What a Vegas Pimp Can Teach You About Sales

October 19, 2009

So, you’re walking down the Strip in Vegas. You’re minding your own business. You’ve already dodged a couple sets of Mexicans handing out hooker business cards. Then, you find somebody with a more aggressive sales process.

Two women intercept you and ask you if you want a good time. No, you’re happily married and that would be a mistake of biblical proportions. You politely say no. You smile. You don’t want to be rude, but you most definitely don’t want those services.

iStock_000003829514XSmall_2 Out of the darkness comes a guy. He says, “What are you, a f-g?”. I’m sure you know what he said. He wants you to say no. Of course, that opens up a communication with him which will inevitably lead to being asked to defend yourself. It is a classic play on the idea of commitment and consistency. Get a person to make a small commitment then just keep playing on his sense of needing to follow through.

His job is to make a sale. And, to do that, he is being very aggressive (he thinks). And the two women launched immediately into a sales pitch. The “sales letter” consisted of her body and the call to action was, “Buy this!”.

Another evening, I’m on my way to a club. A guy comes out of nowhere and shoves tickets in my hand. The tickets are for a reduced rate to the club. I tell him, “I don’t need this.”. He says, “Listen, stud, this will get you in at a reduced rate”. He is walking with me, almost yelling. I like getting called a stud and everything, but I’m not enjoying him trying to force crap I don’t need onto me. This is interruption marketing at it’s finest.

Don’t be that guy.

So, one day, you’re traveling the banks of the Twitter river. Minding your own business. All of a sudden, this dude tweets you and says, “Make 300 followers in a day! Get this now! [link]”.

You don’t like this. You don’t even know his name yet. Get the name before you jump in bed, right?

Don’t be that guy.

Another day, you’re browsing the halls of BlogWorld Expo. A bald man walks up, grabs the conference badge, and sticks his damn sticker logo onto it. Not cool. Later, in a session where they are taking questions, he never hesitates to promote his company, give his URL, and ask some dumb question related to his product. Yep, I call this conference spam. I’ll leave the company name out of this to protect the stupid, but plenty of people probably know who I’m talking about at Blogworld.

Don’t be that guy.

Don’t be the dude who runs up to you and spams you with their business card. A business card is not a sales lead. Just because you put a card in my hand doesn’t mean you have a chance to get my money some day. Unless I reached for the card, I didn’t want it. Don’t call me, I’ll call you.

Don’t be that guy.

Spam exists in the real world. Whether we’re talking about my email box, Twitter, or the Vegas Strip, it exists.

And that feeling of annoyance you get when people do that should be proof enough that it doesn’t work . It doesn’t make sales. It is a brute force approach to marketing. Any money you do make pales in proportion to the wake of bad vibes you leave behind you.

Get to know me before hitting on me. Kthxbye.

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  • He was putting his sticker on YOUR badge? Like the thing hanging from your neck? That's a good way to get a lesson in ducking real quick.
  • Great advice for all. I head right for the block button on those folks pushing their 300 twitter followers in a day crap.
  • Absolutely hilarious Dave...the Yubby guy reigns supreme in my book. I LOL'd with each example and reminded me of the fun to be had at Blogworld :)
  • Good stuff and SO true. Real world spammers. You better have your best Spam Blocker in full affect when walking around Vegas! Funny stuff indeed.
  • lol, well looks like you had an interesting week.

    Great observations, I love looking at how internet marketing or spam is nothing but whats been done forever offline. Just digital and quicker now.
  • Very funny look at how manic some people can get with their "message"! Seems a bunch of us missed a good time at BlogWorld.
  • tampabaybuckeye
    Great Observation Dave!
    P.S I guess for the Mexicans..its a better gig than sitting in front of Home Depot! LOL....
  • I have never had the pimp come up to me. I've seen the Mexicans and the Mexican's little brother and the Mexican's mother, and the Mexican's grandmother but never the pimp.
  • Yep, this approach just adds to the noise and raises skepticism. The Twitter example is one most can identify with.
  • Very good point about business cards.

    My next set of business cards is going to be *expensive*. Not cut rose quartz expensive, but definitely expensive enough that I won't be passing them out like Halloween candy.
  • Richard60
    As a former marine I can tell you some stories about "agressive" sales tactics that would curl your hair and not only in the orient either. But I am the champion of the "buzz off" pal comeback, four years in the Corps and not one tattoo, talk about peer pressure!
    I hate the aggressive sales pitch with a passion but that's what they teach you in sales seminars, no matter what they say, overcome the objection, get that sale, who cares if they need it or not? I DO
  • Nice!!!
  • Ugh, conference spam, that's just wrong or stupid, or both. I guess it's that way with all the spam, you throw enough crap, eventually enough will stick (to a badge if nothing else), which is sad. Personally, I have minus-100% conversion when it comes to unsolicited direct "marketing". Not only I won't buy anything, but I refuse to have any contact with such "marketer" (block/unfollow/ignore).

    As a side note, and you know what wouldn't been perfect? That picture right there with similar moustache and pose, but the picture would be you David! It isn't, is it? :)
  • Ugh, Yubby Guy. If only I'd had a nice little taser.
  • There's probably no more important lesson in sales, as in every business, than "what NOT to do."

    It's funny that you guys were talking about the Yubby guy, I immediately thought of someone else who did exactly the same thing at the first three BlogWorld sessions I went to. I was worried I was going to have to hear his self-promotional "questions" in every session of the show!
  • THANK YOU for addressing this. It is unbelievable how much spam is still out there, even with new forms of targeted media. Next time (probably today) someone hands me a flier on the street of NY, I will tell them to come read this post.
  • grantcriddle
    Hi David, thanks for an entertaining and insightful post. I just discovered your blog via Copyblogger, and glad I was directed this way! :) Looking forward to more.

    Cheers,

    Grant
  • I totally agree with this post. I hate walking at the mall, just minding my own business, and then out of no where a lady walks up to me and showers me with her new "better than sex" cologne that's the best thing since sliced bread.
  • Blah
    The irony here is that while I was scrolling down the page, I happened to mouse over the stupid "ShareThis" link that popped up some web page spam that will not go away unless I click it. That's fantastic. Now I've got to navigate my pointer to that microscopic X and click my mouse on something I don't care about.

    Thanks for not following your own advice.

    Don't be that guy.

    Kthxbye.
  • I try to remember that many beginners try things out of excitement or ignorance. I point them to a post like this and they almost always agree and change
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