If you don’t live in or around Merrimack, New Hampshire you can stop reading now before you get in trouble. Why? Because I think it’s time for civil disobedience over the issue of tolls in Merrimack. If you have been following the news not only are they (the Governor and Council) raising the tolls, they are still stiffing the folks in the Merrimack area.

Merrimack has a total of six ramps to the highway and every one of them currently requires a 50 cent donation to the state to get on or off. How many does Manchester have, the state’s largest city? Oh, right, none! How many does Nashua have, the state’s second largest city? You got it, none! And how many does Concord have, our state capital? None! Are you seeing a trend here? Well you should be. It’s unconscionable that the state continues to do nothing but talk about toll equality.

It’s time for more civil disobedience. The use of pennies for the tolls this summer did not get enough attention. What we need to do is block each and every Merrimack entrance with 100 cars and see how we can get the attention of a few folks. Obviously being nice and polite has not worked.

While my tongue is somewhat in my cheek it’s a rip off for the state to be so callous to a town without any thought of fairness. Say, did we not start this country over an issue like this? The numbers speak for themselves. People in Merrimack pay 10 times or more what everyone else in the state does to use the highway. That’s right, they pay everyday to go to work, go to school, grocery shop and run other necessary errands and many do so because there isn’t another route to take. Something just doesn’t add up.

It’s time for the legislative leaders of our state to stand up and fix this. Waiting for the Governor and Council has not worked so far.

I’m just back from a conference of fellow ad agency owners. As we sat around the conference table in Half Moon Bay, California we talked about common agency problems—one of those being gorilla clients. You know, the ones that take, and take and take some more. Yup. That’s what I mean.

Many years ago I had a gorilla client (55% of my business) and when they left I was devastated and had to lay off a third of my staff. I said then that I would never do that again. I’m proud to say that 15 years later I never have. Yes, I’ve been tempted. Who hasn’t? But the downside is just too risky. Take a look at the following articles and you’ll see I’m not alone.

http://www.corridorbiznews.com/aspx/NewsDetail.aspx?ItemID=465

http://www.aiga.org/content.cfm/a-dozen-common-mistakes.

The big problem with gorilla clients is that they want to rule your agency. Even worse, if they know they are the gorilla they WILL rule your agency. These clients want stuff without realistic deadlines and at prices that don’t let you make a fair profit. It also churns employees more than any other single issue in my experience. Face it. When anyone on your staff works on one gorilla client, they feel over-worked and under-appreciated and eventually say, “Hey, I don’t need this.”

Don’t be fooled, or teased, or seduced by the money. Gorilla clients will be the death knell of many businesses. It makes us lazy. Seriously. Who has time to look for new business when the big client is always on the phone? It’s easy to get lulled into a feeling of having no time for anything but the big client. I speak from experience. I drank the corporate Kool Aid once, but never again. Be careful for the big client you wish for—you might just get it.