Editor's Note: Personnel Is The Best Investment

Meeting sales quotas and deadlines are crucial to be successful in newspaper advertising, but you will not get far without a strong sales team.
The best investment you can make in your company is to hire personnel that can get the job done and do it well. You want a staff that can help the publication meet its goals and produce a good product. Although hiring staff takes time and money, it’s worth it.
In fact, building sales teams is such an important aspect of many companies that they turn to recruiters who hire sales professionals for a living. For your publication, the hiring process will go smoother if you take it from the same approach as job recruiters. Focus on what skills you want your staff to have and how they can help the publication. Make your job description clear – be specific on what you want. You need something to measure candidates with to determine if they are right for the job.
In addition, you need to find where to go to target your candidates. In my Dad’s managerial experience, the job recruiters he worked with knew which companies to consider to find candidates. They also had applicants come to them for help in finding a job.
So, take a deep breath and take a hard look at your staff. Take into consideration what is missing and what is unnecessary. There might be someone out there who can help your publication grow and expand in the near future.

Happy recruiting,

Kaye Maloney
Editorial Intern

Shake Firmly

Part of reaching your career goals is knowing how to present yourself and understand the messages that your body language can send.
If you want your employees, prospects and superiors to take you seriously, you need to pay attention. One of the first messages you send people when you meet them for a meeting or luncheon, is through your handshake.
A handshake is a social norm that is part of the business world, but how you do can say a lot about you. In Michael Dalton Johnson’s salesdog.com article, “The Fine Art of the Handshake,” he gives some pointers:
Avoid the power grip: A handshake should be firm, but not too forceful. Notice your tendency to pull the other person toward you as you shake – this can make you seem aggressive.
Nothing wimpy: Don’t offer up a weak handshake, this is a turn-off for many customers.
Eye contact: As you reach for the shake, establish eye contact and smile. A warm and sincere greeting won’t hurt.
Good grip: Don’t grasp their fingers, take their entire hand into yours.
Body language: What’s your posture like? Stand up tall, give the client full attention and keep your hands out of your pockets.

Make More Time In Your Day

You have a lot to do in one day and it’s easy to get over whelmed. Instead of getting frustrated that you didn’t get everything done, take a few moments to think about ways to make your day go better. How can you be more productive?
Here are some tips from the businessknowhow.com article, “Ten Tips to Help Create More Time in Your Day:”

1.Get Organized: Don’t waste time looking for papers, numbers or supplies. Keep your work area clean and functional.
2.Productive Time: What time of day are you the most alert? Do the most difficult tasks during this time.
3.“To Do” List: Make one the night before, so you can get started right away in the morning.
4.More Time: Need extra time? Try getting up an hour earlier to have your coffee and check emails.
5.Schedule It: Choose one task you will finish on each day of the week and stick with it.
6.Avoid “Day Wasters:” Limit the use of forums, television, surfing the web, talking on the phone, etc. These can be good tools, but they can waste a lot of time.
7.Household Chores: Keep your housework manageable by cleaning a little bit each day.
8.Double Duty: Try to multi-task whenever possible.
9.Say No: If you’re too busy with the work you’ve already taken on, don’t feel like you have to say “yes” to every additional task someone asks you to do.
10. Avoid Interruptions: Let the answering machine take calls when you’re busy and don’t spend all day checking email when you have other work to do.