Janet Holcombe, Thedailynews - a Case Study

Summary:

Janet Holcombe is a four year media sales representative for TheDailyNews.com website and mobile app. Within these four years she has cultivated a successful business relationship with a local Jewelry store owner (Harry Godowski) placing ads for his business. Janet is contacted by Sy Abell, a franchise jewelry store owner, opening a store in the city mall with hopes of taking over ad space with TheDailyNews.com that is usually occupied by Harry.

Analysis:

Janet is dealing with a shrewd businessman Sy Abell, who is set on crushing his competition by out buying him in TheDailyNews.com advertising space. He has a need for dominance which he exhibits by demanding Janet reveal Harrys advertising budget, promotions and expenditures. Sy is using negation tactics that are clearly undervaluing the worth of TheDailyNews.com. He also tries to use bribery to get his way. In addition, Sy tends to pay his bills after 120 days and has been complained about to the Better Business Bureau. Sy seems to be all about himself and winning by any means necessary, this type of attitude puts Janet and The DailyNews.com at risk to their other clients because his practices proves him to not hold and manage long-term relationships well. If Janet accepts the terms of Sys’ deal as is she stands to soil current relationships with other good standing clients.

Recommendations:

The first thing that Janet has to do is counter her offer from Sy. She has to be just as cunning and shrewd as Sy to garner respect. In response to Sy demanding information about Harrys advertising endeavors she should explain to him that she cannot and will not share that information with him. It is a breach of trust and absolutely unethical. In any negotiation it is not wise to accept the first offer. An intial offer is usually a low ball offer used as a buffer to an intermediate price. One way to create value for TheDailyNews.com is explaining to Sy that the website was the most visited website in the area with access to 8 million viewers per month on average. Also, in response to him putting his money into radio, those ads will not have the same effect as a visual ad on a colorful quality website with an affluent viewership, so investing in TheDailynews.com would be the superior option. While Janet is fielding and negotiating offers, she should inform her clients that there are competitors looking to advertise with her. With that information she can negotiate a higher price or a longstanding option to continue the relationship. Sy’s pass at Janet should be taken as an opportunity to counter his offer and discuss better options moving forward.

Implications:

By countering Sys offer in an aggressive manner she will be setting a precedent for how business will go from here on out as well as gaining