Over the last few weeks I’ve been pursuing new clients and partners. It’s a pretty common thing that most would agree is essential to building a business. (Tongue in cheek) Yet, last week I went to a networking mixer and realized how pathetic most people are at doing it! Some people exist to serve as a bad example to others.
Now, I don’t blame those individuals completely. Getting new clients and forming solid relationships in business is something few are taught. Schools don’t. Most parents don’t. The few that excel in this skill usually learn by messing up a lot and learning from the experience. Of course there’s no excuse for staying bad…
There were two kinds of people at the mixer. They can quickly be identified with two simple questions:
1) What do you do?
2) Who do you target?
After asking these two questions, I am convinced that the “bad” economy is not due to rising prices, economic cycles, or secret government agendas. Nope, it’s simply because most people have no idea how to focus. The second question shows it. Roughly 60% of the people I asked said, “I’ll work with anyone.” Or something similar. Duh, of course you will! You’re broke and desperate (because of the economy). Need to feed the family!
Hang on; before you get mad at me for being so mean to people in that situation…I am too! I’m scraping by trying to build a company from scratch. I don’t have a trust fund, I don’t have investment (yet). I need cash to live as much as the next guy. But I also don’t say, “I’ll do anything.” Here’s why: Without clarity of focus, no one else can ever send business my way. Buyers want experts. They want a specialist. Period.
The other types of people I met at the mixer gave a specific description of WHAT they do and WHO they target. This helps me to think of people I know to send their way. Three of them already got referrals from me because I knew precisely who to refer. The other guys? They are probably printing more business cards to hand out at the next mixer.
If you are “selling yourself” in the marketplace, (This is important for owners and employees) then you need to know specifically WHAT your strengths are and specifically WHO those strengths can help. Don’t be a Jack-of-all-Trades.
Vision Pipeline is a CRM that anybody can use. But it’s built solely for independent sales people. Period. If a massive company wants to use it, tough. My new mobile branding service is intended for medium to large companies looking to use the iPhone and other devices as an additional marketing channel. Wanna build an app and get rich? Tough. That’s not what I do.
So after the mixer, I took a closer look at my pitch and my focus. Tightened the screws a bit. But I gotta say, there’s no question about my focus and my market. And I’ve had 6 different companies express interest in working with me in the last few weeks. All companies I WANT to work with. Now I just need to get a check from them… Maybe my next post.
