Success: Wrong Number Equals Business Opportunity

February 4, 2010

The Art of Saying “Yes!”

The phone call at our two-year-old publicity service company was inquiring if our film crew was available to shoot a news film of the Atlantic City Baby Parade. The honest answer should have been, “I think you called the wrong number, we don’t make films.” Instead, we said “Yes, let’s talk” and asked for more details about the project.

As a fledgling communications company we produced and distributed press material to reach all media in the proper format — but not film. Included was a TV service that placed six 8×10 still photos and script on live, women’s interest daytime TV shows. Here was an opportunity to convert a wrong number into a new service about which we knew very little, other than some companies did them.

When the price with our client was established, we hired a company to shoot, edit and distribute the publicity TV news film – and we all went on location with the client understanding that the film crew worked for us. It was so successful that two of us enrolled in film school.

We were a publicity company that now had a new and profitable product to offer. Over the years we produced 2,000 message films – all because of a wrong number and our ability to recognize an opportunity. Think very carefully before you tell a customer “No, we don’t do that”. You may be missing a great opportunity!

Use the comment box to tell me your ideas on how to recognize a good business opportunity.

Alvin Roselin, SCORE New York
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Filed under: Growing,Managing,Marketing,Success

Tags: grow, Marketing, opprotunity, sales