Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Internal Selling, It Never Ends

Well I am again returning to my blog with my first post in 2011. Sorry for the long break. My preference is to only post very useful topics however infrequent and I think I found another useful discussion.


I often work with large Corporate Clients in my consulting practice at Brandar and the one thing that always surprises me is that many Corporate Brand Licensing Programs fail because of the inability of its managers to sell the merits of a licensing program internally. This often comes as a surprise because Licensing Director’s often focus on chasing and getting new lucrative deals and think that will enough to be successful long term. I have news for you, it won’t. Why you ask? Because brand licensing royalties usually pale in comparison to the core revenues of your company, your royalties are usually a drop in the proverbial corporate ocean.


Well how do you rise above this problem? The simple answer is understanding from the get-go that Brand Licensing cannot be a bottom-up initiative. In order to be successful a Corporate Brand Licensing Director, you must engage the strong support of your senior management. And this does not just include Senior Managers in your direct chain of command; it also includes garnering the support of any Senior Managers in your company that your licensing activities will touch in some way. Having top level cross-organizational support for your Licensing Program is the surest way to get new licensing deals approved despite the protests of lower level managers. News Flash: If your company is big enough, someone is always going to step forward to try to block a licensing deal. You need to be prepared to handle this and rise above the detractors with strong senior level support at your company.


The best way to attack this issue is to build an internal selling presentation that you can use to sell the merits of a proactive Brand Licensing Program to your senior management and your peers. Your story needs to focus on the merits of licensing way beyond royalty revenues. Once you have built this story, don’t treat it like a static document, but instead have it top of mind all the time, be on the look out for anything that builds the strength of your story and add it to your deck continually. If you need help building your story contact a Licensing Consultancy like Brandar to assist you. It is in this critical area that most Licensing Directors falter. Most Licensing Program Managers fail to recognize that the process of internally selling the merits of your licensing program NEVER ENDS.


The larger the company, the more personnel that change seats and the more organizational shifts that occur. Each time a change happens, the Licensing Director needs to be proactive and schedule time with the new players to walk them through the internal Licensing Selling Story and ASK FOR THEIR SUPPORT. It is a story that can never end and needs to build over time. It is also a story that must be revisited with the senior managers who are still in place, but need to hear your latest chapter to continue their support. You can’t afford to get complacent as a Licensing Director; constant internal selling needs to be part of your daily routine. If it is not, your ability to quickly close signed licensing deals internally at your company will be severely impaired. More on the topic of Closing Deals next time.

Mike Slusar


Managing Director & Owner
Brandar Consulting, LLC
email: mike@brandar.com


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