We were in Dallas filming for an IV clinic. We already had the safe shots- the clinic, the staff, the clean footage. But “safe” doesn’t make a stranger trust you.
That’s the work I care about- short videos that make the right person reach out. And that doesn’t happen by accident.
So I asked my client to take us somewhere nearby with lots of people. He drove us to a grocery store five minutes away. It was the week before Thanksgiving.
We set the camera on a patch of grass in the parking lot. My videographer stayed with the gear. I grabbed the mic and started walking toward strangers.
I’d never done “man on the street” before. The first ten tries made that obvious. I approached people, introduced myself, and asked if I could film their answer to one quick question.
They waved me off.
They kept walking.
“No thanks.”
Over and over.
Then I turned and saw my client still there, standing by his car, watching.
And my stomach dropped.
It’s one thing to hear “no” from a stranger. I can handle that. It’s another to hear ten no’s while your client watches.
My face stayed calm. My insides were on fire.
And that’s when I realized- I didn’t need a better question. I needed to choose better. I was walking up to whoever was closest, instead of choosing who looked like they had ten seconds to spare.
Fast steps and eyes down: I let them pass.
A slower pace and a half-second pause: I stepped in.
Same parking lot. Same mic. Different result.
Yes, I interviewed the dog.
By the end of two hours, we had fifteen strangers on camera.
We turned those interviews into one short video for their social media. In the first month this video went live, it was the clinic’s top-performing post.
Not because it was clever.
Because the right people saw themselves in it.
Most “no” isn’t rejection.
It’s you asking the wrong person at the wrong moment.
Who are you still chasing- with no chance of yes?
