When my mother and father started this company more than 30 years ago, they never could have conceived of the internet, let alone the concept of online dating. Unable to foresee sites like Match.com, eHarmony.com, and yes, Matchmaker.com, they innocently named our company Matchmaker. After all, we are in the business of matching shippers needs with carriers’ capabilities. It makes perfect sense.
But these days, if I use our corporate shorthand and simply refer to our company name as “Matchmaker” instead of “Matchmaker Logistics”, people outside of the industry assume we’re in a very different business.
Every day, Robbie Johnson, our Carrier Development Representative, speaks to people who aren’t familiar with Matchmaker Logistics. She says it’s a nice icebreaker, as often people have a good laugh with her, saying something like: “Matchmaker? Isn’t that a dating service?”
If she’s leaving a message, Robbie is sure to tell the message taker to write down the “Logistics” part of our company name to keep the office gossip in check. But one weekend, when she was on call for our 24/7 after hours booking service, she received a phone call from a very upset woman.
This jealous wife had seen our company name pop up on her husband’s caller ID and she wanted to know exactly what kind of service we offered. Robbie quickly explained that we are a transportation brokerage company, as the wife breathed an audible sigh of relief. Robbie says: “It’s a good thing I picked up because otherwise it would have gone directly into my voicemail where she would have heard my voice saying how sorry I was to have missed the call!”
That would have been what hipsters call “Pulling a Jack Tripper”. This type of misunderstanding was the basis of many comedic exchanges on the hit 80’s sitcom “Three’s Company”, hence the name. Here is an example:
Mr. Furley is standing outside the bathroom and eavesdropping while Jack and Chrissy are installing a shower curtain.
Jack Tripper: Okay, Chrissy, I’ll get in the tub with you, then we can get it on.
Chrissy: Get next to me, I’ll show you what to do.
Jack Tripper: This isn’t exactly the first time I’ve ever done this.
Chrissy: Maybe so, but girls are better at this than boys.
Jack Tripper: Come on, Chrissy. A little less talk and a little more action, okay?
Chrissy: Okay, you do your part and I’ll do mine. I don’t think it’ll reach!
Jack Tripper: Of course not, you’ve got to unfold it first!
This weekend, we encourage you to “come clean” (whether it’s in the shower or not!) and tell your significant other about how you work with Matchmaker Logistics. We’d like to avoid any future Jack Tripper moments….
Here’s to a weekend that includes a dose of classic TV,
~Bob
