You want him. He doesn't want you. So you crank up your first jeep.
Your first and most important objective is to get to the broker himself -- that is, to the person who owns the firm. Do it however you can, but under no circumstance should you agree to talk to anyone other than the owner. It doesn't matter what title he is using. You don't care who the president or chairman is, nor are you interested that his son now runs the business -- unless his son owns the business. The owner is your target. If he is 80 and in a wheelchair, he's still your man.
Call him at 8:01 in the morning. Remember, all brokers are entrepreneurs, and most of them hate to waste time on such useless activities as sleeping. They are early risers, and they like other early risers. If you call at 8:01, moreover, his secretary probably won't be there to intercept his calls, so you may get him on the horn without any hassle. If his secretary is also an early riser, and refuses to let you through without an explanation, call him at home. No first-class broker in America has an unlisted telephone. If he does, your warm feeling was wrong. When you reach him at home, don't try to be smart or clever. Tell him the truth: you couldn't get through to him at the office, and what you have to discuss is unique and innovative. You want to discuss it with him and nobody else.
Wherever you reach him, it's important to establish in his mind that you and he are on the same level: tell him you are chief executive officer of your company. Say you have been checking stores and have concluded that he is the broker for your product (the truth); that you aren't going to interview the market (proof of your intelligence); that you have an extraordinary product with a strong marketing program (probably a white lie). Assure him that you'd like your people to meet with his people at a mutually convenient time, but first you want to meet with him personally. You can safely assume that you are dealing with an egomaniac, so try flattery. Say that you've heard a lot about him, that he knows the market better than anyone in town, that you'd like to have his thoughts about something -- anything. Do not tell him what the product is over the phone, not even the category. If pressed, you can say you have a whole new concept about broker-principal relationships, that you think 30-day contracts are absurd. If things get really desperate, use words like "long-term, noncancelable agreements." Remember, you're driving a jeep, and you're talking to an entrepreneur who can't resist a new idea.
Once your meeting is set, crank up jeep number two.
Your future with the broker will be decided during the first 10 minutes of your meeting. If he offers you coffee, accept; if he doesn't, try to suggest it gracefully. It always helps to break bread with an entrepreneur.
This is the time to tell him about your product, but let him know right away that you understand how expensive it is for him to take on a new line.You also know how often he has built a brand in his market only to lose it for no reason. Therefore, you are prepared to sign an agreement that no one will ever be allowed to fire him if he is successful in helping you build a business in his market.
You will now have his full and undivided attention.
Have you made a stupid promise? No. The key word was "successful." It means distribution, and it means sales. You still determine your own market objectives. If he can accomplish and sustain those objectives, why in hell would you ever let anyone fire him anyway? This is one of your jeeps, and a potent one at that. A company with a giant tank can't make such a commitment -- or, at any rate, won't. You can. Obviously, you have to build in safeguards, but the point is that you are willing to make a long-term commitment, and you should.
Now crank up jeep number three. Tell him that you respect his judgment about his market more than the opinion of any advertising agency or even your own vice-president of marketing. You will notice that he is looking at you with a glassy stare of wonderment. That's a good sign. Go on. Say that you want him to help you decide how to spend marketing funds in his area; that you would like his personal involvement; that you want it to be his plan. If you are lying, he'll know it. He also understands "warm feelings."
Crank up jeep number four. Ask him to help you design a bonus plan for him and his people -- one that will work in his organization.
If you've done your job, you have just employed the best sales manager for your product in that market. Even though your company is small, and your product has yet to generate any commissions, you have a partner in that town who can make miracles happen. You have given him something different. You have given him a good and honest reason to make your company successful in his market.
That's more or less how I have hired brokers, and how I myself have been hired by smart CEOs. Sometimes, of course, the CEO delegates the responsibility. A word of advice: whoever employs your brokers or reps must have full authority to make decisions. If you delegate to someone who isn't the final decision maker, I suggest you turn your jeeps in for a tank, because you have just joined the big boys whether you are ready or not.
Of course, this technique for hiring sales reps isn't foolproof. You won't always get your man. Despite your best efforts, you may have trouble identifying the right person. Or you may have hit him at the wrong time. Or you may be better off with a smaller broker. It doesn't matter. If you fail, simply go back, lengthen your list, and start over.
The important thing to remember is that you are going up against tanks, and your best hope lies in your jeeps. In that type of combat, you're going to need a partner who can drive those jeeps as well as you.
