Jill Merriam

I've had some really good female leaders and male leaders throughout my career, and I've always tried to soak everything in and take it as a training moment. I feel like if you look at every moment as 'how can I grow and how can I learn from this?' rather than taking something as criticism, that's helped me significantly. Every client's different, and every situation is different - some things go smoothly, some things don't, like when you do a remote on the side of a mountain and nobody shows up. But you learn from all of it. I've been fortunate to have mentors like Brenda Egger and Ken Blasey who really shaped how I approach sales and taught me to roll through the punches.

The best career advice I ever received was from that one professor who told me to go into sales - that changed everything for me. But beyond that, I'd say it's to always stay positive because in sales you get a lot of no's. Just because it's no today doesn't mean it's no tomorrow, so always stay in touch with clients because you never know - in 4 months, they could need your services. You're not looking for that sale, you're looking for the relationship. Always send them articles you find about their business, things that keep you top of mind. Care more about the client than you care about closing the sale. I've worked with some clients literally for 18 years - they followed me from when I was selling radio in Aspen to working with them here now on Paramount stuff. It's because they trust me and consider me a friend versus considering me this annoying sales rep.

My advice to young women entering this industry is to stay committed and trust the process, because persistence ultimately pays off. Sales can be challenging, and there will be times when you face rejection, setbacks, and moments of self-doubt, but those experiences are part of the journey. Early in my career, I learned that success doesn’t happen overnight—it comes from consistently showing up, learning from every interaction, and staying resilient through the ups and downs. I still remember making my first cold call with little confidence and experience, yet that experience eventually led to one of my strongest client relationships. You may hear many more “no’s” than “yeses,” but every rejection brings you one step closer to an opportunity. If you are passionate about what you do, stay the course, keep learning, and trust that your hard work and perseverance will lead to long-term success.

The biggest challenge right now in media is that there's a billion things for people to buy, so what's the why for them to buy you? Everybody I call or talk to is probably talking to 20 other marketing people, so the question is: what makes you better? What makes them want to buy your product versus somebody down the road? The way to overcome that is to not go in there to sell your product, but to go in there to help with their marketing needs. Everybody's trying to sell themselves, but if you listen to a client and take away what they actually need, and build a plan around that, that's what puts you above everybody else. It's not about what you're selling, it's about what their pain points are in life and how your product helps it. They don't need to hear you sell them, they need to know what's going to work for them. Don't be a sleazy sales rep - know your value and be able to align that with what the client needs.

Honesty is incredibly important to me. I've seen so many other reps try to hide mistakes, like grabbing the wrong file or running the wrong commercial, thinking 'maybe they won't notice.' But if you're honest about it and say, 'I'm so sorry, but here's what I'm doing to make this up, and here's what we're going to do moving forward to make sure it doesn't happen,' that's never gonna lose you favor in the long run. Having pride in what you do is also crucial - if you don't have pride in what you do, it shows. Integrity goes hand-in-hand with honesty. And attentiveness - responding in an appropriate amount of time. When I train new reps, I tell them if a client emails you, you gotta reply within 6 to 8 hours. I felt so bad when I saw a call on Monday and had been in back-to-back meetings - it had already been 2 days and I needed to reply. And finally, having fun - it doesn't have to be a job if you're having fun doing it. Work a job you love and you'll never work a day in your life.