Porgy and Bess

Just because someone says it doesn’t make it true. Just because someone writes it doesn’t make it true. This goes for books, service manuals, sales literature, and maybe even what you are reading right now!

People give opinions. Sometimes, they are so convinced of their opinions, that they don’t realize that it is an opinion, and not necessarily a fact. Sometimes, the statements are based on market place demands. That, incidentally, is a way of lying or misrepresenting something and telling people that you had no choice, because they insisted on it. That is often true. If customers want something badly enough, manufacturers feel compelled to supply it, even if it does not work properly, or needs further development.

Usually, I make fun of salesman, and they do deserve it, but it's not just them. I recall working with a copier design engineer (when copiers were, believe it or not, designed and manufactured in the US.) He was completely out of touch with the field conditions that his machine would face. It never occurred to him that a machine could be overworked or underworked (each of which causes its own share of problems.) He could not believe that customers and technicians would not do everything exactly as laid out in their owners and service manuals. He would not accept that what was written in these books was not always the best way to do something. And, when changes were made (such as service bulletins), he could not understand why their credibility was suspect.

Manufacturers are among the worst. By nature of their size, people tend to believe everything they say. People seem to have a hard time believing that a huge company would be untruthful or do anything wrong. They have no problem questioning an auto mechanic or copier technician's pricing or diagnosis, but if Ford tells them Pinto gas tanks are safe, they believe it. Likewise, of course, if a copier manufacturer states that a machine can handle 15,000 copies per month, but the dealer/technician tells the customer that for 15K he had better have a more substantial machine, the dealer will be considered the liar. The dealer's experience and concern for the customer will not outweigh the manufacturer's words.

Many office magazine articles are similar. A representative of a manufacturer or supplier will write an article about a general subject. However, the article will often be a veiled promotion of his or her own product, often in a rather generic manner. That is not so terrible, because office magazines are not for the general public. They are for industry professionals, who should know what they are dealing with.

Some examples from personal experience.

• A salesman I knew, was interviewed and quoted in a businessplace magazine. He mentioned his company's name, and stated that businesses should be wary of small copier companies, who tended to be "fly by nights" and might not be there when really needed. No doubt, this impressed some people. It makes some kind of sense. Stereotypes exist because they are sometimes true. Oh, by the way. The salesman's company packed it in about 6 months later, leaving many customers with unfulfilled service contracts, etc.

• A manufacturer wanted to highlight a typical dealer in a national ad campaign. They picked one and did a photo shoot in his showroom, which was impeccable. His face and showroom were published in office magazines for about 2 years after. One minor detail was left out. About a month after the photo shoot, he had dropped that manufacturer's line of products.

If you believed everything you read or heard, consider these.

A pizza place that I know named themselves in honor of the space program, but didn’t bother to check spelling. For about 15 years, their sign says "Satelite Pizza."

A company that specializes in repairs of hydraulic systems, proudly advertises, also on a sign outside their business. "Hydrolic hose repairs."

A copier dealer ran an ad in the New York Times, advertising a close out on a particular copier with this line "Limited Quality Available."

A particular Savin copier sales brochure stated that a first time user could change toner in "3 seconds."

An ad brochure for a particular Triumph Adler copier stated that it could change colors at the "touch of a button." The machine required replacing the developer unit to change colors.

A particular copier was advertised as being capable of running "Any Paper." When the manufacturer's supply expert was questioned on this, he answered (I was there for this one) "Any paper that would normally be run through a copier."

A customer I once had, loved the color purple. He had purple curtains, purple rug, purple pens, purple spoons, etc. He wanted a copier to make purple copies. A salesman told him he could do it buy buying a machine that was capable of several colors (with different developer units) and mixing the brown and red toners together. I really wish he would have tried it.

Many times, a salesman doesn’t know that he is lying. It is a basic sales lesson that you need to believe in your product. This works quite well if it is a good product. A salesman with a good product should fall in love with it. It will make his sales approach enthusiastic and sincere. However, if it is not a good product, many salespeople take the same tact. They are "actors." They act confident. They convince the customer that they have a good product and that they, personally, love it. Then, when the product turns out to be not so good, they come back with the same attitude about the new product.

They have blown their credibility (which was artificial to start with.) Consequently, we have a "boy who cried wolf" situation. Everything the salesman wants to sell is wonderful. Therefore, nothing is wonderful, and his word cannot be trusted. Unfortunately, for those who are honest, they are often lumped in the same category. So, an honest salesman and a dishonest salesman are on the same playing field. The result is often that the one who is not honest has an edge, because he can lie whereas the other one can only tell the truth. Some customers will fall for this. That’s life. That’s business. That’s people.

   

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