By Robert Lawrence, President/CEO

I’ve been an Apple fan for almost three years, since I bought my first iPhone and Macbook Pro.  Without getting into the typical PC-Mac war I see so often in blogs, it’s just a matter of personal choice.  For me, Apple is just best at designing sexy, intuitive products with a cool interface that yields a more enjoyable overall experience. If you know me at all…you know that I am big on the “experience” that any brand should bring to the table.

I’m not in the game of trying to get you to switch to the iPhone; frankly, I don’t really care.  The whole point tough, is that Apple pre sold 600,000 units of the iPhone 4.0 on day one!  What is more impressive is that the figure represents consumers who purchased them sight unseen; without so much as a demo or an ability to see a non-working model. WOW!  Now that’s BRANDING!

Why?  Because a brand is “A PROMISE, BASED ON A RELATIONSHIP, WRAPPED IN AN EXPERIENCE!” Apple is King when it comes to using the formula. The relationship is so deep… the promise so trusted… the experience so wonderful… that the consumer literally becomes addicted and not only buys them sight unseen, but has to have it before anyone else. I mean will a week or two later really make a difference? The power of the Apple brand says, “yes…it does make a difference!”

I am going to keep this really short because with 600,000 units sold you get the point!  Apple and AT&T sold so many pre order iPhone 4s that they had server trouble and ran out after only one day; the busiest day in AT&T’s history.

The joke lately is that Steve jobs can just about throw up onto his fan base’s hands, and they would pay to have him do it! But maybe it’s not a joke. Remember – sight unseen – 600,000 units!

What are you doing to create a brand that perfectly follows the formula? Build a PROMISE, based on a marriage-like RELATIONSHIP, and then create an addictive EXPERIENCE.

By Robert Lawrence, President/CEO

I have two teen age sons 18 and 16, and one preteen daughter who just turned 12 this past Saturday. I would have to admit that I’ve been pretty tough on my kids; no doubt tougher on my sons than my daughter.  If you have teenage boys maybe you know why it can be a real battle.

To open up on an even more personal level… in retrospect, maybe I have been too tough; especially with my 16 year old boy who is truly a wonderful young man but who has butted heads with me often over the last two years.

Is it my fault?  Probably so. My expectations have always been high; average has never been good enough – even when sometimes average was probably the best he could do. I am prayerful he will come to understand my fatherly intent as he gets older.

Of this though, I am certain… I may not have always been right but everything I pushed him toward has only been in an effort to benefit his future. I never tried to force him to do something that would benefit me.

Today though, I see that Laurence Sunderland has been shopping a reality TV show about his daughter Abby’s recent failed solo sailing attempt around the world, and that perhaps the entire journey was planned for monetary purpose more than anything.

Trying to be as non judgmental as possible… WTH!!  I can only say that there isn’t a snowball’s chance in hell, that I would ever let my 16 year old daughter embark on such an adventure. I mean my oldest son, who is actually almost 19, made a trek from San Diego to Lake Tahoe and back Friday night by himself and I thought I was going to pass out from fear and anxiety until he arrived back home 6:30 Saturday morning!

I have to give him credit though; he was very understanding and called me every hour from the road to update me on his excursion! Imagine sending your 16 year old daughter on a small boat to sail 24,000 miles around the globe, alone. It is beyond my comprehension.  I don’t care how much she may have begged to do it to compete with her older brother who completed the journey when he was 17.

To just think that not only did her dad approve but according to some reports, it may have been something he actually arranged to make money for himself, raises the question…”Is this child abuse?”  At the least it seems like child exploitation!

Maybe I’m old fashioned. Isn’t a father supposed to protect his children at all cost? Isn’t his job to provide food, shelter, clothing, education, and to teach them the best he can, and perhaps more than anything…to simply protect them from possible harm?

I’m baffled that it’s even legal to allow a minor to embark on such an endeavor and that child services won’t be there to whisk her off to safety at the dock. I really want to know what you think on this? Is this Ok? Maybe it really is just me.

As the General Manager of WPIX TV used to say every night at 11pm in his editorial, “What’s your opinion… we’d like to know.”

Oh…before I even begin, I have to say one thing, please!  Can we all stop referring to those people who give you ratings as, “your listeners”?  They are NOT your “listeners”! They are your “clients”. The difference between a listener and a client is that “listeners” do simply that – they listen! A client is one who not only listens but feels that they are under your careful and genuine guidance.  There is a relationship present and it’s part of your brand. Do you fel like a customer or a client at Walmart? How about Nordstrom? It’s the same reason we at Pinnacle Media despise being called “vendors”.  A vendor is someone who simply supplies a product or service. We truly strive to be your “partner” and no matter what you choose to call us, you will always be considered our “client”.

Ok, now that I have that off my chest…

If you were to ask any sales person in the world – in any business – if they would like the opportunity to have every, single prospective client in one big arena and give them the pitch… virtually all of them would give you a resounding, “YES!” I mean, who wouldn’t just LOVE that chance?  Imagine… at worst, they would simply have to make fewer individual appointments to see all the same people and then have more time for golf.  At best, they might make a sale to 10 or 20 percent of those in attendance.

But how do you take that opportunity and improve the percentages and make a sale to 70-80 percent?  Are you selling or are you educating? Author and business strategist Chet Holmes call it, “The Stadium Pitch”.

Now, three things you should know:

1) If you’re a programmer, you have this opportunity every single moment you are on the air!  You constantly get to make a sales pitch to all of your clients (remember, they are no longer listeners.)  Are you aware that any other person trying to bring in revenue through sales, would give their right arm for the opportunity you have EVERY moment?

2) When a seller (yes, that includes programmers and on air talent) gets in front of their clients, do they treat them more like customers or valued clients? Are you always trying to “sell” them something, or are you truly concerned with what you have that will improve their productivity, revenue, or profits? From a programmer’s perspective that means, “what positive impact will you have and how will you make their lives better?”  The best sales people do not always walk out with a sale, but they will always walk out being a trusted, respected partner.

3) Are you truly prepared to educate, or are you just standing, ready to sell them something? Chet Holmes remarks in his book, “The Ultimate Sales Machine”, that the seller who simply says, “we have the best widgets in the business and I would like to show you why ours are better than theirs”, will be much less successful with this approach then the person who uses education to market his service or product. Compare the approach above to one who uses the ability to empower rather than simply sell.  “We have a new program for businesses like yours that identifies ways to increase your position in the market and we have had great success with this program with many others like you in the same business.” Which approach might get the appointment with you?

The truth is, we use Education Marketing ALL the time. This blog is a tactic that encompasses that overall strategy. Mark Ramsey has always done a wonderful job of education marketing. Education Marketing is a strategy that anyone who is selling anything uses to build trust and confidence.

Sure, we are researchers and brand strategists and we have some great products. But if you know me, or the products we have developed at Pinnacle Media, you also know that we never just pick up the phone to simply sell you any of the products or services we strongly believe in.

4) Finally, are you ready? If you had to be forced to make that Stadium Pitch today, would you be ready? As a programmer, you and your staff have to be prepared at every moment. Just remember, you make a stadium pitch with every song, promo, sweeper, and every break. Many are not truly ready.

So… are you selling your product to your listeners, or are you educating your clients? Are you pounding them over the head with tactics that only work occasionally, or are you building true relationships that foster a brand of trust and confidence with your clients.

You now know why I so often close with my mantra, “Here’s to Ratings, Revenue, and Relationships!”