Have you ever done a deal with a CEO only to find nothing happens?

You send a message a couple days later, you receive assurance (in writing nogal) that it’s all good, and you wait, and still nothing.

After a few cycles you start thinking the CEO is lying to you. He’s being malicious. Telling you one thing, doing another. That bastard!

Don’t panic.

Never confuse for malice what can be explained by incompetence.

Not incompetence of an individual, but of a big organisation.

Big companies can be dysfunctional. Even if the CEO says “Go!”, the communication breaks down internally and you can be caught in a no-man’s land where the finance dept is waiting for the marketing dept, who in turn is waiting for the finance dept, who insists marketing is holding things up, etc etc.

Meanwhile death-by-bankruptcy is rapidly approaching you.

There’s only one way to deal with big companies.

Lurk.

Hang out at the offices. Get to know everyone. Walk the floor. Develop a personal relationship with each individual human that will influence your deal.

When you need a contract signed or an invoice paid, arrive at the customer’s HQ and camp out.

Physically stand over the accountant’s shoulder and ensure the requisition is printed. Hand deliver to the person to needs to sign. Personally take it to the person responsible for releasing payment. Stand there until the funds are transferred.

It’s easy to brush off emails and phone calls. Not so easy to ignore a physical presence lurking over their shoulder. Only when the staff realise that you ain’t going anywhere will they prioritise you.

This might frustrate you, you may rant that it’s not the way the world should be, you might shake your fists at the sky in frustration, but if you want to succeed, you need to accept the way things are, roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty.

There are no easy deals. The bigger the company, the more people you need to win.

Suck it up, and starting lurking.