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In the past 10 days I’ve received two very interesting offers (I hesitate to use the term scam although in both cases there was a slight taint of the inappropriate) from two very different companies.
The first company to approach me invoked the name of William Shatner and asked if I’d like to be featured as an example of strong American small business on TV. Naturally, I said sure, why not, and settled in for what I thought was an informational phone call. Turns out that Heartbeat of America is really a video production company out of Los Angeles, and yes, you do get to be on a show with William Shatner as he profiles your business, but only if you pay the $15,000 for video production costs. Then you get a DVD that you can use into perpetuity to promote your business.
The only reason this wasn’t a scam is that they were extremely up front about the $15,000. I wonder if I would be willing to pay it if I had it. It might be funny (and maybe even fun) to sit in a TV studio for a full day yukking it up with TJ Hooker. I also wonder how I would use the materials–as giveaway DVDs, online movies, etc? The possibilities are intriguing.
The other call I got was yesterday. It’s from America’s Best Companies. They offered, for $20.00/month, a membership in their program. What you get for this price is discounts at all these stores (like Staples) and services (like insurance), a web presence, and a listing in their expert’s portal. When I asked the guy how someone like me, with 6 years experience as a business owner, a robust web presence, yada yada, could possibly benefit, he went into hard sell mode.
I had a little bit of time on my hands so I let him go on and on, but I managed to grab a little notepad to jot down all the little salesy tricks and closes. I got up to about 12 or so by the time he took a breath. That’s when I said, “Thanks but I’m not interested” just to see what the response was. In about .01 nanoseconds, I got the reply I expected: “Frankly, I’m really surprised to hear you say that. Business owners like yourself are signing up for our service in record numbers every day.”
Then he went on to say that with my experience I might opt to become a sponsor. So I asked him how that would help me. He went on to say that the fees were X dollars a month, yada yada. I stopped him and said, “Yes, the fee helps you, but how does all this help me?” He never really had a conversation with me, he just kept going into sales mode. The only thing that really derailed him was when I listed back to him all the little sales tricks and closes he had tried on me.
That’s when he hung up.
Too bad, I was having some fun.
Now, granted, if I were a brand new business, I might have taken them up on their offer, if for nothing else exploration’s sake. But I found the hard sell and all the gimmicky approaches too slimy to countenance. Why can’t folks just have a simple conversation about what they have to offer? Is that so hard?
Tags: 4 Comments
4 responses so far ↓
I sat down today with a producer of Heartbeat of America …and I must say I am tempted. In research I feel it is up to you to capitalize on it immediately for it to be worth it. But I could not help but laugh out loud at your posting about your sales call from America’s Best COmpanies !!! I loved it …. the heat must be on these sales reps ….or should I say producers?
I also received a call from Heartbeat of American and had the same experience. I’m trying to find out where their show is specifically shown but I cannot find any information on that. I did a search at my local cable company- I live in a major metropolitan area- and could not find any listings.
It is tempting to get a nice endorsement by Mr. Shatner, but I must say that as a small business, $15k and some time spent on a good guerilla marketing campaign could be much more effective!
Hmmm…I’d have to agree with Geof. Putting together a simple testimonials video of your customer and putting it on a CD along with other materials would probably have a bigger impact. I’m not saying that Shatner doesn’t have star power, I’m just doubtful that he can help *me* and *my* small business.
I worked with these people a few years ago and I really enjoyed myself, but I couldn’t afford to continue. This is a labor of love and they don’t take a lot of money for what they do.
William Shatner is a great man. He is lending his image to business people at no charge and at substantial risk throught this entity that he and an old friend have created. That being said, it isn’t fair to ask him to pay the costs of producing the segments so the troop requires a participation fee which is tiny compared to the value. They do it at cost.
If anyone has the opportunity to work with HBA; do it. Don’t allow yourself to become jaded by where we have arrived at with regard to the prevailing ethics of business. These are wonderful people working hard at somthing about which they are passionate; helping the little guy. They are also the nicest people you will ever meet. You will never forget them, or what they do. I know I won’t.