The Client is new inbusiness. The Client is a seasoned businessperson. Or somewhere in themiddle. The one thing they all have in common is that I don't know whatis going through their head when I initially hear from them.
Thenthere are the potential Partners - for both short and long-termprojects. This is a newer issue to me because I am in the midst ofexpanding Sky Sister Studio. And with that comes an even deeper loveaffair with the concept of networking! So (in addition to person toperson networking efforts) I join different networking sites and I havesome really positive experiences. I've spoken to people who have becomefrustrated with the networking process, and I believe they have reasonto be in many cases!
Why I have positive experiences with networking: I treat potential Clients and Partners with a screening process!
Thegoal: Don't let anyone waste my time. Don't waste anyone's time. Andthird: don't let anyone waste my time! Now, this should not translateto a short/curt/unpleasant telephone manner. It should not lead to abuilt in distrust of all potentials. It should be a built-in layer ofcaution, very automatic, to the point of it becoming something natural.
Havinga written and published business procedure is the most AWESOME thing Ihave done for my business. Potential clients can go on my MySpace blogand read it. They get it from me as soon as they show an interest viaemail or phone. And it saves an INCREDIBLE amount of talk time. Forinstance, the graphic design business on the whole is plagued withpeople who think they should get free or close to no-cost services forno apparent reason. Some think they can pull some sort of scam when itcomes to settling the project account. Well, having the Sky SisterStudio "Memorandum of Understanding" is like some sort of mosquitorepellant - those pests don't even get near me! How do I know this? Ican see how many people have looked at the blog each day/week/total.The "Memorandum of Understanding" blog entry averages 50 views perweek! I get a steady stream of business from MySpace, and all of theseClients have read the Memorandum. The others who read it yet didn'twrite to me could have been a waste of my time to say the least! Theresults likely would have been worse if I HAD gone into business withthem!
Then there are the Potential Partners. There's adifference between a serious contact and someone who I can play"Business Card Shuffle" with. People often confuse networking with anoppportunity for an immediate/quick sale. Many just want someone totalk to; strange but true. I can't tell you how many Potentials weremore than willing to eat up my (daytime at that!) mobile minutes if Ilet it happen! Others want something for free. And since people knowthat I do love a good barter, some try to take advantage with insanelyunfair barter proposals! This is not networking!
What is networking?
Networkingto me is a chance to find like-minded people who may: 1. have a use formy services or knowledge 2.have a service or information that I coulduse 3. have a service or information that someone I know could use4.have a complimentary service or idea that could be the start of ashort or long term project partnership!
I just want to clarifythat it is not an immediate sale! Making a new contact could have animmediate result, but it certainly isn't the rule, and it isn'tsomething that I want to show through in my quest for quality contacts!Nothing is more annoying than desperation in business.
Ifsomeone is doing what Networking isn't, then they don't pass my test. Iam always cordial, right up to and beyond the point where their credit- their credibility - is declined in my screening check. It doesn'tmatter who they are, how long they've been in business, how nice theyare, or whether they are famous in my world or their own. Business isabout the bottom line, and more importantly, staying true to myself. Noone wants to feel like a sucker.
In the nicest possible way, Ifind out exactly what a Potential wants, and put them through thescreening process. When you know what to look for, it becomes enjoyablewhen you've made a meaningful Contact, and a comic relief when someonewith less than savory intentions gets DECLINED.
How do you handle the Potentials? I'd love to hear your take on it!
-Sky Sister
http://skysisterstudio.com
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