Industry Press Highlights, Media, Retail, Advertising and the Economy

The pandemic’s devastating effect on retail motivated many local retailers to change their business models significantly. In the process, many discovered new methods to engage and attract new customers and created businesses better prepared for future crises. Despite many consumers eagerly returning to in-store shopping, retailers face a new set of challenges. Supply-chain issues and a lack of sufficient inventory have created a frustrating situation for retailers since they can’t serve consumer demand.

Every leader wants control of their team. They want them to do the right thing, in the right way, at the right time. Many leaders lack a set of strategies that would allow the better results they want. In the worst case, they use force. In the best case, they use inspiration. What follows here is a list of positive strategies leaders can use to have greater control, without harming their results or creating a toxic environment.

As a sales manager, it’s crucial to avoid common pitfalls that can negatively impact team performance. Here’s how to navigate ten key mistakes: Assuming Everyone Works Like You: Establish clear KPIs to guide different working styles. Hiring Based Solely on Experience: Prioritize performance over experience. Delaying Firings: Act quickly when someone isn’t performing. Failing to Identify Bad Reps: Remove toxic or unproductive reps promptly. Relying on Activity over Results: Focus on outcomes, not just activity. Allowing Low Win Rates: Coach reps, but don’t tolerate chronic underperformance.

Micromanagement. We have all experienced it – and if you are a leader, you have mostly likely done it. Yet no one ever says that great leaders are micromanagers. If it isn’t effective and we don’t like it done to us, why do we micromanage? Not all the items on this list will affect or afflict all leaders in the same way, but all are among the reasons why we take over, step in, or “try to help.”

To achieve top sales performance, you don’t need a sales team dominated by business degrees from Harvard or resumes full of eye-popping company logos. Those attributes are all well and good, but they’re not requirements for top performance. Instead, look to your sales managers. Are they prepared to provide the leadership and coaching their sales teams need to maximize selling potential?

Essential Lessons for Today's Local Media Sales and Agency Professionals
From Privileged Child to Scrappy Entrepreneur: The Early Years That Built a Sales Mindset
Ted Turner, born into privilege but shaped by personal tragedy, transformed a small billboard business into a global media empire by pioneering innovations like the superstation WTBS and the 24-hour news network CNN. Despite facing skepticism, industry resistance, and the eventual loss of control over his company, Turner consistently rebounded by pivoting into philanthropy, environmentalism, and global advocacy. His bold decisions—like donating $1 billion to the United Nations and creating Captain Planet—reflected a deep commitment to purpose beyond profit. Turner’s life teaches media professionals the power of vision, resilience, and values-driven leadership. As he famously said, “You should set goals beyond your reach so you always have something to live for.”

America’s mall sector is no longer one story but two: a small group of high-end, experience-driven centers is thriving, while many lower-tier malls continue to struggle. For local media sellers and ad agencies, that means retail should be approached more selectively, with stronger malls and lifestyle centers pitched as destination brands that need image-building, traffic-driving and event-focused campaigns across radio, TV, cable, print, outdoor and digital. The bigger lesson is that winning retail properties are succeeding through curation, experience and audience focus—exactly the kind of strategy local media companies should mirror in the way they package and sell advertising.

If you are a sales leader or sales manager, you struggle to get everything done. You want to work with your team, but you often find yourself being pulled into meetings and conversations that have no ability to help you reach your sales targets. It can be difficult to decide what gets your attention and what doesn’t deserve your time.

A business proposal can bridge the gap between you and potential clients. Done correctly, it will outline your value proposition and persuade a company or organization to do business with you. Here, we’ll take a look at the various kinds of business proposals and go over how to write one. We’ll also see some ideas and examples to help guide yours.

Looking for a fun and effective way to boost your sales team’s communication skills? Try the Elevator Pitch Challenge! This engaging game will help your team members refine their ability to deliver concise and compelling pitches, a critical skill for any successful salesperson.

The greatest threat to your organization’s success isn’t your competition—it’s your leadership style driving top talent out the door. In my work coaching senior executives, I’ve documented a concerning pattern: leaders often remain blind to the behaviors that prompt their most valuable employees to quietly plan their exits.

When you’re “King of the Hill,” challengers, pretenders and wannabes come at you from all sides. For “traditional” TV, it started with videocassettes and videodiscs, then cable and satellite, DVD/Blu-Ray, game consoles, the DVR, PCs, smartphones and tablets, and now streaming media services: Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, YouTube and an ever growing list of even newer players.

Leaders around the world understand the value of a strong culture. My team’s research for my forthcoming book, Culture Rules, confirms this. We talked to, or surveyed, more than 6,000 leaders and frontline associates from 10 countries about the topic of organizational culture and 72% indicated that culture is the most important driver of performance. We also asked leaders to rank their priorities — creating and maintaining culture ranked 12th. This article is not about why this gap exists; it is about how to close it.