THE ULTIMATE NETWORKING GUIDE

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Part 1 - Why Social Skills Are More Important Than People Think And How To Improve Them

Part 2 - Introducing Yourself

Part 3 - Networking Strategies

Part 4 - Follow Up

Part 5 - Keeping Track

Part 6 - Scripts & templates

Building a powerful network is not easy. Building a network is not about sending a fake email to someone, pretending to be interested in them, then asking for a job. Building real relationships is about investing in them first, figuring out what they want and love, and then helping them get it — NOT instantly expecting a magical job offer. In fact, most of the “networking” you do will simply be helping people and getting nothing back in return. 

Networking… The challenge of making success contacts.

How are you using networking to build your career? Make sure you have a networking plan. How many hours a week do you spend networking? To get ahead it must be at least 5 hours a week. How many of those hours are spent at optimum productivity? It is easy to measure – you should get at least 20 new contacts per week.

This is your career. Your opportunity. Will you take advantage of the power of networking? If not now, when? You´re working anyway. You may as well have some fun.

• Networking is getting known by those who can help build your business.
• Networking is creating momentum toward business and career success.
• Networking is getting together with business contacts and turning them into customers, friends, colleagues. 
• Networking is building and nurturing long-term relationships.
• Networking is building a people resource bank that pays interest and dividends that compound annually for as long as you are alive.

Secret… Networking only works if you have a positive attitude. To succeed at networking, you must make a plan. Here is a questionnaire to help you to formulate a game plan. Use it.

• Where do I network now?
• Where should I network?
• What are three organizations I should investigate and possibly join?
• How many hours a week should I network?
• Who are five prime people I want to meet?
• What are my first-month networking goals?
• Do I have the networking skills I need?
• Do I have networking tools?

Answer the questions above. They will help direct you toward a perfect networking plan. The only thing missing from the plan is your commitment. Only you can supply that.

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Part 2 - Introducing yourself

When you are networking on the lookout for contacts the way you present yourself is an opportunity to provide information that creates interest and response from people you network with. You have only a few precious minutes to make a powerful first impression.

Think it as your 30-second personal commercial. How effective is your commercial? Do you even have one?

Lets say somebody asks “what do you do?” if you’re in the temporary staff industry and you say: “I’m in the temporary staffing industry”, you should be shot.

Your answer should be: “I provide quality emergency and temporary employees for business like yours so that when one of your own employees is sick, absent, or on vacation, there is no loss of productivity or reduction of service to your customers”.

You deliver a line like that and the contact can’t help but be impressed.

So now lets prepare your commercial!  Your plan is to have 15 to 30 seconds of information that:

1. States who you are
2. Creatively tells what you do (think about the problem you solve, for your clients or your company)
3. Asks one or many power questions
4. Makes a power statement that shows how you can help others

Now you have the persons attention you ask your power question(s) that makes the person think and respond in a way that gives you needed information.

This information allows you to understand how you can help them. The questions you ask must be open-ended. There is no reason to tell anybody how you can help if you don’t know what kind of help the person needs.

The power questions you ask are a critical part of the process because it qualifies the contact and sets up your power response. When formulating the power questions for your commercial ask yourself these 4 questions:

1. What information do I want to get as a result for asking this question?
2. Does it take more that one question to find out the information I need?
3. Do my questions make the contact think?
4. Here some ideas that will expose areas of need:

You should have a list of 15 power questions that make the contact think and give the information you need.

The 30-second personal commercial… How to deliver it.

You just wrote your personal commercial and now it´s time to deliver it.

It is no different in sales. You can´t pitch the Decision Makers & Experts effectively if you don´t know what his needs are. You must know how to play each Decision Makers & Experts. It´s easy to get a strike in sales. All you have to do is ask your Decision Makers & Expertss questions. They will be delighted to tell you all about themselves.

In the middle of your commercial (between what you do and how you help others), you are going to ask a series of open-ended Power Questions that will gather enough information for you to formulate a response that will lead to Decision Makers & Experts interest and action.

10 Personal Commercial Delivery Rules…

1. Be brief. Your remarks (other than questions) should be no more than 30 to 60 seconds.
2. Be to the point. Say something that creatively tells Decision Makers & Expertss exactly what you do in terms of their needs.
3. Be remembered. Say, give, or do something that will stay in the Decision Makers & Experts´s mind (in a positive, creative way).
4. Be prepared. Have your information at your command – rehearsed, practiced and polished.
5. Have power questions and power statements ready. Prepare a list of questions and statements in advance and rehearse them.
6. Get the information you need by probing first. Ask power and follow-up questions that generate information, establish interest, show need, and allow you to give your information in a meaningful way. Ask your best questions and have your most concise message ready to deliver when the timing is right. Before you explain your problem-solving capabilities, know enough about the other person so that your information has impact.
7. Show how you solve problems. The Decision Makers & Experts is bored hearing about what you do, unless you tell him in a way that helps or serves him. The Decision Makers & Experts doesn't care what you do, unless what you do impacts him.
8. Pin the Decision Makers & Experts down to the next action. Don´t let a good Decision Makers & Experts go without some agreement about what´s next.
9. Have fun. Don´t press or be pressured – it will show.

IMPORTANT: Don't say ANY words that aren't an integral part of your commercial. Be as concise as possible. Be creative. If it drags, no one will listen or be inclined to act. Make your message in terms of the listener (you, your), not in terms of yourself (me, I). Be original. Boring message are forgotten immediately. Say, do, or hand out something that will be remembered. Ask open-ended, thought-provoking questions.

Your commercial can be used in various forms at a networking event, business or trade association meeting, trade show, PTA meeting, or events. Bars, anywhere.

Be prepared. When you meet a Decision Makers & Experts or a Decision Makers & Experts comes up to you, are you ready? Test yourself:

• What do you want his or her first impression to be? How will you create that?
• How quickly can you qualify him or her?
• What kind of questions can you ask that will qualify your Decision Makers & Experts and generate interest in what you do?
• Do you have a list of your Power Questions? Are they rehearsed?
• Do you have a list of your Power Statements? Are they rehearsed?

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Part 3 - Networking Strategies

NETWORKING EVENTS

NETWORKING EVENTS - FUNDAMENTAL RULES

1. Pre-plan the event. Figure out who will be there, what you need to bring, what your objectives are, and if anyone else from your company should attend.
2. Show up early, ready to move, looking professional, full of cards.
3. If you attend a business event with a friend or associate, split up. It is a waste of time to walk, talk, or sit together.
4. Walk the crowd at least twice. Get familiar with the people and the room.
5. Target your Decision Makers & Experts. Get a feel for who you´d like to meet.
6. Shake hands firmly. No one wants to shake hands with a dead fish.
7. Have your 30-second personal commercial down pat.
8. Keep your commercial to 30 seconds OR LESS.
9. Be happy, enthusiastic, and positive. Don´t be grumbling or lamenting your tough day. People want to do business with a winner, not with a whiner.
10. Don´t waste time if the person isn´t a good Decision Makers & Experts, but be polite making your exit.
11. Say the other person´s name at least twice. First to help you remember it, second because it´s the most pleasant word to their ears.
12. Don´t butt in. Interrupting can create a bad first impression. Stand close by, and when a pause or opening appears … jump in.
13. Eat early. It´s hard to eat and mingle. Get your fill when you first arrive so that you are free to shake hands, talk without spitting food, and work the crowd effectively.
14. Don´t drink. If everyone else is a bit loose, you´ll have a distinct advantage by being sober. (Have a few beers afterward to celebrate all your new contacts.)
15. Don´t smoke or smell like a cigarette.
16. Stay until the end. The longer you stay, the more contacts you´ll make.

IMPORTANT NOTE… Have fun and be funny. It´s not a brain cancer operation; it´s great time to get to know others and establish valuable relationships. People like to be with people who are happy.

To make the most of a networking event, spend 75% of your time with people you don´t know.

NETWORKING EVENTS - THE SECRETS OF SUCCESS

If you are not following the fundamental rules (see the previous section), don´t even try the subtle ones - they won´t work.

1. Early in the event and near the end of the event, stand by the entrance if possible. At the start you can see everyone and establish your targets, and at the end you can catch anyone you missed.
2. Spend 75% of your time with people you don´t know. Hanging around with friends is fun but won´t put any Decision Makers & Experts cards in your pocket or make any valuable contacts.
3. Spend 25% of your time building existing relationships. Talk to your contacts. The better you get to know them, the more chances you will have to succeed. 
4. Don´t give your information out too soon. After you give your 5 to 10 second introduction, ask the other person what they do before you start talking in depth about what you do.
5. After your Decision Maker/Expert has told you about himself, your next move is a choice between establishing rapport (finding common interests) and an opportunity to arouse interest in your product/service. (What the Decision Maker/Expert said in his introduction will be your guide).
6. If the person seems to be a good Decision Makers/Expert, you must establish some common ground besides business if you want to ensure an easier path to doing business. Find one thing you both like or know about.
7. Try to appoint the Decision Maker & Expert now. If you want to get their card, offer your card first, or give a reason you need the card (“Give me your card and I´ll mail you some information”). If they are reluctant to give you a card, he/she is likely to be hard to appoint later.
8. Write all pertinent info on the back of the Decision Makers/Experts´s card immediately. You will need this to refer to when following up.
9. Don’t ask for a job. Just establish some rapport, some confidence, and book a next appointment.
10. Be aware of time. After you have established the contact, gotten the business card, established rapport, and confirmed your next action (mail, call, appointment). Move on to the next Decision Makers & Experts. (Play a game with a friend and see who gets more (qualified) cards. The more you bet, the less likely you´ll spend a second together).

MORE NETWORKING GUIDELINES

You've got the fundamentals now. Now let´s capitalize on your new knowledge. To facilitate implementing your networking plan, you need a few more guidelines. Networking is a powerful, cost-effective self marketing weapon.

1. Have an yearly wall calendar with all networking events. Update religiously every week.
2. Learn how to make small talk become important talk. Be brief and to the point. If someone ask what you do, say it quickly and succinctly.
3. Don’t flap your gums just to be talking. When you engage your mouth, make it count.
4. Know the kinds of problems you can solve rather than a bunch of boring facts about your career/service. Talk in terms of how you solve problems rather than the service you offer.
5. Avoid negatives at all cost. Don't complain or speak poorly about a person or business. You never know if the Decision Makers & Experts you are talking to has some connection, interest, or affiliation with the people, company, or product you are slamming.
6. Be polite. Please and thanks go a long way toward creating an impression.
7. Don’t spend too much time with one person or you defeat the purpose of networking. If you find a good connection or lead, spend a little extra time. Know when you've said and heard enough. Be smart enough to make an appointment, pique interest, and MOVE ON.
8. Your objective is to take advantage of the entire room. If you spend 3 minutes with a Decision Makers & Experts, that gives you the possibility of 20 contacts per hour. Every second is valuable. The size of the event dictates the amount of time you should spend with each person. The larger the event, the shorter time per contact, and the less time you should spend with people you know.
9. Get involved in the organizations where you network.
10. People identify with and do business with leaders! Have a great time. Lead with your positive attitude and your enthusiasm. Business is sure to follow.
11. Remember, at a networking event everyone wants to sell! You might have to play a buyer in order to be a seller. You must be able to wear either hat. Learning the skills of networking will provide you the opportunity to be either… and in complete control of the situation.

If you are able to establish rapport when networking,  you will have a perfect conversation starter when you follow-up to make an appointment.

ESTABLISHING RAPPORT

Webster defines rapport with several words: relation, connection, accord, harmony, and agreement. Establishing rapport with a Decision Makers/Experts at a networking event enhances your ability to appoint in the ensuing follow-up.

• If you already know the person… if you have a business agenda, discuss it within 2 minutes. If the person is a Decision Maker/Expert, spend a couple of minutes building the personal relationship by establishing mutual interests. If he or she is talking to someone you don't know, get introduced and see if there is a fit for you. If you make a promise or commitment, get another card from the person and IMMEDIATELY write it down on the back. No matter what, after 5 minutes… MOVE ON.
• If you don’t know the person… Get information before you give your 30-second commercial.
• Ask an open ended questions about how they now use your type of service (Where are you presently getting----------? … How are you using -----------? … Who are you buying --------- from? … What do you know about using --------- ?). Questions that will engage Decision Makers & Experts, make them talk about themselves are the type of questions you need to ask. As soon as they broach a personal issue, grab it and expand on it.
• When you engage a Decision Makers/Experts, try to find out his personal interests. After the traditional exchange of business information, try to find out what the does after work, or what he is doing next weekend. You might even try out a couple of interest items if an event is near or just passed, like a ball game, car race, concert, play, or business function.
• After you have gotten to know a little of this person, you can begin the “let´s get together later to finish this discussion” part that solidify the all-important appointment.
• Be careful not to spend too much time on subjects of mutual interest. It's tempting to spend 30 minutes talking about things you like. Don't. Your opportunity to meet others awaits you. You can expand the conversation at a lunch next week. Move on to other Decision Makers & Experts.

NOTE: Write on the back of their business cards. Be sure to include anything personal you spoke about so that you can begin the appointment where you left off at the networking event.

WHERE TO GO...

Event selection is as important as networking itself. Ask your five top networking experts where they go for their monthly meetings. Start by going there.

To find out which groups/organizations/events to go ask yourself the following questions: 

• Where do my targeted Decision makers/experts go?

• Who do I want to develop relationships with?

• What are my expected results?

• How much time must I commit?

• Who are the important people involved that I must contact?

Each week the Business Journal and the business sections of daily papers publish a list of business events, and the chamber of commerce in your city publishes a monthly calendar. Don´t overlook social and cultural events as networking possibilities. Select those events that may attract your Decision Makers & Experts or people you want to get to know. Go for it.

PREPARING TO GO TO A MEETING OR TO A NETWORK EVENT

The better approach is to take control of the situation – so you decide how people remember you. You can accomplish this in a couple of different ways:

1. Brainstorm a list of topics to talk about BEFORE you ever get to the event.

·       What should be on your list? People want to talk about what other people are talking about. To get a shortlist, just look at the news, Twitter, or Facebook. The trending topics on these platforms are the perfect kinds of things to bring up in group conversations. Plus, they make for easy icebreakers and allow you to be proactive in striking up conversations. So you might say something like, “Did you see what so-and-so did at the MTV music awards yesterday?” Or, “Woah, did you know what so-and-so is doing?” It encourages people in the group to chime in and say, “Yeah! I saw that! That was crazy!” Or you’ll have others who say, “No, what’s happening?” Then you can explain it briefly to kick-start a deeper conversation. It’s a great way to get a group conversation rolling along and everyone engaged.

2. Plan the type of impression you want to leave on people.

·       To do that, ask yourself: When you spend some time planning these things out, you can have some conversation ideas on hand that give off the impression you want. For example, if you want to make people laugh, prepare a few jokes ready and a list of funny things to talk about. If you want people to know you’re intelligent, do a little research and put together a list of fun facts to drop into a discussion. The point is by doing this up front, you remove all the guesswork. You’re prepared with material to use when the opportunity is right.  

E.N.J.O.Y   TECHNIQUE

• Eye Contact: The most socially fluent people don’t avoid eye contact, nor do they stare down other people.  they look at you, they look away, then they come back. You can practice this rhythm, too.
• Nice Smile: Simple, but very effective. In a group, you naturally trust, like and gravitate toward people with genuine smiles. In the beginning, forcing yourself to smile more might feel fake, but keep practicing. It’s worth it.
• Joyful Energy: Take whatever energy level you’re at now and add 50% more energy. Test it in small, anonymous places like at a coffee shop. See what kind of reactions you get. Then work up to using it at work and with your friends. You’ll be amazed at the difference. Don’t believe me? Here’s the difference in action:
• Offer Value: Always think, how can you help, and try to offer value in your conversation. If you don’t recognize what to offer at the first moments take another O and keep an Open mind and Open Heart, avoiding judgement at the first moments and being genuinely interested. 
• Yes-man/Yes-women:  Simply say more Yes than No. keeping a positive attitude. It doesn’t mean you have to agree with everything but simply let go the need to be always right and accept others opinion.

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JOINING AN ORGANIZATION

1. Go where your Decision Makers & Experts are. Try to select groups and organizations that have the best chance of bearing fruit. One good indication is if one or some of your present customers belong.
2. Don't wait for your success package to arrive from an organization after you join it. To identify your best resource for networking and success, just look in the mirror the next chance you get (pretty good-looking, huh?).
3. To benefit, you must commit to be involved, then get involved.
4. It takes time to build trust and get to understanding. For the first few meetings, just listen and observe. Pushing to quickly gives others a wary feeling. See where and how you can best fit into the group. Just get to know and help quality people. The rest will take care of itself.
5. When you commit, be there consistently and perform. By attending regularly, you will be seen and known as consistent. 
6. Give first. This is a key to any relationship, not just business.  “You can get whatever you want if you help enough people to get whatever they want”, is the best way to describe “give first”.
7. Don´t measure. If you count who owes who what favour, forget it. Just get to know and help quality people. The rest will take care of itself. (Are you getting the idea?)
8. Don´t push. If you are sincere about establishing long-term relationships, don't put pressure on someone to deliver immediate business. 
9. Be prepared when you get there. Having the tools to make contacts, cards, and your appointment book are essential in confidence building.
10. After you meet a Decision Makers/Experts in a group, get one-on-one. You can get to know someone quite well in an hour if you talk about real issues and avoid weather and politics.
11. Be seen (get known) as a leader. By getting involved, you will be observed by your Decision Makers & Experts. They will get to know you as a performer, a doer, a leader.
12. People will do get interested in you once they get to know you and see you perform. Your Decision Makers & Experts are here! All you have to do is identify them and work (network) with them side by side.
13. Mature relationships breed fruits. If you breed a solid relationship with someone, he will go out of his way to help you. And the recurring universal networking rule applies here too: Just to know and help quality people. The rest will take care of itself.
14. Your ability to build a successful network is tied to your determination and dedication to take whatever time is necessary to build quality relationships. And you´re lucky – the outcome of your success is totally self-determined.
15. By turning negative energy into positive energy, you will learn to trust yourself. It will turn your heavy work into a light work. Be recommended 2 action steps: (1) Turn worries into goals. (2) Turn fears into goals.

CAPSULE FORMULA TO MAKE YOUR “NET” WORK

1.  Take action everyday – one small dose at a time.
2. Call at least 2 people per day (that's more than 500 contacts per year).
3. Go at least one networking event/meeting per week.
4. Make friends when you don't need them.
5. If you add value out, you will bring value in.
6. Learn to go with the flow. Don't be afraid to trust your judgement.

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INFORMATIONAL INTERVIEW WITH EXPERTS

CONNECTING WITH EXPERTS & FINDING OUT MORE ABOUT THE MARKET

An informational interview is an opportunity to meet someone you’re curious about and learn from them. This is one of the most powerful techniques you will use during your GET THE JOB YOU WANT program.

Find decision makers and experts in your field and obtain their e-mail address. (Click here and use the how to discover decision makers on LinkedIn guide).

• For experts who you're first connections with: you can directly email them. You probably already know them. You can contact them through LinkedIn, but email would be better.
• For second connections: LinkedIn will tell you exactly who you're connected with, and you'll be able to reach out to that person and say:     “Hey Luis, I notice that you're connected to Michael Jackson on LinkedIn and I would love to converse with him for 10 minutes. I would really appreciate it if you could send this introduction. Here's a quick introductory email that you can just paste in. Is that cool with you?" (Check Scripts to see all the templates you can use).
• For Decision makers/experts you have no contact in common, there's 4 things you can do.

1. First of all, You'll notice that someone is a third level connection because it won't show their last name. So, instead of saying James Bond, it'll say James B, which makes it very difficult to find out who that person is. What you can do is first click over to their profile and check if they inserted their personal URLs into their profile.
2. Next you can call the company your expert work for and ask whoever pic up the phone what would be the best e-mail to contact the person    “hi, I’m trying to reach John Snow, would you be so kind to give me his best e-mail address?”
3. Something you may not know is that if you join a group that they are a member of, you'll be able to contact them. So scroll down to the bottom of their profile and find out what groups they're affiliated with. You may able to join some of the open public groups. 
4. Use the Linked in research + e-mail permutator along with Rapportive in your gmail. Normally companies are consistent in their e-mail addresses being like: name@companyname.com or name.lastname@companyname.com(the e-mail permutator will help you to find all the variables.

Once you've identified the decision makers/experts, the next step is to reach out to ask for a few minutes of their time. In all cases, you'll chat with those decision makers/experts over coffee or over the phone. (See the exact scripts on what to say and write to those people on the Scripts part).

• Reach out the experts through a warm contact. If you don’t have one, you have to spent the time to find one by studying who this expert knows. (The info is out there, Facebook, Twitter, websites). Then you might reach them via cold e-mail (See scripts part). 
• Explain similarities you have. How did you come across with this person? How did you find out about them?
• Reach out with a BRIEF, CONCISE EMAIL. 
• Meet the Expert and ask very insightful questions. (GOOD questions: I noticed you did XYZ. It’s interesting because Very-Important-Person took a different approach and did ABC. What was your thinking? BAD questions: I’m so unhappy at my job. What should I do with my life?).
• Ask questions for 90% of the informational interview, interjecting insightful comments once in a while, showing that they’d done their homework. In the last 10%, they mentioned what they were working on and asked for advice. When they were especially impressive/likeable, I offered to introduce them to people I know, or outright offered to hire them.
• They never outright asked for a job, which you never, ever do in an informational interview. They also gave me an “out” in case I couldn’t/didn’t want to help them.

NOTE: These were not all the most socially smooth people. Some of them were downright socially awkward. Doesn’t matter! Sometimes, awkward can be endearing! But the very best showed a remarkable level of preparation, which anyone can do — but few actually do.

You will build your network from scratch! You will make friends with those selected decision makers, you will be valuable for them, and when it comes to the right time then your application will be warmly received, because the person will already know it's coming. In fact, in some cases, they'll be your advocate. You'll have a warm interview. In some cases, knowing the hiring manager before you ever walk in that room.  Now is time to get in touch!

Once you have someone you’ve connected with once, it’s important to build the relationship by constantly adding value.

Who would you like to reconnect to? Who can YOU help and what would be most interesting and useful to them? Send them that. Put them first — not you. When you do, repeatedly showing that you’re investing in them first, you’ll separate yourself from the everyone else who (1) rarely reaches out to anyone for advice or help, and (2) only reaches out when they need something.

Stand out, and you will instantly have more credibility and higher-level connections with Decision makers, who will want to help you.

How else can you apply this? Imagine going to an informational interview at your dream company. You finally got a meeting, yet you know you’re not supposed to ask for a job. So what do you do? How do you turn this meeting where you’re asking for advice…into an invitation to apply for a job?

HOW TO SET UP AN INFORMATIONAL INTERVIEW

An informational interview is an opportunity to meet someone who works in a position or industry you’d like to work in, where you can ask them questions about their job and get the inside scoop.

Never, ever directly ask for a job in an informational interview. That’s a big no-no. You can turn an informational interview into a potential job opportunity, but only if you approach it wisely. 

In every meeting/ call we should have 3 goals:

• 1. Learn about the person and company
• 2. Be valuable to those people and establish a relationship (long lasting)
• 3. Enjoy (learn and have fun)

There a some rules before contacting any of your selected decision makers:

1. Prepare you mind!

The mind frame that you have when approaching a decision maker will determine the result more than any other element.

Be friendly, exited, positive, confident, self-confident, prepared and interested in the other person! Action: before your next 100 calls/meetings (YES, before your next 100 meetings) you should write:

• The best that could happen,
• What is your positive expected result,
• And at the end of the call/meeting write what could you have done better.

2. Believe - create your own system of beliefs that cannot be broken

• Believe in yourself.
• Forget about the asking for a job and think about all the benefits that this person could get from being your friend. 

Action: • Why do you believe in yourself?

              • Why do you believe this person can be your friend?

3. Get involved - develop compatibility & personal involvement

Make the person get interested for what you have to say. Make them entertained with questions (people like to talk about themselves) and make them smile. Make friends, establish a connection. Be enthusiastic. Enthusiasm is contagious, and if you think about it, it's so rare that we meet people who are genuinely enthusiastic about what they're doing, and how people helped them.

• Say something nice about their answers if you know
• The worst you can do is to start your meetings talking about you, your history.
• Do a research on the person before talking to them. (Use Google, LinkedIn, Facebook, etc)

(When calling, use cold call scripts to help you but always make your own considerations, let it flow. Keep the record of how to start that talk. You will know that you master this commend when you achieve an agreement and you and the person laugh/smile every time you call him/her or meet him/her.

4. Ask – make the right questions to get the right answers

• What causes impact in your business?
• How did they go in the past?
• How are you doing now?
• Do you know any networking events I could attend?

ACTION: brainstorm 10 excellent questions

• Bring information about their past.
• Bring valuable ideas that you can attract them.
• Create valuable dialogs!!! You will know you did well when they say: excellent question! Nobody ever asked me that.   (Refine your questions and get better at each call).

5. Observe - Your observation skills has to be as powerful as your listening skills. Take notes of everything you notice, and what they say. Write not only what you saw but also you thoughts, your reaction, and ideas.

1. Connect with the decision maker via e-mail.
2. Insert their details on the market mapping and book a day to follow up call/e-mail
3. When you are ready Call or e-mail the decision maker to organise a meeting.

6. After the Call or answer

1. Book the meeting on your google calendar and invite the person to the meeting on google calendar.
2. One day before the meeting, send them an e-mail reminding.

7. During the meeting

If you say is a 15 min meeting stick to it! Unless invited to stay longer and Be punctual!

• Rule #1: Go slow. Timing is everything. Don´t appear to be too anxious to get the job. Proper set up (giving some value first) will breed a long-term relationship.
• Rule #2: You NEVER ask for a job. You only have to establish some confidence, and (Rule #3) follow up to strengthen your relationship.
• Rule #3: Don´t send too much information in the mail. Send just enough to inform and create interest.
• Rule #4: Write a personal note to the expert within 24 hours from the informational interview. Brief but positive. 
• Rule #5: Overdeliver! Failure to follow up and deliver as promised makes you and your customer look bad to Decision Makers & Experts. Failure to deliver also eliminates any chance of getting referrals. This rule is the most important of them all; it is a breeding ground for your reputation. 

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DECISION MAKERS

CONNECTING WITH DECISION MAKERS AND BUILDING A NETWORK EVENTS CALENDAR

After doing the market mapping and identifying the potential companies and decision makers, the goal here is to contact those people and be part of their network.

Get their email or phone number and contact each of those decision makers and start to find out about the most interesting events in your city.

Call them (or write to the ones you don’t have the phone number) explain that you are new to the market in Sydney (or whatever other city) and that you found them on linked in and you are building a list of as many interesting networking events as possible and you would like to know if they could recommend you any networking event.

If they advise you to any events great, if not say thank you and offer to share your list with them in a few weeks.

The reasons for calling will be as followed

•  Introduction and Networking Events
• Present findings of networking events locally
• Follow up with another call to see if the decision makers can recommend any groups, forums etc
• Call to present findings
• Call to see if they might be interested in catch up for a coffee
• Send resume and introduce yourself again saying that you are now on the market for a paid role…

The idea is to firstly identify the market then follow up and build personal relationships with the decision makers before actually applying for work…

The calls must be snappy to the point and quick with no dog words such as: urmm, well, you know etc.

The call must be positive an authoritative and these calls must be practised using a record function on a mobile with a friend and with your coach along with role plays.

• Task – you must work on practising the first networking and intro call and become comfortable about speaking about the market and themselves.
• Start going to those events. You might get to know more and more people
• Vary the ways you connect with people, e-mail, call, txt.
• Start inviting other people, even if it feels a little weird at first.
• When talking about your professional life don´t deliver too soon. And never ask for a job. Wait until you have enough information from the Decision Makers & Experts before you strike.

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ELEVATOR NETWORKING

The goal in elevator networking is to engage the other passenger before the doors close and get a card before the ride is over.

Going up? More than 10 floors? I challenge you to get a business card or lead on your next elevator trip.

Thousands of people take elevators every day… usually in dead silence. Company presidents and salespeople in the same elevator and no one is speaking. That´s no fun. I have taken a new approach to elevator riding. I try to meet someone new and get a card or a lead every time I go up or down (and there is someone else in the car).

Here is how it works:

1. Watch who enters or see who is on when you enter, try to select the best Decision Makers & Experts from among the passengers. If there is only one other passenger, the choice becomes infinitely clear.
2. Immediately engage him or her with a humorous statement or question or a compliment on something if genuine and appropriate.
3. If they laugh or smile, say “What do you do?” That is the operative line in this process. With four words you have struck the target in the bullseye. It´s quick, to the point, and nonthreatening.
4. They will immediately tell you what they do. (People love to talk about the subject that interest them the most – themselves).
5. If they seem to be a Decision Makers & Experts, you close with “Give me your card and I´ll send you some information I think you can use”.
6. He or she gives you the card before the door opens, and you win the game.
7. Give him/her your card. Shake hands firmly.
8. Follow up within 24 hours.

Your opening line in the follow-up is easy. “I’m the guy in the elevator. I finally got off and thought I´d give you a call”.Both of you will laugh.

And remember every CEO and bigwig in your city gets on an elevator. Want a choice to meet him or her? Just start taking any time you get in an elevator. It will work.

Here are some additional guidelines for successful elevator networking:

• You ain´t got much time. Start talking immediately upon entering the elevator. Say the line, “What do you do?” before the elevator begins to move.
• Have your cards in your shirt or jacket pocket so that you can get to them in a second.
• Don´t press. If the persons choose not to talk, let it be.
• Men will be more receptive than women.
• If it´s a hot one, get off the elevator on the Decision Makers & Experts´s floor if you haven´t completed the deal.
• Be careful if you follow someone off the elevator – these days people may feel you have the wrong intentions.
• If you didn´t get all the info, watch which way the person turns and follow up with a cold call.
• It´s awkward the first few times. Practice until you can get the person to smile and respond to your opening remark before the elevator door closes.

Try this approach: Get on the elevator at the top floor, tell the person you have a deal for him and you can get him in on the ground floor… in fact, we'll be on the ground floor in 30 seconds! If he laughs, you´ve got them.

It's fun, you get to build communication skills, you become a bit bolder, you meet new people, and you'll make a few new friends. Try it.

And if somebody asks you “What do you do?” you can reply “What do you need done?” Laugh and carry on the conversation.

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MAKE MORE FRIENDS

How to start? Slowly, It takes time to develop a relationship; it takes time to build a friendship.

You can learn a lot and give value to a relationship by spending a few quality hours with the people you want to be part of your networking. So the first step is to go to different venues and different networking events, think about joining a club or a business association and get involved. Bare in mind, “If you make a friend you can earn a fortune” – Jeffrey Gitomer.

Humor: if you are serious about succeeding at networking its time you started looking on the lighter side. Go ahead, make them laugh. Humor melts ice. It warms the coldest of hearts. It will make you unforgettable.

Humor is one of the most important communication strengths needed to master in the “selling yourself” process. If you can get the contact to laugh, you are already halfway to earn their trust.

Nothing builds rapport faster than humor. It’s a bonding mechanism that transcends and reveals all prejudice and prejudgments. It also reveal truth. If you listen carefully to a contact’s jokes, it will often reveal philosophy, prejudice and intelligence (of lack of it).

HOW CAN YOU USE THIS POWERFUL TOOL TO MAKE MORE FRIENDS

Use humor in the warm-up of the presentation to set a happy tone for the meeting. The earlier you get a contact to laugh the better. Laugher is a form of approval.

• Don’t make jokes about other people/culture/religion/race. Filter you jokes, If the contact knows the person you’re joking about or is related to the person at the brunt end of the joke, you’re dead meat.
• Laugh about yourself. If you use yourself as the example or victim of the joke it shows you are human and can take it. It’s also a safe form of humor.
• Some people wont get the joke. Silence at the end of a joke is horrifying. Make sure it’s funny to someone else before you tell it where it counts. But no matter how tested the material, some people’s elevator stops before the top floor and they will never get it.
• Never make ethnic jokes unless you’re the ethnic. That’s a rule!
• Listen before you tell a joke. Try to determine the type of person you’re addressing. The wrong humor will kill you as fast as the right humor will let you live (eternally).
• Try using personal experience rather than story-type joke. something funny happened to you or when you were a kid, rather than “two guys were walking down the street…”

• Don’t make people hear the same joke again. So that’s the main great reason for using personal humor- they are sure to be hearing it for the first time.

• Timing. Timing. Timing. Humor properly inserted will turn the contact or crowd in your favour. Be appropriate.

• Keep a joke file. Write down funny things or events so that you can remember them in speaking situations.

• The key to make friends is being interesting. How to be interesting? The main trick is to be genuinely interested. People like talking about themselves so ask some interesting questions.

• Bare in mind that networking its about making relationships, its about getting to know each other, it’s a process. You can start by introducing yourself “ Hi, how are you? My name is Luis, what brought you here”.  And than ask some other interesting open ended questions to continue your conversation.

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Part 4 - Follow up

Follow up with the person that helped you is not only polite but it'll take you from the one-off networking that's focused on and your needs, to actually helping someone else.

This technique requires three separate follow-ups and you send them after you first meet or talk to the person. So here's the first thing you do. This is an email sent on the same day you meet or talk to them, and it's a thank you email.

“Hi John,

 just wanted to thank you again for meeting with me earlier.

I'm definitely going to get in touch with Susan like you recommended. I'll keep you in the loop, and of course, please let me know if there's anything I can do to repay the favour.”

So you're thanking them, being specific about what you got out of that meeting, telling them what you're going to do, you're telling them you're going to keep them in the loop.

Next, one to two weeks later you're actually going to add value. Let's take a look at this.

“Hey, John,

Saw this article in the Wall Street Journal and it reminded me what you said about productivity tests.

No response needed, just thought you might find it interesting”.

You're following up. Which means you're keeping them in your thoughts, you obviously listened and took notes at that meeting, or that phone call and you listened to what this person was interested in, what John was interested in. You went out of your way to find something that he might find interesting.

Here we're going to close the loop. This is done two to three weeks later.

Hi, John.

Wanted to give you an update. I did end up talking to Susan and you were right. Google is definitely a fit for me. I'm reaching out to a friend there to learn all about it before I apply. If there's anything else you think I should speak to, anyone else you think I should speak to, please let me know.

Thanks again, I'll let you know how it goes.”

You see, experts are used to giving advice to losers who never do anything. This happens all the time. Here, you're actually taking their advice and keeping them informed. So they're automatically going to classify you as a winner and move you to the top of their minds.

Winners love winners. So when an expert is talking to you and giving you advice, and you actually take it, number one, and number two tell them that you took it, and took action with it, they automatically love you. Because this is more than 99% of people will ever do. This closing the loop technique right here. Now, of course, the keen observer will know that you can extend this closing the loop. You can take it to number four. For example you could say,

"Hi John,

 just a quick update. I've submitted my resume, or I'm about to submit my resume, on Wednesday. Do you happen to know anybody there? I would love an introduction. Or if not, that's totally cool, but I plan to submit it. And by the way, I have attached my cover letter and resume here."

Well, guess what? If this person likes you, if you made a good impression and you've been adding value and you've been using the closing the loop technique effectively, they would love to click Forward and forward this over to one of their friends who by the way happens to be the CEO of that company you're applying to.  You will close the loop. That is, keeping the person you contacted updated at each step along the way and thanking them.

• Some Details: Meeting in person is ideal, but a phone call is fine too. I like to start emailing on Mondays or Tuesday and ask to meet later that week. For example if you email on Thursdays or Fridays, typically it will get lost in the weekend. Therefore, Monday or Tuesday is an ideal time when everyone's starting off their week, and they have a clear view of how much time they have for the rest of the week. Those are just details.

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Part 5 - Keeping Track

KEEPING TRACK

You must develop a game plan and use your Market Map to keep track of your contacts and follow up, appointing the people you have connected with and booking follow up alerts in your calendar, documenting, tracking, and using your networking contacts for maximum benefit.

To make the most of all those networking contacts you worked so long and hard to get, you need to organize and compile them.

Minimum essential information to make contacts valuable…

• Name
• Company name
• Title
• Company address
• Phone (including area code)
• Cell phone if possible
• E-mail address
• Company's web site
• What the company does

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Part 6 - Networking Scripts Templates

NETWORKING SCRIPTS AND TEMPLATES TO MAKE YOUR LIFE EASIER

When you write an e-mail it should provide just enough information to answer these five questions: 

1. Who are you? 
2. What do you want? 
3. Why are you asking me? 
4. Why should I do what you're asking?
5. What is the next step?

Make sure you write an interesting subtitle as well.

• ALWAYS find a link with them and mention it. A busy person thinks, great. I have a connection with this person. We both went to the same college, or church, or organization, or grew up in the same hometown. Any connection. Perhaps we know the same person in common.
• One single request, with a proposed time and alternate times. Very nice.
• Having, alternate options, like email versus phone, changes their thinking from, should I, to which one should I choose?

A good email pitch is one where the recipient only has to say yes or no. Let me give you an example.

• Bad -> I'd appreciate any advice you have for me.
• Good-> are you free for a phone call at 1 pm?

And finally, ALWAYS make sure your signature contains your name, phone number, and LinkedIn profile link.

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