Outbound Sales for Media & Entertainment at Public Company
A step-by-step playbook for implementing outbound sales at a Public Company-stage Media & Entertainment company. This guide covers everything from initial setup and team requirements to execution, measurement, and optimization — tailored specifically for Media & Entertainment companies with publicly accountable marketing budget tied to quarterly targets and large, specialized teams with institutional processes. Includes specific KPIs, recommended tools, common pitfalls to avoid, and expert insights from Ehsan Jahandarpour.
Timeline: 1-2 weeks
Prerequisites
- ✓ Established product with proven product-market fit
- ✓ Analytics infrastructure capturing key user events
- ✓ DMCA, copyright enforcement, and content moderation policies are critical — ensure compliance before scaling
- ✓ CRM and email sequencing tools configured
- ✓ At least 5 closed deals to validate ICP assumptions
Step-by-Step Guide
Define your ideal customer profile
Build a detailed ICP based on company size, industry, tech stack, funding stage, and pain points. The more specific, the higher your response rates. For Media & Entertainment companies at the Public Company stage, this step is particularly important given predictable growth and shareholder value creation.
Pro tip: Analyze your last 20 closed-won deals — what do those companies have in common? In the Media & Entertainment context, also consider: content monetization challenges.
Build targeted prospect lists
Use data tools to build lists of companies and decision-makers that match your ICP. Enrich with intent signals and technographic data. For Media & Entertainment companies at the Public Company stage, this step is particularly important given predictable growth and shareholder value creation.
Pro tip: Prioritize companies showing buying signals: hiring for relevant roles, using competitor tools, or raising funding. In the Media & Entertainment context, also consider: audience fragmentation.
Write personalized outreach sequences
Create multi-touch sequences across email, LinkedIn, and phone. Each message should reference something specific about the prospect company. For Media & Entertainment companies at the Public Company stage, this step is particularly important given predictable growth and shareholder value creation.
Pro tip: First email should be under 100 words. Lead with their problem, not your product. In the Media & Entertainment context, also consider: creator economy competition.
Set up sales tech stack
Implement a CRM, email sequencer, dialer, and LinkedIn automation tool. Connect everything for unified tracking and reporting. For Media & Entertainment companies at the Public Company stage, this step is particularly important given predictable growth and shareholder value creation.
Pro tip: Start with HubSpot or Salesforce + Apollo or Outreach. Do not over-tool early. In the Media & Entertainment context, also consider: ad revenue volatility.
Execute and iterate on outreach
Launch sequences, track open/reply rates, A/B test subject lines and CTAs. Aim for 30-50% open rates and 5-10% reply rates. For Media & Entertainment companies at the Public Company stage, this step is particularly important given predictable growth and shareholder value creation.
Pro tip: Send outbound Tuesday through Thursday, 8-10am in the prospect timezone for best response rates. In the Media & Entertainment context, also consider: content monetization challenges.
Expected Outcomes
- ✓ 15-25 qualified meetings booked per SDR per month targeting Media & Entertainment
- ✓ Email reply rate above 8% for personalized outbound sequences
- ✓ Outbound-sourced pipeline contributing 30-50% of total pipeline
- ✓ Average deal size 2x higher for outbound Media & Entertainment deals vs inbound
KPIs to Track
- ● SDR-sourced revenue
- ● Cost per meeting
- ● Sales cycle length
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Ehsan's Growth Commentary
Media outbound targets advertisers and brand partners — the revenue engine of most media companies. The media outbound playbook: lead with audience data specific to the advertiser's target demographic. "Your competitors [name 2-3] are reaching [specific audience segment] through our platform with [specific metrics]" is infinitely more compelling than "we have X million monthly visitors." Media outbound is relationship-driven: the same 500-2,000 media buyers control the majority of advertising budgets at major brands and agencies. Building personal relationships with these buyers (through dinners, events, and genuinely useful audience insights) generates more revenue than any scaled outbound operation. The media outbound rule: your sales team should know their top 100 prospects by name and reach out with personalized, relevant information monthly — not mass email campaigns. One strong relationship with a Dentsu or WPP media buyer is worth more than 10,000 cold emails.
The first email should be about them, not you. Lead with a specific observation about their company or role. In Media & Entertainment, multi-threaded outreach (contacting 3+ people at the same account) increases response rates by 50%. Follow up at least 5 times. 80% of deals require 5+ touches, but 90% of salespeople give up after 2.
Ehsan Jahandarpour
AI Growth Strategist & Fractional CMO
Forbes Top 20 Growth Hacker · TEDx Speaker · 716 Academic Citations · Ex-Microsoft · CMO at FirstWave (ASX:FCT) · Forbes Communications Council