4162
The year was 1976, and I
had just assumed the position of manager in the Kinney Shoe Corporation lease
unit of Woolco in North Wales, Pennsylvania; just outside of Philadelphia.
(Prior to this, I had held a similar position in Gadsden, Alabama, which easily
"out-southerned" me, as I was born and raised in Florida).
And as I had previously done in
Alabama, I decided I would run a few blue light specials to conjure up some
business, and get my sales totals up for the month. Having rolled the
cumbersome box with the blue light on top into place, and turned it on, I dialed
a "1" on the phone which hung on a pole in the middle of the sales
floor, and began speaking.
"Woolco shoppers, have we got a deal for you! Come on back to our shoe
department. For the next 15 minutes only we have reduced our children's
sneakers by 30%. We have a clerk standing by who will retag your selections for
you."
Suddenly, I heard what seemed to be snickering in a 360 degree arc around me,
and smiles lit up several faces in my vicinity. And I realized these people
were laughing at that disembodied southern drawl which permeated their air
space. And while the majority of these folks had no idea who was doing the
speaking, they realized he was... a very long way from home.
I admit it. For a few seconds in time I felt an acute sense of embarrassment,
as if someone had caught me with a rip up the back of my trousers. But then, I
began to see the humor of the situation, and it was all I could do to finish my
announcement.
"Uhhm, well now, you definitely want to take advantage of this, uh, offer.
Remember, 15 minutes only."
As I hung up the phone, I could not help but laugh along with the shoppers I
had been attempting to attract. And if I ever sensed the same sort of
embarrassment, when I reflected upon that day, it helped me to imagine a Yankee
doing a blue light special announcement in Gadsden, Alabama. (I assure you, the
results would have been much the same).
One of my Yankee subordinates did the blue light specials after that.
by Bill McDonald, PhD
No comments:
Post a Comment