Social Networking Skills

In a recent Ezine article I declared that most business networking is a waste of time. However, the operative word in that statement remains “most.” Networking, when done effectively is an invaluable tool for business success. Still, networking is a process and thus a step-by-step approach ought to be followed in order to yield the most effective results.

The first step in successful networking deals with determining an appropriate target market to spend your networking efforts on. This determination will ensure that you don’t make one of the most common errors in networking; trying to be everything to everyone. Or, to put it another way, people often spread themselves too thin, by casting too broad of a networking “net.”

It’s easy to see why this networking mistake happens. We don’t want to lose any business so we try to find all business opportunities available. More often than not this leads to frustration, and occasionally prompts some people to give up networking altogether. Fortunately though, by working hard at being a successful networker, (and let’s face it, networking is, in fact work) we can avoid burnout and turn networking into our most successful referral generator.

Consider the following all too common networking scenario. You know you want to begin networking, but don’t know where to start. A natural starting point would be to join the local chamber of commerce and attend their meetings and/or mixers. While you don’t have a concrete plan in place, you feel pretty comfortable in knowing that you want to meet people and tell them what you do for a living in the hopes of potentially earning business.

It’s likely that you’ll feel a bit uncomfortable as you may not know anyone. Even worse, when you do meet others they may seem more intent on talking about themselves than listening to you. Then finally you get the chance to tell someone what you do! You explain all of the products you sell or services you provide, but somehow you wind up feeling as if they are looking past you for others to talk to. In short, both of you are looking for business prospects and by default, neglecting to do the work of networking.

After a couple of networking events where this scenario seems to be playing like a broken record, you may succumb to feelings that your efforts are futile and give up on attending.

However, you’re still not ready to give up on networking so you conduct your due diligence in seeking out “formal” networking associations or organizations to join. Recently, these types of groups are popping up nationwide, with the sole focus of structuring networking. So even though you were discouraged by your initial networking efforts, you decide to join a group in your regional area.

At these meetings you start to see the light in the dark. The members are friendlier and more supportive and you don’t feel like they are constantly looking over your shoulder for someone more important than you. The members in this group will likely be showing you a great deal more interest in what you do, and best yet, you’re given the chance to deliver your sales pitch at each meeting!

Then things take a turn for the worse. You feel that you’re doing everything right, but there is no tidal wave of business or referrals flooding in. You may get a few lukewarm leads but it’s certainly not meeting the high hopes you had.

Where are you going wrong? Why isn’t your networking yielding the results you want? Why don’t people seem to want to refer you business? Most likely it’s due to one key factor. Your message is too vague and your target market is too vast. You’re undoubtedly trying to be everything to everyone. In reality, you need to be everything to a specific group, aka your target market.

The act of casting too broad of a networking net seems almost universal for networking newcomers. This is because determining a target market and then delivering a message specifically targeted towards that audience is easier said than done.

To illustrate, consider this scenario (which I’ve actually borne witness to.) At a networking function a dermatologist says that anyone with skin is a dream referral for him. Although this may very well be the case, this message doesn’t reap the dermatologist the referrals he wants. Why? Because the message is nebulous. There is nothing in his message that leads you to think for example, that you should refer a friend who is concerned about skin cancer to him.

On the other hand, consider the dermatologist had instead said, “I specialize in identifying precancerous skin cells so as to protect clients from potentially fatal diseases. Moreover I am an expert in the least intrusive methods available to remove cancerous skin cells.” Obviously this message is much more finely tuned. Guess what? It will undoubtedly yield him more referrals. Why? By nature we think in “pictures.” Meaning that when the phrase “anyone with skin” is declared, there’s no concrete image that is formulated. However, when the dermatologist provides a verbal illustration “pre cancerous skin cells,” the audience immediately conjures up a highly specific mental image. Listeners may even recall a friend or family member saying something such as “I really need to have this mole looked at. It seems like it’s getting bigger.”

Depending upon your area of expertise, you may be able to specify your message even further. The more specific your message, the more specific the image in your listeners’ minds becomes, and the better equipped they are to send you referrals that belong to your target market. The most successful networkers know how to describe their target market, or markets they specialize in, in very precise detail. They detail the type of clients that they are interested in meeting, and they detail why they are the person to fill those potential clients’ needs.

So now that we’ve covered why it is so important that we determine a target market, you may be wondering “How do I determine my target market?” Frankly, it’s not always easy, but it’s not quantum mechanics either. All the same it will take effort in terms of application and a mental shift on your part. That is, you’ll need to train yourself not to fear the loss of potential clients that you may fear will result from being too specific.

This fear needs to be addressed. Studies that I’ve conducted with colleagues unanimously show that business and sales professionals who specifically target and market to a precise audience earn the highest incomes. In fact, some studies have proven that those who practice the application of targeting a specific market, typically earn anywhere from 5-20 times additional sales revenue than those who do not choose to target a specific market.

There are a number of exercises you can use, in order to identify markets compatible with your personality, your services and your business objectives. Depending on your level of experience in your career, you’ll have different wants and needs. If you’ve been in your field less than two years, you will want to focus on filtering through and determining many target possibilities. For those with longer experience, you’ll want to continue to focus on target markets you’ve already determined and enjoy working with, but just need to finesse. Either way the goal is the same. Work to find target markets you honestly enjoy working with.

For less experienced professionals, try this exercise. Make a list of the following:
1) your skills
2) your interests
3) your affiliations
4) your accomplishments
5) your dreams
6) your personal experiences
7) your family information

List as much as you can you can for each category. For instance, under skills, you might put “excellent writer”, “bilingual”. Interests might include exercising, baking and reading. Affiliations should include alma maters, religious affiliations, and professional organizations.

After completing this exercise, take some time to ascertain your true passions. Then build a target market around this. Be as specific as you can. For example, say you’re the dermatologist we referenced earlier. His list includes his passion for exercising. More specifically he’s a serious cyclist. A potential target market for him then, could be fellow cyclists, who ride together each weekend. After all, that’s a lot of sun exposure. He can simultaneously target his friends and fellow riders, all the while having a great time!

For more experienced business professionals, conduct the same exercise. After you’ve done that, add to the exercise by doing the following. First, list your top 20 or so clients. Then, write down their respective occupations. Next, look for common characteristics, like age, profession, interests, etc. Compare them with your person profile. You’re liable to see patterns emerging. Take this one step further and jot down things like how you know them, who referred them, how often do they use your service or buy your products? Do you like working with them? Did they offer you any referrals?

Finally, make one final list of your top 15 or so referral sources. Go through the same process with this list. Then compare it with your own profile. You are very likely to see even more patterns emerging, indicating that you have even more specific markets to target.

By recognizing the need for determining your own target markets, then using the exercises above to determine your unique target markets, you’ll find that your networking efforts begin to provide you with increased referrals and business opportunities. But don’t forget, there are four more steps to successful networking yet to come, and I’ll be posting them here soon.

Ed Craine is CEO of San Francisco based Smith Craine Finance, an award winning mortgage brokerage. He was appointed Vice President of CAMB in 2007. Ed serves as an Executive Director for BNI, and is a contributing author to several NY Times Best Selling Books. Visit http://www.smithcraine.com

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