Farquharson/Tedesco on Business Development: Don't Give Up on 'Lost Causes'

Back in his halcyon days as a print salesperson, Tedesco once used this sort of approach to score a meeting with a VBD (very big deal) print buyer in Washington, DC. The buyer controlled eight figures worth of printing for a large organization. Tedesco had called on the VBD repeatedly with no luck. One day, after a year of banging his head against the wall, Tedesco waltzed into the VBD's lobby. He gave the receptionist a cupcake with a candle stuck in the center, and asked her to make sure the VBD received it. Attached to the cupcake was a note: "Happy Anniversary! We've hit our one-year mark of not working with you!"