Beyond the Numbers: The Human Touch in Media Sales Success
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How do you measure the success of a media sales team? It’s often measured by cold, hard figures: quarterly ad sales targets, year-on-year growth, and the impact on P+L. Not to mention the glitzy awards that grace our shelves—we've all been there, burning the midnight oil to perfect those award entries.
But beyond data-driven KPIs and backslapping, a recent report has shed light on a refreshingly human aspect of our industry that resonated with me
The IPA Digital Media Owners Survey
The IPA Digital Media Owners Survey, released this spring, takes a unique approach. Instead of crunching numbers, it turns the spotlight on the people who matter most: our agency partners. This report asks 25 agencies to self-report their top 25 digital media owners by billing. Digital planners, strategists and buyers in media agencies and digital specialists are then invited to take part in a survey to answer questions about their relationship with digital media owners.
So us media owners are behest to the opinions of our partners at the agencies, this is 100% unfiltered feedback, we have no clever award writers to rely on.
And guess what? Acast didn't just make the cut; we soared to a top-four position in the overall "Grand Prix" relationship ranking with an impressive 83.6% top-two box score. Furthermore, Acast was recognized as the highest-ranking audio media owner, surpassing notable, impressive competitors like Global and Spotify.
Most Important Factors for Agencies
What I found particularly interesting was True & North’s take of the report, especially what the most important factors are to agencies:
1. Understanding your own product 🧠
2. Being easy to contact ☎️
3. Understanding the client 🤝
4. Professional in dispute resolutions 🤼♂️➡️🤝
5. Understanding 'me' (the agency) 🕵️♂️
Notice a pattern? These aren't just metrics; they're human traits. In an age where AI is the new buzzword, it's comforting to know that our industry still values empathy, communication, and problem-solving skills. Even as we embrace the future, these timeless qualities remain our North Star.
I have always placed a huge importance in thinking like an agency, understanding what a buyer really wants, as opposed to what we think they want, or what is best for us to make our lives easy. To that end, we have peppered our 14 sales teams all around the world over the last 10 years with some exceptional talent coming from media agencies, and have enjoyed some of our very best hires from that side of the fence.
I believe that all five of these top factors help agency buyers and planners hit the sweet spot of making their lives easier. Time is a precious resource, especially in a world of cost management & endless pitching, so for us to reply quickly, having understood the agency & client brief, and being able to clear up any possible challenges along the way amounts to top level customer service. In turn, this helps our agency partners to move on and focus elsewhere, whether this is other work demands, getting to the gym or spending time with the family.
Moving Us Forward
The IPA report isn't just a pat on the back; it's a compass. Over the past few months at Acast we have explored the question of what drives real value to advertisers and agencies, and it has encouraged healthy conversation between our different teams. Hence why I found this report so interesting, as we are hearing it directly from our main customers, our media agencies. Add some direct feedback about how we at Acast fare, and it is incredibly valuable.
Needless to say, we should take great heart from this, but this is purely a moment in time, and we will focus on constant improvement, we can never afford to stand still. Afterall, every indicator is that investment in podcast advertising will continue to grow and break records, with the IAB forecasting growth from $2 billion in 2023 to a staggering $4 billion in 2025 in the U.S. alone.
Furthermore, our UK media agencies recently told us that they expect to invest more in podcast advertising over the next 12 months. 63% think their agency will be spending more than they currently do, with 46% forecasting that 21% or more of their campaigns will include podcasts in the media mix.1
So as the podcast industry grows and evolves at an exponential rate, it is an important time to reflect on how we best super serve those who we are grateful to consider partners and friends, who invest the ad revenue to ensure this remarkable industry remains one of the most exciting media platforms to work in.
Sources
1. Acast UK Media Agency Survey Q2 2024
How do you measure the success of a media sales team? It’s often measured by cold, hard figures: quarterly ad sales targets, year-on-year growth, and the impact on P+L. Not to mention the glitzy awards that grace our shelves—we've all been there, burning the midnight oil to perfect those award entries.
But beyond data-driven KPIs and backslapping, a recent report has shed light on a refreshingly human aspect of our industry that resonated with me
The IPA Digital Media Owners Survey
The IPA Digital Media Owners Survey, released this spring, takes a unique approach. Instead of crunching numbers, it turns the spotlight on the people who matter most: our agency partners. This report asks 25 agencies to self-report their top 25 digital media owners by billing. Digital planners, strategists and buyers in media agencies and digital specialists are then invited to take part in a survey to answer questions about their relationship with digital media owners.
So us media owners are behest to the opinions of our partners at the agencies, this is 100% unfiltered feedback, we have no clever award writers to rely on.
And guess what? Acast didn't just make the cut; we soared to a top-four position in the overall "Grand Prix" relationship ranking with an impressive 83.6% top-two box score. Furthermore, Acast was recognized as the highest-ranking audio media owner, surpassing notable, impressive competitors like Global and Spotify.
Most Important Factors for Agencies
What I found particularly interesting was True & North’s take of the report, especially what the most important factors are to agencies:
1. Understanding your own product 🧠
2. Being easy to contact ☎️
3. Understanding the client 🤝
4. Professional in dispute resolutions 🤼♂️➡️🤝
5. Understanding 'me' (the agency) 🕵️♂️
Notice a pattern? These aren't just metrics; they're human traits. In an age where AI is the new buzzword, it's comforting to know that our industry still values empathy, communication, and problem-solving skills. Even as we embrace the future, these timeless qualities remain our North Star.
I have always placed a huge importance in thinking like an agency, understanding what a buyer really wants, as opposed to what we think they want, or what is best for us to make our lives easy. To that end, we have peppered our 14 sales teams all around the world over the last 10 years with some exceptional talent coming from media agencies, and have enjoyed some of our very best hires from that side of the fence.
I believe that all five of these top factors help agency buyers and planners hit the sweet spot of making their lives easier. Time is a precious resource, especially in a world of cost management & endless pitching, so for us to reply quickly, having understood the agency & client brief, and being able to clear up any possible challenges along the way amounts to top level customer service. In turn, this helps our agency partners to move on and focus elsewhere, whether this is other work demands, getting to the gym or spending time with the family.
Moving Us Forward
The IPA report isn't just a pat on the back; it's a compass. Over the past few months at Acast we have explored the question of what drives real value to advertisers and agencies, and it has encouraged healthy conversation between our different teams. Hence why I found this report so interesting, as we are hearing it directly from our main customers, our media agencies. Add some direct feedback about how we at Acast fare, and it is incredibly valuable.
Needless to say, we should take great heart from this, but this is purely a moment in time, and we will focus on constant improvement, we can never afford to stand still. Afterall, every indicator is that investment in podcast advertising will continue to grow and break records, with the IAB forecasting growth from $2 billion in 2023 to a staggering $4 billion in 2025 in the U.S. alone.
Furthermore, our UK media agencies recently told us that they expect to invest more in podcast advertising over the next 12 months. 63% think their agency will be spending more than they currently do, with 46% forecasting that 21% or more of their campaigns will include podcasts in the media mix.1
So as the podcast industry grows and evolves at an exponential rate, it is an important time to reflect on how we best super serve those who we are grateful to consider partners and friends, who invest the ad revenue to ensure this remarkable industry remains one of the most exciting media platforms to work in.
Sources
1. Acast UK Media Agency Survey Q2 2024
