Hey Bud, This One's for You --DeWese

THIS COLUMN is a true story. This true story is one of guts, innovation, hard work and, hopefully, success. Not my guts. Not my innovation. I will be talking about Bud’s success. The owner of a $3 million printing company down South sent me a long e-mail. I’ll skip the part where he tells me that I’m the greatest living column writer and that I deserve the Pulitzer Prize. Here is what else he told me:

“I read your article in the November 2008 Printing Impressions. The comment of ‘times of trouble are times of opportunity’ usually holds true in my mind. Also, in conjunction to this phrase, for every problem there is a solution. After reading ‘About the Author,’ it didn’t take long to realize this man is probably smarter than most Harvard graduates.” (My dear departed Mama used to say stuff like that.)

“Anyhow,” Bud writes, “finding our company in an increasingly uncomfortable market, economy, situation or whatever you can call it, brings up why I am contacting you. After staying on the cutting edge of technology with prepress to digital output, green technology, having conventional offset, more than qualified and experienced people, a new strategic and methodic salesperson, I still find [my company] barely getting enough work to scrape by.” (Actually, Bud used a down-home term that some readers might find sexist or politically incorrect. It has to do with being the runt of the litter and finding a good position at feeding time.)

He continues, “In the last year, I cannot think of one job that was kicked back due to customer dissatisfaction. My Golden Rule is: ‘Don’t sell anything you wouldn’t buy yourself.’ I think that we have all of the pieces to the puzzle right here, and they seem to be in place, but it is still not making a pretty picture. So, if you could spare the time to chat with me, I am asking for advice from someone I absolutely don’t know, but who obviously has seen a lot and has more than book smarts under his hat,” Bud concluded.

Of course, I could “spare the time.” I can always spare the time for Bud’s kind of candor. I called him, thinking, “I’m gonna lay some of my Mañana Man genius on him. Then, he will be all well.” It was the same kind of misguided thinking for my healing powers, when I would kiss one of my kid’s scrapes and bumps.

Questions Open Doors

I phoned Bud, and it was an easy conversation. He was open, candid and sincerely grateful for my call. We got acquainted, and I began to ask questions. I asked if he had developed a customer/prospect/suspect database of buyers for his kind of print communications products.

He said, “Yes.” He told me that the database presently numbers 530 buyers, and includes companies ranging from local car dealers to a handful of gargantuan Fortune 500 companies headquartered nearby. And, he added that he prints for most of these big companies. Those companies are one of his problems because their big print volumes have been cut severely due to our disastrous economy.

Bud’s one salesman works the database daily with phone calls, personal visits and mailings. It’s his job to keep the list current with good addresses, buyer names and phone numbers. He works the list in conjunction with various promotions.

One such promotion resulted from a proprietary presentation folder created by Bud. Bud sent me a large envelope full of his samples that could have come from a $50 million company.

So far, Bud has an up-to-date database, a hardworking salesperson and a proprietary product that the rep can talk about. I suggested that he use a pricing promotion to “open the door” in these tough times. Something clever to capitalize on all the “bail out” publicity. I told him that a first job with a new account is the best way to build a relationship, since it affords many opportunities to visit and call on the new account. Those opportunities should lead to much greater knowledge about the customer, the client’s company and future needs.

Bud thanked me for this idea, but told me gently that they had already done that, and it was working well. He included a sample of his Recession Special “First Job” coupon. It is a great design, cleverly executed and part of a mailing/phone follow-up program being executed by the salesperson. And, now, I’m getting really frustrated.

This guy is already doing more marketing than printing companies 10 times his size. So, I thought, “Here’s one that will blow him away.” I told him to try customer seminars in the plant. Give them a little technical know-how for an hour and then serve some refreshments to get acquainted and network.

Bud responded by thanking me and agreeing that my seminar idea was good because they had started them last year, and so far have conducted six gatherings that have generated seven new accounts and several other potential ones. Bud, his salesperson and the plant manager conduct the seminars, and they have been a big hit, generating 12 to 20 registrants for each date.

By now, I’ve found out that Bud’s company revenues are only up 4 percent this year, despite the loss of all of the big company work. He told me that his 2008 profits are about the same as 2007, despite the new account discount program.

Try and Try Again

Now, I have been completely one-upped. He has already successfully implemented every idea I was trying to give him. But, I’ll try one more.

I told him that CEOs accompanying salespeople on team calls have proven to be very successful. It can be very effective on larger and more promising target prospects. The CEO’s personal interest sends a big message to the buyer.

I think I detected a little chuckle on Bud’s end. He thanked me profusely for nearly an hour, and then he apologized because he had to hang up the phone, so that he could accompany his salesperson on a customer visit.

I wish I could identify this owner and his company, but then you would be calling him, and he wouldn’t have time to come up with—and implement—his great ideas. And, I’ve always believed ’tis better to implement extremely well a mediocre idea than to let an extremely good idea go dormant and grow mold.

Well, I told Bud, “Yeah. That’s right! You better get out there and sell something!”

And, you readers, let’s put this mess behind us and work to create some good news in 2009. PI

—Harris DeWese

About the Author
Harris DeWese is the author of “Now Get Out There and Sell Something” and “The Mañana Man, Books II and III,” available through the PI Bookstore at www.piworld.com/bookstore. He is chairman/CEO of Compass Capital Partners and an author of the annual “Compass Report,” the definitive source of information regarding printing industry M&A activity. DeWese has completed 141 printing company transactions and is viewed as the industry’s preeminent deal maker. He can be reached via e-mail at HDeWese@CompassCapLtd.com.