Recently I ordered a linen blouse off of Amazon. Boldly and with a certainty, I ordered a “Large” from China, knowing that it would fit me even though I always wear an extra-small or small in U.S. sizes. 

The blouse came in one package a few days later. Then another smaller package, from the same company, came the next day. Inside it was a piece of paper that had obviously been torn by hand in half because it had that fray on that one edge. It was half of a normal 8 ½” x 11” white piece of paper. On it was a roughly hand-written note from someone named “IG” in China, somewhere. 

It said, “Dear Customer,

Thanks for your purchase, kindly inform that we have sent two parcel for your order.  One is the top.  Another is a gift.  Any more question, welcome to contact me at any time.  Good day to you and your family. 

Best regard, IG.” 

Inside the package, which was a piece of folded cardboard with Chinese writing on it, was a little plastic bracelet, probably not worth very much, and mysteriously looking sort of like a Fitbit with the technology missing from the insides. I thought it was grand. 

I have to tell you, that little gesture stole the day if not the month for me in terms of heart-felt truth-in-marketing.  I felt instantly like I love all Chinese people.  Like the Chinese really get me.  Like I could just hug them all.  Like some guy or girl named IG is my friend over there and I could visit any time and maybe stay at their house.  I am touched that someone went to the trouble to find paper and write me a note as they went about their daily work, and packaged up and mailed a little gift in addition to what I purchased. Which was just a $10 shirt for crying out loud. (I actually had tears come to my eyes.) 

I don’t know what other people think of all the Chinese goods flooding through Amazon, and really we should probably buy American, but when was the last time an American sent you a little hand-written note?  Who was just extending a warm greeting and a “little something extra?”  Who was just kind and thoughtful?

Sales and marketing people often miss what’s truly important in bridging their company to the purchaser – that thing that is often missed is making it human.  There are order forms and terse communications, there are crazy purchase-order systems that take literally months. In education there is the whole bureaucracy of the Request for Proposal (RFP) system that tries the patience of everyone involved. In a Sales Department there are countless hours spent on proposals only to have nothing happen. It’s enough to make you throw up your hands and scream.

Cherishing when a transaction happens should be important to all of us, both sides, the seller and the purchaser.  We should say thank you. 

We should all learn from this unsung staff member of a company in China named IG.