One of the most valuable lessons I ever learned about marketing was from an old silverback gorilla at the St. Louis Zoo. I was a young man at the time, temporarily living in the area, when upon visiting the attraction, I encountered this gorilla who was sitting near a shallow pool at one end of his long rectangular cage. He (excuse the personification, but this fellow really took on human characteristics as you will learn in a moment) was staring intently at the surface of the pool, his nose just inches from the water, as he slowly stirred the surface with his index finger. As he continued doing this for several minutes, a throng of people watching him eventually moved to the end of the cage and got as close as they could in order to see what the gorilla was staring at. At just the precise moment, his hand slicing the water’s surface, the gorilla sprayed the onlookers with a wall of water. As the shrieking victims scattered, the gorilla doubled over in laughter. Then, once the drenched had departed and a new, unsuspecting group of potential victims began to form, that old gorilla began the process all over again.

Lesson learned? We often attempt to persuade students, potential donors, and others to do our bidding with invasive techniques. It’s almost as if we’re stabbing them in the chest with our index finger, trying to convince them with many reasons why they should attend our institutions or give us their money. But sometimes, we are more apt to capture their attention and win them over with curiosity rather than a frontal assault.

Next time, instead of giving them the whole pitch, why not try giving them just enough information to whet their appetite? Suspended interest can be a powerful approach. Take it from someone who learned the hard way (-;