I would think your question should ask how to avoid the gatekeepers and not the decision makers. Afterall, the decision makers are really your customers, correct? There are alot of tricks to the trade in dealing with gatekeepers (the ones that try to keep you away from the decision makers) but the most important thing to keep in mind is to always be ethical in your approach. You do not ever want to lie or deceive. For instance, I have a copier place that keeps calling my business saying that they just need to update their records with the model number of our copier - meanwhile they never give the name of their company or a phone number to call back, rather they just hang up if they suspect you are on to them. When I need to reach someone I have not called on before, and I feel there is a strong gatekeeper at the company, I usually will call back and speak very quickly asking for the person by their first name only. "It's Christine, is Dan in?" That way they do not ask too many more questions and they think you know him and usually put you right through. Then you can identify yourself more appropriately when the person you want is on the phone. The worst that can happen is you will get told not to call back. But just remember, for every "No" you receive, you are that much closer to a "Yes". Hope this helps. ☺

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