by Bob Brown
Jason called Kyle on his cell as he made the turn onto Grand. When Jason pulled into the dealership five minutes later, Kyle was waiting. He climbed into the passenger seat and wrapped himself in the seat belt.
It was early January again in San Diego, not quite the rainy season yet, if there was such a thing in a place that averaged only eight inches of rain a year. The weather was pleasant, and they rode with the top down as they headed up the coast to Del Mar for dinner. Traffic was surprisingly light for mid-week rush hour, and the two enjoyed the twilight view of things familiar as they cruised through La Jolla, made the turn past the campus at the University of California, and headed north on Torrey Pines Road.
It was just turning dark as they pulled into the parking lot of their favorite restaurant on the coast just north of downtown Del Mar. Rather than wait for a table in the restaurant, they took a seat at a window-front table in the bar and told the waitress they’d be ordering dinner. They ordered a couple of beers and looked over the menus that the waitress dropped on the table.
Jason and Kyle chatted casually, looked at the menus, and peered through the plate glass window at the darkness and the beach beyond. Mostly, they just saw their own reflections and the reflected activity of the bar behind them.
The waitress returned with the beers and took their orders. As she turned to leave, Kyle asked, “So do you have Alex and Sam offering to make you a partner yet?”
Jason laughed at the thought of a long term relationship with the two Bostonians. “Not hardly. Most days they probably wonder why they ever hired me.”
“I find that hard to believe,“ replied Kyle.
“Actually, I think I’m holding my own. I figure I’m doing at least as well as the other two Account Managers. And both of them have been there pretty much since the company started.”
“So what’s your plan?” asked Kyle.
“Not sure,” replied Jason. “I’ve given it some thought, but I’m still too new to have much in my favor. I definitely think I made the right decision about the job. I mean, the chance to be an Account Manager right out of school is great. Sure it’s just a small agency. And Sam and Alex can be a pain. But I figure after a couple of years I’ll be in a position to jump to a larger agency. More accounts. More responsibility. More money.”
“Hey, what about that whole discussion we had before graduation about prosperity and charity?” Kyle was obviously in the mood to tease.
“Well, I have to make it before I can give it. One thing at a time.”
Jason took a long swallow of his beer. “What about you? Now that you’re the GM, does that mean your dad is going to retire, move to the lake, and watch sunsets from the deck of the A-frame for the rest of his life?”
“I don’t think that’s in his immediate future,” Kyle replied. “As owner of the dealership, he’s still hands-on. He lets me do most of the day-to-day, but he likes to do the long-range planning and all the liaison within the community. You’d be surprised how many companies, agencies, and political organizations he’s mixed up with. Besides, he feels an obligation to the Garrett name and to the legacy of almost three generations in the business.”
Kyle paused momentarily, and Jason sensed he was serious. “It isn’t that he distrusts my judgment. We’ve already had that conversation. He just feels it’s not time for him to move on. He says that when it’s time, God will let him know.”
Kyle took another sip of his beer before continuing. “And then there’s the whole Garrett Charitable Foundation thing.”
“What’s that all about?” asked Jason. It was the first time he had heard Kyle mention the Foundation.
“It’s actually a pretty big deal. The Foundation is run by a Board of Directors. My dad is the President. Funding was established by my grandfather shortly after he started Garrett Motors. Anyway, it was created for the sole purpose of supporting need-based charities in the San Diego area.”
Kyle paused, then continued. “The amount of money handled by the Foundation is pretty significant. Money from profits at Garrett have been passed into the Foundation for over fifty years, where the money has been invested and professionally managed over the years.
“Because of the ongoing contributions from revenue at the dealership, it’s one of the few local Foundations I’m aware of that’s not dependent on fundraisers and donations for survival. At present, the Foundation is totally self-sufficient, with earnings from the Foundation’s investments funding hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations each year to local charities.”
“Impressive,” said Jason.
Kyle added, “Now I suspect you can see the grander scheme in God’s plan for Garrett Motors. It’s a Christian company, founded on Christian principles, operating for a Christian purpose.”
“Now if only I could get Jagged Edge to buy into that,” replied Jason.
Jason and Kyle both laughed. But they knew that with God all things are possible.
Chapter 26
Jason spent the next several weeks aggressively managing his accounts. As with all things worth doing well, it took a plan. He started by assigning probabilities for success to each of his accounts. Probabilities were based on Jagged Edge being able to take advantage of such things as customer urgency, product familiarity, client relationship, and uniqueness of opportunity.
Chamberlain was at the top of Jason’s list, largely because Sam and Alex expected near-term results.
Jason spent a week visiting each of Chamberlain’s depots in California, Arizona, Nevada, and Utah. After doing so, he had a better understanding of the regional transportation requirements confronting Chamberlain. He then had follow-on conversations with Chamberlain management regarding their concerns and expectations. He met with the media people at Jagged Edge to discuss the best ways to present Chamberlain’s message and to define the market targets. And he met with the copy writers and graphics designers to revise branding and media.
*****
Two weeks later Jason called a meeting with Chamberlain to present a revised advertising campaign.
The meeting was held in the executive board room at Jagged Edge. The Jagged Edge team sat on one side of the table, while three Chamberlain executives sat on the other. At the end of the table, opposite the projection screen, sat Sam and Alex, like two hungry cats anticipating the sound of the can opener.
In the center of the table was a floral centerpiece, radiant with reds and yellows. There were bottles of Evian, twin silver coffee pots, china cups and saucers, and china serving trays of assorted finger sandwiches, cheeses, and miniature pastries. Fan-fold linen napkins and silver place settings completed the display.
Sam and Alex wanted their meal to be elegant.
In front of each position at the table was a black binder, embossed with the Jagged Edge logo. It contained copies of the proposal, media, and pricing.
After opening pleasantries by Sam and Alex, Jason stood and took charge.
“Good morning, gentlemen,” Jason began. “Jagged Edge would like to thank you for the opportunity to re-present our proposal for your advertising campaign. After additional study and visits to each of your transportation depots, we felt that your interests would be best served by making some changes to the proposal we originally discussed. We think you will find the changes were worth waiting for.”
Jason wasted no time on preliminaries and went directly to the details. “To expand beyond its current routes, Chamberlain needs to grow. To grow, Chamberlain needs new customers. To get new customers, Chamberlain needs to both take customers from competing carriers and win new customers who have yet to select a freight carrier. We do this in three ways.”
Jason paused. Just long enough to create anticipation. “First, we take advantage of Chamberlain’s primary strengths. Chamberlain is lean, nimble, innovative, and focused. We take customers who are disenchanted with large carrier sluggishness, non-competitive prices, and out-dated rout
e systems. We sell Chamberlain as fast, high-tech, modern, flexible.
“Second, we equate Chamberlain with reliability. Our research puts Chamberlain at the top of all regional carriers in terms of on-time delivery and safety-per-mile-traveled. There are millions of potential customers who don’t know Chamberlain and certainly don’t know these critical details of Chamberlain’s operation. They will after our advertising campaign.
“Third, with every expansion comes cost. With every cost comes opportunity. We propose that Chamberlain encourage new customer contracts with aggressive pricing that will so undercut the competition as to render a decision to choose Chamberlain moot. Let your customers share in the success of your expansion. Our campaign will show your competitors for what they are: Over-priced and under-performing.”
Jason knew that his last point was contentious. Proposing an advertising campaign based on changes to a client’s internal business model was risky. But brash was the Bostonian way. So he pushed ahead, using his laptop and the projector mounted in the ceiling, to detail the various television, print, and online media designs, including accompanying text and dialog for the applicable media. He discussed base pricing, price points, and incentives for both annual and multi-year contracts.
All eyes were on Jason as he concluded. “Obviously, there are some business decisions by Chamberlain presumed by this presentation. I cannot speak to those. But we at Jagged Edge believe this approach will take Chamberlain to the next plateau. It is our belief that together we can make Chamberlain a national player in the surface commercial transportation industry.
“I thank you again for your time. I’m happy to answer any questions you might have.”
Jason sat down.
That was Jason’s style. Why he was a good fit for Jagged Edge. Jason believed in getting to the point, something he and the Kents shared. So his presentations were always hard-hitting, concise, and well-conceived. He was like a fighter who had a knock-out punch but no stamina. He was either going to take a client down in the first ten minutes, or he was going to lose the fight.
Even Jason was surprised by how little discussion there was following the presentation. He had seen the eyebrows go up when he made his third point, but there was no argument. Mostly there was polite conversation about the media details and some discussion on pricing. In the end, everyone shook hands. Chamberlain’s Senior Vice President for Business Development approached Jason.
“That was an excellent presentation, young man. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen an agency try to tell a prospective client how to run its business. But what you said makes perfect sense. We just need to work out the details. I suspect you’ll be hearing from us.”
*****
Six weeks later Jason finalized a multi-year, seven-figure contract with Chamberlain. With the contract came a nice bonus. Jason did two things with the bonus: First, he paid off the remaining balance on his outstanding student loans from USD. And second, he made a significant contribution to the Garrett Charitable Foundation.
‘The man with two tunics should share with him who has none,’ thought Jason.
Chapter 27
It was just after noon when Sam entered Jason’s office. Jason was reading the Wall Street Journal. He was leaning back in his chair, his feet resting comfortably in the center of his desk. He had removed his shoes.
Sam’s words were the first indication to Jason that he was no longer alone. “You comfortable?”
“Very.” Jason smiled over the top of the paper. Sam was OK. Once you got past the attitude. And that annoying accent.
Sam took a seat on the couch opposite the desk and continued, “That was some nice work on the Chamberlain account.”
“Thanks. I had a lot of help. The folks in copy, graphics, and media all put in some long hours. I was just the front man.”
“Good looks and modest, too. Good combination. You’ll be a good catch for somebody. Mind if I ask you a personal question?”
“Not at all.”
“Probably none of my business, but you’ve been here almost nine months now and I’ve never heard you mention a girlfriend, ex-wife, or significant other. Anything you think I should know?”
Jason wasn’t exactly sure he liked what might have been implied by the question. But he let it go. Just Sam being brash.
“No problem here. Truth is I do date occasionally. I had a couple of serious girlfriends in college. But I’m not in a particular hurry to find that perfect someone. At this point in my life I just want to make the most of whatever opportunities I’m given. I have high expectations for myself, and success is important to me.”
“Like your sales presentations, brief and to the point.”
Sam shifted her position on the couch and leaned forward, indicating that it was time for the serious stuff.
“Much as we appreciate your efforts, that isn’t why I came by. As you know, our numbers were way down last year. The first quarter of this year isn’t looking much better. Chamberlain helped. But we need more. We need your ideas. And we need your results. I’ve already made the same pitch to Michael and Tricia. So don’t feel like you’re being singled out. Times are tough. We need everyone to pull together if we’re going to survive.”
Jason thought for a moment. Then he decided to just come out with it. There was something he had been searching for the opportunity to bring up. This seemed like it.
“I appreciate your position,” Jason began. “The fact is, I do have an idea. I’ve studied the client list for Jagged Edge for the past four years. In general, our clients represent a cross section of business, with no apparent specialization. You’ve got telecommunications, trucking, automotive, aerospace, pharmaceutical, manufacturing, and merchandising, to name a few.”
“Right. I’m familiar with all that. So what’s your point?” Brash as usual.
Jason paused before proceeding, knowing that what came next would be a tough sell. “Well, my point is, although we represent a lot of companies that are solid in their respective industries, there seems to be a specific absence of businesses that operate with a Christian agenda. There are plenty of Christian institutions, organizations, companies, and foundations in need of advertising. It’s a market I would like to see us in.”
There. He had said it.
“I’m not sure I understand your point. Near as I can remember, we’ve never asked a potential client for religious affiliations or for references from the last three churches attended. And I suspect a fair percentage of your so-called Christian organizations would likely not make our cut in terms of expected margin.”
It hadn’t taken much to irritate Sam. Jason tried to proceed carefully, without compromising his conviction.
“Look, I’m not trying to imply there’s anything wrong with the clients we already have. I’m just saying that for me, as a Christian, and as one of your Account Managers, I sense there’s a huge un-tapped market out there, a market comprised of companies who put ethics on equal footing with profit. These companies want their stories told by someone who feels the same as they do. That someone could be us.”
Jason went on to tell Sam about Garrett Motors, about their business statements, and about how Garrett had contracted for advertising with WADP, in large part because of their shared Christian values. He suspected he had covered some of the story during one of his employment interviews with Jagged Edge. But now the story had real meaning.
It didn’t take Sam long. In a dismissive tone that surprised even Jason, Sam simply said, “Nice story. But for now let’s just work the current list. Bring your legitimate ideas to the next regular meeting.”
Then she was gone.
Jason just stared. He hadn’t even had time to blink. Patience was not something Sam was known to possess in large quantity. Jason would just have to wait for another opportunity and attempt to win her over with a better argument next time.
'Patience,
' thought Jason, 'comes before the reward.' Where had he heard that before? It was just a random thought. He wasn’t sure why he had the thought, where it came from, or exactly what it meant. He figured it was probably something Kyle had shared with him, but he had no idea why he would have remembered it.
Jason found himself reaching into the top right hand drawer of his desk. He pulled out the Bible he always kept there, a gift from Kyle. He scanned the pages of the New Testament book of Hebrews for what he was being driven to find.
It was a ‘Eureka!’ moment when he found it. In Hebrews 10:35-36, he read:
‘So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised.’
Chapter 28
After his success with Chamberlain, Jason sensed a subtle shift in the politics at Jagged Edge. Michael and Tricia, the other two Account Managers, were struggling to close deals and make their assigned targets. Jason’s multi-year Chamberlain contract was for more money and more years than had been anticipated. So Jason had almost single-handedly assured the company’s quarterly success. His star had risen.
It was simple physics. Someone going up meant someone else was going down.
The sad reality of the agency game was that competition for contracts among Account Managers was almost as fierce as the competition for clients among competing agencies. Alex and Sam preached ‘pulling together’, but where the Account Managers were concerned, it was more about ‘ripping apart’. As in jackals competing for bits of flesh on the carcass of a fallen prey.
Account Managers were no more part of a team than a marathon runner. They ran as loners, looking for every advantage to break free from the pack. Measured by their individual productivity, the rules were not as important as the results. They plied their clients with long lunches, expensive gifts, and padded expense accounts -- all acceptable practices, as long as they produced results. The only thing the Account Managers did as a team was cash their company paychecks.