Building a Sales Business with a Typewriter, a Telephone and a Strategy
My seven years at The Economist, where I was responsible for European advertising sales, provided an invaluable foundation for my career. Eventually however, the urge to test myself became too strong to ignore. I decided to launch my own business and find out whether I had what it took to fly solo.
The office equipment consisted of a second-hand IBM typewriter, which my wife used, a black Bakelite telephone with a large rotary dial connected to a landline, and a company car that The Economist generously offered as a farewell gift.
With such limited resources, it was vital to maximise the amount of time spent in face-to-face selling situations. I therefore decided to focus on two sectors: finance and art. This was not because I had any particular affinity with either market, but because prospective clients in both sectors tended to be concentrated within a relatively small geographical area. This made it possible to arrange numerous meetings each day without wasting valuable time travelling between appointments, whether in London, Frankfurt or Zurich.
The art market was similarly concentrated. In London, Bond Street was the centre of activity, while in Paris many leading galleries could be found on the Left Bank.
The breakthrough came when Nine and their title The Australian Financial Review needed representation in Europe. The strategy proved particularly successful in Frankfurt, where German banks were pursuing ambitious expansion plans in Australia and were keen to reach an international audience.
At the same time, the art market, particularly in the United States, was flourishing as collectors searched for new sources of fine art in Europe. Before long, Art & Auction, which became one of the leading international art magazines, sought our assistance with the launch of its European edition.
In parallel, Euromoney was undergoing a major expansion programme and required active representation. Other titles soon followed, resulting in a series of rewarding and long-lasting collaborations; including a highly successful ten-year relationship with Christie’s managing their luxury magazine.
The arrival of digital advertising transformed the industry and introduced a completely different way of working. Yet, while many predicted the demise of traditional sales approaches, adaptability remained the key to survival. Unlike the dinosaurs, we have continued to evolve, embrace change and prosper in a rapidly changing media landscape.
