12 MONTH
CERTIFICATE
this business are drying up for the
small agencies," he said.
So what keeps Mr. Green alive?
"Sheer grit and determination. I'm
a survivor. I don't have a safety
net. If I fall, I splatter.
"So I just have to keep doing it.
I have to stay on the phone and
make new business calls, hope for
referrals, and hope for satisfied
clients to come back and do more
stuff with me.
"I do okay, but it's a struggle.
00 What you have to have in this
business besides determination is
a duck's back. You have to let
things roll off you. There's a
tremendous amount of rejection
in making phone calls. There are
problems with clients who don't
like the work, or don't want to pay,
or can't pay. And you tend to get
that more with small companies,
especially small entrepreneural
-
companies.
"It's quite often that people who
have been in this business, and
have left it, will say to me, can't
believe you're still around because
of what is going on in this busi-
ness with the small agencies," said
Mr. Green.
"I don't have one way of getting
new business, I have a lot of dif-
ferent ways. I advertise in Crain's.
I advertise in The Jewish News. I
do mailings. I had a newsletter,
which I just discontinued recent-
ly, but for a number of years I sent
out 600 newsletters a month. I've
got a Web site. I go to a lot of dif-
ferent networking groups, which
is becoming an increasingly more
important way of getting business.
"I have a high visibility. I send
ow out press releases when I get new
clients. People come up to me and
say, 'You're always in the paper,
you're always in Adweek , you're
always in Adcrafter .' The reality
is that I'm not always in there, rm
just in there enough that they see
me," said Mr. Green.
He's been in the advertising
business for 30 years. "By virtue
of my survival and tenacity, it's
•
kept my name in front. I really
*
a
love this business, that's anoth-
er thing that's kept me going. I re-
ally enjoy what I do, even though
it has a lot of headaches. I still get
up every morning with enthusi-
asm and determination, and an
idea of what I'm going to accom-
plish that day.
"I don't work off a traditional
list like a lot of people do, although
I do have a list of my expectations.
Some of the guys in this business
have two lists: a list of things to
do, and a list of people to do them
to.
`Tor the type of budgets I have
to work with, I give a pretty good
product. I can do TV spots for
clients for S3,000 on up. We try to
deliver a creative product that's
well thought out, that's market-
ing oriented, and that gets you re-
sults for your money.
"Because we — meaning agen-
cies of our size — are very ac-
countable," Mr. Green said.
"I believe in my own ability. I
believe in my creativity. I believe
that what rm providing is a valu-
able service. Because there are
companies who appreciate what
I provide, and are willing to pay
for it. And there are enough of
those so that I can stay in busi-
ness." A graduate of Wayne State
University, Mr. Green taught
English at the junior and senior
high school levels for two years
until 1967. He was director of ad-
vertising for several now-defunct
local magazines in the 1960s, in-
cluding Lou Gordon and Jim
Dygert's Detroit Scope.
Mr. Green quit the publishing
business in 1973 to start his first
ad agency, the Southfield-based
RPM Inc. At its peak in 1980, the
agency had $150,000 in revenues,
35 clients, and four employees.
That same year, he sold some of
the RPM assets to Simons Michel-
son Zieve, and joined them as se-
nior vice president in charge of
new business development. After
18 months, they parted ways, and
Mr. Green opened his current
agency in 1982.
dvedising
Mariiii14mett
Imagety basschanged.
Main Office: Southfield, with of-
fices in Los Angeles, Miami,
Glendale, Calif., Greensboro,
N.C., West Chester, Pa. and
Solon, Ohio
Marilyn Barnett, president and
chairman
Ken Barnett, executive vice pres-
ident
Billings: $78 million
Number of employees: 186
Sampling of major accounts:-
Consumer (Account Specific
Advertising): A.C. Delco;
Hanes/Bali Hosiery; Heinz;
Hewlett Packard; Kodak; Nes-
tle; Philips Lighting; Polo Ralph
Lauren. Consumer (Full Ser-
vice): Ann Arbor Art Fairs; Of-
MARS ADVERTISING
page 106
5.75%
INTEREST RATE
5270
A.F.Y./*
60 MONTH
CERTIFICATE
&Oak
INTEREST RATE
6• 1 3%
A.F.Y./*
These are fixed rate certificates of deposit that are insured by Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation (FDIC). A minimum opening deposit and balance of $500.00
is required to obtain the stated Annual Percentage Yield.
.or prir****
tom_
*41
Deposits
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BANK
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