Everything I Know About Business, I Learned from the Macy’s Santa Claus.

If you grew up in the New York tri-state area as I did, the Christmas season did not officially begin until Santa made his appearance, bringing up the rear of the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Whelp, I just watched it happen again for the (mumble) year, so I guess it’s time for this post to go live. Here goes!

In the holiday movie classic “Miracle on 34th Street,” the Macy’s Santa finds himself at the center of controversy when he “redirects” shoppers to competing department stores whenever Macy’s was out of stock of the children’s toy they are frantically searching for.

By doing this, he was ignoring specific instructions from the Macy’s toy department manager to convince shoppers to buy something else…in Macy’s of course! Before he could (gasp!) fire Santa, a redirected shopper tells him she was very impressed by this Santa’s act of good will and that she would forever be a loyal Macy’s shopper.

To paraphrase Clare Boothe Luce, “No good deed goes unpublicized.” Santa’s good deeds were co-opted into a PR blitz that was so effective for Macy’s, it caused the owner of the rival department store, Gimbel’s to bellow, “Two can play at this game! From now on, if we run out of a toy, send them to Macy’s!

Ah, the classic story of good will versus good will. Or perhaps it’s more like “Our Santa can beat your Santa!”

Seriously, what the Macy’s Santa was doing was practicing the philosophy of abundance, while his supervisor was mired in the philosophy of scarcity. In a chestnut shell (see what I just did there?), the philosophy of abundance states that you will eventually benefit when you share something of value. Whereas with the philosophy of scarcity, the more you give away, the less you’ll have. This is also known as accounting 101.

Call it Karma if you like, but when you practice the philosophy of abundance, you don’t always reap the benefits immediately. I know this from experience.

In 2012, when I was 58 years old, I was laid off from my position as the public relations and social media manager of a small healthcare ad agency. Getting laid off at that age sucked. I was beginning to feel I couldn’t get arrested, let alone hired.

Several months into this, I started being approached by several of my industry contacts. They didn’t have full-time jobs for me, but they did have consulting gigs, publicity projects and freelance writing assignments. After signing my first two 12-month marketing communications retainers, I formed Ventriello Communications LLC and never looked back.

To this day, more than 80% of my business is from industry referrals and here’s the beauty part: I’ve never had to get on a plane to do the power point dog and pony show. Why is this? Because my capabilities, experience and reputation were pre-sold to others by those in my network who knew of me or worked with me in the past.

Don’t get me wrong, I do my share of by-lined articles, social media and face-to-face networking during industry meetings and conferences, but I firmly believe that my journey from unemployed AARP member to greypreneur would not be possible if I did not believe in the philosophy of abundance. Here are some areas where I’ve applied this philosophy to my career and business:

Prospective Clients

I frequently receive introductions to and inquiries from prospective clients. Not all of them are a good fit. But I do have a soft spot for innovative start-up companies and aspiring thought leaders, so I try to show them some respect and give them a few minutes out of my busy day and listen – just like Santa. Although I prefer being contacting by email or LinkedIn messaging.

Sometimes all I can offer is some basic advice because they have no budget for my services, or they need to rethink their go-to-market strategy. That’s OK. I’ve had a several prospects who’ve doubled back after doing some soul-searching, re-engineering and re-prioritizing and either signed on as clients or referred other business my way. Sometimes, they leave their position at an under capitalized company to work for one with deeper pockets and call me once they get settled. This is a much better scenario for both of us and well worth the wait.

Allied Service Providers

In my opinion, one mistake some consultants and agencies make is to latch onto any prospect or project despite the fact that they are not well-suited for the task at hand. Rather than taking the “fake it ‘til you make it” approach on someone else’s dime, I have a strong network of trusted allied service providers that I refer prospects and current clients to - Just like the Macy’s Santa sending a shopper to Gimbels.

Do I like turning business away? No, but if taking on a project assignment runs the risk of not meeting client expectations (or mine for that matter), jeopardizing my reputation, or if it’s something I just don’t have time for, simply don’t want to do, or working with someone who is an a-hat, I’ll try to find a better fit within my network. 

There’s also another option: In the event that I’m developing a marketing strategy for a new or existing client and I need to supplement my services with those of a specialist such as a web developer, videographer, package designer, etc. I will retain the role of prime consultant and lead strategist and bring on an allied service provider to work under my direction. This is not a new concept, but it’s a win-win that helps me expand my bandwidth and take on more complex projects. 

In this case I prefer that my allied service providers be fairly local so we can meet face to face to discuss strategy and projects if and when it is required. Most have worked with me during client-side phases of my career or at agencies I have worked for. I not only know their capabilities but their temperaments as well – Are they naughty or nice? Santa always rewards the nice people.

Journalists

One of my core strengths is public relations – especially the media relations aspect. Some PR practitioners forget that their role is to be a trusted and reliable resource for a journalist. For example, if an editor or reporter reached out to me to ask if I have any contacts that could be interviewed for a story they are working on, I’ll do everything I can to steer them in the right direction, whether or not it benefits me or one of my clients – even if the call is after business hours due to a critical deadline.

Sure, a reporter may be able to use Google, LinkedIn or Twitter to conduct research, but I may be able to provide additional insight, including a personal email address or mobile phone number.

What’s more, I frequently set up meetings with journalists at trade shows and conferences, even when I’m not pitching anything. I do this to find out what types of editorial opportunities are on the horizon – especially those that were decided after the editorial calendar was published.

I never accept a published editorial calendar as the be all and end all. Therefore, we’ll often discuss industry trends and brainstorm about possible article topics that may resonate with their audience. Once again, article ideas don’t always involve a client.

When I do contact a reporter on a behalf of a client, I am very considerate of their time. This includes making sure I have newsworthy information before I make contact. There have been many times that I have had to tell the client that their news release or article idea was not relevant.

Truth be told, I have lost and/or dismissed clients when the insistence of promoting non-newsworthy topics and unwillingness to explore other alternatives becomes chronic. I learned a long time ago that it’s not worth appeasing an unreasonable client and losing credibility with a journalist whose beat covers multiple clients.   

Thought Leaders

As the name implies, thought leaders must be ahead of the curve in their respective fields. That includes understanding new technologies, research and techniques that they can in turn share with the readers of their blogs, social media accounts and by-lined articles as well as the attendees of their lectures and workshops.

Providing thought leaders with this information can take many forms including whitepapers, product information and PowerPoint slides. Once again, taking a page from the media relations playbook, I strive to be a resource and also be quick to provide additional information when requested which may include product samples or equipment for evaluation. When working with a thought leaders on a product evaluation, be sure to provide them with a private technical support hot line.

Also, following them and engaging with them on social media will help you understand what they are the most interested in before you begin your outreach.

Ad Reps

I often walk the tightrope between being a media buyer and a PR strategist. So, I maintain a good relationship with all the space reps. I take their calls, never lead them on and take the time meet with them during industry conferences.

When I am wearing my media buyer’s hat for a client and a publication is not a good fit, I will explain why. For appropriate publications, I try to give the sales rep every opportunity to win the business. How? By explaining to them the client’s business objectives, unique value proposition, product launch and trade show schedule and what the desired marketing mix ratio between print and digital should be.

What I am looking for in return is an integrated platform from a strategic partner. It is never about “give me your lowest rates”. This approach to media buying results in a triple win for the client, the publication and yours truly.

Speaking of yours truly, by managing my relationships with ad reps in this manner I usually get the inside scoop on what’s going on at the publication such as newly-planned feature articles, category-specific supplements that can benefit one or more of my clients, changes in editorial staff and my favorite which goes something like this:

Ad Rep: “Hi Mike, I just signed up a new advertiser and they have a healthy budget.”

Me: “Congratulations!”

Ad Rep: “Thanks, but I have a problem.”

Me: “Oh, what’s that?”

Ad rep: “They are creating their print and digital ads in-house and they suck! I’m afraid they won’t get the results they expect and blame it on our publication. Can you help me?”

Me: “Of course. Send me the ads they are planning to run and let’ schedule a three-way call.”

This scenario is not a rare occurrence. More proof that practicing the Macy’s Santa’s philosophy of abundance throughout the year can have long term positive benefits for your personal brand and your bottom line.

Thanks for reading this post. Have a happy, healthy and prosperous holiday season!

About the author: Michael Ventriello is the owner and founder of Ventriello Communications LLC and specializes in developing strategic marketing and public relations programs for innovative dental, medical and wellness companies.