Tow... Throw... Row... Go!
by John David Sottile
A Concept That's Good Enough To Save Lives
Is Good Enough To Save You Money
While Achieving Your Goals
I originated my TELE- CONCEPT on the Telex/TWX networks in the mid '70s -- long before the
word "telemarketing" became fashionable... and now, unfortunately, objectionable due to misuse.
The Greek word "tele" means remote, or at-a-distance, which implies no singular reference to voice or telephones.
Consequently, my TELE-CONCEPTUAL MARKETING (sm) is a way of thinking, planning,
and ultimately doing, which seeks to affect business remotely... or without costly in-person representation whenever,
and wherever possible. This truly is a "force multiplier" as it reduces costs while it increases uptime activity.
To this "tele" end, I work to coordinate structured tactical activities around anticipated marketing
goals. It is this commitment to an organized and highly refined "tele" approach that best assures your company's sales
and marketing success... even if your business/industry traditionally requires in-territory, face-to-face time!
My "tele" approach is based upon the sound tenets of water life
saving
where there are two goals:
To remove the drowning victim from harm's way.
To prevent the rescuer from falling into harm's ways.
Hang with me while I develop the analogy...
Drowning victims have one goal: "To get the hell
out of the water!" This is the same goal of the rescuer. However, victims' drives are
so strong that they often climb on top of their rescuers, thus jeopardizing their own survival. To
prevent this, savvy lifesavers minimize their risks while still rescuing the victim. They employ the following discipline...
TOW... THROW... ROW... GO!
The bamboo pole that one sees by the pool serves the TOW; it's a direct connection which can literally
be jammed into the person to have them reflexively grab it. The rope with life ring serves the THROW; though
not as accurate as the pole for it can miss, it too, is a direct connection once grasped. At
the beach, the dingy or surfboard serves the ROW; it's slower, but necessary by distance, and once out to the person a direct
connection is made when s/he grasps the boat or board... Failing the other methods to make the direct connection, the
rescuer must the GO into the water which can be just as costly for the rescuer as the victim. Victims sometime
survive while their rescuers drown. Knowing this, rescuers sometime have to literally knock-out their
panicked rescue before hauling them to safety.
So it is with the above goal-risk model in mind, I interweave and implement my proprietary "tele"
approach to leverage your company's marketing efforts and dollars. And, having been working with online timesharing and
databases since the early '70s, I view today's Internet / Website / Email Targetcasting (sm) as powerful
new "tele" approaches for pulling in..or rescuing... your customers.
The last situation which any company wants to find itself in is the GO
mode,
where prospects survive while the company and salespeople
drown due to either lost sales, or profit-eroding,
excessive, sales and marketing costs.
Trust me... Prospects far outlive companies,
especially small, young ones;
for in competitive captalism, the consumer ultimately wins.
And as far as knocking-out prospects... Sure, I can teach your salesforce and marketing departments how
to do that, too. After all, just as lifesavers have to "convince" the scared-out-of-their-wits victims that they won't save
them unless they calm down, a company has to instill a sales discipline that both implies the same to prospects... and does
the same, thus leaving the prospects to be "floated" by a marketing support department while the salesforce snags
another person "into the boat."
MY COMPREHENSIVE "TELE" MARKETING MEANS
Powerful Vector Marketing Approaches
Improved Measurement - Dramatic Cost Efficiencies - Greater
Control
And, to complete the above lifesaving analogy...
LESS TIME IN DANGEROUS WATERS!
