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Ad Planners: Enable Your Content!
by Joe Kaufman, Multi-Ad Services, Inc.
Source: 1997 Spring NAPPA Newsletter

Amazingly, manufacturers will often spend millions of dollars on slick national ad campaigns, but fail to convert those campaigns to effective retail advertising. The purpose of ad planners is to take the manufacturers' advertising to the local level. An expensive national ad campaign is wasted if it is not presented to local markets such as radio, television, newspapers, and the yellow pages. Ad planners provide the vehicle and materials for local retailers to achieve a sophistication of advertising that would otherwise be beyond their means.

In deciding what to include in an ad planner, a manufacturer needs to consider what media the local retailers and dealers use most in their particular markets. To this end, he or she needs to communicate with retailers because they will know the advertising that works in their markets. Once the media is decided, the ad planner provides the content.

For local businesses, the ad planner saves the expense of providing the creative side of advertising themselves. For the manufacturer, it ensures a uniformity of style and content for all the advertising associated with a product.

Ad planners were traditionally bound printed volumes. But today's technology has allowed ad planners to advance into CD ROMS and the Internet. The Internet is an exciting medium for distribution of ad materials because it allows near instantaneous access to new creative content. Digitized information can be made available to the local retailers on a Web site.

An exciting new development for co-op advertising is the advent of customized ads, where the manufacturers provide retailers with ready made pieces of an ad which a retailer can then "mix and match" to build its own ad. Customized ads have the advantage of flexibility for the retailer and control for the manufacturer.
The Ad Planner Critique seminar in Tampa will feature a share and compare workshop which can help attendees build their own ad planners and enable their content.

One of the seminars at the 1997 NAPAA Spring Conference in Tampa was an Ad Planner Critique. Joe Kaufman, National Account Manager with Multi-Ad Services, was one of the presenters. An advertising executive with 16 years experience in retail advertising creation and distribution, Kaufman discusses some of the major issues for ad planners.

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Building a Successful Co-op Program
by Nikki Kagan, Principal, Kagan Marketing & Research
Source: Fall 1996 NAPAA Newsletter

How does a company design a co-op program to support its corporate mission? First, the firm should see co-op as integral to the overall marketing plan. Essentially, marketing plans encompass advertising, public relations, promotions, point of sale, customer service - any medium that promotes a company's products or services. Although co-op funds are often allocated to support all of the above, managers often fail to consider co-op in marketing plan development.

Although the Co-op Manager may have limited involvement with the corporate marketing plan, he/she can develop a "Co-op Marketing Plan" to maximize the impact of co-op on sales and brand awareness. The following steps serve as a guide for the planning process:

STEP 1
Assess your current co-op program, how it's been successful to date, and what changes you'd like to see implemented.

Be sure to address the following issues:

  • The strengths and weaknesses of your current program
  • Is your program successful? How do you measure program success? (Dollars spent? Number of participants? Increased sales?)
  • Where and why might co-op funds have remained unspent?
  • Are there any issues in your program that need to be addressed?
  • What's happening in the marketplace.
  • What current trends in the co-op industry could affect your business positively/negatively?
  • What changes in the co-op industry are you excited or worried about?
  • What are your suppliers' concerns about your program?

STEP 2
Once you've gathered this background information, set goals and objectives. Consider the information you've compiled and set realistic goals and objectives that support your company's mission. Goals vary widely from company to company depending upon what each one wants to achieve. Here are some examples of possible objectives:

  • Increase participation among independent retailers by 20%. Retailer size may not be as important as increasing brand awareness by focusing on exposure in many smaller markets.
  • Improve supplier relations by meeting regularly with each of your key accounts (i.e. 3-5 new contacts in the co-op industry).
  • Communicate with peers regularly to keep abreast of trends, ideas and opportunities.

STEP 3
Before selecting a program of action, explore the issues and strategies. Involve your marketing team and those from other departments in the process of determining strategy. This will enable you to build consensus and goodwill between departments you will be relying upon for implementation and program support.

STEP 4
Consider the constraints that may affect your plan. Seek the advice of others who impact resource availability. If you are the decision-maker, let people know you value their opinion but that you will make the final decision. Always tell them what you've decided and why.

STEP 5
Design both an action plan and a communication plan. An action plan provides a clear outline of everyone's responsibility in carrying out the mission. Identifying what needs to be done when, and by whom, is easy. The difficulty is in clearly communicating specific tasks so that the person responsible for implementation knows exactly what's expected. A common pitfall of designing a successful co-op program is the breakdown of communication between departments. A detailed communication plan is a great tool for avoiding this trap.

STEP 6
Don't relax! Monitor, revise and update the plan regularly! You should monitor progress on some regular basis (monthly, etc.), get feedback from your team and make revisions when needed.

STEP 7
Remember that if you take the time to develop a plan that will keep you focused and on track, it will save time in the long run. Developing a co-op plan is just as important as any other internal planning document. The budgets are significant, and the potential impact of spending co-op dollars wisely (or unwisely, for that matter) is tremendous.

Nikki Kagan is Principal, Kagan Marketing & Research.

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Changing Role of Co-op/MDF Managers
by Carole Braunshausen, NAPAA Newsletter Editor
Source: 1998 Summer NAPAA Newsletter, Issue 25

The changing role of the co-op manager has been a topic of past conferences, but none of the presentations were as comprehensive or action focused as the one at the NAPAA Summer Conference in May by Debra Kuhns, Vice-President of Field Marketing at Netscape.

A quick survey of the audience revealed that while many still had the word “co-op” in their titles, the percentage of those reporting to finance was quite low.  Most knew their company’s quarterly sales goal and spent time with customers in a planning mode.  This suggests that the conference attendees fit the changing profile of co-op which Kuhns outlined in her presentation.

Then and Now
Kuhns referred to traditional co-op as an administrative, tactical and less visible role.  In many cases the co-op department was viewed as the “sales prevention” department.

In the 1980’s, the purpose of co-op was to supplement national advertising at the local level, with a goal of increasing utilization and exposure.   Its focus was traditional media, and co-op played an “Ad Police” role regarding logo usage and budget control.

Changing market dynamics impacted co-op.  Increased competition, consolidation of sales through several large players, and the trend toward global marketing led to corporate belt tightening.  This resulted in a decrease in co-op percentages while increasing “up-front” funds.  The changing media mix meant a decrease in the use of traditional media and an increase in types of reimbursed activities.

In the 1990’s, co-op’s redesigned purpose is to manage regional marketing efforts, with a goal of optimized sales through each customer.   Field management has replaced corporate fund management to support the regional emphasis.  The co-op focus is integrated marketing strategy, and its role is to design, implement and track effective programs.

Getting “Unstuck”
Kuhns offered these suggestions for moving forward in promotional funds management.  Examine your position in the company and your company’s position on co-op.  Are you planning or merely reimbursing?  Are funds managed by corporate or the field?  Does “co-op” in your title carry preconceptions that hold you back?

How can you affect change?  First, get existing processes working effectively.  If you are still in a financial based structure, establish alliances with sales and/or marketing departments.  Understand the business and revise reporting to reflect sales impact.

To reposition your role, set strategic objectives.  Work with sales and marketing to plan quarterly objectives and integrate co-op into all campaigns.   Educate customers, both internal and external.  Hold training events and be accessible for help.

Take small and measurable steps.  Start with one or two customers.  Establish marketing partnerships and allow sufficient time for planning.   Track and report results so you can replicate what works and learn from what does not.  Promote your successes and continue to expand your focus each quarter.

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Co-op and the Manager's Role
by Tim Cornillie, Televison Bureau of Advertising
Source: 1997 Summer NAPAA Newsletter

A recent NAPAA conference included a workshop on the co-op managers' role. The session was designed to explore co-op's role in relation to participant companies' organizational structure. A series of provocative questions was presented so participants could evaluate their own personal role and career options. The resulting discussion is summarized here.

Question: Co-op is moving towards MDF. Does this diminish the role of a co-op manager?

The group stressed the growing importance of MDF, and questioned the future of traditional Co-op programs. Many felt that the role of the co-op manager would be strengthened by the growth of MDF, since such programs require stronger budgeting and measurement disciplines. They predicted the role of the co-op manager would become more strategic and more involved with marketing planning, creative and legal issues. One manager suggested "MDF" was really a misnomer, since these are actually Business Development Funds (BDF).

Question: When was the last time you or your staff went on a sales call? What did you learn?

Many participants felt that exposure to client contacts provided valuable education; most wished for more opportunities for client exposure. Sales calls provide face-to-face contact at the client level, and many believed that contact resulted in a more planning-based relationship. Issues can be more easily addressed up-front, and the increased communication reduced problems. Some responded that client contact was not with the buyer but with the co-op manager's counterpart at the client or agency. Based on these positive experiences, many co-op managers looked for ways to get corporate and sales management to encourage more interaction.

Question: As co-op manager, if you suddenly became president of your company, how would your company change?

Most participants felt that the communications process would improve throughout the entire company. They suggested that there would be better communications between departments, including the moving of people between departments to learn more about other corporate divisions. Corporate cultures would work more closely together, including small tasks like forcing all executives to "work the phones." The entire company would know the co-op process better, with a clear communication of guidelines and documentation. And the company would focus on implementing its co-op programs better--making sure all moneys were spent wisely.

Question: What feedback mechanisms do you have to find out what's working in different areas of your company?

Many respondents discussed the value of sales-out reporting to analyze and discover the effectiveness of programs (especially MDF programs), and then reporting their findings to management in key areas. One person was able to save her own co-op program by charting how a competitor's market share declined after they canceled their co-op program. It was pointed out that many salespeople don't feel a need to share their personal strategies, or the programs they develop with their clients. The co-op manager is in the position to encourage the sales department to share successful programs with their management and other salespeople.

Question: Do you ever communicate directly with your company's public relations department or advertising agency?

Many respondents participated in efforts with these two areas, but only on specific projects. Co-op managers frequently get involved with the advertising department in developing kits for retailers or in advertising details when that department has no specialist in-house (i.e. no one who understands co-op). Co-op managers get involved with public relations for special announcements, like new product introductions. Some managers have considerable interaction with their corporate ad agencies, since they control significant budgets. They prepare assignments like any other agency client. Most agreed these were areas where co-op has a natural involvement and information to share. Progressive co-op managers should extend their involvement in these areas.

Question: Salesperson A comes running into your office to report, "I've just seen something from our account in Ottumwa that could change our company!" You listen and agree. What would it take to change your company's policy in mid-year?

Answers to this question varied significantly for the different managers in these groups. Those who were principally involved with traditional co-op programs reported that it would be very difficult to change company policy in mid-year. Those who were more involved with MDF programs felt it would be easier. Most managers agreed that policy changes that did not effect the total dollars in their budget could be more easily implemented. Many managers reported that they had been "empowered" to look for opportunities to change their business for the better whenever possible.

Question: If your sales director, advertising director and finance director were stuck in an elevator together for 20 minutes, what would happen?

Many managers work in companies where the advertising, sales and finance departments are in different buildings or different locations. For these companies, the directors wouldn't recognize each other. Others suggested that a fist-fight might ensue, or that decisions might finally get made. But one manager reported that her company had recently switched to an involvement-style management concept, and that as a result, these three managers are constantly in meetings together instead of running their departments. The participants did feel it was the co-op manager's role to bridge communications between these crucial areas, since co-op had information that was valuable to all three.

Question: What is most important to your position: growing your brand, making your sales goal, or staying within budget? Why?

Virtually all participants felt that the most important responsibility in saving their jobs was staying within budget. But almost all felt that their most important goal should be growing their brands. There was also discussion about the many other issues involved with co-op that contribute to implementing these goals, like deduction resolution. During this discussion, some managers realized that they had more responsibility and flexibility in their positions than they previously realized.

Question: What is the highest level person in your company who understands what you do?

About half of the co-op managers reported that no one above them understood what they do. Of those whose managers did, most felt they had some superficial understanding, while some felt they had a very good understanding. When we discussed what could be done to heighten management appreciation for the co-op manager's role, many felt that they needed to communicate the value that effective co-op management brings to management areas.

Question: What greater responsibility in your company are you preparing for based on your co-op experience?

Many managers did not have an easy answer for this question, and many answered with something like "more of the same." Some felt they would like to expand their co-op responsibilities to other divisions of the company. Some reported the desire to grow into channel marketing management or training. A few expressed goals of reaching VP level in marketing or advertising. Despite the fact that co-op management allows you to measure what works in promotion planning, in sales support, as well as in financial controls, few managers had a strong sense of higher aspirations within their companies.

Tim Cornillie is Vice President, National Marketing, for Television Bureau of Advertising.

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Developing Promotional Programs
Gary Chappell, Apple Computer, Inc.
Source: July/August 2000  NAPAA Newsletter, Issue 34

Taking you behind the scenes of successful Promotion design, Gary Chappell, Senior Manager, Worldwide Sales for Apple Computer, provided the basics and benefits of promotional design strategy and creative execution in his Monday keynote presentation at the NAPAA Annual Conference in San Diego.

What is a Promotion?
A Promotion is, in essence, offering an incentive (money/product/service) to a customer in order to affect their purchase behavior during a prescribed time period. In many cases promotions are more effective than pricing actions because they have a “Call to Action” that outlasts a pricing change, and, in general, cost less than pricing actions.  Examples of Promotional Programs include:

  • Rebates — Buy this product and receive money (instant or claimed)
  • SPIF — (Sales Promotion Incentive Fund). Sell this product/service and receive money
  • SPA — (Sales Promotional Allowance) Incentive credits applied to a product/service for a short time period
  • Premiums — Buy this product/service and we’ll give you another FREE or at discount. (Eg. Buy a CPU. . . get additional 64mb RAM Free)
  • Sweeptstakes (enter a contest/drawing to win a prize.)
  • Gift Cards/Certificates — Pre-paid awards for product/service
  • Retention Programs — Accruals towards future awards

Strategic and Tactical Promotions
There are two broad classifications for Promotions: Strategic and Tactical.

  • Strategic Promotions may include a seasonal focus, product awareness campaigns, or special audience promotions.  Apple’s Back to School promotion, “You Chose the Right School.  Now Choose the Right Tools,” is an example of a Strategic Promotion which is seasonal, focuses on a specific audience (college bound and graduating seniors), and includes enhancing awareness for a variety of products aimed at this audience.
  • Tactical Promotions, on the other hand, are more likely to be undertaken in response to a product surplus or a “meeting competition” situation.  Apple’s “Power Mac G3 Special Offer,” is an example of a promotion that offers a premium for action within a specified period of time.  Participants who buy a Power Mac G3 before a set date receive 128 MB of additional RAM or an HP DeskJet printer.

Companies use promotions to mitigate risks and capitalize on opportunities.  For example, the risk of inventory surpluses or “meeting competition” situations can be mitigated with a Tactical Promotion program.  Opportunities to increase market share or accelerate technology adoption can be fostered with Strategic Promotions.

Philosophy in Promotional Design
The key to effective Promotional design is to define the program’s objective, targets and goals, and focus the offer and messaging to these.  Each Promotion needs a quantifiable goal, such as unit sell-through, revenue or margin targets or ending inventory position.

In establishing these objectives, targets, and goals, the designer needs to know:

  • Product Attributes — your product’s strengths and limitations
  • Customer Attributes — useage patterns, wants, needs, tolerances
  • How your products are distributed
  • How those distribution channels work
  • Product life cycle/sales cycle
  • Your business systems/capabilites
  • Your vendors, partners and competition

Promotional ideas and concepts can be generated from a variety of company sources — and should include all groups that will be affected.  Since promotions often leverage other established programs and resources, these need to be examined for possible modifications to fit the new campaign.  Sources of ideas/input may include:

  • Sales/Marketing
  • Finance/Forecasting
  • Marcom/Marketing Communications
  • Vertical Market/Marketing
  • Channel Strategy/Marketing
  • Legal.

After including all of the groups that can offer insight, and before proceeding with the Promotion, a company needs to develop a full Financial Model of the predicted affect.

Implementation/Assessment
Cross-functional teams are an important part of a successful Implementation program.  In designing such a program, a company may need to develop teams to deal with:

  • Vendor and Contract negotiation
  • Marcom/Website support
  • Engineering support
  • MIS/IST support
  • Sales and Channel Administration
  • Supply Chain Management
  • Fulfillment (3rd Party or in-house)
  • Vendor Management
  • Internal Tracking and Reporting

If the Promotion has quantifiable goals, a Post Mortem is able to assess and discuss the promotion and its effectiveness. This Post Mortem should be sure to note any extraneous occurances which positively or negatively impacted the program. This will then become the foundation of a Knowledge Base of historical redemption/success patterns for future program development.

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Does it Pay to Advertise?
"A Treasury of Co-op Knowledge," Advertising Checking Bureau
Source: Winter 1997 NAPAA Newsletter

It is surprising how many retailers wish they knew the answer to that question. The very biggest of them, of course, will readily tell you they couldn't exist without advertising. Some have tried it, and their demise amply supports the point.

You believe in the importance of retail advertising. That's why you make all those co-op dollars available. But you know that they go to work for you only when they actually get spent on advertising. So it's important that you be able to tell smaller retailers how they can be confident that, when they invest in advertising, it does make money for them.

Here are some of the ways to know that advertising pays:

Common Sense. You can look at your own shopping habits. Do you buy unadvertised products? Rarely. If you see an ad for a Suzy-Q microwave oven at a great price, do you head for the store? Not really. But if it's an Amana or a Litton, that's different. And, if you can buy from a retailer you know or one you don't, which one do you buy from? You know the retailer and gain confidence in him through his advertising.

Observation. Those of you who sell through retailers see it happen. Almost invariably, the ones who grow and prosper are the best advertisers. There's a striking correlation. Those who advertise do well. Those who don't, don't.

Retailer experience. If you ask, you get wonderful feedback from retailers. Especially from those who have recently taken the plunge. Often, they are astonished at what happens. When they run ads, people actually do come in and buy!

Research. One client with the Advertising Checking Bureau held meetings for their retailers. They would read letters from typical retailers, telling of marvelous results from advertising. But, one day, a retailer asked, "But did that really happen? Did that guy really sell all that stuff, or is he just saying that to make himself look good?"

If he were asking questions like that, probably a lot of other retailers were wondering, too. So the client did a very simple, inexpensive study. From their list of retailers who had co-op available, they picked 200 at random. Then they divided them into two groups: those who advertised during the previous year and those who didn't. They took an average of each of the groups, so they were able to compare the average advertiser with the average non-advertiser. And they found that, over the previous year, both had grown. Inflation alone would have done that, of course.

But when they compared their growth, they were startled to find that the advertiser had grown 350% more than the non-advertiser. Not only that, when the year started, the advertiser was buying 41% more goods from them than the non-advertiser. And, by the end of the year, he was buying 61% more.
Does this mean that it pays to advertise? Not necessarily. Good retailers do lots of things well, including advertising. But it shows that the best retailers believe in advertising. and the least successful don't.

And it would be strange reasoning to think that the most successful retailers were surprisingly dumb to waste their money on advertising, while the least successful were surprisingly smart to save all that wasted money.

An advertising agency in Harrisburg, PA used to run a radio commercial that said, "Suppose someone told you about a machine where you could put a dollar in one side and two would come out the other. Wouldn't your only question be how many dollars you could put in the machine? That's what advertising is." And it is.

This article is reproduced with permission from Advertising Checking Bureau's "A Treasury of Co-op Knowledge." Written primarily for suppliers of co-op/MDF allowances, this article contains information many of our readers may find helpful. NAPAA thanks ACB for providing this article.

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The Electronic Tear Sheet and Co-op
" A Treasury of Co-op Knowledge," Advertising Checking Bureau
Source: Fall 1997 NAPAA Newsletter

For all media, the supplier of co-op needs to know two things:

  1. What advertising did the retailer do?
  2. What did he pay to do it?

In print advertising, that's not hard to know. I n newspapers, for example, the invoice shows what the paper billed the retailer for the advertising. And the full page tear sheet shows what the advertising was.

In radio or television advertising, it's not as easy. The station invoice shows what the station billed the retailer for the advertising. But broadcasters never had a tear sheet to show the content of the advertising. Lacking that, they reasoned that the next best thing was to provide an affidavit of performance which would explain what the advertising consisted of.

So, for many years (and to the present for some), stations provided an affidavit which stated that the attached script was broadcast a certain number of times, at a certain cost. And to that they attached the script to which the affidavit referred.

If that had been sent to the supplier, no problem. He could reasonably expect that the script that was attached was the one broadcast. But, in virtually all cases, that's not what happened. The affidavit and attached script was sent to the retailer who had ordered the advertising and was expected to pay the bill.

The difference? Enormous. For, if the retailer wished to claim co-op from an entirely different supplier, all he had to do was detach the script the station had attached and attach one he preferred. Or simply make a dozen copies of the affidavit and attach them to scripts from a dozen different co-op plans, mail them out, and wait to see who sent him money.

How many retailers were taking advantage of that chance to get rich quick? Nobody knows. But the problem was that you hadno way of knowing that any claim you got wasn't that kind of claim.

The problem finally was solved by the Association of National Advertisers (ANA), working closely with the radio and television industries. They developed a simple, unambiguous affidavit that would go right on the script itself. So there was nothing to detach or attach. The station stated the number of times that particular script had been broadcast, at what cost. When they signed the statement and notarized it, that told you exactly what advertising had been done. and what it had cost to do it.

It's known as the ANA documentation. Radio and television stations like it so much, they call it their "electronic tear sheet." It's not an overstatement to say that it's the only way to know what you get for your money in broadcast advertising.

How important is it? The Advertising Checking Bureau had a vivid demonstration many years ago when a client adopted it as a requirement of their 100% co-op plan. Shortly thereafter, ACB received a claim for $30,000 from one of their wholesalers for a group program that he had placed. The claim included invoices from two stations totaling $30,000. There was an affidavit of performance and perfectly good script from each station. But the scripts didn't bear the ANA documentation. ACB rubber stamped the ANA documentation on the scripts and sent them back to the stations with the request that they fill in the blanks and return them, so the company could pay the wholesaler. Instead, both stations wrote back, "That product was never advertised on our station."

What had happened? The wholesaler had advertised some completely different company's products, then had substituted the client's script as an attachment to the stations' affidavits of performance. By insisting on ANA documentation, the client saved $30,000 on that one claim alone.

This article is reproduced with permission from Advertising Checking Bureau's "A Treasury of Co-op Knowledge." Written primarily for suppliers of co-op/MDF allowances, this article contains information many of our readers may find helpful. NAPAA thanks ACB for providing this article.

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Getting Better Creative in Promotional Advertising
by George Held
Source: Summer 1999 NAPAA  Newsletter, Issue 29

One of the most frustrating aspects of managing a promotional advertising program is seeing your dollars invested on mediocre to poor advertisements. There are many reasons why this happens. Reasons for poor advertising include:

•  Many retailers—both large and small–insist on creating their own ads which may or may NOT be the kid of quality you want. The reason for “doing their own thing” is the belief that they alone can create “a look and style” for their retail establishment. (And in the right circumstances there’s a lot of truth in that statement.)

• Almost every retailer wants retail-oriented ads (featuring price, item, and location). Most national marketers want co-op ads to be more image-focused (dominant product illustrations and copy filled with features, advantages and benefits).

• Ad agencies tend to assign co-op ads to their junior-most employees—college interns or the new person in the creative department.

At the risk of sounding like a heretic, I’d say the best cooperative advertising is advertising that moves more of your product. It sells 20% more of your product that last year’s advertising, who cares whether the ad was in color or black and white, whether the company’s logo was enclosed with a 1 pt. Benday border, or the illustration was a line drawing instead of your company’s photos?

On the other hand, some companies have to be concerned about the quality of their corporate image-including logo, product claims, and the manner in which their products are advertised. If that’s part of your corporate philosophy or mandates, then by all means, be sure to audit for that.

Another reason for strict control of advertising is concerns about a company’s brand name becoming a generic term for a product category. In that case, the company MUST pay careful attention to what and how its product is promoted. One company currently fighting this battle is Rollerblade ®. That’s why companies use audit services-to help keep a watchful eye on advertising to make sure dealers don’t do anything too outlandish or misuse the brand name in a way that could jeopardize the company’s trademarks.

On the other hand, if your product has been around for many years or if you aren’t THE most dominant brand or product in your category, perhaps you should consider relaxing your product promotion rules. Remember, sometimes the most outrageous ads can be the most memorable. The more memorable the ad, the more it sells—SOMETIMES.

Other ways you can increase the impact of your promotional dollars are to encourage retailers or dealers to place larger ads, buy more spots on fewer stations (more overall impact on your key prospects), or to encourage retailers to buy premium air times (more drivetime or sponsorships).

You might consider adding incentives to your program—encouraging retailers to feature your product(s) with few (if any) other products included in the ad. If you can build stronger product identity AND retailer identity, it’s a win-win situation for both you and your promotion partner!

One of the ways to be more innovative in your promotional advertising is to encourage media reps and your dealers/retailers/partners to bring you new ideas. Sometimes the outrageous concepts they bring forward can be equally, outrageously successful!

Here are some other things to keep in mind when creating materials for your retailers to use:

• Write short radio and television scripts. Be generous with the time allowed for the retailer’s identification at the end of a commercial. With a 30-second spot, give them 10 seconds for retailer name, selling message/identity and address. If it’s a 60, give them even a little more.

• If you are fortunate enough (although some would argue it’s a curse) to sell through a limited distribution system, then work with your retailers to create unique, personalized ads for your retailers. Lennox ® has succeeded over many years in building memorable ads for its dealers selling heating and air-condition products. They successfully tie their founder’s name (Dave Lennox) to the local installer’s business name.

• If you sell through many retailers in every market, you just can’t customize the materials for every retailer. So, always provide quality artwork which can be used by virtually any newspaper, give the retailers a variety of artwork–good line art and photos in both black and white and in color.

• If you insist on no competitive products in an ad, then don’t, in turn, try to sell retailers on adding their name to a multi-dealer print or TV ad. Retailers deserve exclusive brand/store identity just as much as your product does.

If you are a total control freak, managing a promotional advertising program may test your mettle considerably! Unless you have control of a hugely successful brand with dominant market share, you may find the dichotomy between control freak and promotion manager giving you constant stress. Relax a little. Be open to ideas from your retailing partners. Don’t always insist on your copy or art approach—as said before, sometimes off-the-wall, zany stuff sells!

One last thought about co-op and promotional advertising: Never say, “It’s only a co-op ad.” Never, ever write off your investment as if it’s a waste of money. If you approach the development of promotional advertising as wasted money, it will be wasted. You won’t invest the time or seek new ways to work with your agencies, media or retailers to create break-through creative. Good, creative advertising that moves product is not an accident. It’s most often carefully crafted, sometimes even cagily crafted to be memorable and effective. Always work towards achieving those goals with your retail partners.

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How to Make One Co-op Dollar Do the Work of Several
by William Panczak, Director of Co-op Development, Advertising Audit Service, Inc.
Source: Fall 1996 NAPAA Newsletter

Retailers typically face a tough question. With their limited advertising dollars, do they do a few large ads to make sure their advertising gets seen? Or do they do more smaller ads to get continuity?

If you told them you knew a way for them to get both benefits - and at the same time spend less money - do you think they'd be interested? Of course they would . . . until you said the answer is dealer listing ads. hen neither the small retailer nor the large is apt to like it.

The big retailer thinks he just helps out his small competitor by advertising with him in a dealer listing ad. And the small retailer is sure that, although he's paying part of the cost, the big retailer gets all the benefit. But that's not necessarily so.

A client once made the advantages of dealer listing ads very clear to me. He said he had asked one of his large retailers a simple question, "What would be your objection to letting someone else pay 90% of the cost of your advertising?" None, of course. But isn't that exactly the way it works? If a large retailer is in an ad with nine smaller stores, and if his is the best known name, people are more likely to come to him. The big guy has all that name recognition going for him.

So dealer listing ads are a super buy for the big guy.

Does that mean that they're bad for the little guy? If the little guy is asking himself if he's going to make out as well as the big guy, the answer will surely be that he's not. But that's the wrong question. After all the ad money the big guy has spent over the years in becoming well known, there's no reason for the little guy to believe he can immediately overcome the big guy's momentum. The big advertiser has paid his dues for years; he's earned the ability to get a better return on every ad dollar he spends.

So what should the small retailer be asking himself? The only real question for the small retailer is, "Will I be better off taking my share of the business this larger ad generates . . . or will I be better off getting all the benefit from a small ad that nobody sees?

Naturally, he'll do better in the dealer listing ads. Not as well as the large retailer, but better than he would on his own.

If the ad is constructed right, the dealers will be listed geographically. In a big market, most people will go to a nearby retailer rather than drive several miles to a dealer they may know better. The nearby retailer is selling the same product at the same price. Why not buy from him?

So dealer listing ads are good for everybody. They're big enough to grab attention and get better results for all the retailers who sponsor them.

The client who had asked his large retailer that earlier eye-opening question offered me a corollary that also put dealer listing ads in a different light. He told of a retail customer who was planning to spend $80,000 in the next few weeks advertising in a large eastern city. "It's a great deal for us," the retailer exulted. "We have 16 stores. So, each time we run a full-page ad, we're promoting all 16 stores."

Suppose you were a small retailer competing with any of those 16 stores in your part of the city. To advertise on a par with that store, you'd have to spend 16 times as much as he does. Unless you could find 15 other retailers who would join with you to run a dealer listing ad to compete with that advertising. And it shouldn't bother you that there are 15 other retailers in the ad, because you'd get the sales available in your part of town just like they'd get them in theirs. Each of you would be competing with the big retailer's store near you. And each of you would be paying no more than the big store does.

That's what dealer listing ads do. They take a number of retailers who, advertising independently, can't advertise enough to get the results they need. They then pool the advertising dollars of those retailers in order to run the kind of attention-getting advertising that will pay off for everybody.

If I ever had any doubts about the effectiveness of dealer listing ads, I no longer had any after a client once told me of a retailer who sold $5,425 worth of goods from a single dealer listing ad costing just $25.

Dealer listing ads won't be any retailer's entire ad budget, but they do wonders in stretching the budget to make possible more of the advertising the retailer wants and needs to do. They work . . . for both retailers big and small.

William Panczak is Director of Co-op Development for Advertising Audit Services, Inc.

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Negotiating for Dummies
Planning the First Session
by Michael & Mimi Donaldson
Source: March/April 2000 NAPAA Newsletter, Issue 32

Whatever the subject of your negotiation, you face some common issues in preparing for that first session. Even if you are prepared for the issue at hand, you still need to decide where and when to set the meeting, what to wear, and what to do if you’re having a bad hair day. Stage fright sometimes sets in no matter how well prepared you are. This chapter helps you prepare for that first meeting, so that you can walk through the door with confidence.

Controlling