SourceMedia, a partnership between KCRG-TV9 & The Gazette, in Cedar Rapids continues to be a deals powerhouse. Chris Edwards, VP of sales, puts an emphasis on deals by incentivizing their sales reps to bring in high-quality deals.

An in-depth look at SourceMedia’s deals program’s evolution was recently published in Street Fight Magazine.

A prime example of their high-quality, revenue-generating deals is the recent Gary’s Foods grocery deal. They were able to secure this deal by offering an email opt-in to the merchant, who wanted a way to build up his own email newsletter list. With an 80 percent opt-in rate for Gary’s Foods email list, this deal was a win for the smaller town grocery store and gave them a way to retarget deal buyers with future promotions and offers, not to mention a huge success for the deals program.

Watch a video below of Chris discussing the Gary’s Foods deal.

Promoting your deals on social media is hard work, but when used correctly, you can create an engaging atmosphere to share deals and converse with your potential buyers.

Social media platforms, such as Facebook, are perfect for creating awareness around your deals program. Utilize your current following and keep them in the know with local deals you are running. Actively updating social media is just another touch point with your customers, which will build your program’s brand and help gain brand loyalty with customers.

Join us for a webinar “Facebook & Deals: How to Drive Engagement” as we hear from Molly Urciolo, Marketing Mananger from The Washington Post on Thursday, May 17 at 1 p.m. ET. Molly will share her insights and best practices from marketing The Capitol Deal on driving engagement around your deals program with social media.

Background:
The Record-Journal is a 20K daily circulation paper in Meriden, Connecticut. They are a 5th generation family-owned paper and we recently recognized Liz White, their Associate Publisher, in our Affiliate of the Month feature.

Challenge:
The Record- Journal’s Deal of the Day program has been consistently bringing in revenue, but the team was looking for a way to amplify their deals program and re-engage their audience.

Solution:
After seeing the success other programs have been driving with seasonal stores, the team decided to run a Reader’s Choice Awards Deal of the Day Store. They approached businesses that had received an award in their annual Reader’s Choice Awards and negotiated to find a deal well-suited to their program.

Results:
The Reader’s Choice Awards Deal of the Day Store ran from March 5th through March 10th of 2012. They had a total of 18 deals from various advertisers, including a mexican restaurant, ice cream shop, japanese restaurant, florist and consignment shop.

Running this special deals store for one week generated an impressive $18,229 in gross revenue – 23 percent more than the month of February’s revenue.

Why this worked?
- Because their readers had chosen these merchants for the Reader’s Choice awards, the deals were guaranteed to be appealing.
- Multi-platform promotion: ran mobile, Facebook, print and online ads.
- Deals stores give you a new reason to promote and communicate with your users.
- A Reader’s Choice-themed store is flexible and can be run any time of the year.

The Times-News captured The Elon University women’s rugby team in an unusual match on Saturday, April 17. Dressed in prom dresses and soccer cleats, the team traded in their usual uniforms to raise money for a cause in their local community.

Below you’ll find the top 10 individual deals and top 10 deals sites of April from our network of partners.

Top 10 Deals by Total Revenue
1. Miami Herald‘s MK Travelplan
2. Northwest Herald‘s Key Lime Cove
3. HalfPriceCincy’s Boi Na Braza Churrascaria Brazilian Steak House
4. Lake County Journals’ Key Lime Cove (good for Sunday – Friday visits)
5. Belleville News-Democrat‘s Wenneman Meat Co.
6. Lake County Journals’ Key Lime Cove (good for Saturday visits)
7. St. Louis Post-Dispatch‘s Kemoll’s
8. The Gazette & KCRG-TV’s Amana Colonies Golf Club
9. Bellingham Herald‘s Van Wingerden Garden Center
10. St. Louis Post-Dispatch‘s Bear Creek Golf Club

Top 10 Deals Sites by Total Revenue
1. HalfPriceCincy
2. The Miami Herald
3. The Washington Post
4. The Gazette & KCRG-TV
5. St. Louis Post-Dispatch
6. Omaha World-Herald
7. KY3-TV
8. WPBN-TV
9. Northwest Herald
10. Fresno Bee

Want more summer deal ideas? Read Create Hot Summer Deals Stores.

Mother’s Day is almost upon us and it’s already time to start thinking about planning your Father’s Day contest. With more than 70 million fathers in the United States alone, you will not want to miss out on generating sponsorship dollars around a Father’s Day contest.

Not only is there a high volume of dads to reach with your contest, but there is a tremendous number of advertisers who target men. In the U.S. there are 8,111 men’s clothing shops, 16,010 hardware stores and 22,116 sporting good stores. Plus, you should also consider targeting sports venues, concert venues, golf courses and the like.

While Mother’s Day might be a tad more commercialized, Father’s Day contests still bring in a high volume of participation. When asked about their successful Father’s Day contest, one of our partners replied: “Mothers are the ones with the cameras, so Father’s Day usually generates more traffic.”

Due to the popularity of the turnkey contest for Mother’s Day, we have brought it back for Father’s Day. The turnkey Father’s Day photo contest is complete with a design template- including flexible ad spots, a sales kit with web and print ads and materials for your sales team.

The time to start selling this contest is now. Advertisers are looking for ways to engage their target audiences around a promotion like this – don’t miss out!

For more information on why you should run a Father’s Day contest, watch the short video below.

You might also be interested in 10 Things to Remember When Running a Contest.

*Source: Census.gov http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/cb11-ff11.html

As spring hit its stride, a mix of kids and nature photo contests very were popular in April. Another favorite of the month was cash giveaways and gas giveaways, which are perfect as families begin to plan their summer vacations.

Top 10 Registrations
1. WLUK-TV Good Day Wisconsin HDTV Giveaway
2. Rhode Island Monthly Best of Rhode Island Readers Poll 2012
3. WIL-FM Cornbread’s Big Star
4. WAGA-TV Good Day Gas Money
5. KOB 4 Summer Cash Giveaway
6. FOX 50 WRAZ-TV The FOX 50 Lip Dub Project
7. WJBQ Q Baby Idol 2012
8. WHO-HD Free Gas May
9. WLUK-TV La-Z-Boy Recliner Giveaway
10. St. Louis Post-Dispatch Mother-Daughter Look-A-Like Contest 2012

Top 10 Submissions
1. Rhode Island Monthly Best of Rhode Island Readers Poll 2012
2. Turnto10.com iPad a Day
3. Omaha World-Herald Focus on Nebraska
4. Tahoe Daily Tribune Best of Tahoe Daily Tribune 2012
5. WEEK-TV Wieland’s News25 Toro LX Tractor Giveaway!
6. Lincoln Journal Star Columbus Telegram Best of Columbus
7. WJBQ Q Baby Idol 2012
8. KPHO-TV First 105 Degree Day Contest 2012
9. U-T San Diego Cutest Pet Contest
10. Our State Spring Photo Contest 2012

Top 10 Sweepstakes
1. Popular Woodworking Workshop Makeover Giveaway
2. ABCActionNews.com WFTS-TV Weekday Tablet Giveaway (This contest has been taken down)
3. WJBK-TV Garden-White Dream Team Contest
4. WLUK-TV Good Day Wisconsin HDTV Giveaway
5. Toronto Sun What Happens in Vegas
6. York Daily Record Vote- Best of York 2012
7. WSAZ-TV WSAZ Umbrella Giveaway
8. WHO-HD Free Gas May
9. WAGA-TV Good Day Gas Money
10. KUSI-TV KUSI Gas Card Giveaway (This contest has been taken down)

To find more summer contests ideas, check out Bright Ideas for Your Summer Contests article.

We recently hosted a webinar that explores adopting an agency model to help you monetize Facebook by packaging social media into integrated campaigns and using contests to drive audience and revenue. Using all promotional assets at your disposal to sell a contest to your advertiser that allows them to increase their social audience and allows you to show off your powerful promotional chops.

Below, you’ll find the top takeaways from the presentation.

1. Understand what an agency model is. Selling advertiser-specific Facebook contests directly to your advertisers as a service. It’s not about having an in-house agency, its about approaching an advertiser and fulfilling a social media need while also offering services around promotion. The components of agency model package may include:
1. a. Objectives that benefit the client
2. b. Runs on advertiser’s Facebook page
3. c. May run on your media page as well
4. d. May include advertisers paying for media promotion
5. e. You make it turnkey for them
6. f. You include design services/help with rules
7. g. Prize corresponds with advertiser’s brand
8. h. Email opt-in for the advertiser
2. Understand the benefits of adopting the agency model. Here’s just a few to get you started, but the list goes on.
1. a. For many advertisers, building a social media audience is a primary marketing objective.
2. b. Contests work! 57% of fans liked a business based on an offer and 38% because of a sweepstakes. * (Source *eMarketer February 2011)
3. c. Advertisers don’t have the time, know-how, design skills or promotion ability to make contests successful on their own, but you do.
4. d. You are the expert in contests. You’ve been running contests in your local markets for years and most recently, online and on Facebook. You are the most logical answer to their needs in this area.
5. e. Facebook has made contests viral, so they are easily shared.
6. f. Opportunity to build more revenue and develop a deeper relationship with the advertiser than if they just bought media from you.
3. Target the right advertisers. Approach local advertisers that have good reputations, but aren’t able to run their own promotions. These types of advertisers will benefit the most from your powerful promotions package. We’ve seen restaurants, retail, hotel and travel advertisers work well for our partners.
4. Create a killer advertising package. With this model, you will build, design, host and manage a Facebook contest that meets Facebook guidelines. You will also build a phenomenal promotional package that includes a variety of these assets: a like-gate on the contest, online promotion on your site, print and on-air promotion, social media mentions, e-blast to your promotional database, and an email opt-in for the advertiser.
5. Show off your promotional chops. Use all promotional vehicles at your disposal to spread the word and drive participation to your advertiser’s contest. Here’s just a few ways you can do so.
1. a. Use “pinned” posts on your Facebook page
2. b. When posting, make sure you are using engaging language with your audience
3. c. Move the contests Facebook tab to top 3 tabs for your advertiser’s page
4. d. Customize the Facebook tab image
5. e. Send an e-blast to your promotional database
6. f. Include promotional ads in your print/on-air/online products
7. g. Promote a redirect to drive people directly to the contest on Facebook
6. Pricing can vary. Set your prices based on a package that includes the Facebook contest and the accompanying promotional package. The price you charge will vary based on components of the package. We’ve seen small markets charge anywhere from $300 to $5,000, mid markets charge up to $15,000 and a large market charge up to $20,000. Long story short – charge an amount that correlates to the value of the contest and the promotional package.
7. Grow your own Facebook presence. Building your own Facebook likes allows you to maximize your opportunities with an agency model. To build your own likes, run a contest on your page. Sweepstakes are the fastest way to grow your own database, but you can also select contest ideas from our 30 Contest Ideas in 30 Minutes webinar. You should select contests that target audiences that are attractive to the advertisers you are pitching for agency business.
8. Determine what works for you. Some local media companies are forming their own agencies. Their goal is to close the gap between what you currently sell – advertising – and
 what local merchants want– measurable results from a variety of
 digital platforms. If you have an in-house agency, Facebook contests can be an important core of your model. If you don’t have an in-house agency, selling Facebook contests is a great way to diversify revenue and build an agency-like model for your advertisers.

What highlights did you take away from this presentation? Drop us a note in the comments.

You can view the webinar in its entirety below.



]]> http://share.upickem.com/2012/04/top-takeaways-the-agency-model-selling-facebook-contests/feed/ 0 http://share.upickem.com/2012/04/top-takeaways-the-art-of-selling-deals-strategies-for-securing-best-offers/ http://share.upickem.com/2012/04/top-takeaways-the-art-of-selling-deals-strategies-for-securing-best-offers/#comments Mon, 30 Apr 2012 15:05:43 +0000 Matt Chaney http://share.upickem.com/?p=3648 Omaha World-Herald‘s VP of Digital Shares Selling Tips for Deals Success

Recently, we hosted a webinar with Omaha World-Herald’s VP of Digital, Jeff Shabram, called “The Art of Selling Deals: Strategies for Securing the Best Deals.” A big thank you to Jeff for joining us – the presentation was very informative and we hope it helps you with your deals strategy. The Omaha World-Herald‘s phenomenally successful deals program drives tremendous revenue, generates great success for advertisers, and results in a large number of new, long-term advertising relationships for the paper. Jeff shared a number of different insights into Omaha World-Herald‘s formula for success.

Below, you’ll find the top takeaways from the presentation. Leave us a comment if you have any questions.

1. Keep deals top of mind. Your deals program cannot be anyone’s side project. You must have a dedicated team to maintain a steady flow of high quality deals. If your organization doesn’t have the size or scale to have a dedicated deals staff, making deals a part of your sales team’s digital revenue goals will help make deals a greater priority. It also takes commitment on the part of your leadership to maintain that priority. The more focus you bring to your program, the more revenue you will generate.

2. Target the right advertisers. To find successful deals, you’ll need to target prime advertisers. Use successful past deals from your program, browse your competitor’s sites, use YELP! and other review sites, approach active advertisers, and use the winners from your Reader’s Choice or Best Of polls. Remember, the deals and merchants you run are a reflection of your business, so choose wisely.

3. Understand deal appeal. Create a definitive deal approval criteria, share it with your team and stick to it. Creating a checklist of the criteria can help organize your team and ensure consistency throughout your organization. Knowing what is desired and expected of deals for your program will help filter out the low performing and ineffective deal types. Another tactic is creating a deals committee that meets regularly to discuss and review deals. This can also help bring focus and consistency to your program.

4.Leverage your top assets. Local media has clear and distinct advantages over national and pure-play deals sites. As a local media company, your promotional power and high-quality audience are the keys to your success. You reach a more desirable demographic, one with higher income levels and families, than national sites do. Plus, your audience is more likely to become repeat customers. Local media are highly effective, promotional powerhouses. You’ve been doing it for years. Put that power behind deals and see your revenue grow!

5. Build long-term advertiser relationships. As media companies, you offer a breadth of products that go well beyond the deal. Deals are a great inroad to getting new advertisers to work with your company and don’t have to be a one-time sell. Lock-in top advertisers for deals throughout the year and incentivize them do so. You can also use the Advertising Conversion Model to get them into other areas of your business. Using deals to create buzz and generate revenue, you can then convert their deal proceeds into advertising credits for future branding and promotional advertising – something all businesses need.

You can view the recording and slide deck from the presentation below.




]]> http://share.upickem.com/2012/04/top-takeaways-the-art-of-selling-deals-strategies-for-securing-best-offers/feed/ 0 http://share.upickem.com/2012/04/seve-common-advertiser-objections-to-running-a-deal/ http://share.upickem.com/2012/04/seve-common-advertiser-objections-to-running-a-deal/#comments Fri, 27 Apr 2012 13:30:11 +0000 Matt Chaney http://share.upickem.com/?p=3627 And How You Can Counter These Objections

Throughout your time selling deals, I’m sure you’ve encountered an advertiser who wasn’t quick to agree to run a deal. When an advertiser does not fully understand what it means to run a deal, they will want to give you an excuse. I have picked out the seven most common objections advertisers use to dismiss running a deal and how you can counter these objections.

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- “I don’t like to offer coupons.” When advertisers aren’t sure about what you are offering, they think they are just offering their customers a coupon. Share with advertisers the excitement of the deals program and how your previous merchants were delighted by the results of their deal. Remember, unlike coupons, deals require an upfront payment, so a certain amount revenue is guaranteed. Plus, offering a discount is a tried-and-true method for attracting new customers.

- “I don’t want to offer such a generous discount.” Ideally, you want advertisers to give at least 50 percent off. You want to offer a deal that is just below the average ticket cost at the merchant to encourage buyers to spend above and beyond the deal amount, which they typically do.

- “I’m worried it would be too successful – not sure I could handle all the business.” If your advertiser is worried about selling too many deals, you can suggest capping the deals at a number they feel comfortable with. If you are flexible and adaptable to their needs, advertisers will want to work with you again. If the deal is successful, try running the deal again and lifting the cap. You must find a healthy balance between reaching your own revenue goals, taking good care of your customers and your audience’s interests.

- “I don’t want my current customers buying the deal.” Let the advertiser know that while they might sell their deals to some of their current customers, they would be surprised at how many new customers they will obtain. Talk to your advertisers about your total audience reach and their demographic profile and how you can help them reach that target.

- “I signed a contract with another deals provider that prevents me from doing another deal for 90 days.” Check the language of your contract. It is often the case that this restriction limits you from running the same deal on another deals site within the contract length. If that’s the case, work on a different deal from that advertiser – ideally something even better than the deal they ran on your competitor’s site.

- “I’m worried about keeping track of redemptions.” There are several options for keeping track of deal redemption, including pen and paper or digital redemption via a desktop or mobile device. Make sure your advertiser knows they have options for redemption and what the benefits are to each method.

- “I don’t know what kind of deal to offer.” Start by looking at what most consumers spend when they come into the business. While it is tempting to want to only promote a specific product or new service, the most successful deals are not limited by such restrictions. Suggest a deal structure that has worked for similar merchants in the past. You know the characteristics of a successful deal – come prepared with ideas to offer your advertiser. Consumers are faced with hundreds of offers and advertisements a day, so you want to make sure yours stands out from the crowd.

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When talking with potential advertisers, be sure educate them on the service and promotional value you provide to resolve some of the common misconceptions. Prove to advertisers that your deals program is a worthy product that will help them generate exposure and revenue. Remember your two best assets: your reach and the value of your audience!

What deals objections have you encountered while selling to your advertisers? Let us know how you resolved it by dropping us a note in the comments.

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