In these days of
social media, handheld devices, and email marketing,
it is nice for sales reps to get back to the basics of building a sales
pipeline and that is through networking. Networking events have
always been an essential part of business networking as they give sales
reps the chance to engage with potential customers or possible
networking partners. Unfortunately advances in social media and the
popularity of text conversations have led to an underdevelopment in the
most important weapon in a sales rep’s arsenal – conversation.
When people think
about a conversation they naturally think that they
are experts. They talk all the time. "How hard can it possibly be to
build a sales pipeline or a business network when all that has to be
done is talk to people?" When I think about that statement I
think of
singing in the shower. Sure I sing in the shower in the morning, but
that does not mean that I am getting a recording contract any time
soon.
True sales pros will practice the craft of what I have always liked to
refer to as “working the room”. I had some great tradeshow sales
mentors in my day. These gentlemen could walk into any show or mixer
and walk out with solid leads. They shared some of their secrets with
me, and I would like to share them with you. I think that these
soft skills have become lost. People have forgotten how to engage with
other people in a business setting to promote their businesses and
cultivate sales.
The first thing that any sales rep needs to understand is exactly what
type of event a business mixer is. A business mixer is typically a
networking event that provides an opportunity for business
professionals to mix and mingle with other professionals, and
perspective clients. It provides an opportunity for anyone
attending to make new contacts with the prospect of meeting new clients
or contacts that will benefit a business by leading to new
business.
Generally a business mixer is hosted by one organization that is
responsible for filling the room with people. These organizations
can be Chambers of Commerce, Trade Organizations, Business Guilds,
Boards, and Non-profits etc. Their motive for holding a business mixer
is to provide the opportunity for networking as a benefit for a yearly
membership fee, or to prospect for potential new members to join their
institutions.
Now that the environment for a business mixer has been defined here are
a few rules for making the cultivation of contacts and leads successful.
Ten Tips for “Working the Business Mixer”
- Do research
– Make some phone calls to the hosting
organization of the business mixer to get a count on attendees, list of
VIPs, and occasionally a good sales rep can secure a copy of the
attendee list. Business mixer VIP lists are like gold if you can
get your hands on a copy. Sometimes the details of which VIPs are
attending a mixer are published in newsletters, or on websites.
- Make an internal
connection – Now that you know
who the VIPs are, or key individuals that you want to meet, make some
friends within the hosting organization. Get them to introduce
you to key people who you want to meet. Most often they will be
extremely helpful in this endeavor. Their job is to make sure
that people make connections. They have no problem helping someone make
connections.
- Prepare yourself
for the event – Networking events
mean the exchange of business cards (contact information).
Prepare yourself for that engagement when you meet people.
I was taught to load my jacket with my personal business cards in my
left breast inside pocket and right lower outside jacket pocket.
This is done so that your cards can always be drawn with your right
hand and presented to potential contacts. Cards that you receive
from contacts will be placed in your jackets right breast inside pocket
and your left outside lower jacket pocket. This is done so that
cards are never mixed up as contacts are engaged and cards are
received. There is nothing worse than mixing up your cards and the
cards of contacts that you have met. There has been many a time where I
have been handed a card that was not the person that I was talking to
because they mixed them up. Avoid the embarrassment and plan
ahead. People meeting you in person need to see you as a total
professional. If you fumble a couple of business cards, you will
probably fumble their business. Now for the ladies at the mixer, they
always carry a purse or small clutch. Pick the front pocket for your
cards, and the rear pocket for the contact cards that you collect.
- Never write notes
on business cards that you
collect in front of people
– If I was to sum this action up in a word, that word is amateur. I was
taught to bend the corners of a contact business card as you place it
in your pocket to indicate a sales potential or a networking
contact. I bend one corner for a networking contact, and two for
a potential sales opportunity. That way I can remember what notes
to make when I get the opportunity. If it is a very busy event I
will often excuse myself and sneak off to a quite spot to make notes. I
try to memorize a specific detail about every person that I met to aid
me in filling out the notes in a nearby bar over a Bombay, tonic and
lime.
- Always start at the
bar – When you walk into a
crowded business mixer you need a place to start. I always pick the bar
or the table with the food. They are very easy landmarks in the
room to work with, and typically surrounded by lingering people who are
normally hungry, thirsty, and talkative. They are normally
regulars to the event, and can usually point out everyone in the room
that you want to meet over a drink, or a few cocktail snacks.
- Find the flow of
the room – As in any body of
water identify the flow of the current. It will be the easiest
way to circulate through the room with the least amount of effort. When
you find someone with whom you want to engage in a conversation simply
step out of the current. When you are ready to get back into the
current simply step back in. If keeps the room flowing well, and
you flowing well in the room.
- Know when to engage
and disengage – I recently
attended a mixer with a much younger colleague and she found out
very quickly that as a sales rep you need to know when to engage in
conversation with a contact, and when to disengage when the
conversation has run its course. An inexperienced sales rep can spend
too much time talking to contacts that have already given their contact
information and desire to do business with you. Once those
factors have been established any other conversation becomes too
friendly, and you are at the event to work. You lose the opportunity to
make more contacts by talking too long to one that you have already
met. You are there as a sales rep to make contacts and find new
leads. You are working from the moment you enter until the moment you
leave. Friendly talk comes over coffee at another time with your
contacts.
- Keep mixing and
mingling – It is extremely
important that you are social as a sales rep, but do not become
involved in every conversation. Don’t influence conversations in a
particular direction. You are there to grip and grin, be liked, get
information, and then move on. It is way too easy to get sucked
into a debate about why one particular product of service is better
than the other. Stay neutral.
- Never be the first one to enter, but
always be the last to leave
- I like to enter an event about a half hour in. Too early and you can
seem too eager. I always like to stay as late as I can. Thank all
the hosts for a great mixer. If alcohol was being consumed I always
offer to call someone a cab. This action presents a sales rep as having
an impulse to do what is morally right to protect colleagues, and
clients, from being in a potentially dangerous situation. We are at
these mixers to do business and make contacts. No one wants to see
something bad happen to anyone. I think that it also shows the host of
the event that you respect their all their efforts toward making the
event a success.
Send a thank you to
everyone that you have met –
The entire mixer has been part of a plan, and sending a thank you
message with a personalized note tells everyone that you met that they
have made an impression on you. You never know who can refer you
to potential business when you meet them. You simply never know when
you will become the person that gets called to sell a product or
service because of a referral from someone that you met at a mixer.
People like to recommend the products and services of people and
companies that they like.
Just a few tips on how to maximize the benefits of attending a business
mixer as were taught to me by a couple of the masters. Always
remember that you are on-the-job from the moment you enter the mixer
until the moment that you leave. Make the most of the time that
you spend at the mixer. They can be a great source of clients and
networking contacts, but they can also provide a busy sales
professional with an opportunity to have a glance back at the fine art
of conversation that is used by sales professionals at the business
mixer. Look up some business mixers in your area and enjoy the
experience.
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