When building new relationships in this post-pandemic age of multiple sales channels, online-meetings, bot-generated emailing, pointless LinkedIn content and connection overkill, there is an awful lot for the weary buyer to contend with. So, to rise above the fray, modern consultants and salespeople need not only laser-focus, but a varied, person-centred approach to communicating and connecting.
With that in mind, here are nine hints to help raise your game and differentiate from the competition:
Leverage your skills and experience
Personal brand matters. I am talking directly to you seasoned professionals with successful career tracks. You got where you are now with a combination of drive, results, failures, personality, positive character traits, innate abilities, willingness to learn, ability to break new ground, articulate yourself beautifully, step outside your comfort zone, and to challenge the status quo to make things better.
This means, you have valuable insights and experiences to share. Do this generously, with structure, key messaging, and adding value at the forefront, by sharing blogs, articles, videos, and posts, or even through delivering key notes if you are that way inclined. This will add credibility to your standing in your business community and build trust with the people whose attention you are looking to foster.
Stride with meaning and purpose
Do not ever (yes, ever) send speculative emails or make unprepared phone calls. Respect your prospect by knowing, as a bare minimum, their role, their industry, and the challenges faced in their sector.
Make it personal
Look at your prospect’s LinkedIn profile – what are they interested in? What are their achievements? Have they authored articles or published videos that inspired you? What is new and exciting with their business that they played a part in? Mention these things when you connect with them – human to human.
Care
Further to the above, one of Dale Carnegie’s core principles is ‘Become genuinely interested in other people.’ An adage that is truer than ever. When connecting with your prospect, think about what you can do for them rather than what they can do for you.
Being creative
Are you truly enthusiastic about working with this new prospect? Then tell them all about it with a short video in your approach. This is not unilateral or bulk – the suggestion is for tailored and personalised videos, to the individual, about their business, and their industry. Both Loom and Qwilr are great platforms to do this.
Old school it
An adjunct to ‘being creative.’ Rise above the overabundance of digital chafe currently bombarded to the poor soul you are eager to meet. You might want to send them a letter or handwritten note. You could even drop in a book that inspired you. To stand out, step up.
Adopt a relationship first mindset
Sometimes, people need our solutions, products, and services right away. Rarely during outbound activities does this happen. Therefore, relationships are at the core of successful business networks. Seek to understand the person, their business narratives, and their personal career objectives before a sale even enters the equation.
Be clear on the why
In every communication, please have a point. Call with purpose, blog with an end in mind, email with a clear rationale, approach that business stand at a conference with an underlying principle about why this will be a useful interaction. The alternative sees salespeople sleepwalk into failure time after time.
Referrals
Never underestimate the power of referrals, a criminally overlooked and underutilised highway to building deeper and more lucrative networks. See my referral blog for further details.
