“A-B-C. A-Always, B-Be, C-Closing. Always be closing, always be closing” is a quote from Glengarry Glen Ross and applies to the concept that salesman should always be looking to close the deal (trial closings, puppy dog, etc).
I came across two great examples of A-B-M, Always Be Marketing over the last couple of days:
1. I played golf yesterday with Joe Nugent the insurance agent from my LeTip group. (I played terribly – thanks for asking!). At the end of the round Joe gave his card to our playing opponents; one was an out-of-work stock broker to whom Joe offered the chance of an interview with his boss, potentially to work for the insurance company as a salesman. The other guy was a police officer – Joe promptly told the guy that Joe’s company offered additional discounts to PBA members. “I’m with the other guys”, came the reply. Without missing a beat Joe explained why the “other guys” were a good company but that he offered 29 years of experience to help his clients through issues that couldn’t always be sorted out by a phone call to an automated call center. Now – nothing may come of either of the conversations but the issue is that Joe was thinking about spreading the word, his word all the time. He’s Always Marketing himself.
2. My lovely wife Julie is a Physical Therapist at a small office inside a large hospital group where marketing is often an afterthought. She was treating a patient recently who lives in an assisted living community. The patient told her that she loved the way Julie was treating her but that before she started coming to therapy hadn’t even known that the facility existed! Julie said “Well why don’t I come to your assisted living facility and talk to the manager there and maybe put on a small presentation for the other guests?” Perfect example of ABM – putting the word out without any pressure to “buy” something.
What makes these two examples stand out to me was that a) they were automatic on the part of the marketer and so come over as genuine and b) they cost nothing, other than a couple of minutes and two business cards! A great lesson for all small business owners and start-ups – A-B-M, Always Be Marketing!
