Professional Networking for Beginners
A Beginners Six-Step Guide to Networking:
It is so easily said to anyone in a BD position “just pick up that phone and call someone…” but let’s be honest, even the most seasoned sales pro struggles with the day-to-day actions of networking. So how does someone, who is not in sales begin networking? And to make it even more challenging, how does someone who is in market start networking?
Here are six easy steps to kick start the process:
Step 1: Build out a Rolodex.
Anyone remember a Rolodex? No? God I’m old! Most of us do not have access to a fancy CRM to track our calls, so build out your own in Excel. Make it eight columns wide, with the following heading in each column: Contact Name |Phone or Email |Relationship |Company | Position |Date Contacted |Method| Notes. Once this is done, start building it out with all the people in your phone list. Now initially you might think, “well, I’m not going to include my SIL Suzy b/c I don’t want to bother her and who would she really know?” You need to include everyone b/c everyone knows someone…so build it out. This exercise might take you a full day…maybe two to complete.
Step 2: Friends & Family Plan:
You now have your own dbase – welcome to the next step. Remember when you were in school and during finals, you look at the test paper and now matter how prepared you were, it still looked like an exercise in translating Latin. What were you told to do…answer the easy questions first, then move on to the hard ones. Same goes for networking…start with the easy call outs, that are the people who will be excited to hear from you: past colleagues; past vendors; past managers and if it makes it easier, reconnect with a friend during this period. You will be surprised how easy this exercise becomes once you start talking to people.
Step 3: Hack LinkedIn like a Pro!
LinkedIn, the virtual watering hole for professionals, is your secret weapon. Polish your profile with a witty headline that screams, "I'm awesome, hire me!" Share your professional journey in a captivating summary, sprinkling in a dash of humor to engage readers. Connect with industry experts, join relevant groups, and showcase your expertise through insightful posts. Remember, networking is just a click away!
Step 4: What do I say?!
Congratulations! After all this, you have a call booked for Monday at 9am with a past colleague who is now VP of Excellence at "Groogle"…what do I say? After pleasantries about how great your family is (or your cat or lizard– it’s all good) You tell them the truth, “…well Bob unfortunately, I find myself in the job market. After 10 years at "YeHaa!" My division was shut down and I'm looking.” That’s it, keep it simple and clean and honest. The next question is…Bob, you were always well connected, what are you hearing in the market?” This is an opportunity to learn…so listen.
Step 5: Follow the leads!
After Bob gives you the low down…ask him to further help network you. This is about connecting with as many people as possible. The more people you talk to, then more you get your name out, the better you are at increasing the chances of landing that next gig.
Step 6: Keep at it – three strikes and move on!
Some straight talk here: One call, one email or one text message might not cut it. People get busy, people go on vacation and people are well…people, and we make mistakes and forget. It is incumbent on you to try to connect and make that connection happen. If you reach out to someone and they don’t return your message, give it one week and try again, same message but let them know you respect that they are busy. If you still don’t hear from them, give it another week, and try an even lite hearted message and say, “Hey X…sorry we keep missing each other…reach out you can, I’m looking forward to reconnecting with you.” Then walk away for a month or two. Give it one more shot…then move on. Don’t read too much into it, it will just bug you, just acknowledge that you cannot connect right now and keep moving forward.
So, there you have it, a six-step guide to networking for beginners. It will not be easy and to be quite open here, you will have moment of disappointment: people you thought were friends do not return your calls; contacts that might respond “sorry I’m busy right now but if I hear of anything, ill let you know” BUT, there will be moments of joy when that vendor you spoke to only once per year excitedly answers your call and says, “I am so glad you called…your timing is perfect b/c we are hiring.”
Good luck out there and remember, if you don’t put yourself out there, no one will know you are looking.
