The Best Kind of Advertising
Internet Marketing Article
Copyright 2011 Donovan Baldwin
He was a little old man, and, when I walked up, he was obviously confused.
All around him on the sales floor where I worked, were huge, confusing technological marvels, and he had no clue what he was really looking for...or looking at, for that matter.
I was selling on commission in those days, so the bigger the sale, the bigger the commission for me.
I began by asking him what he was trying to accomplish.
It turned out his needs were simple...as he saw it. He had a huge record collection (you remember vinyl records, right?), and he just wanted to sit and listen to Bing Crosby, The Andrews Sisters, Perry Como, Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra...artists like that.
This clued me to ask the next question: "Are any of these records 78's?"
Yep, he had a bunch of those. It made him feel a little bit better to be talking to someone who actually knew what a 78 RPM record was.
Well, in that time and place, the standard reply most sales people would have made would have been that it was very hard to find anything that would play a 78 RPM record. Most people who came into our store probably had never even seen one and they were looking for high-end sound reproduction also. We did not sell many sets capable of playing 78's.
Talking to him a little more, I learned that while he didn't really care that much about "sound quality", he did want something that would make Dean Martin sound like Dean Martin or Peggy Lee sound like Peggy Lee. Standing there chatting with him, I also learned that he was on a fixed income and didn't have much money. Still, as he looked around at the high-tech sound systems valued at several hundred dollars, he made it plain that though he was willing to pay whatever was necessary, his means were limited.
After talking to him, I realized that I had two units which would work for him. In fact, he was actually standing beside one, a high priced unit that would have put a big hole in his wallet, and which had a lot of features he did not need or want.
Selling him that unit would have gotten me a nice commission, but I assured him that I had exactly what he was looking for. I walked him over to a unit that was almost hidden behind a huge entertainment center. The price was only about $89.00 if I remember. It played 33's, 45's, and 78's, had pretty good sound quality, had an AM/FM radio, played cassette tapes (I'm showing my age here) and it was light and easy to carry.
He looked a little frail and had mentioned that he would have to get it in his car as he lived several miles away, and would have to get it in his house as well when he got home.
This unit seemed to hit the spot with him. In fact, he became very excited. Apparently, he had not been able to listen to his favorites for quite some time and had gone to several stores which either did not have what he needed or where the salespeople tried to sell him big, expensive units.
I didn't get much of a commission on that sale, but I felt really good to have helped him out, and I soon forgot about the event.
A few days later, however, as I came in to work, one of the other salespeople got my attention and said, "There's a guy over there who has been waiting for you all morning. He was here when the store opened, and said he would wait, even though you weren't coming in for a couple of hours."
I looked over, and it was the little old man I had sold the small stereo unit to. I began to get a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. Usually, people didn't come back after a sale and ask for the person who waited on them unless they had a problem of some kind.
Something had to be wrong! I was sure of it. He lived pretty far out in the country away from the mall, and wouldn't have come all the way back into town unless something was wrong with the system.
Then, he caught sight of me, and, as he started towards me, he proclaimed in a loud voice that carried across the store,
"Don! That stereo system you sold me is GREAT! It's exactly what I wanted. I've been listening to my favorite records for days. It was so easy to get into and out of the car, too. Thanks for thinking of that. I just wanted to come in and tell you how much I enjoy the unit you helped me pick out. Thanks for not pushing that expensive stuff on me. I know you didn't make much on the sale, so I really wanted to come in person and tell you thanks!"
He shook my hand vigorously and then walked smiling out of the store.
At that moment, there were several other customers in the store who heard his remarks, and I am sure a few friends of his back home who heard similar remarks from him as well. Even if they didn't come to see me, I am sure some of them went to other of our company stores near to them.
Flyers and newspaper ads are nice, but few types of advertising are ever more effective than the enthusiastic comments of a genuinely satisfied customer.
About The Author:
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Donovan Baldwin is a Dallas area freelance writer and Internet marketer. A University Of West Florida alumnus (1973) with a BA in accounting, he has held several managerial positions and run his own business. After retiring from the U. S. Army in 1995, he became interested in Internet marketing and developed various online businesses. He has been writing poetry, articles, and essays for over 40 years, and now frequently publishes articles on his own websites and for use by other webmasters. Get free advertising at xtramoney4me.net/free_advertising/adlandpro.html.
Post free classified ads at xtramoney4me.net.
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