About 14-15 years ago, my team was trying very hard to get in the door with a director at a manufacturing plant in Philadelphia. He was our White Whale. Email was still novel back then, but even the most creative email message wasn’t working. My RSM in the area would stop by regularly, his inside sales person would call and email weekly … nothing. This isn’t a sob story about stupid persistence – they were practicing creative persistence unlike any I had ever seen … but nothing. We didn’t even know what the guy looked like.
On the morning of Christmas Eve, I was driving home from Dunkin Donuts and feeling sympathetic toward to the folks working there on this holiday. I remember feeling so grateful that I was in my home town relaxing with my family, and started thinking about those that had to work. My mind started wondering a little and concluded that the very busy and successful were probably working too. (I had just entered in sales management and started worrying that this might be my last Christmas Eve relaxing.) Then it hit me: Mr. Big was probably in his office right now and no one would be bothering him. When I arrived at my mom’s house, I VPN’d into our database at the office to get his phone number and called him. (If you’re under 35 years old, just pretend I typed “I called him from my smart phone.) Yep, he answered. He answered and he was actually in a pleasant mood. I told him I’d be in Philadelphia the second week of January and scheduled an appointment for my RSM and me. I even joked that if he agreed to a meeting that I’d tell my team to leave him alone.
Here is your idea this week: Write down your Top 10 Mr. or Ms. Bigs, and call them between 8:00 and 9:00 next Thursday, Christmas Eve. If they answer, make a joke out of it and ask for an appointment on a specific day on or after the second week of January. You won’t get them all, but I bet you get a couple.
