Industrial Solutions - Fish Where The Fish Are!

On Tuesday of this week, I was in Peoria, Illinois for the Heart of Illinois Business to Business Symposium where Ulice Payne, Jr., Managing Member of Addison-Clifton, LLC, was the Keynote Speaker. 

Mr. Payne told us to “Fish where the fish are!” He then explained that the statement is not as obvious as it sounds.

If we take a step back and are honest with ourselves, we may realize that there are times that we are either fishing where there are no fish or trying to herd fish into a space they were never destined to be in so that we can fish in that particular spot.  Once realized, these are easy enough to correct.

However, what is even harder to believe is that sometimes there are fish in places that no one knows are there.

I’m not a fisherman but I have several friends and family members who are and one of the most common discussion points is where and when to fish.  There never seems to be any clear agreement as each has their own idea that they believe is best.  The fun part of these conversations is when someone has to admit that someone else was right.

Pride.  What a nasty thing!  Pride prevents us from so much because we are afraid of how we will look to others around us – and even worse – to our superiors!

One of the hardest things for me to do in selling Telamon Industrial Solutions is to convince potential customers that they actually do need us.  In a way, it is like telling them that we know something about their operations that they don’t.  In essence, it’s like telling the guy who owns the lake that you can find fish in his lake that he can’t.  So the first thing to overcome is the customer’s own sense of personal pride. 

We approach our customers differently in order to avoid or overcome this potential stumbling block.  We approach our customers as potential life-long business partners…not just your ordinary, run-of-the-mill, same-as-any-other…customer.

We aim to partner with our customer to simplify their business.  We don’t challenge them so as to make them defensive but rather offer a fresh set of eyes to their situation, often knowing that our customer – make that the actual person we work with – often feels like they are all alone in what they do.  Everyone likes to feel validated. 

So, if you are not currently a Telamon customer-partner, then contact us today and tell us what your pain points are…what keeps you up at night…and let us come along side and help you fix them!

It’s your lake; we just want to help you find all your fish so you can make the most out of your lake!

-John Weeks

Director of Sales
Industrial Solutions - Telamon Corporation