe’s favorite writer/director: Paul Thomas Anderson Ozymandias Wines Modern Marketing Engine Podcast - Bernie Borges Connect with Mario! www.vengreso.com On Facebook On Twitter On YouTube On LinkedIn

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