Jim McLaughlin has been named President at Link Media. McLaughlin is an experienced out of home executive who was previously CEO of Signal Outdoor Advertising (2013-2016) and Olympus Media (2002-2010) Link was formed in 2015 by the public company Boston Omaha Corp. Since inception Link has acquired billboard companies in Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Wisconsin.
Jim, tell us about Link.
Well, it’s an exciting opportunity and we’ve already got roughly 1,000 faces (counting each digital click as one) in the 4 states that you mentioned above. The owners at Boston Omaha Corporation (BOMN) are big believers in the medium and I have been charged with building a meaningfully larger company for them in the traditional space over the next decade. I’ve done this a few times before, as everyone knows, but never with “permanent money”, and I’m extremely happy to have been asked to head up the effort going forward and to work with Adam and Alex, the principals at Boston Omaha. My predecessor, Sean Cash, and his staff have done a wonderful job taking Link from ground level to what it is today and I have a great platform from which to grow the company. I couldn’t be more excited.
What makes the Link job attractive?
Has to be the long-term investment aspect, versus what I’ve historically had with private equity sponsors. It takes time to build a quality company in most sectors, but that is especially true in outdoor. Most expansion opportunities come from acquisitions as opposed to organic or greenfield growth, and the Big 3, or 4, have done a good job rolling up a lot of US outdoor companies over the last 20 years. There are a lot that keep popping up, but getting density and efficiency takes time. Finally, I have time in addition to money with which to grow.
What areas will you focus on at Link during the next 6 months.
Initially, I’ll look at the sales process to see how Link is currently selling space and production, and then we’ll implement any changes that may need to occur to accelerate the basics, rate and occupancy. Of course, acquisitions are a key element in gaining size and density, so that will be a priority, in addition to adding strategic digital faces where we can on some existing static or tri-vision structures. After that, its systems, website, and operational efficiencies to maximize EBITDA. Easy to say, not so easy to accomplish. But those are the first items on the agenda.
Link has grown rapidly during the past two years with acquisitions. What are your thoughts about future acquisition?
Well, I’ve touched on that, but that is going to be a high priority, right behind driving sales.
Insider asked Sean Cash, former Link Media President who recently resigned, about his future plans and Cash said this:
My strengths lie in creating new companies and building the foundation for future success. We’ve built a great foundation and now Jim can utilize his strengths and experience to grow Link Media into a dominate outdoor media company. I’ll be working along side Jim and the Link team for a smooth transition over the coming months.
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