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The Networking Dance - The Keys to Doing it Right
By
Eileen Kent
Events, networking, lunches, lead sharing. Sometimes being in sales you feel you have to become the social butterfly. That's right. If you want to uncover opportunities you need to take the attitude that you would be willing to attend a lot of early morning breakfast events, lunches and black ties.
Unlike most sales people, however, you need to change your attitude about networking. Networking is not how many cards you obtain at an event or the number of hands you shook. Networking is a new relationship you've opened up with someone at an event and during your interview process (or conversation), you've established the quality of your future business relationship.
Lillian Bjorseth, author of "Breakthrough Networking" defines networking as, "An active, dynamic process which links people into mutually beneficial relationships."
How do you measure whether or not it is a mutually beneficial relationship in less than 10 minutes?
Simply ask yourself two questions while you're networking with someone:
- Am I willing to share quality leads with this person?
- Are they willing to share quality leads with me?
When I am a keynote speaker, I discuss the importance of networking through the analogy of The Networking Dance." If you want business, you need to be the "Lead Dancer" by offering leads first.
A great way to help someone else as the "Lead Dancer" is to approach people in an event, normally the people around the outside of the dance floor are those who are a little nervous about networking. Walk right up to them, introduce yourself with a great handshake and a willingness to understand their business and uncover their potential end users.
Here are some ideas of end users in the government. Based on their products and services, there is always a person whose job is on the line without them.
Here are some examples of end users:
HR Directors
IT Managers
CIO
Facility Managers
Engineers
Designers
Soldiers
Doctors
Nurses
Communications Managers
Event Managers
Call Center Managers
Emergency Response
First Responders
While you are doing the networking dance with this person, think about all the people who might be a potential client for them. Offer the introduction and keep them talking. Typically, they are so shocked that you helped them with a lead, they'll start asking you about your business, and offer you a few key introductions.
After about ten minutes of networking, you need to move onto the next person, so you need to close the conversation gracefully. The most positive impression you can leave with your new lead source is to introduce them to someone at the networking event and move on. Time is real estate at these events, so you need to give yourself about 10 minutes per dance. If you've uncovered five great networking relationships at one event, and they each offer you 2 - 4 introductions, you'll probably receive at least 10-20 great referral leads.
On the following day, call them, thank them for the leads and let them know that you have already followed up with the leads they've given you and give them an update. Get them another lead or two and they will simply feel obligated to search their personal database for you for even more leads.
If you never want to make a cold call again, go to one event a week and uncover 10-20 qualified referral leads by committing yourself to becoming the "Lead Dancer" at every event.
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