So my birthday happened last week, and I was going to write a blog on my birthday. And life got in the way, as it does, and I had a wonderful birthday, but never got around to writing the blog. I was going to call it the Birthday Blog, and now, since I still wanted to write about the same topic - well, you get the message.
Anyway, the thing that got me on my birthday, which fell on a work day this year, is the principle of people being nicer to you (in general of course) on your birthday.
This year, I tried a little experiment. I let it slip that it was my birthday the day before with one customer and one supplier that I am having a pretty tough time with. Then, on my birthday, I pushed for resolution on a major outstanding issue with each one.
Funny thing was, that in both cases, the parties gave in, and commented on the fact that it was my birthday, and so they would give a little.
This has really opened up some major concepts for me.
Why should these otherwise difficult, truculent and unwaveringly hard-arsed individuals suddenly back down because its my birthday? What possible difference could it make, in a purely business context?
It struck me that most people do have a softer side, and that events like birthdays, tragedies and illness tend to bring it to the fore.
Which leads me to wonder - why cant we all be like that all the time? Is this a part of human nature that drives people to be nice - a pre-programmed response to key events - or is it a desire for a chance to show the nicer side of our nature?
It seems to me that many people are looking for a reason to be nice - an excuse to not have to be so hard or so tough or so rude. Maybe there is some creative way to find and elicit that response to your sales pitch. Is that why pretty girls have it easier when selling? Or people with disabilities?
I am going to carefully build a marketing campaign that targets these types of receptors, and see what happens. I will report back on my blog.
Till then, ciao for now...
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