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Drive-By Networkers
Key Phrase: Love 'em and leave 'em- it's a numbers game!
Their motivation is to touch as many hands as possible to make the
sale.
Drive-By Networkers aren't networking because they love it, but
because they feel they have to. For many Drive-Bys, networking is
a trolling activity to find potential clients, no different from
making cold calls. They expect rejection and so don't give people
much opportunity to reject them. They ask for the sale or sales
meeting without bothering to develop rapport. It's no surprise that
people don't respond well to them, but Drive-Bys have developed
a near immunity to others' discomfort.
For some Drive-bys, Networking is an activity that is to be endured
- and they'll suffer through an evening of it, but only if they
can make it out the door in record time. Drive-Bys can resent the
imposition on their time and they don't see the real value in showing
up and glad-handling strangers. There are so many other places they'd
rather be - at the very least, at home with the remote in hand!
They don't feel good about networking and they don't feel good about
the limited success they gain from it.
However, in most cases, Drive-Bys simply don't know how to network-
and because of this, they're leaving a trail of uncomfortable potential
friends and clients behind. Drive-Bys are driven by the belief that
networking is selling, not building relationships, and it's costing
them in ways they can't even guess. In some cases it's shyness,
in many cases it's fear, but in all cases, it's not getting them
what they want, the way they want it.
If you suspect you may be guilty of a little Drive-By networking
at times, here are some suggestions:
1. Understand that networking isn't selling! Networking
is the first opportunity to graciously earn a second conversation
or meeting: whether it's to make friends or make a sale. You don't
marry someone on the first date and you don't often make a sale
on the first meeting, either.
2. Reconsider what you're missing. Every time you enter
a room full of new people, you're facing a world of opportunities.
Each person knows a universe of other people, many of whom may
be potential clients. Each interaction you have potentially earns
you the right to speak to one of those people about yourself and
your product. Each interaction could earn you another dear friend,
as well.
3. Take a deep breath and slow down. Give people a chance.
Find out about them. Do the interviewing and listening. Let yourself
be charmed by how intriguing people can be, and let the sales
take care of themselves over time. They will happen- in direct
proportion to how gracious and appreciative you are. When you
earn the right to be referred, your chance to make a sale - and
a friend - increase exponentially.
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The One-Way Driver
Suzanne W had her thirty-second elevator sales pitch down.
She could recite it in an elevator, she could recite it at
parties, she could recite it in her sleep. Along with her
business card, it was the first thing she thrust at people
whenever she had the chance. While she found that many people
turned away from her (and many dumped her card, she noticed
when she checked the trash can later), every once in a while
someone was interested. She figured that if she just kept
it up over time, her sheer force of will and the number of
people she met would pay off.
What Suzanne didn't see was that those who had already been
subjected to her one-way communication avoided her when they
saw her coming. While they thought she had a nice personality,
they got the impression she was after one thing - their wallet.
They had no interest in Suzanne or her product because it
was such a hard-sales experience to talk to her. Oblivious
to this, Suzanne worked the rooms as quickly as possible and
went home, exhausted.
The truth is, Suzanne is petrified. She is trying to prove
herself at work and the books she reads on closing techniques
and selling strategies tell to use her elevator speech at
every opportunity. She gets some cards but the leads rarely
pan out. She suspects she's doing something wrong, but doesn't
know what to change.
What Suzanne can do:
First, she should dump the elevator speech. No one is interested
in it even if they ask her for it right away - that's a habit,
not necessarily what they want to hear. They want to hear
about themselves, so she should ask questions. Interview her
conversational partner for a while and let them shine. Then
they'll want to hear about her - and when it's her turn, she
should keep her answer to a witty key phrase that takes less
than 10-20 seconds. If it catches their ears, they'll ask
to hear more.
Second, she should put her business cards away until she's
asked for one, and keep her focus on the personal side of
things first. Let people relax around her and enjoy her company.
Finally, she should slow down and focus on others' body language.
When other people indicate a lack of interest, she should
finish her sentence and let them move on. It's not a reflection
on her, some people just want to meet others. But by being
intrigued by others, they're not likely to leave her- and
they'll probably ask for her card and possibly her business!
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