Every holiday season, SDN Communications delivers something to various customers that can’t be downloaded, streamed or plugged in: a tasty meat and cheese tray.
SDN usually connects people through technology, but over the Christmas season, connections happen over charcuterie. These trays aren’t just a holiday tradition — they’re a handshake and a “how’s it going?” in snack form.
So for the past few weeks, SDN’s sales team has been hitting the pavement, checking in with receptionists and handing out goodies with a smile.
Hills Stainless Steel and General Manager Brad Vaughn were among dozens to have received a visit from an SDN sales team member this month. In Vaughn’s case, it was Network Account Executive Melissa Dellman two weeks before Christmas.
After the ceremonial exchange of the meat and cheese tray, Dellman and Vaughn sat down for 30 minutes to discuss the latest with the business and talk about Vaughn’s recent adventures with his grandkids.
The meetings are not only a good way for the SDN sales teams to show their thanks, but also to learn more about their customers, their challenges and plans.
Hills Stainless Steel has about 12 employees in Sioux Falls and more at their location in Luverne. They make trailers to deliver milk, ethanol byproducts and egg whites and yolk.
They have been an SDN business internet customer for about three years, and Vaughn can’t recall ever experiencing any internet downtime.
In fact, he joked with Dellman and another visitor that he didn’t know what he was going to talk about with them.
“I thought nothing,” Vaughn said. “I mean, that’s good, right? A lot of people ask, ‘What (internet provider) do you use and how often do you talk to them?’ Probably never, really, and that is a good thing. It’s been really seamless.”
'We love the tradition'
A few blocks away, Major Accounts Service Coordinators Mary Pfaff and Hope Vande Kop had their own delivery to make to PREMIER Bankcard.
Major accounts have their favorite accounts they work with, and PREMIER Bankcard is definitely toward the top of that list. Pfaff loves the weekly call check-ins with the IT team that quickly transition to jokes, stories and laughs after business is taken care of.
The same happened during their delivery. The PREMIER Bankcard team gave Pfaff a printout of her pointing at the camera with the words, "You deserve meat and cheese trays" (a play on SDN's "You Deserve UPTIME" slogan).
After posing for a photo, the jokes and laughs continued as Senior Telecom Administrator Todd Fink repeated the dad joke that was said in their check-in call with SDN earlier in the day.
“What’s red and hurts your teeth?” he asked. “A brick.”
PREMIER has been an SDN customer for at least 20 years, and the team said they can’t recall a time when an SDN sales team member hasn’t dropped off a tray and crackers.
“We love the tradition,” Senior VP of Digital Strategy & Technology Operations Michael Upton said.
Then another team member said that SDN should bring two trays next year.
“As much as you bring, it will be gone in 20 minutes,” Senior Systems Engineer Jeff O'Hara said.
Whether it's one or two trays, Vande Kop and the SDN team will be there next year to deliver it.
"We have so much fun delivering the meat and cheese trays to our customers," she said. "They are excited to see them coming, and it's always fun to catch up this time of year."
