This makes for a good conversation with a client who is hesitant to move forward.

I'm not, by any stretch of the imagination, saying that the story of the Economy isn't a big one. It's the biggest story since 9-11.

On the other hand, it's partially what I call, a Media Firestorm. That's when one story dominates the news like no other - then one day almost disappears. Remember Iraq and WMD? With no actual substantiation or real proof, the stories in the press would have you believe there was an atomic bomb on every corner of Baghdad. Or Baby Gonzales in Miami. Or Senator Larry Craig in the potty in the Minneapolis airport. It's not like he's the first politician or clergyman who led us to believe they embodied the moral values of the Twelve Apostles - and gosh darn they were telling us a fib. Or Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich. (But no! Corruption in Chicago government? No. It can't be true. ) In retrospect the coverage of the stories was over the top when compared to the larger problems before us.

How did those stories become such a big deal? Why?

1. There are fewer reporters than years ago. 
2. They are not necessarily "journalists" but reporters.
3. Most reporters look to other news organizations to get their story priorities.
4. Because there are fewer, they like everyone else, are multi-tasking and have pressure for more stories in a shorter time and thus often go with the flow; seeing a story being covered widely, they cover it too. The story becomes, if you will, Over-Covered. That's what's compounded the coverage of The Economy.

Aha! Here's my promise. The time will come, when a reporter, hearing a story of positive economic news, will write about it. Google click-throughs will bring its rank up - and the storm will start in the opposite direction. That is to say, layoffs and bailouts will become so common that they will no longer be big news. The next Media Firestorm will be The Good News.

Again this one is big, has few signs of turnaround in the near term and thus merits the coverage. In time it will get less time and space. The big news will be Signs of Recovery or The Economic Miracle. (Let's hope.)  Look for the Recovery Media Firestorm.

Late paying clients. So where's our leverage to fight this? What, do we turn down the business? Yeah, right. Here's another answer for those formats (stations) that have depended on the annual summer Bud buy for decades.

The money came from Busch Media or a local distributor. The Busch media people had a reputation for being just short of wonderful - they were a pleasure to do business with. Times, of course, have changed.

When I was selling sports we had one avail per category, for the major categories e.g. one car, beer, bank, airline, etc. The goal was to make the package so attractive that they would bid for it. First-come, First-served. We took it to the usual three majors, Bud, Miller and the distributor who usually handled Coors and a bunch of secondary brands like Dos Equis and Heineken. But we let them know there was only one package available - and it was a super deal.

Same here. If you've had the Bud business, create a Super-Uber Package. If you have the avails, especially for the summer, throw in the kitchen sink; spots, bar promotions, co-sponsorships, promos, personality endorsements and the bottom ten feet of the tower - a whopper. Like the above example, you can go to three or more candidates and tell them they can have this El Magnifico Deal.

• Exclusively - make if for a significant amount of money.
• And we agree on Net 30 Day payment plan. If they get behind, an automatic cancellation clause kicks in and we take it to the next in line panting to get it.

But it can only work if it's a great deal for them.

The survey feedback from our first Negotiating Skills for Tough Times was better than I could have hoped. We hit a nerve touching on things ranging from How to Position Yourself for Leverage, Turf Selection and Finding their REAL Objection. There are about thirty (30) more. But one of our participants asked a great question - that I can't adequately answer and I'm turning to you for help.

In a Tough Economy, where budgets are already slimmer, what do you do with a media buyer who says Take-It-or-Leave It,  I Can Easily Buy Around You -  wherein our stations are perceived ONLY as a means to hit GRP goals. Anything else means absolutely nothing - format, rank, station heritage, on-air personalities. Here's what I'll pay - take it or leave it by 5PM.

I have an answer for that, which I'll share next week - but I don't think it's good enough. Would you share yours? I'd love to hear it. Email me at taz@tazmedia.com.

PS. To readers whose high school counselors said Hmmm and/or those who are currently off their meds -  we'd love to hear those too.