What many people fail to realize at such events is that not everyone is a [potential] customer, but that does not mean they are not worthy of your time. The next big lead for your business can come from anywhere or anyone.

Once you realize this fact, though, your approach to networking may change significantly. Instead of trying to push a product or service, you might try to inform. Instead of trying to sell, you might start to listen and have conversations.

Networking is about establishing connections that will endure long beyond any short-term benefit. As an example, you might be able to close a sale with some aggressive marketing for a few cans of paint to someone who just moved into a new house. If you spent time to connect with that person, though, they may have referred you on to their contractor, who would continue to buy from you for many years. Does that mean that you should not sell to anyone who could use your service?

Not really – it just means that your approach might need to be fine-tuned. Listen, connect, interact. Eventually, the sale will come. If you provide paint, as in my previous example, then the person who moved might ask you if you sell privately, or only to contractors and professional painters. Not only have you opened yourself to the possibility of referrals, you have managed to close the immediate sale as well with far less effort.

Oddly enough, many people are well aware of this sales technique, and yet they persevere with the bullhorn approach to networking. Perhaps this is because when they enter the events, they are seeing other people behave this way, and they immediately try to fit in.

From personal experience, though, I’ve found that you’ll actually make more of an impact if you use the soft-sell approach – you’re at the event not to sell products or services, but to meet people. When you tell others this, they will be initially surprised, and try to find the ulterior motive. But if there truly isn’t one, you’ll have made great progress is establishing new connections that will have the potential for huge returns over the long-term.

Related posts:

1. The Right Time to Network
2. Post Parnasa Fest Toronto II
3. Are You Magnetized?

My Current Job

When I graduated university, I didn’t have a job, and spent several months teaching part-time at a community high school. During that time, I got engaged, and at the engagement party, the father of my wife’s close friend heard I had a degree in computer science. He gave me his e-mail address, and suggested I send him my resume. I e-mailed it that night.

Three weeks later, I was called for an interview, and then a week later, for a second interview a few weeks after that. Two days before the wedding (it was only a 4-month engagement) I was informed that I got the job, and would be starting a month after the wedding.

Landing a Contract

The second story happened more recently. I did some work for a client for about 15 months building a fully customized inventory management system. I was at an engagement party for a friend, and another guest was chatting with the groom, and asking him about what he did. He mentioned that he worked for my client, and in an off-hand way, said “Elie would know, he wrote our software!” The guest turned to me and asked me what I did, which I quickly explained. A month later, I was hired to build a catalog of 200K files for a community organization he represented.

What’s the most interesting connection you’ve been involved with?

Related posts:

1. Subcontracting: A Middleman's Perspective
2. When the Schedule Slips
3. Basic Interview Skills