
Do These 5 Things Before Networking with Anyone…
Here are the 5 Things You Must Do BEFORE Networking with Anyone and certainly before attending a Business Networking Event
You may also borrow these tips to help with leveling up your dating game as well.
Before we run through the list. Here are some general pointers to help you:
- Be Super Specific: Don’t Ramble, Meander or go off on tangents. Most people don’t have the patience for this and WILL NOT WANT to continue the conversation, let alone help you. This is a turn-off and is effective at driving people AWAY from you.
- Don’t Use Jargon: Keep your language simple, so that anyone can understand it. Just because you know what you do, doesn’t mean that anyone else will have a clue about it, so keep things very simple. Use words a 7th grader would understand
- Pause: Speak for 20 seconds to a minute and then Pause, so that you allow the person you’re speaking to, to react to what you just said or ask you questions. Don’t go into long monologues, coz no one likes that.
Now that we went through the starters, here is the main course
- What Do You Do? Drill down to the core of what you do. You don’t need to talk about the industry for context unless you are asked. Most people have a short attention span, so get to the point fast!
- Why You Love It? Explain why you do what you do. Is there some deep philosophy that drives you? Maybe it’s something that happened to you in your formative years or some epiphany of altruism. People want to know and eat that sh*t up 🙂
- Who’s Your Ideal Client? Again, be super specific like what is your customer’s industry, their income/revenue level, preferences, etc. Don’t say – ‘Anyone who needs this… ‘. When you say ‘Anyone’ people actually hear ‘No One’ since you are not telling them something specific to focus on.
- What’s Your Ask? It’s more strategic to look for referral partners rather than end customers. Referral partners are usually trusted advisors to the end customers, so reaching them through a warm referral will aid in closing the sale as opposed to reaching the customers directly.
- What’s Your Give? It’s not all about taking. When you are upfront about giving, it causes others to want to do the same – which is the basis for successful networking and long term relationship development
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Business Networking 101
Business Networking is a lot like Dating. It’s about relationship building and showing up as your best self. Just like in dating, you want to make a good first impression, so that there is a strong desire from the other person to have a second date or a second meeting with you.
The following tips should help you get the most out of your next business networking event. These tips apply to ALL kinds of networking events – In-Person, Online via Zoom or Google Meet, or via Apps like Linkedin, Shapr, Bumble Bizz or Facebook.
- Set an Intention Before Networking. Decide what you’d like to achieve and place yourself into that headspace by spending a few minutes thinking of it.
- Positioning. Think about how you’d like to introduce yourself to people at the business networking event. Write a script if it helps to organize your thoughts so that when you say those lines, they achieve Impact with your Audience.
- Strategy: Have a plan. You’re there to meet some interesting people with the hopes that they can refer you customers or may think of partnering with you if your Goals align with theirs.
- Listen: Be sure to ask questions about what they do and how you can help them and pay close attention to what they say. This tells them that you are interested in them, which is likely to make them interested in you.
- Elevator Pitch: Prepare your elevator pitch which clearly talks about what you do, how you’re different, why customers or clients like working with you, who your ideal client is (Your Ask), and what you are offering (Your Give). Write this out and then say it in your own words so it doesn’t sound scripted when you say it and it comes across as more authentic and genuine. This also makes you look more polished and professional, which will help people to take you seriously, while also helping you stand apart from the crowd.
Ask What You Can Do for Them, Not What They Can Do For You.
Rajiv Jadhav