Local media companies heading into 2026 face a familiar challenge: rising revenue pressure paired with outdated sales habits. In a recent webinar hosted by the Local Media Association, industry veterans laid out three common sales pitfalls — and practical, modern strategies to avoid them using AI, better systems, and more intentional promotion.

The takeaway was clear: local media sales don’t need to work harder. They need to work smarter.

The problem local media sales teams face heading into 2026

The webinar brought together sales leaders from across local media and digital marketing, including Shannon Kinney of Dream Local Digital and David Buonfiglio and Jeff Gallop of Adapt Media Sales.

Together, they identified a pattern they see repeatedly across markets of all sizes:
media companies relying too heavily on legacy sales routines while buyer behavior has fundamentally changed.

The result? Missed revenue, thin pipelines, and sales teams stuck chasing the same advertisers year after year.

The panel focused on three pitfalls that consistently limit growth — and how to fix them.

Pitfall No. 1: Not promoting your own value proposition

One of the most overlooked sales mistakes in local media is failing to market your own products with the same intensity you promise advertisers.

Sales teams are asked to sell audience access, credibility and marketing expertise — yet many media companies barely showcase those strengths themselves.

Key takeaways from the webinar:

  • Your company is your first client.
    If your website, newsletters, and social channels don’t clearly promote your solutions, advertisers won’t understand your value.
  • Media kits aren’t enough anymore.
    Buyers don’t make decisions based on rate cards or column inches. They want proof of expertise.
  • Thought leadership builds trust before the first sales call.
    Sales leaders and reps should regularly share insights about marketing trends, audience behavior, and local business challenges.
  • Speak the advertiser’s language.
    Stop selling formats. Start selling outcomes: awareness, leads, foot traffic, and growth.

Consistent self-promotion doesn’t just help branding — it shortens sales cycles by warming prospects before a rep ever reaches out.

Pitfall No. 2: Relying on old advertiser lists instead of active prospecting

The second major issue: many local media sales teams rely too heavily on existing advertisers and former clients.

That approach creates fragile revenue pipelines and limits growth, especially in markets where advertiser churn is inevitable.

The solution presented in the webinar centered on AI-powered prospecting.

How AI is changing prospecting for local media

Adapt Media Sales demonstrated how modern AI tools can:

  • Identify ideal prospects based on geography, industry, and business size
  • Filter large databases down to highly relevant local decision-makers
  • Surface contact details and business intelligence instantly
  • Create personality insights to personalize outreach

Rather than cold guessing or manual list-building, AI allows sales teams to start each week with a qualified, targeted prospect list — even in small markets.

Importantly, the presenters emphasized that AI doesn’t replace salespeople. It replaces wasted time.

As one presenter put it:
“If you’re not using AI early in the sales cycle, you’re simply less competitive than the sellers who are.”

Why small and rural markets benefit the most from AI prospecting

One common concern raised during the webinar was whether AI prospecting works in small markets.

The answer: yes, often better than traditional methods.

Examples shared included:

  • Finding hundreds of healthcare, legal, or HVAC prospects in rural regions
  • Segmenting prospects by industry for special sections or vertical packages
  • Dividing clean prospect lists among sales reps to improve accountability

AI prospecting often reveals businesses sales teams didn’t even know existed, expanding opportunity without expanding headcount.

Pitfall No. 3: Not nurturing prospects long enough to get a “yes”

The final (and most damaging) pitfall is poor follow-up.

According to the webinar, 92% of sales professionals fail at this stage.

Why? Because most sales require five to twelve touchpoints before a decision is made.

Those touchpoints don’t mean repeated sales pitches. They mean consistent, value-driven contact.

What effective nurturing actually looks like

Successful follow-up includes:

  • Email insights tied to the advertiser’s industry
  • Creative ideas or campaign suggestions
  • Relevant articles, guides, or case studies
  • Thoughtful voicemail or LinkedIn messages
  • Timely reminders tied to seasonal needs

What doesn’t work:
“Just checking in” emails with no value attached.

The goal is to remain helpful, relevant and visible — not annoying.

Why systems matter more than talent

One of the strongest messages from the webinar was this:
Sales success is systemic, not heroic.

Whether using a CRM, spreadsheet, Trello board, or whiteboard, sales teams must track:

  • Where each prospect sits in the pipeline
  • How many touchpoints have occurred
  • When the last contact happened
  • What value was delivered

Panelists strongly encouraged any organization without a CRM to adopt one immediately, even a free version.

Without a system, follow-up becomes accidental. With a system, revenue becomes predictable.

Where AI helps — and where it doesn’t

The panel also addressed a critical question: when should AI not be used?

The answer was unanimous:
Never use AI for real-time, one-to-one relationship moments.

AI is powerful for:

  • Research
  • Prospect identification
  • Drafting initial outreach
  • Organization and automation

But once a real person responds, sales professionals must slow down and respond authentically, in their own voice.

Generic AI replies, the panel warned, feel no different than form letters and are quickly ignored.

The bottom line for local media sales in 2026

The path forward isn’t mysterious.

Local media companies that grow revenue in 2026 will:

  • Promote their own expertise consistently
  • Prospect aggressively using modern tools
  • Nurture leads with discipline and value
  • Use systems to remove friction from selling

Those that don’t will continue fighting shrinking pipelines with outdated methods.

As the webinar made clear: The tools exist. The opportunity exists. The question is whether media companies are willing to change how they sell.

The webinar recording is available here: Need to increase your revenue in 2026? 3 Pitfalls to Avoid

(Passcode: Q?kJ34SW)

Previous webinars:

Editor’s note: Artificial Intelligence was used to transcribe and create an initial summary of this article, which was then edited by LMA staff.