IT’S ALL ABOUT Cockroachin’
About 20 years ago my profession changed from records management (boring) to sales which was much more interesting dealing with people
compared to looking at paper records. Maybe someone saw potential in my abilities, but it was indeed a more challenging doorway being opened as an office furniture factory representative.
The wholesaler/rep, who was my new boss, diligently trained me from coast to coast, factory to factory allowing me to view manufacturing of each line that we distributed directly from the factory floor. It was the best and most complete training of manufacturing that I ever received. Once properly trained, returning to Dallas, my job was to bring new dealers on board and teach them to sell our particular lines. Not only was it fun getting to know the “hoity-toity” designers in the business, but the general office furniture dealers as well.
The boss was incredibly impressed with my efforts as his sales were going through the roof! Our numbers were skyrocketing. The factories were beginning to take notice of the little blonde that was sending their profit and companies $$$’s skyward as well. One of the factories approached the boss and asked what my formal sales training had been. Actually, there had been none, except my exhusband, a lifelong professional salesman. had told me one time, “Let your customer talk, don’t talk over them, they will tell you what they want.” That was my only model for success.
That factory was trying an experiment, wanted three million dollars of incremental new business, and asked me to take part. They picked nine reps that they thought had the most potential and flew us to Chicago for training. An incredible sales coach from California was flown in to spend two days with us and teach us how to sell. He started by saying to me, “Have you ever thought about a cockroach?” “What, why, that’s disgusting!” “Well, did you?” “NO, they’re gross!” “Well, just think about it!” “I thought we were here to boost somebody’s revenue. I’m not interested in being an exterminator! So, are we here to learn about sales, or cockroaches?” “You are going to learn how to be a ‘cockroach’!” WELL, that’s surely intriguing!
And class began… a cockroach has to eat therefore it will find the smallest crack in a house, food pantry, or wherever to get in and scavenge to find its next meal. Thus, a good salesman, knowing a few tricks, can be exactly like a cockroach and get into any building and in front of the right people every single time. Well, OK… After a day and a half of training, they split us into 2 teams, took us out in an industrial building section of Chicago and dumped us on a street corner in 32 degree “witch-butt” cold Chicago weather and told us to FIND FOOD. Our group was composed of only five neophytes; the other team was four plus the trainer. Following our 12 hours of instructions our group made 12 calls, got in all 12 times and had 11 potential sales. Boy oh boy, it really does work when you act like a cockroach! What a fun day talking to smokers (they tell you anything you want to know); then executive secretaries by name (that you found out from the smokers); and to the people that make the decisions (the one that owns the company, like the CEO). Plus, we got to try a multitude of various other tricks!!
Traveling back to Dallas and now the best trained in the company, the boss was looking at me to produce the majority of new sales. Just turn me loose and let’s get started!
Down the street from my apartment was a huge parcel of land where a new sign had been placed in front of a new construction site and trailer. It had a phone number for the contractor in the middle of the sign. Cockroach lesson number one: when they start pushing dirt, eventually they need chairs…time to go in to eat! I called the number on the sign, no answer, and left a brief message. No call back, but didn’t really expect one, I’m cockroachin’!
Going past the trailer about 10 days later, pulled over and called the number again. No answer, didn’t leave a message. Another week goes by and I try again, no answer.
A good cockroach doesn’t give up until at least eight tries, and THIS “food pantry… trailer” became a mission.
Now a couple weeks have passed since that first try and driving by the trailer again there were two trucks sitting there. AH HA, now I really can try my skills on a totally new site! I pulled in and walked up to the trailer door, where there were no steps to get up to the door level.
Ever tried to get in a construction trailer without steps? Didn’t matter because I was feeling great that day. For some reason I had taken a lot of time getting ready that morning. Obviously, someone was with me and pointing me in the right direction. I was a runner, only 114 pounds, had on a very short brand-new col- orful Neiman Marcus dress, black sheer hose, long blonde hair, perfect makeup and a big smile on my face!
I opened the trailer door, looked in and stood there for a minute listening. There were two men talking in the back room but nobody in the front of the trailer. I took both my hands, put them on the trailer door sides, put my right high heeled foot up on the door frame and with strong energy pulled and hoisted myself up into the trailer. So glad that nobody was in the front of that trailer because there is no doubt that my dress was up to my neck…but I’m “cockroachin”!
Speaking rather softly, I said, “Hello, anybody home?” A man’s husky voice answered back, “I’m here, give me a minute.” Absolutely I’m going to give him a minute, I’M IN, and proceeded to the back room to see what was going on. (There is no door you can’t go through when you’re “cockroachin”).
Don’t forget, I’m looking hot that day! As I entered the backroom door where the two men were meeting, their conversation paused as both men checked me out head to toe and back again! I’M SO IN!!!
As I studied the two men, both of them seemed shorter than most men. One man, who was later hired as a sub-supervisor, was an older, wiry looking man dressed in skinny denim overalls and red plaid shirt. Initially I thought he was the head honcho, but he left the conversation and the trailer and I was left with the other man, the General Contractor of the job.
He was an older gentleman, who had perfect snowwhite hair combed precisely in place with some sort of slick hair tonic like my grandpa used to use. His face was absolutely flawless with beautiful pale skin. If he had a white beard, I would have said he was Santa Claus.
He stood up to greet me, such a gentleman, and before he could say anything, I was in his face, face to face, and almost nose to nose. I put my pointer finger about two inches from his cheek and said, “Hi, MY name is Sam, I’m the furniture lady and YOU didn’t call me back!” Excitedly…and instantly without a moment’s hesitation he put his finger two inches away from my cheek and said, “if I had known YOU looked like THAT, I would have called you back!” He left this cockroach speechless for a moment…..then we both laughed!
Being persistent, not quitting and giving it that good ole diligent cockroachin’ try, I closed a national contract with that gentleman and 50 complete jobs followed.
That cockroach class paid off a thousand-fold, so many times over 17 years. Several years later I ran into the COCKROACH SALES COACH in California during a seminar and had to give him a big hug.
I told him because of his class I had done millions of dollars in sales and couldn’t thank him enough for changing my life! He said he actually remembered our class…and how much fun it was!
Sometimes you have to try different things, a different approach. And, sometimes a training class is a good investment for a sales person never trained! Maybe it won’t work but just maybe it will, however, until you try you will never know. And, don’t forget… don’t stop after only one try. Sometimes you have to chip away at something at least eight times before you can say enough time spent. Give it a try. Life is worth it.
“Cockroachin” really does work.