The strategies that carried you through the pre-Covid era may not work in this new ad sales landscape. What changes are likely here to stay?

By William Dunkerley

These days when publishers mention "future tense," they're not talking grammar. It's about what lies ahead in the magazine business.

Advertising sales are an important focus. For many publications ad sales are a major source of revenue. But maintaining sales levels from the pre-Covid era is a real challenge. Indeed, some are finding it to be an unattainable goal.

One obstacle is how we approach ad sales management. Old formulaic management practices are not measuring up.

Traditionally, setting sales goals has been a central feature. We were able to make reasonable forecasts based on previous years' experience, expected market conditions, competitive trends, and whatever new internal plans we had for the forthcoming year.

Now many publishers place their hopes on an eventual return to pre-Covid conditions. Meanwhile ad sales may continue to languish.

Serious questions are arising, however, as to whether a complete return to the good old "normal" is in the cards. That's a consideration that some publishers really want to ignore.

A few market segments have seen modest increases in ad spending. They reinforce the conviction that we're on the way back. The results of mass Covid vaccinations are boosting expectations. However, those increases may possibly result from advertisers developing false hopes from the vaccine results. They'd like to see a return to normal, too.

However, there are reasons to believe that the Covid crisis has made an indelible impression. Some things have changed that may never go back to the previous era. Things have evolved. It's high time that we fully adapt to that notion.

So let's apply that realization to ad sales. How can we take immediate steps instead of waiting for the old days to come back?

Realization One

There is still no scientific certainty about the final outcome of the Covid curse. According to ABC News, presidential advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci recently said, "Hopefully, by the time we start entering 2022, we really will have a degree of normality that will approximate the kind of normality we've been used to."

Notice the word "hopefully." And "approximate." And the phrase "degree of normality." In other words, it is a hope-based estimation, not a forecast. There still exists uncertainty about long-term vaccine effectiveness, the impact of mutations, and possible future health consequences from Covid infections. Remember, at one time an alarming 250,000 American deaths were forecasted. Now they've exceeded half a million.

Realization Two

Covid has produced societal change that is likely to be sustained.

In early February, The Verge reported, "Salesforce declares the 9-to-5 workday dead, will let some employees work remotely from now on." Inc. magazine ran the headline, "Is the Office Dead Forever? Studies Suggest Working From Home Is the Way of the Future."

What did the studies say? According to a 2020 Prodoscore survey of US-based workers, 80 percent said they're just as productive or more productive from home, and 91 percent appreciate the flexibility to manage their own schedules."

"A CareerBuilder survey of 1000 workers in business services and other jobs found that nearly two-thirds of them say the 9-to-5 workday is fast becoming -- or has already become -- extinct," according to ApprenticePersonnel.com.

Realization Three

It's time to discard the idea of an annual ad sales revenue budget. It's unrealistic. Too much hinges on external market and economic flux, not on staff performance.

The new reality is uncertainty. You need to limit your planning to quarterly or, even better, monthly. Don't even think of formulaic sales quotas. Adjust your expectations month by month.

This approach will require the publishers play a more active role in figuring out what can be achieved each month. Rely heavily on input from your ad sales manager. Make joint decisions based on current circumstances.

While a formula for sales results may not be presently possible, you can quantify certain aspects of staff performance.

Instead of measuring staff performance based on sales results, set behavioral goals. How many sales calls on average per day should a sales agent make? How many of them must be cold calls? Set goals for analyzing and reporting on how competitors are reporting, and how market conditions are faring. To put this into an OKR (objectives and key results) framework, those behavioral goals are the objectives. Compliance with them will be the key results.

This all leaves hanging the matter of compensation for salespeople. It is now especially important to keep good people and reward them for good performance. Old salary/commission formulas are likely no longer appropriate. Instead, focus on the OKRs.

Some instances may call for an exception to that approach. If you have a star performer who can produce outstanding sales results despite today's negative conditions, continue to reward him or her appropriately. Don't spoil a good thing.

This recognizes that a one-size-fits-all approach may not be best. While a work-at-home option will help you keep some people, others may lack the needed self-discipline or home workspace for that. Flexibility and appropriateness are called for.

William Dunkerley is principal of William Dunkerley Publishing Consultants, www.publishinghelp.com.

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