Poland's Puls Biznesu Ups Advertising in a Down Market

Bonnier Business Polska in Poland is bucking the trends with an increase in newspaper ad sales for business daily Puls Biznesu of 23.1 percent for January to May 2010 compared to the same period the previous year. For the newspaper industry as a whole in Poland, ad sales were down at - 8 percent during the same period, with magazines down at -7 percent. Online ad sales were even more impressive at the website Pb.pl, up 119 percent for the same time period from the year before, as compared to the overall market which increased only 18.2 percent. Bonnier.com talked to Krzysztof Zarzeczny, commercial director for Bonnier Business Polska in Warsaw about the upturn.

Why do you think that ad sales are better now?
In general, the total advertising market in Poland is still down, but there are some symptoms of stabilization. Customers still have less money and they need to spend it "smarter" - this is an opportunity for us. We also changed our work methods and quality standards two years ago. I personally think that was an investment that we are benefiting from at the moment.

Does it look like it will continue?
Market surveys and predictions are stable for the next part of this year and more positive for 2011 and 2012. We are positively focused and prepared for the second part of 2010.

How does the Polish market look like now? Are there things unique to it as a market?
The Polish market is very competitive, more than 50 percent of the advertising pie belongs to TV. Almost all of the big worldwide media players are present here and they are pretty aggressive. And our segment - B2B newspapers - is no less competitive then the other segments. Calculated by circulation, we are No. 3 of the four B2B newspapers in Poland. Our No. 1 competitor has a circulation higher than 150,000, while our circulation is more than 20,000.

What have you and your team done to help make this happen?
There are a few reasons that we are doing well: We have a great, passionate team that has developed great relationships with customers during the last two years. We sell cross-media projects and build solutions tailored to the market. We look more for niches and market segments rather than for typical wide-audience reach. We always search for new opportunities and are flexible and creative in turning them in to dollars. We have learned to work with priorities measured in potential revenue. Our main goal for this "down time" is to increase our market share by doing things faster and better than the competition. So far everything is going well!

Do you have advice for other sales staff in other publications and countries?
There is no easy way to turn a profit at this time, so don't give up. My advice is to work hard, be consistent, be creative and be faster than your competition. Sell integrated solutions rather than just products, work closely with the editorial department. And last but not least, have fun and enjoy your work, as well as the people you work with.