No One Likes To Be Sold - Especially at Networking Events

Unless you are a shameless, self promoting extrovert (and there’s nothing wrong with that!), there’s a good chance you dread going to networking socials or luncheons in hopes of drumming up business.

As an introvert, when I first started my business and heard I should get involved with my local Chamber of Commerce, I wasn’t too keen on the idea - I envisioned lots of slick, power sales people in expensive suits with fake smiles pushing business cards into my hands - but I went. I figured I might as well try it.

The event turned out much like I expected. The environment was nice enough and there was a nice selection of food and drink but the people were a big turn off. Everywhere I went, someone was trying to pull me into a conversation where they could give me a short sales spiel about how they could help my company and then pushed their business card into my hand. Or, they’d take a look at my company, not recognize the name and snub their noses.

Perhaps you’ve had a similar experience and have written off networking as a waste of time. I did - for a while - until I learned that networking didn’t have to be that way.

The truth is that networking can be one of the most effective and cost efficient ways to attract new business - if you do it right. People like to do business with those they know, like and trust, so the heart of networking is meeting new people and creating relationships that are mutually beneficial to both parties.

What do I mean by mutually beneficial? Think of any meaningful relationship you’ve ever had - maybe with your significant other, your parents, or your close friends. Each relationship is a series of give and take. Some days, you might need emotional support. Other days, they might ask your opinion about a new purchase they’ve been considering. Sometimes, you simply chat about a common interest, describe something new you’ve just discovered, or just catch up. Regardless, you both feel you get something from the relationship. It’s not one sided.

Yet often, we approach networking as if it’s one sided. We want others to give us business without any type of reciprocal exchange of value. We go to these events because we feel we must. We answer the dreaded question “What do you do?” about a hundred times. Maybe we meet one or two people that seem lukewarm about our services, but rarely do we find someone who’s ready to sign on the dotted line. And often, we leave with a feeling that we’ve wasted our time. It’s a gloomy outlook, don’t you think?

Networking Is Not a Hard Sale
The problem is just that - our outlook. We attend these events expecting to be pitched - and expecting pushy salespeople to push their business cards in our hand while asking for our business. But that’s not networking - that’s making a hard sale! Rarely will that get you clients. If anything, it will just make those you talk with uncomfortable and counting down the seconds before they can leave the event.

Networking is about meeting new people and tapping into their vast network of resources. Each of us has a personal sphere of influence of roughly between 200-250 people. These people may not be the close associates you see every day, but they’re people who recognize you and stop to chat on the street. They’re the people you’d invite to your wedding or send college graduation announcements to. And when you die, they’ll be the people who attend your funeral.

More importantly, everyone you know also has a sphere of influence of that size as well. And every new person you meet has the potential to add 200-250 more people to your own network. Imagine if you could tap into their vast network of resources whenever you needed. Or to be able to refer others to those within your network whenever the opportunity arose.

Today’s buyers want to do business with those they know, like and trust. If they don’t know someone, they ask someone in their network to refer them. Most people on your list won’t be a potential buyer for your services. But there’s a good chance that sometime, they’ll know someone within their own network who may need the services you provide. If you’ve worked to build a relationship with them and have a strategy for keeping in touch, you’ll be a good candidate for them to refer business to.