Early memories of the ubiquitous Billy Mays
The funeral for Billy Mays over the weekend brought back some wonderful early memories of the “thumbs up” man in the direct response business. I got to know Billy before his beard and blue shirt made him an international icon and I can tell you that he was a decent, hard-working man on and off the set long before he became the most recognized television salesperson in history.
I got to work with Billy for the first time in 1996. It was the very first Oxiclean infomercial and I think the first infomercial Billy ever did. My company ended up doing at least 10 more long-form shows and several short-form spots as well, all for products owned by Orange Glo International the parent company of Oxiclean. The products we did were for Oxiclean, Orange Glo furniture polish, KaBoom tub and tile cleaner and Orange Clean foaming degreaser.
To be honest, it was one of the easiest shows we ever did. That was because Billy did all the hard work. He was already familiar with how to “pitch” Oxiclean as he was doing that successfully on HSN. He knew exactly what to say to sell the product; exactly what demos would be the most effective and how to deliver the information in a captivating way to the audience. As a production company, all we had to do was turn on the cameras and let Billy do his thing.
Coming “prepared to sell” was one of Billy’s biggest attributes. When you worked with him on a project regardless of what it was, Billy would write the sales pitch. One of his many trademarks were memorable, catchy phrases he would create.
Some examples: For Orange Clean he crafted “great cleaning products do grow on trees”, “when you need the muscle without the tussle”, “it’s the cleaner that works, so you don’t have to.” For Oxiclean he offered “powered by the air we breathe, activated by the water you and I drink”; “it’s mother-nature approved” and “it’s like a white knight in shining armor”
You can’t write lines like this. Billy would create catchy phrases for all the products he pitched and that was unique to him. In my opinion without having Billy as a spokesperson, Orange Glo would not have the success it enjoyed. Billy’s ability to pitch built a cleaning empire.
The other attribute he had – one that I’ve only seen in few really successful entertainers – was a “switch” he could turn on when the camera started rolling that would put him in high gear immediately. Off camera he would be quieter, but once the cameras started rolling – watch out. I think the best compliment I can give him is that he was just a good old fashioned “pitchman”. You can’t find people like that anymore.
Ron Lynch, Cesari Direct’s chief creative officer, passed along a humorous story about Billy at his best. Several years ago, Taco Del Mar, a Seattle-based restaurant chain specializing in fish tacos, filmed a spoof on Billy in an attempt to boost sales. The effort worked yet Billy thought he’d have some fun and planned a payback routine. The restaurant chain’s VP was in on the gag . . . Billy entered the corporate headquarters with a fake news crew and grilled the company CEO about sales and marketing. Billy’s rapid-fire questions had the CEO uncomfortable and anxious until Billy eventually exploded in laughter, explaining the hoax . . . Billy will truly be missed.
What’s your favorite Billy Mays story or presentation? What quality do you believe made him so popular and effective? Let us know . . .
