In this series, I’ll present real world examples of how “just asking” created an opportunity for considerable business success.
Ignore the naysayers and your inner self who fears failure or rejection. Your chances for success are directly related to your knowledge of the person, company, and industry you are asking and your offer of something of value to them, which is based on this knowledge. Please check back each week and I will share more true stories that prove how this principle has worked time and time again.
TV GUIDE
The Ask
A license for a TV Guide Trivia Game and free full-page ads in TV Guide worth $85,000 each to compete against Trivial Pursuit. No guarantee of royalties or advance payments.
Circumstance
R&R was a two-person company unknown to TV Guide, which was a household name in the magazine industry with the second highest circulation of all magazines. No prior connections to them.
The Knowledge
* Magazines don’t sell all their ad space and they can’t make up the unsold ads.
* They never did any royalty agreements before.
* They were not very successful in selling upscale retailers.
* They were a private company.
The Offer
Increased royalties for free ads to help build their brand in all retail outlets. In the ads, list the names of upscale retailers to whom they were trying unsuccessfully to sell advertising. No royalty guarantee or up front payment.
The Result
The game was a success with everything being outsourced. Over 580.000 games were sold at $12.50 each, generating a $3,000,000 profit. The company ceased operations after nine months as 80 different Trivia games hit the market, and Trivial Pursuit figured out how to produce to their high demand. They asked R&R to draw up the royalty agreement. They gave us 5 free full page ads.
Next week…how to make money with MAGIC KITS (really!)
