“It’s all about people. It’s about networking and being nice to people and not burning any bridges.” – Mike Davidson
What better way to wrap up the Networking Series than with an easy list of Do’s and Don’ts?
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DO: Be friendly and approachable
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DON’T: Get drunk
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DO: Listen attentively to the other guys pitch
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DON’T: Shut down a conversation by being argumentative
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DO: Tailor your “elevator speech” appropriately to the other person’s potential needs
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DON’T: Write off another contact if they don’t appear at first to be useful for you (think referrals)
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DO: Be friendly to your competition
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DON’T: Monopolize one person’s time
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DO: Work the room
Remember to bring breath mints, hand sanitizer, lots of business cards and your best attitude. Networking can be fun and rewarding you just need to practice, get out there and never forget your next best customer may only be a hand shake away.
2 Comments
Karen,
I met you at a Greater Kansas City Chamber networking event recently, the Face to Face at the downton Marriott.
I have a question for you. My primary purpose is to set appointments. Do you have any tips for doing that using cold calls?
Thank you very much.
Steve
Hi Stephen - I believe it would depend on what kind of service you are offering and what your value proposition is. If you can determine 2-3 benefits that can potentially be important to a person you are calling and then speak to them about those benefits and ask if they are interested in learning more by allowing you some time to meet… Does that make sense? For example: Hello Mr. Prospect, did I catch you at a good moment? I’m with ABC company… our solution has helped companies like yours save money by (fill in blank)…is this something that is important to you? Would you have time to meet with me in person so I can explain the details?