Selling a Salesperson

My job has me out and about quite a bit meeting various people.  I was selling for a hotel and happened to be calling on a customer who works for a major consulting company.

As I am more of a relationship type sales person, I learn that this customer has a son who works at the Board of Trade during the day and at a bar called Butch Mcguire’s at night.  Ironically, the tables turn as he is doing the sales job on me regarding his son.

I learn quite a bit about his son and find out he is a 20 something year old who we will call Tony. (settle down y’all, I was in my 20’s at the time too).  He went to U of I, is one of three kids, grew up in Oakbrook, yada, yada.  His Dad told me that Tony works quite a few weekends and described in detail what he looks like.

Coincidentally (or maybe not so), I happen to be at Butch McGuire’s a couple of weeks later.  Thinking it would be funny to play a joke, I went in and asked if Tony was working.  The bartender pointed him out to me.

I went up to him and said hi Tony, remember me?  He said, no, not really.  I said I’m shocked, you are Tony who grew up in Oakbrook, right?  He said yes and I said you work at the Board of Trade, correct?  He said yes.

He apologized profusely and said, I am never good with names but always am with faces.  I can’t believe I don’t remember you.  I said I met you last week.  He said, I am sorry, let me buy you a drink.  I said, yes please.

He comes back and we continue talking as I dazzle him with all of the information I know about him.  All of a sudden he said, wait a minute, what do you do for a living?  I told him, he said, did you meet my Dad?  I laughed and said, you got me, I did.  (remember this)!

Anyway, Tony says – I’m going off the clock in a half hour – want to go out?  I said sure, I’m game.  We end up hitting a couple of other bars in the area.

As we are doing our own Pub Crawl, we end up meeting this girl who Tony knows.  I wasn’t sure of their relationship, at the minimum, very good friends.

This girl is nice and we all continued to talk for a while.  After about a half hour I said, how do you know Tony?  She said oh, the funniest thing, I’m in sales and called on his Dad!

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Lesson learned?  Don’t be fooled to think a Dad is playing wingman with only one girl for his son.