News and Business Intelligence for B2B Media

Excerpted from the SIIA Media Alert Newsletter of Dec. 19, 2024. Republished in BoSacks Media Intelligence™ Heard on the Web newsletter on Jan. 5, 2025

Dec. 19, 2024

Two B2B media leaders update a Q&A from seven years ago, in anticipation of their BIMS 2025 session.

By Ronn Levine 

At the BIMS 2025 Pre-Conference in New Orleans on March 26, Jim Elliott, president, James G. Elliott Co., and John French, CEO, owner, French LLC, will present "The BIMS Revenue Accelerator.” While planning the session, Elliott asked French to update answers he gave in a 2017 article in the Ads and Ideas newsletter, titled “Hydrate and Never Give Up.”

Jim Elliott: How have your views changed about the importance of audience development? 

John French: What I've seen change dramatically is how we view audience development. When I was running things, it always got the short end of the stick. It's where I went for another 10% cut, so I could do other projects. In retrospect that wasn't correct, and it's still not. Now it's all about smart audience engagement. A CEO recently raised an interesting point with me about this constant cry from advertisers for “more leads.” But what really matters now is quality, not quantity. Publishers need to focus on delivering real value through quality engagement, not just raw numbers. We’ll demonstrate that at BIMS.

In 2017, you said, “Treat all revenue the same. Don't run away from print or data products.” Still true?

Yes, leave print alone! I still have clients who are making good money in print. Back then, there was a danger of being labeled a dinosaur. But it's still alive. Another CEO with a big portfolio told me that his decline in print is 4.5%. That's not bad. He's still making a lot of money on it.

You spoke then about your son’s Army Ranger training. What did you learn?

Army Ranger training pushes you to your absolute limits. A Ranger buddy gave him two key pieces of advice: Stay hydrated 24/7 and never give up. I've applied these principles to business. “Hydrating” means constantly learning—going to conferences like BIMS, meeting industry peers, and getting outside your bubble. And some of my best successes looked like failures at first. When I took over Cygnus in 2009, the original owners walked away, leaving it to Goldman Sachs and GE Capital. I had to navigate the company through bankruptcy. After six years, we eventually split up the company and sold it successfully. 

You mentioned fear in sales management back then. I still see managers frozen on tough decisions about their salesforce.

I used to run these revenue roundtables with B2B publishers. I’d ask them, “If you could fire your entire sales team today legally with no strings and rehire tomorrow, what percentage would you hire back?” Consistently, they’d say only about a third. “So why keep the other two-thirds?” It always came down to fear of losing big accounts or not being able to replace people. But I’ve never seen an account disappear when we changed salespeople.

In 2017 you said, “The CEO must set the course, have vision and be half a step ahead on new technology and its impact on sales.”

It's still true. The role of a CEO hasn't changed; it’s the technology that has. CEOs need to stay ahead of that curve. The smart ones understand enough to either go to the right people to get this advice or formulate revenue based on what they've learned. Good CEOs must have some type of foot in the technology arena. We'll talk more about that in the pre-conference.

Thanks John. See you in New Orleans!

John French served as President of Primedia B2B Division, and CEO of PRISM and Penton Media, then the largest B2B media company. As CEO of Cygnus, he successfully broke up and sold the company. Today, he is Senior Advisor, Oaklins DeSilva+Phillips investment bank. And, as CEO of French LLC, John advises some of the most successful companies in the B2B industry. johngfrench@frenchllc.com

Jim Elliott is President of the James G. Elliott Co., Inc., a major outsourced media and event sales company. With extensive experience leading sales teams in consumer, association and B2B media, Jim also advises media owners and top management of media organizations. j.elliott@jgeco.com

JGECO Announces The Appointment Of Ryan Elliott As COO

July 6, 2023

For Immediate Release

The James G. Elliott Co. Announces The Appointment Of Ryan Elliott As COO

LOS ANGELES, CA — July 6, 2023 — The James G. Elliott Co., Inc., a leading outsourced media and events sales firm, announced that Ryan Elliott has been appointed as its new COO, effective June 26.

Ryan Elliott comes to the Elliott Co. with broad experience in sales, consulting, risk assessment, financial planning, regulatory experience, M&A advisory work, and the regulatory environment. He started his career in advertising at Saatchi & Saatchi as an account executive in the automotive space. After completing his MBA, Ryan worked in risk management for a large West Coast bank. Later, he transitioned into consulting, working for KPMG and Ernst & Young.

“I’m absolutely thrilled to be joining this firm,” Ryan Elliott said. “My father started it in 1984 as a regional rep firm, has grown it into one of the largest outsourced media-sales firms in the country. My expectation is to help Jim and the team continue its growth and prepare for the strategic opportunities of the coming decades.”

The James G. Elliott Co. has generated an estimated $750 million in revenue for more than 600 brands through the years. It has offices in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles.

Founder and CEO Jim Elliott said adding a COO with Ryan’s skills is exactly what the company needs at this point in time. “Ryan brings the perspective and vast outside experience that will help us continue to innovate for our clients, in outsourced sales as well as in strategic consulting,” Jim Elliott said. “We have a very deep bench here, and decades of invaluable perspective and proven results, and Ryan enhances all of that. I could not be happier that he’s coming on board.”

Ryan Elliott, COO of The james g. elliott co., Inc.

Rev Up the Revenue

Your Greatest Opportunities for Revenue and How to Get There

Signature magazine is published by the Associations, Media & Publishing Network of SIIA. Jim Elliott was interviewed by Carla Kalogeridis, Editorial Director, in the Mar/Apr 2023 issue, about his experience helping associations increase non-dues revenue.

View complete article here

‘Each Generation Looks at Something Differently’; Takeaways From the BIMS Future of Work Panel

MARCH 2, 2023

BY RONN LEVINE

BIMSMEDIA

In a Keynote Panel at BIMS 2023 on Feb. 24, Jim Elliott of James G. Elliott Co., Inc. steered an all-star panel through an insightful, 55-minute discussion that touched on all of work’s biggest issues in 2023.

Kevin Turpin, president of the National Journal, Terri Travis, vice president of human resources, Industry Dive, and Nick Schacht, chief global development officer, SHRM, talked about the processes, pomp and circumstances of in-office vs. remote work—with Elliott asking just the right questions

One thing quickly became clear: It’s not a one-size-fits-all blueprint.

“To me, it became clear that many HR issues have become C-Suite issues,” Elliott began.  “There are no cookie-cutter solutions to challenges like managing in-office vs. remote work, taxes, company culture, HR laws that vary from state to state, and so on. Leaders must be aware of HR issues that will impact them.”

“Running a hybrid company brings challenges,” Turpin said. “Trying to manage a group that is in the office sometimes. There’s a fairness perspective [with in-person people vs. remote], but more importantly from a communications standpoint.

“People under 30, or even 27, they have very specific ideas about where they want to work,” Turpin added, pointing to the challenges of recruitment and retention. Skills development is crucial. Can that be done remotely? “They’re trying to be a professional.” Can that be fully accomplished without in-person interaction?

“We’re going back to the office two days a week,” Travis said. The most important question for her is, “’What is the purpose of going to the office?’ We’re trying to take the best of both worlds. We had a great onboarding process onsite and now pivoted to a great onboard experience remotely. You can’t rest on your laurels on how you execute those.”

Schacht somewhat downplayed this new work order. “We’ve always changed,” he said. “Some of us have been connecting from the road for 30 years. You learn to use new tools. We can hold on to things that we know.

“Look at the range of generations; there’s like six generations now in the workplace. Flexibility is one key thing. At SHRM, we’re doing three days in office, two at home. Adults will be adults. If you have a doctor’s appointment, go to that. We can add flexibility. But what is it particularly that young people want?”

“Each generation looks at something differently,” Travis said. “The similarity is that people want autonomy.”

“Leaders must embrace diversity of life-experience, including generational groups, and avoid the tendency to always impose their own generational biases,” Elliott said.

The panelists agreed about the positives of a bigger talent pool. “We can hire better talent than we could before,” Turpin (pictured) said. But it brings complications. “Where people work from now matters, given the tax laws. We now have a 135-person business registered in 12 states. Taxes is one thing but then being up on labor laws is another. It brings a level of risk. Does it really make sense [for us] to be registered in Minnesota? We have one employee there but when he leaves…

“The crystal ball is cloudy and clear,” Turpin continued. “What’s clear is we’re in a period of change. As a leader, you have to operate more in empathy and truth, and make choices [from those places]. Work can get done in different ways, but you still have to do the work.”

“Making sure we hold on to those processes,” Travis said. “In terms of frontline managers, that’s really key. That’s the group that will connect your culture to performance. You have to make sure we’re setting them up for success.”

Schacht agreed. “Things are changing more rapidly all the time. You can’t predict five years out. So you have to build processes that will keep us from moving too quickly.”

“We now do formal reviews twice a year,” Turpin said. “So the staff always knows where they stand. People who are top performers, we know we want them growing here.”

“Make sure you’re setting goals for people,” Travis said, pointing to the importance of leadership acceleration programs.

The subject changed to culture and the acquisitions that Industry Dive made—before being acquired itself by Informa last year. “Every action is different. There’s no cookie-cutter solution” for pulling different cultures together, Travis said. “You’re pulling the best of both companies. You’re acquiring [a company] for a reason. Sometimes you have to move slow to move fast. Our company is not hierarchical. Our CEO sits in the middle of the newsroom. Some people aren’t used to that.”

“Culture has to be important in any acquisition you make,” Schacht said. “What’s going to happen to the name and all that? Having communication that is consistent. We acquired two companies. Are these people going to be required to come in three days a week now. Yes, if you’re in the area. That still is the mother ship. If you re honest with it, people at least know what to expect.”

Travis spoke of a mistake they made with PTO, moving one set of personnel into the rules of another. Staff wasn’t happy, and they learned from it. “We earned a lot of points with our team that we were willing to make that change.”

Of course, artificial intelligence came up, as it did throughout BIMS. “AI will be good for efficiency,” Turpin said. “The nuance side of AI we don’t know—in recruiting, people management. But it’s certainly entering our businesses.”

“Where AI excels is in getting to think about things we didn’t think about before,” Schacht said. “AI is helping to tell me what to do.”

Last but in no way least, Turpin spoke of the importance of DEI. “Diversity is here; it’s not just the color of our skin, but experiences. It’s something we have to embrace. It can’t just be something we’re checking the boxes on. The majority of high school grads last year were people of color. It has to be infused into how we’re running our businesses.”

“People fear change,” Schacht said. “You have to make it okay to fail, provided they fail fast, smart and not repeatedly. The opposite of change is death.

“When we start labeling people and generations, we do ourselves a disservice. What I find useful is, what are the capabilities and competencies that can help a company grow? If we start focusing on language that way, we focus on people more. People want to know where they can find expertise.” That can come from the “oldest or youngest in an organization,” he said.

Asked about respecting the older employees in a company, Turpin suggested asking them to be mentors. “We do a lot of honoring of our staff,” he said.

“Consistency combats bias,” Travis added.

“I learned a lot about issues that affect my own multi-state operation from this discussion,” Elliott concluded.

Reprinted with permission from the newsletter of the AM&P Network

How To Sell Advertising Programs without Cookies

On June 8, 2022, at the FIPP World Media Congress in Lisbon – Cascais, Portugal, Jim Elliott and John French will be conducting an interactive workshop about selling advertising programs without cookies.  We’re doing it now and we can show you how.  If you plan on attending the Congress, you can register for our workshop here: https://di5ru.pt/seminar-and-workshops-7-9-june-cascais-portugal/

What Do Media CEOs Need to Know from HR Right Now? Part

By Jim Elliott, President James G. Elliott Co., Inc.

December 14, 2021

On Wednesday Dec. 1, Nick Schacht, Chief Global Development Officer at SHRM, talked with members of the SIIA AM&P Network’s CEO Council about HR issues that affect media companies.  Nick was an especially appropriate guest because he has been a CEO several times and understands their areas of concern. It was my pleasure to moderate the discussion.

nick schacht, shrm

Nick talked about a key finding in a recent survey of CEOs; for 70% of CEOs, talent and the availability of talent was top on their list of concerns.  As a result of people leaving their jobs—whether because of the Great Resignation or a desire for changes in their work environment to accommodate greater flexibility—some organizations are resorting to crazy tactics to fill vacancies.  For example, some people leave for salaries well over what they're currently making. He said, “You just can't compete with that—I mean, if somebody's going to throw stupid money at a position or a person. We have to have different strategies and different approaches for it.”

He got into two big issues that are going to shape efforts to restructure the workplace to create opportunities for hybrid models: compliance and taxes.  "We can't just use the same business processes as before. In fact, even maintaining compliance with a different kind of workforce or remote workforce or hybrid workforce—they have different compliance consequences. If you don't operate in California, but all of a sudden, you've got employees in California, you may be subject to a different set of HR laws and HR regulations than in other states. Similarly, if you're used to having an office located in a metro area like New York City metro or DC metro, where you've got regional and in-state and city differentiation, and where you cover a tri-state or tri-region area, moving employees beyond that may have tax consequences that you and your organization need to be aware of."

Nick reminded CEOs to depend on their HR organization to keep up with what is going on and to provide them with advice and guidance as they work to get ahead of this. 

I will cover more highlights from that discussion in coming weeks.  Stay tuned!

Tango Alpha Lima wins innovation award | The American Legion

by Jim Elliott, President James G. Elliott Co., Inc.

December 6, 2021

It is always a pleasure to recognize the achievements of our clients. On December 2, The American Legion Tango Alpha Lima podcast was singled out, as detailed below. Congratulations to The American Legion!

The American Legion Tango Alpha Lima podcast won the Innovative Communication Program Award from the Indiana Society of Association Executives (ISAE) on Dec. 2.

The award recognizes “any improved or innovative tactic your association has used to communicate to its membership.”

L to R: Holly Soria - Visual Media Team Manager; Mark Seavey - National Judge Advocate; Henry Howard - Deputy Director of Communications, Unidentified Event MC

Specifically, Tango Alpha Lima was awarded for the ambitious 20-20-20 series, commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.

American Legion Media & Communications Chairman Dave Wallace praised the effort. “This series demonstrates the value of the medium in being an effective tool in communicating with members and extending our reach to other veterans,” he said. “Even though Tango Alpha Lima has only been around for 20 months, its growth in popularity and performance have demonstrated just how valuable it is.”

Judges noted the effort, saying, “This was an extraordinary effort that began in April as the idea was conceived. Not only did the effort produce compelling interviews with unique guests, it drove metrics to new heights. While the stories were sometimes tragic and heart-breaking, the experiment illustrated the power of the medium as the team continues to find innovative ways to reach, build and maintain its audience.”

for further information, contact:

HENRY HOWARD  | 
DEPUTY DIRECTOR / MEDIA AND COMMUNICATIONS

t: 317.630.1289  |  EMAIL: hhoward@legion.org  

Thank you!

By Jim Elliott, President James G. Elliott Co., Inc.

November 19, 2021

Since I started my media sales firm in November 1984, there have been many challenges including wars, a great recession, and a pandemic.  But we get by with a little help from our friends, so I wanted to pause for a moment to thank all of our clients, employees, associates and other friends who have made our success possible.  We could not have done it without you, and you have my heartfelt thanks.

It was a different world in 1984: no Amazon (est. 1994), Google (est. 1998), or Meta (est. 2004).  The first iPhone wouldn’t be sold until June 2007.

A lot of big things were starting to happen in 1984.  Apple launched Macintosh, the first commercial computer to popularize the graphical user interface and the mouse.  AT&T was restructured, and communications technology options blossomed. The Internet would soon begin accepting commercial traffic and the stage was set for development of today’s media environment. 

In 1984, who would have guessed digital technologies would become such a huge part of our lives and that we would all become so comfortable with digital media, eNewsletters, webinars, brand studios, social media, podcasts, OTT/CTV, smart-everything and so much more. We’re eager to discover what new media options the future holds and to move forward with you.

Thank you for being with us on this exciting journey.

Sell Them the Way They Want to be Sold

By Jim Elliott, President James G. Elliott Co., Inc.

November 16, 2021

You’ve undoubtedly heard someone say, “Do what you love, and the money will follow.”  Maybe, but I have found that when we do what the customer loves, the money will follow.

There are many selling methodologies in use today: The Challenger Sale, Conceptual Selling, Consultative Selling, Customer-Centric Selling, MEDDIC, NEAT Selling, SNAP Selling, Solution Selling, SPIN Selling, Sandler Selling System, Value Selling Framework, and more.  All of these techniques offer tools the seller can use.  However, at the Elliott Co. we have found that one simple attitude improves our chance of success whatever method our salespeople might be using: sell our advertisers and their agencies the way they want to be sold.

This attitude shifts our focus away from just selling to being a trusted resource: an advisor—not just another media vendor.  This approach contributes to our consistent record of success.

Sometimes, of course, the way they want to be sold is purely transactional.  But we have found that many of our advertiser clients and their agencies are looking for more.  It can be about how we can solve a problem, overcome a challenge, or ease a pain point for them. When we see it their way, we are automatically valued more.  We and our customers find ourselves working together toward a common goal: their goal.

Veterans Day 2021

By Jim Elliott, President James G. Elliott Co., Inc.

November 9, 2021

Every November 11, our nation celebrates Veterans Day. Originally, Veterans Day was called Armistice Day to celebrate the end of World War I. Beginning in 1919, Americans acknowledged the end of WWI on the 11th day of the 11th month at 11 am, when businesses were to stop operating for two minutes in a moment of silence. Unfortunately, WWI was not the war to end all wars and our country endured WWII. President Eisenhower signed a proclamation changing Armistice Day to Veterans Day. We now continue to honor veterans who fought and sacrificed not only in WWI but WWII, Korea, Vietnam, and the wars in the Middle East and Afghanistan.

This Thursday, military and veterans’ organizations will hold parades and events across the nation and hundreds of local and national businesses will recognize veterans by offering discounts and free services.  On Veterans Day, millions of red crepe paper poppies—all handmade by veterans as part of their therapeutic rehabilitation—are distributed across the country by the American Legion Auxiliary in exchange for donations that go directly to assist disabled and hospitalized veterans in our communities.

“Veterans have given us freedom, security and the greatest nation on earth. It is impossible to put a price on that.  We must remember them. We must appreciate them.” John Sharp https://www.legion.org/veteransday/speech

The Elliott Company is honored to represent the media for a number of fine organizations dedicated to those who serve—and have served—this country, and those who support them: The American Legion, The American Legion Auxiliary, Military Officers Association of America (MOAA), The National Guard Association of the United States (NGAUS), and Navy League of the United States.

Thank you, Veterans!

Advertising Sales Planning

by Jim Elliott, President James G. Elliott Co., Inc.

November 3, 2021

Tis the season…the season for planning. For the past few weeks, Elliott Co. media sellers have been working on their advertising sales plans for 2022. Now those plans are finished, and commitments are being made. By reviewing the main features of the past year and anticipating the coming year, our sellers and management create a map to follow.

Of course, things don’t always go the way we plan. Nobody expected a pandemic. Nobody expects recessions, supply chain disruptions, bad weather, or earthquakes.  Some of these can make it much more difficult to hit the numbers we’ve negotiated.  But when we have a clear goal, we have a much better focus and chance of success than if we were to just “do the best we can.”

Recently, our blog and newsletter carried the story about one of our clients whose events business was wiped out by Covid-19 in 2020 and 2021.  But the sales staff rallied and finished 2021 with higher total sales than they brought in during 2019.  How?  By putting their efforts toward lead generation products such as webinars and whitepapers.  Sales went up!

The sales team did great work, and part of the credit must go to the planning they had done.  It’s much easier to pivot when you have given a lot of thought about your options.

Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Forces in Europe World War II and later the US President, said his experience taught him that “plans are worthless, but planning is everything.”  We agree.

The year 2022 won’t turn out the way we planned it, but we’ve taken inventory, we know what we have to accomplish, and we’re ready.  Bring it!

“Plans are worthless, but planning is everything.”

— General Dwight D. Eisenhower

Why We Still Send Out a Printed Newsletter

by Jim Elliott, President James G. Elliott Co., Inc.

October 27, 2021

Recently, a media company CEO asked me why we go to the expense of printing and mailing thousands of copies of my company’s quarterly newsletter, Ads&IDEAS®.  I asked him how he knows we send them out. He said, “well, I read it.” Then I asked him how many other printed newsletters he reads.  His response?  “None.” Our first-class mailings cut through the clutter and make an impression. 

Yes, digital communications are much faster and cheaper.  Of course, we use them too, depending on the job to be done.  But open rates are low for most digital newsletters and blogs, and busy people often delete dozens of emails at a time without ever seeing anything but the subject line.  When it’s important that our companies be noticed, we send a physical object.

It’s kind of like a handwritten note.  When you receive a handwritten note, doesn’t it stand out compared to an email?  Most people get so few that they notice each one.

You might be surprised how often I meet with someone in the industry who will recognize me from my picture in the newsletter.  It’s even more gratifying when that person reaches into a desk drawer and pulls out the latest issue or I see it pinned to their bulletin board.

We post our newsletters on our website, adsandideas.com, at the same time we mail them.  If you would like to be notified by email when our new issues are ready, please “subscribe” on this site.

Perfect is the Enemy of Good

by Jim Elliott, President James G. Elliott Co., Inc.

October 20, 2021

For centuries, leaders have known that perfect is the enemy of good.  When conditions are changing rapidly, too much time spent planning is counterproductive. 

General George S. Patton said, “A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed next week.”  His bias toward action based on a good plan, not a perfect plan, achieved spectacular results.

Today, we find ourselves coping with changes that can upend our businesses in just one or two quarters.  The perfectionist, trying to get every little detail of the plan just right, often will be faced with new conditions that may render the plan useless before any good can come of it.  The leader who begins to act before the paint is dry has a much better chance of success than one who waits until every last detail is in place. 

In the 37 years since I founded my company, we have seen some incredible events, including technological revolution, economic recession, war, political upheaval and now, pandemic.  The whole media industry has changed, almost beyond belief.  We survived and even prospered because we acted quickly to implement good plans, understanding that we might have to change course rapidly.

Lead Gen Programs Can Benefit from Impact of Covid

Dennis Connaughton, General Manager James G. Elliott Co., Inc.

September 10, 2021

The last 18 months of the COVID‐shaped advertising environment has actually accelerated change that was already taking place in the ad market. For example, according to MediaRadar (MR), the more than 1,400 B2B magazines that they track produced 11% fewer total ad pages in 2019 than they did in 2018. This was long before COVID became a household word. Fact is, print advertising has been in decline in the B2B segment for the last half dozen years, some categories longer, and the more recent COVID challenge has simply pushed publications to ad page counts few would have believed possible.

However, the COVID‐related impact across all areas of marketing have produced some monetary benefit to certain digital products, specifically those related to lead generation. Due to travel and crowd restrictions put in place at the start of the pandemic, companies were forced to turn their sales forces into professional Zoomers and eliminate trade shows altogether from their marketing mix. These two events drove the need for qualified sales leads sky high and publishers who had quality lead gen products have enjoyed a sales boom. One of our clients is a perfect case study on this situation. When we started representing them in 2015, we sold roughly 60 webinars, a number considered at the upper limit of demand and their production capacity at the time. This year—2021—we will have sold over twice as many webinars for that client, a number we now consider the maximum due to response / performance considerations. Also, greatly increased success with white papers, eBooks, and other lead gen products have led to our best revenue year ever with that client.

We believe there will be a temptation for publishers to consider the 2020‐2021 period as a one‐time‐only situation which will soon evaporate as customers gradually return to pre‐ COVID practices. We disagree with this thinking for three reasons.

• First, marketers have learned, forcibly to be sure, that there are far, far more efficient means to generate leads for a sales force than to create a very expensive, very time‐ consuming year‐long trade show caravan. And increased show expenses apparently await. Just two weeks ago an advertiser bitterly complained to one of our sellers at a trade show that she just received an additional $14,000 shipping upcharge for an exhibit that was sent on a Boston to Philadelphia round trip. And it wasn’t an enormous exhibit.

• Second, trade shows may soon return but trade show attendees may not. We know COVID‐ related concerns still affect how people work and plan. Moreover, we saw that the trade show mentioned above attracted only one‐third the number of visitors it did in the years before COVID. Same show, same city/location, one‐third the visitors. We don’t believe that people will have spent the better part of two years avoiding all physically compromising situations and then suddenly rush out to a trade show to stand shoulder to shoulder with 10,000 or more strangers. In our view, trade show attendance will return very gradually, likely over years. Marketers will have to find those lost attendees elsewhere—through webinars, white papers, and other proven media devices.

• Third, corporate learning is slow but so is corporate forgetfulness. No sales manager ever born would have had the nerve to cancel all trade show participation on the unproven belief that there is a better, more efficient way to produce leads for the sales force. But the entire universe of sales managers was forced into that experience. Not just for six months. It will be closer to two years for most and in that time, they discovered and created new strategies and tactics that worked. For example, we produced some webinars this past year that had over 1,200 registrants for a tiny fraction of the time and cost those companies would have spent for similar results at a trade show. That kind of success isn’t easily forgotten.

Managing the sales force during the rebound

This article was originally published on Fipp.com

26 AUGUST 2021

3-part mini-series on managing the sales force during the rebound

By Jamie Gavin Global Media Tech Reporter | FIPP

Last month, FIPP ran a popular Insider webinar series on Managing the Sales Force During the Rebound, which you can now view freely on our YouTube channel. Introduced by FIPP President & CEO, James Hewes, the series was hosted by media industry leaders Jim Elliott and John French, who interviewed other experts in the space. 

The three short 15 minute sessions looked at how salespeople are beginning to get back in-front of customers following lockdown, plans for returning to the office, what’s happening with hiring and onboarding, and the effects of various technologies including sales empowerment software and video conferencing. We here pick out some highlights from the programme, as well as the links to each individual session video. 

Episode 1: Kate Spellman, CMO of Questex, on handling the return to live events:

“It’s been a rollercoaster of a ride… it depends on the state, and if that state is opening. For example, we have two shows in May, one of which was initially scheduled for California, but we moved to Arizona because California wasn’t open. It’s been a lot of that back and fourth.” 

“And then at the same time literally daily discussions on safety. So we’ve launched a programme across Questex called Be Safe, and although we’re not requiring vaccinations we are going to be doing a lot of safety precautions. For example, for our first show, which is a meetings planning show, everyone will be tested before they go into the building.”   

You can view the full episode here. 

Episode 2: Simon Leslie, Co-Founder and CEO, Ink Global, on morale amongst the salesforce today: 

“It’s been a little bit like breaking up relationships over the last say 20 weeks. Every day somebody else comes along and says it’s not you it’s me, and I’ve got to go on. Because they haven’t had the opportunity to be making the money that they had over the previous decade I guess. So we’ve lost a lot of staff… we probably went from 150 sellers to maybe 55-60 and we’re now re-recruiting again.” 

“In the states it’s been a little bit less challenging, because the markets have remained quite buoyant and the airlines have continued to fly. In Europe, all our airlines have been pretty much grounded and in Asia same again. So keeping them all engaged at different times, keeping the messaging right for depending where they are in the cycle has been a real challenge.” 

You can view the full episode here. 

Episode 3: Steve Grossman, President, Steve Grossman & Associates, on looking ahead to what travel budgets might look like as we begin to move out of the pandemic:

“I guess the only answer I can give with any confidence is we’re gonna be hybrid. But what we started seeing right from the beginning, and I think that it’s continuing, is the efficiency at both ends of the sales equation to doing things virtually. So not getting on planes as often as we used to – we used to get on a plane really at the drop of a hat for a one hour meeting, and therefore spend 8hrs in the air.” 

“And looking back that was nuts. It was nuts from both a time efficiency and cost efficiency standpoint. So I think it’s going to settle in on, you’ll still have the face to face, but that will likely be after you’ve had a series of virtual calls… face to face meetings will then come if there’s a real need to literally go in and do whiteboarding or have a dinner with people or something.” 

You can view the full episode here.  

FIPP Insider Webinar with Steve Grossman: Managing the Sales Force during the Rebound – Episode 3

By Jim Elliott, President James G. Elliott Co., Inc.

August 12, 2021

FIPP, one of the world’s leading media trade associations, presents the third episode in their mini-series of interviews with prominent voices entitled, “Managing the Sales Force During the Rebound.” In Episode 3, Steve Grossman, a sought-after sales effectiveness and sales compensation consultant who works with top management across many sectors, talks with John French and me about returning to sales activity. In Steve’s view, the much-discussed question of returning to the office is less important than how—and when—salespeople return to personal calls. He talks about the appropriate use of both travel and video conference technologies, and how these technologies can increase efficiencies.

Steve also addresses how company cultures will change, as well as the positive and potential negative impacts of sales and marketing automation tools on both salespeople and sales managers.

FIPP Insider Webinar with Simon Leslie, Co-founder and CEO of Ink Global: Managing the Sales Force during the Rebound – Episode 2

By Jim Elliott, President James G. Elliott Co., Inc.

August 4, 2021

FIPP, one of the world’s leading media trade associations, presents the second episode in their mini-series of interviews with prominent voices entitled, “Managing the Sales Force During the Rebound.” In Episode 2, Simon Leslie, CEO of Ink Global, talks with John French and me about returning to the office and rebuilding. He spoke about hiring and training new people during the pandemic, and structural changes that will benefit new hires in the future.  Other topics include sales force morale, recruiting, face-to-face meetings, video meetings, and the downside of working from home.  Ink Global’s product mix is evolving towards more digital and video, which will require new skill sets from salespeople and sales leaders.

https://youtu.be/iIA_ePQ83sE. (Duration-12:58)

FIPP Insider Webinar with Kate Spellman, CMO of Questex: Managing the Sales Force during the Rebound – Episode 1

By Jim Elliott, President James G. Elliott Co., Inc.

July 22, 2021

Today, FIPP, one of the world’s leading media trade associations, released the first episode in their mini-series of interviews with prominent voices entitled, “Managing the Sales Force During the Rebound.” In Episode 1, Kate Spellman, CMO of Questex, talks with John French and me about recent and upcoming events. In this 14:30 minute segment, she shares how Questex is approaching reopening, how video platforms like Zoom and Teams have benefitted Questex, new approaches to sales training, and more.

John French Has Joined Oaklins DeSilva+Phillips as Senior Advisor

By Jim Elliott, President James G. Elliott Co., Inc.

July 20, 2021

I am pleased to congratulate John French on his new role as Senior Advisor at Oaklins DeSilva+Phillips.  John is a good friend and a real star in the media business.  This relationship makes good sense and should be very successful.

Oaklins DeSilva+Phillips, the investment bank focused on the media, marketing, information, and technology industries, is pleased to announce that John French has joined the firm as Senior Advisor.  John was one of the B2B media industry’s most prominent and successful CEOs. He was President of PRIMEDIA’s B2B division when it was sold to Wasserstein & Co. and remained in that role when the company was renamed Prism Business Media. During his time at PRIMEDIA and Prism he oversaw average CAGR digital growth of 50% a year. Later, when Prism acquired Penton Media, John became CEO of the industry’s largest company, Penton Media.

His next role after running Penton Media was as CEO of Cygnus Business Media, where he created digital platforms for each of the brands and then successfully sold the company in several parts. Earlier in his career, he spent time working for some of the other major players in B2B media, including IDG, PennWell and CMP Publications.

Now John advises senior managers on business transformation and other important issues. He has done this for the past six years at French LLC in partnership with his wife, Nancy, the company’s COO. He will continue in his advisory role with the clients of French LLC.

John is a graduate of Boston College and he completed the Executive Management Program at Columbia Business School and the Publishing Executive Program at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. 

Reed Phillips, Managing Partner of Oaklins DeSilva+Phillips said, “John has been CEO of some of the world’s largest B2B media companies where he excelled in creating value for investors. His expertise extends beyond media to include marketing services, events, technology, SaaS and data/analytics. We are delighted he is joining us. His experience and skills will be valuable additions to our M&A expertise.”

You can contact John French at j.french@dp.oaklins.com or 201-513-1000.

Source: Oaklins DeSilva+Phillips https://dp.oaklins.com/

Celebrating Our Clients' Success!

By Jim Elliott, President
James G. Elliott Co., Inc.

June 29, 2021

It is always a pleasure to congratulate people we like who are recognized for the contributions they make.  This month, we have had two opportunities to do just that.

On June 9, 2021, Dr. Bibiana Campos Seijo, VP, C&EN Media Group and Editor in Chief, Chemical & Engineering News at the American Chemical Society was selected as the winner of the 53rd Annual G.D. Crain Jr. Award.  This award is given annually to an individual who has made outstanding contributions to the development of editorial excellence in business media over the course of a career.  Well done, Dr. Campos Seijo!

And, on June 16, SIIA recognized several of our clients in many different categories of the EXCEL Awards.  We are delighted to congratulate the American Chemical Society (ACS), Military Officers Association of America (MOAA), Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), and the American Institute of Physics (AIP)! 

You can see the entire list of EXCEL Award Winners here: https://siia.net/excel/2021-excel-winners/  Congratulations!