marketing map - it is what you know
you. People might call you, asking for a meeting. You should also be calling people you know, on a regular basis, to meet with them, and always ask for names of others who might need your services. There are many ways to network. No matter which form of networking you’re using, you should use the five main principles below, to make sure the time you spend networking is not wasted.
(1) FOCUS ON THE RELATIONSHIP: DON’T SELL UNTIL ASKED TO BUY People would rather buy from someone they know. That’s one of the reasons networking works. So, the time you spend with a potential customer should be spent on helping them get to know you. That means not always talking about your business. In fact, it means staying away from typical sales-like conversations. One of the best things to talk about is the other person. It makes people feel good to talk about themselves, and also helps them feel good about you, because you are taking the time to listen.
If and when the person you are getting to know needs products or services you provide, they’ll think of you just because they have gotten to know you. On the other hand, one of the most important things to remember about networking is that the people you talk to are not necessarily the ones who end up being your customers. Your best prospects might be others you are referred to by your networking friends.
(2) BE PICKY: CHOOSE YOUR BEST PROSPECTS It’s tempting to look at every person you meet as a customer,
WE’VE TURNED NETWORKING INTO ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT, MOST LUCRATIVE, AND LEAST EXPENSIVE
WAYS TO ADVERTISE. 72 scrapbook business
especially if you sell products and services that could be beneficial for anyone, such as scrapbooking. However, you are only one person and there are only 24 hours in a day. It’s critical, if you plan to use networking as a part of your marketing mix, to determine whom your best prospects are, and build relationships with them. If you try to build relationships with too many people, they won’t know you well enough to trust you, and all your efforts will be fruitless. When you’re at a networking meeting, in a roomful of people, put this principle to use by consciously choosing the people you talk to, and talk with each one at length. If you flit through the room trying to meet as many people as you can, your conversations will be too short to develop relationships.
This may sound coldly calculating, but it’s a fact of life. Your best prospect is not necessarily the person you get along with best. Rather, it will be a person who either regularly uses your products and services, or knows a lot of people who do.
(3) LOOK FOR OPPORTUNITY: TURN CONVERSATIONS INTO SALES Your focus should be on getting to know your networking friends, rather than selling to them. However, from the very beginning of a relationship, you should look for opportunities to offer products and services where they are genuinely needed—just as a neighbor offers the use of his tools. You can turn marketing (networking) into sales in this way, without ever spinning a sales pitch.
In some cases, you will offer your networking friend your products and services. In other cases, you will ask your friend for referrals to others, then offer your help to the person you’ve been referred to.
Once you’ve offered your help, if there truly is a need, then it’s important to take action: set up an appointment, make a phone call, do a demonstration, and ultimately ask for the sale. Many people make the mistake of thinking their networking contacts will sell themselves, just because the relationship seems more personal than business. You still have to ask for the sale.
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