The French Pastry Chef
During the course of my travels, I ran into an excellent idea being used by a dealership in New York State. A salesperson - convinced that the Service Drive would be an excellent source of referrals - decided to think "out of the box" for this one: He went to a costume store and purchased an outfit for a "French Pasty Chef" -- complete with the white hat, apron, etc. He then negotiated a volume deal with an excellent pasty shop nearby for three mornings per week (Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday);these were the days when their traffic was a bit off. Three mornings per week he showed up between 7:30 am and 9:00 am in the Service Drive and Service Lounge with a beautiful silver platter filled with warm pastries. He soon became the talk of the dealership! He had business cards available on the tray (and had his name printed on the back of this "uniform") and almost instantly began picking up 5+ sales each month. Everybody loved the warm pastries! Today, 18 months later, he can attribute no less than 12 sales per month to this culinary activity. The Dealer loved the idea so much that he made a television commercial starring....the salesman!
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