September 2010 Archives

At startup #4 we developed a product, and we went to a trade show. We had a willing buyer who wanted a quantity of tens of thousands to equip all of the ministry employees in their country. We had a manufacturing facility producing hundreds per week and aching to ramp-up to thousands. What did the CEO / sales guy do? nothing. He didn't return the buyer's calls, didn't send 10 samples as promised in person (right in front of me), never had an explanation of why that sale wasn't happening, why we weren't signing a contract. What he did do was interrupt meetings with his mobile phone, make bad jokes, never write down what the founders agreed needed to be done; and he always asked when the next version of the product would be ready to sell. A business cannot exist with salespeople who neglect to take money from buyers for available merchandise. The sales guy was not listening to the market.