#937 Wasting Worms

I took my grandson fishing. We did the worm and bobber drill at the local pond. The bigger fish bit the worm and the hook. When the bobber went under, we gave a quick twitch of the rod and were rewarded with a nice lip-set hook that was quickly removed and sent out little friends back to the pond unharmed.

Then there were the small fish. What a PITA! Nibbling and nibbling. Taking the bobber under for a second or two, and then escaping with a piece of worm. They were too small to bite enough worm to allow us a decent hook setting opportunity. They took our worms, frustrated us, and in the end, even if we managed to catch one, offered precious little in the way of satisfaction vs. the effort. After the first two or three worm steals, we moved to a different spot.

I cast out a promotional email about my group coaching program and had a guy who responded that he was interested. I reached out to him two or three times without a response back. Then a week or so later, he messaged me on Linked-in. I responded to his question and asked if he’d like to set up a discovery call to see if this program would fit him. I got no reply. I sent another email or two following up in the subsequent weeks but didn’t hear back. I probably should have recast and moved on much sooner.

Back when I was selling professional cameras and lenses to movie and television production people, it was the same. The girl who wanted the $250,000 Phantom high-speed, 4K package knew what she wanted, and we only needed to refine our package, agree on pricing, and figure out the best financing option for her. The guy who wanted the cheapest video camera we had wanted to come in for a demo, take it on a trial shoot, and see a dozen different types of footage shot on the system. He pointed out everything the camera didn’t do well and shopped our price against online outlets who couldn’t offer demos, trials, etc.

At your local pond and in your business, cast your offering away from small fish, and if you do get one of those little nibbles, recast in new waters as quickly as possible. You’ll save yourself a lot of worms, time, and frustration.

Own Your Sales Gene…