Keep business objectives in focus as you counsel ad customers on 2027 planning

Are you asking your clients what they plan to spend in 2027, or are you helping them decide what they want their business to become in 2027?”

Shannon Kinney, founder and client success officer, Dream Local Digital, and E&P contributing columnist

Every October, something predictable happens across our industry. Sales teams begin looking ahead to the next year, advertisers start thinking about budgets, and everyone feels the pressure to lock in annual commitments before the calendar turns. It’s natural for media sales professionals to start asking questions about 2027 advertising plans, campaign calendars and how much clients expect to spend. There’s nothing inherently wrong with those conversations, but I think we are starting in the wrong place.

Before a business decides how it will market itself in 2027, it must first decide where it is trying to go. That means October should not simply be budget season; it should be strategic-planning season.

When executives plan for the new year, they rarely start with marketing and advertising. They are thinking about revenue growth, whether they have the right people to support that growth, what competitors are doing, how customer behavior is changing, what new products or services they should introduce, and where their biggest risks may be.

A family-owned business may be thinking about opening a second location. A healthcare organization may be trying to solve a staffing shortage. A retailer may want to increase the average transaction value rather than simply drive more traffic. A home services company may be trying to expand into a neighboring market. Another business owner may be thinking about succession and what the company needs to look like three years from now in order to hand it off or sell it. These are the conversations taking place within the business.

It is an opportunity for a trusted adviser to get involved earlier. Too often, we arrive after the strategy has already been determined. The business has created its goals, developed a budget, allocated dollars and perhaps even decided what kind of marketing it wants. At that point, the media salesperson is competing for a portion of an already-established advertising budget. That puts us in vendor territory. The more valuable position is to be invited into the conversation while the business is still deciding what it wants to accomplish.

Five planning conversations to have this fall

When I’m helping a business think about the year ahead, there are five areas I want to understand: growth, talent, customers, operations and leadership priorities.

Start with growth, and gauge whether the business owner is in a growth mindset, or if they’re concerned and retracting. Where does the business expect new revenue to come from in 2027? Are they trying to attract more customers, increase customer value, expand geographically, introduce a new product or service, or gain market share from a competitor? The answer tells you far more than simply asking how much they want to spend on marketing or advertising.

Next, ask about people. Many of the businesses we work with cannot achieve their growth goals unless they first solve hiring or retention problems. That means the most important marketing challenge may have nothing to do with acquiring customers. Employer branding, recruitment marketing, reputation and community visibility could actually be the greatest strategic priorities. For nonprofits, this can also show up as a need to fundraise, building their branding and messaging for that purpose.

Then, turn to customers. Are buying habits shifting? Is price sensitivity increasing? Are they struggling to retain customers? This is where the media company’s audience knowledge and local market insight can be incredibly valuable.

Then, it’s time to dig into the business. A business can generate all the demand in the world, but if it cannot fulfill that demand profitably, marketing harder may actually make the problem worse. Are margins under pressure? Do they have the capacity to grow? Are there parts of the business they want to automate or make more efficient? What would happen if marketing worked better than expected?

Finally, every business has issues that don’t necessarily appear on a marketing plan: succession, competition, expansion, economic uncertainty, technology, AI, rising costs. Those issues often shape every other decision the company makes.

Notice that none of these conversations begins with a marketing service or an advertising product. That is intentional.

One of the biggest differences between a vendor and a trusted adviser is timing. Vendors are called when someone is ready to buy something. Trusted advisers are called when someone is trying to decide what to do. Imagine calling one of your best clients and saying, “Rather than starting with advertising plans for next year, I’d love to spend some time understanding where you want the business to go in 2027. If I understand that first, I can bring you better ideas about how we might help.”

That immediately changes the meeting’s tone.

And because you work with dozens or even hundreds of businesses in the market, you can often bring a perspective they don’t have. You are seeing changes in consumer behavior across categories. You are watching what competitors are doing. You know which industries are growing, which are struggling, and which marketing approaches are gaining traction. That market intelligence is incredibly valuable when used correctly.

AI for a better planning conversation

I’ve written extensively about how AI can help media sales professionals research prospects, prepare for meetings and identify opportunities. Strategic planning is another place where it can be incredibly useful, but I would use it differently here.

Instead of simply asking AI to analyze a company’s marketing, use it to help you understand the business environment your client will face in 2027. Ask about trends affecting their industry, your specific community, potential growth opportunities, changing consumer behaviors, competitive pressures or economic factors they should be considering. For example, you might ask, “What are the biggest business challenges likely to affect independent auto dealers in 2027?”

Or, “What trends should a locally owned home services company consider when building its 2027 growth plan?”

As always, you need to validate the information and bring your own experience and local knowledge to the conversation. The goal isn’t to walk into the meeting with AI-generated answers. The goal is to walk in with better questions. That distinction is important. The trusted adviser doesn’t need to know everything. The trusted adviser needs to help the client think more clearly and be prepared to make strategic recommendations.

There is a tremendous opportunity for media companies as businesses begin preparing for 2027. But the opportunity is bigger than securing next year’s advertising budget. The real opportunity is to become part of the process that determines what the budget is designed to accomplish in the first place.

If a client tells you they want to increase revenue by 20%, open another location, recruit 15 employees, enter a new market or build greater awareness for a new service line, you can begin building a marketing strategy around a meaningful business objective. You also have a much stronger foundation for discussing the right investment, the right mix of tactics and the right timeline. That is how larger, longer-term relationships are built.

The trusted-adviser challenge

Choose five of your most important clients or prospects and schedule a true 2027 planning conversation with each of them. Go into the meeting without a proposal but rather with smart questions, insights and value. Ask them where the business needs to be in one year and what could prevent them from getting there. Then listen. You may discover opportunities that would never have appeared on an advertising needs assessment.

One question before your next sales call: Are you asking your clients what they plan to spend in 2027, or are you helping them decide what they want their business to become in 2027?

Dream Local Digital Founder and Client Success Officer Shannon Kinney brings more than 30 years of experience in leadership roles, developing scalable digital marketing strategies and supporting and training media companies with scalable digital revenue growth. She played a vital role in the development of prominent internet giants, including Cars.com, CareerBuilder.com, Knight Ridder Digital, LinkedIn, Google, eBay and Microsoft. She worked with media companies worldwide until pivoting to found Dream Local Digital. Since Dream Local Digital's creation in 2009, Shannon has served on the Local Media Association board, been awarded the LMA Digital Innovation Award, appeared on hundreds of stages as a keynote speaker, and helped media companies transform their business model. She currently also serves as a project lead on the Local Media Association Branded Content Project Cohorts, helping media companies transform through new revenue streams. Shannon can be reached at shannon@dreamlocal.com.