"I will furnish one-half of the money for your line extension," an Eastern financier once told this banker who is noted for building his talk to fit the listener's interest; '' provided you raise the other half among businesses in towns on your blue prints."
The banker planned to meet this condition. And the first questions he asked himself were: '' "What can I say to these business men that will make them put up their money? What have I got that attracts them? What are the two or three big restraining influences that hold them back? Which men will accept logic? Which ones will require an appeal to the feelings?"
It was evident at once that the principal objections he would have to meet were:
1. Lack of confidence in the success of 5B4the scheme.
2. A lack of any individual feeling of need for a new railroad through the town.
3. Ignorance of the full advantages the railroad would offer.
4. An out-and-out money expenditure by every man, without any immediate personal return.
The name of the Eastern financier behind the scheme and the banker's own reputation insured confidence. His task, then, was to see that every one of his listeners felt a personal disadvantage through the lack of added railroad facilities and saw an individual benefit sufficient to warrant a liberal contribution.
To develop these personal appeals the banker looked up the character, disposition and business history of every prospect. He found a packer whose business had grown steadily during ten prosperous years. Here was a man to whom his own business was the one object in life - a man w ho would feel that this new money demand offered no personal advantages - a man well satisfied with present conditions. To such a man the argument of town loyalty would have to be backed by an appeal to personal interest.
"What have I to offer that man"' the banker asked himself. Referring to his map, he found that the new route would bring cattle, sheep and hogs to the packing house from an important farming section not yet tapped. He found, moreover, that competitors up and down the present transportation lines were beginning to cut into the packer's business and that wit5B4hout new sources of supply the packer could not possibly keep up his phenomenal expansion even two seasons longer.
Here was the personal appeal - the '"you" interest - the decisive contract of advantage and disadvantage that would have the greatest possible "hitting power" with the packer. The railroad meant to him new grazing territory and another ten years of rapid growth. Without that railroad, competing centers would soon have him at a serious disadvantage
When the banker went before the local chamber of commerce, every listener was equally familiar to him Turning to the map he directed his opening appeal straight at the packing house interests.
"And now," he concluded, "this increased business for your packing house means a double supply of hides for your local tanner Figure it out for yourselves "That amount of leather, it is an accepted rule, justifies the establishment of a shoe factory in your town
"A shoe factory means more families added to the town; more local trade; more farm trade; more wholesaling. It means more business for you, Mr. Grocer, for you, Mr. Jobber; for you, Mr. Drygoodsman; for you, Mr. Real Estate Agent, for you, Mr. Hardware Dealer."
Thus he showed every man present some important advantage the railroad would bring him. He told the story of other communities, and showed the town as it would be two years later, with, the new industries in full swing. Then he put aside his enth556usiastic word picture and suddenly brought back the humdrum present.
"You are well satisfied," he said; "you think you have a good town and so you have; but other towns are enterprising. They are going after success. The easiest thing in the world is for the fortunate, well-satisfied community to be left high and dry."
Thus, with logic and persuasion, he tore away the restraining influences that were holding back his prospects and drove home their present disadvantages so keenly that his project immediately won the local support it deserved.
Liza Othman manages an ebook website at http://FunHowToBooks.com - Discover more about how to talk business to win at http://TalkBusiness.FunHowToBooks.com
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