Blue Motors
I first came in contact with Chuck Strasburg when he ordered a copy of my book, “Building The Dream Workforce,” from my website. I was about to do a program in Mobile, Alabama, and Chuck wanted to read my book before the event. It was no surprise to me that Chuck sat in the front row at my presentation.
During one of the breaks, Chuck shared a story with me that is a real “Shazam!” Chuck’s company, Magnetech Industrial Services, repairs and rewinds electrical motors and generators for large companies, such as power plants, paper mills and chemical plants. Chuck had called on a prospective Customer several times, just trying to get his foot in the door. This prospect worked in a cement plant, and was using 3 of Chuck’s competitors to repair and rewind his motors and generators.
The prospect’s main objection was that Chuck’s price was higher than the competition. Chuck uses better materials for the repairs, and his Team is made up of veterans that have been with Chuck for many years. “Mark,” he said, “We sell ourselves. We sell quality.” Chuck went on to say, “I can tell someone about our quality, but they don’t always believe it.”
After several sales calls, the prospect finally agreed to let Chuck repair a couple of motors. Chuck had the opportunity that he had been looking for, and he wanted to find a way to prove his quality guarantee to his new Client. He came up with a brilliant plan. He told the Client, “Every motor that we repair for you, we want to paint it blue. Let’s see how many blue motors you have to take out.” Luckily, the Client agreed to let Chuck paint his motors blue.
Chuck got his foot in the door of this cement company 3 years ago. It would take a lot to get it back out. Chuck’s motors worked! When it came time to replace a motor, the Client’s electricians said, “Give me one of those blue motors!” Chuck proved to his Client that his repair work was actually better than the competition.
Chuck is now the primary vendor for the cement company. In fact, his blue motors have opened up other opportunities within the cement company. For other Clients, Chuck doesn’t use blue paint for his repairs, but he does use a paint that costs him about $50 a gallon. Chuck says that many of the motors are exposed to sunlight, and his Clients wonder how his motors continue to shine long after they are installed.
I called Chuck as I prepared to write this article. He made this comment about my book, “Mark, just like your book, I’ve always wanted to have a Dream Team. When my Team Members retire, I want them to feel proud that they were part of my Dream Team.”
Chuck Strasburg found a way to differentiate his motors from the competition. His Dream Team’s “blue” motors have made his competition “green” with envy. © Mark Mayberry
