Write a Letter to a Whale
42 Letters, a little Serendipity, and a Meeting with Warren Buffett
I want you to consider hand-writing a letter to a whale.
For almost 20 years I’ve been hand-writing letters to my target clients. My whales. Letter writing has taught me one thing: hand-written letters work. If you want to stand out. If you believe marketing is about building relationships. If you want to grow your business, hand-write a letter to a whale.
In October of 2012, I started writing a hand-written letter to Warren Buffett every single week.
Yes, that Warren Buffett. The Oracle of Omaha. The second richest man in the world.
Why Mr. Buffett? I believe I can revitalize the newspaper industry and in the last two years Warren’s purchased more than thirty daily newspapers. Newspapers that need new revenue models.
Every Monday for 42 weeks I opened my fountain pen and sent Warren a hand-written note with one new idea to help drive revenue in the newspaper business. My goal: a sit down meeting with Warren Buffett to discuss the revenue potential for the newspaper he owns.
Warren Buffett is my whale.
In our always on digital world. A world where I can tap out an e-mail on my iPhone. Where interpersonal communication has been commoditized into a text message. Where marketing can be automated into 140 characters and 'personalized' drip campaigns - a hand-written letter is unbelievably powerful.
A hand-written letter stands out.
So, did Warren Buffett read my letters? Yes. In fact, he forwarded one of my hand-written notes to one of his closest personal contacts and they reached out to me to chat.
Did Mr. Buffett call me to schedule an appointment? No. But something even more amazing started to happen.
Opening Doors
As I revealed my letter writing campaign to friends and business acquaintances they began asking me to share my letters to Warren with them. They were curious about my revenue-generating ideas and they asked if they too could learn from my ideas.
In response to the increased interest, I started publishing my letters each week on Tumblr and I shared the link with those that asked.
Within a few weeks the e-mails and phone calls started rolling in. Publishers from as far away as Italy wanted to know more about the ideas I’d been sharing with Warren.
By October of 2013, a year after I started writing my weekly advice, more than one hundred publishers were reading my letters to Warren every week. They’re CEOs and Presidents. They’re the movers and shakers in the media world.
They’re the whales.
Warren is a figurehead, a persona, and my weekly letters had opened the door to some of the industry’s most powerful people.
A Little Serendipity
On October 22, 2013, almost exactly a year after I started my letter-writing to Warren Buffett, I walked into the green room at NBC’s Today Show. (I had been booked on the show to talk about marketing to men.) As the producer ushered me into a comfortable seat on the couch, I noticed that Warren Buffett was sitting right across from me.
As we waited to be escorted into Studio 1A, Mr. Buffett and I chatted about the future of the newspaper industry. He was gracious, generous with his time, open to my ideas, and confident in his team’s ability to execute a successful growth strategy for the newspapers Berkshire Hathaway owns.
Make Your Own Luck
I firmly believe you make your own luck. Would I have ever met with Warren Buffett if I hadn’t been writing my weekly letters? Who knows? I do know that without the letters I wouldn’t have been prepared (or confident enough) to have a meaningful conversation with one of the industry’s most powerful people.
I do know that the sharing of those letters has led to the most amazing experiences of my career. I’ve been flown around the world to speak to the world’s largest publishers about new ways to drive new revenue in a new media world. What do I know about publishing? Not much. I only know what I’ve learned studying the industry and turning it into valuable advice for an audience of one.
I do know that if you write a letter to a whale you’ll stand out.
You can market to everyone or market to someone.
Who’s your whale and what will you write?
IT Support Engineer at Takeda Pharmaceutical
7 年Call me Wish Mail.
ADD ME I WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE
9 年WOW! That was an amazing story!!
Culture builder, servant leader, sales enthusiast, Bestselling Author, SaaS GTM architect & workhorse, low maintenance follower and quota destroyer.
9 年What a great read this was. Nice work! You miss 100 % of the shots you don't take, I suppose. I'm going to go find some paper and a pen today.
Independent Writing and Editing Professional
10 年Andrew this is so inspirational. I'm going to pursue my author endorsements for my book NOW!
Legal & Content Communications Professional
10 年Mr Andrew Davis, you are right, Mr Warren E. Buffett makes a difference, in people's lives from the first cent! Here's a poem I wrote (Kamini Arichandran, author of Corporate Journeyman) inspired by Mr Buffett's rudimentary financial advice entitled Cents of Style, found below: CENTS OF STYLE Shop in a bank Make a statement More than fashionable Sign up for the latest investment plan Demonstrate your financial élan! The buying power is in your hands Tempted to spend Do you shelve saving for later? Quantify yourself Your financial character—a consumer or a saver? To earn cents or lose dollars? To make new capital while you sleep? Or more sweat under your collar? The choice is yours. According to Warren Buffett There is only one way The equation can be right Add savings first Then minus spendings Hear the clink in your pockets Not in a stranger's till. Minimize your lending Debit essentials— leave the bank— winning— still!