No Soliciting

Every once in awhile, when I am out prospecting for customers for my printing business, I encounter a "No Soliciting" sign. Those signs always remind me of a cartoon I saw years ago. In the cartoon, a young cavalry officer who looks suspiciously like Gen. George Custer, is telling a subordinate: "Tell him to get lost, I am too busy fighting Indians to talk to some salesman!" On the other side of the tent, out of view of the two cavalrymen, is the salesman, patiently waiting for his opportunity to demonstrate a Gatling Gun, the most sophisticated automatic weapon of its time. I wish I had kept a copy of that cartoon. At the time, I was not in a position of selling, but it taught me to keep an open mind and never close doors to potential opportunities.

To be sure, some sales people are annoying and refuse to accept a polite "No, thanks." But for the most part, the people who call on me are courteous and not offensive in any way. And occasionally, they do have something that interests me. Why shouldn't I at least give them a chance to speak? What does "solicitation" mean anyway? It sounds like some kind of crime. But prospecting for business is about as American as you can get, and it is certainly not a crime. So give the next sales guy a break. Maybe he will have just the Gatling Gun that your business needs.