Networking "Up"

Are you trying to network "up"? Are you looking to network with people who are higher up in the corporate structure than you, own bigger companies than you, or who have more resources than you?

It's not a bad thing to want to do. If you're a B2B salesperson, you need to make sure that you are in touch with the business owner. If you're looking to move up the corporate ladder, you need to find out what it takes to be in that position of higher responsibilities. If you have no resources, you need to partner with people who do have them.

But ... I find a lot of people who don't know where to find such people and who don't know how to approach them. They get frustrated because they don't think they see them in the organizations they are part of, such as the Chamber. That's both true and not true.

It's true because you will find more people who are in sales participating in networking activities such as mixers. Business owners of larger companies tend to not go to what they see as social events for a couple reasons: first, that's what they have a salesperson for - to specialize in building relationships and finding prospects; second, they are more focused on issues such as government regulation and don't see the benefits of the networking specifically for themselves. Plus, they can find themselves beseiged by salespeople when they do attend.

The business owners do participate, they're just more selective. And it's not true that you can't reach business owners if they don't attend, because those salespeople who to to events have great contacts with other business owners that they might be willing to share with you - if you share with them.

I can't recall where I heard it said that a salesperson is the best contact you could have with a company. They are informed and involved with their business. They know how to work with decision makers. And - if they decide that you're product is a benefit to them - they are a great advocate to help sell the idea internally!

It Is So True ...

It is so true that, all things being equal, people do business with people they know and trust. I had a clear demonstration of that yesterday.

I was having a conversation with one of our Chamber members when the conversation turned to fashion - in that I have to get a lot of my clothes hemmed or altered. I mentioned the name of my seamstress' business and the member said, "Oh, I need to find an alteration shop closer to where I live. I've seen her shop, but I didn't know if she did a good job and I didn't know anyone who was using her." [Emphasis mine].

She was aware of the business, needed the service, and yet hesitated because she didn't know anything about them. Of course, I immediately told her that I was very happy with the service and highly recommended them.

How often do you shy away from using a business because you don't know them? Could you be losing business because people know OF you, but don't KNOW you?

P.S. The alteration shop is called Debbe's Custom Sewing, located in the shopping center on the SW corner of Shaw and Minnewawa. Tell Debbe that Beth sent you.

Getting into the Blogging Habit ...

Getting into the bloggin habit is like getting into the networking habit. At first you're unsure of what you're doing and if anyone even notices or cared that you bothered to show up. Then you realize that you're getting some nice feedback and things are starting to happen. Finally, you see that it's a regular part of what you do and that it's vital to the growth of your business.

I'm still on the first part for blogging, and I see a lot of people who are still there for their networking abilities. From an organization's perspective, I think the most important thing is to make sure that your events are very, very approachable. When people are unsure of themselves in a networking setting, it doesn't take much for them to be convinced that the whole thing was a bad idea.

Early on in my job with the Chamber, we held a mixer where I was at the check-in, quite a way from the event itself. I was greeting members and making sure they felt welcome, but I wasn't keeping an eye on the group. About halfway into the event, a group of three people who had arrived together came back to me at the check-in, announced that there was "nothing but cliques in the room" and that they were leaving.

Since I didn't see the event (I now make sure that I'm right in the middle of it), I can't say for sure what was going on, but I can make a guess that there were two factors at work. First, there probably was some clustering going on, but there's usually still plenty of mixing going on. Second, the group of three were a little bit intimidated and weren't willing to break into any conversations or approach anyone by themselves. Because there were three of them, they probably formed their own small group which precluded individuals from breaking into their group.

I've learned since then that you can't assume that people know how friendly your group is. If they're uncertain, you really have to show them by introducing new people around until they feel more comfortable.