And that way you kind of know how to approach it. What do you do? Roger Burnett
We do a fair amount of research on the organization before we ever even get to that first discussion. 'Cause what we're wanting to try to figure out is if there is some outward demonstration of what that company believes in, and if we can draw a line from the cause or whatever it is that the organization is passionate about to then marry that to the story of what it is that we may want to sell to them. So for instance, here's a great example, right? So if that business is owned by a veteran, or if they're really strong supporters of the military, there are a number of different factories within the promotional marketing space that have products that have some tie to the military or some veterans based organization. So that when I'm bringing product recommendations back to that person, clearly the first thing I'm going to show them are options that have that tie to something veterans. Because I'm gambling that they're probably going to be a little bit more interested in than not than a tumbler with no story whatsoever. Marshall Atkinson So really what you're doing is you're lurking through all of their social media posts and you're dissecting what they're interested in just based on the posts that they've made or the videos or the pictures that I've shared and that kind of stuff, right? Roger Burnett That's and then so, for those instances where it's not so obvious. I will generally ask a very basic question, and it goes something like this: "Marshall, I have the ability and the wherewithal to grant you Bill Gates' money. Congratulations, you don't have to worry about money for the rest of your life. But there's only one condition; you now have to devote the time and energy that you use to devote to your job, to a nonprofit or a cause of some sorts. Do you have one in mind?" And what I would say typically tell you is that the answer is measured in seconds. And people who are under the age of 35 almost immediately, already have something that they'll tell you, and people who are 35 and older have to think about it for a while. Marshall Atkinson Yes. That's. That is so true. All right. That's awesome. So, so how are your customers reacting to this? Is it working for you? I mean, do they really value this stuff? Sometimes is it just a dead-end brick wall? And what do you do then? Do you just like sell them something anyway? Or do you say: "Hey, not a good fit. Good luck. See ya"? Roger Burnett So there's some nuance to that. So clearly nothing like a global pandemic to maybe cause some acceleration in some changes as, so slowing down and some other changes. But ultimately what we're seeing is, now that people are starting to think about the business of doing business on a more regular basis. We focused a lot during COVID on trying to build our trustworthiness. To be seen as a credible and trustworthy source so that when people started spending money again, maybe we would rise up the ranks of the people that they would want to call now that they're back to having that be what they're thinking about, and that hasn't worked. So, in the process though, what was really interesting is by the time we get to product selection Marshall, a lot of times the customer will say to me, "Roger, just tell me what I should buy".
92
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs