Category: Professional Development Webinar

A question I get asked a lot at my business development courses is this: “When I go to networking events, how do I approach and talk to someone I don’t know?”

MAJOR CLUE: “Judge a man by his questions rather than his answers.” — Voltaire said that.

Good questions are tremendously important. They are far more than just a means of getting information. They are a means of engaging and connecting with people in a more meaningful way. They’re a means of building trust. They are a means of making you look very smart and very different from your rivals. And they are a means of advancing relationships ― relationships that can lead to business and other riches.

You can get all of that done by asking the right kind of questions. Powerful stuff!

Back to that question or the common variation of it, “When I go to networking events, how do I approach someone I don’t know and what are some good questions I can ask them?”

Note that the following is specific to going up to and engaging new people in a business networking environment.

After approaching someone and finding out their name…

Hold it a sec. Let’s back up a bit.

When I say ‘someone’, I mean someone standing alone, rather someone standing in a group of three or more. You see, people standing alone will be happy to talk to you and you don’t have to butt in and interrupt a conversation.

I usually steer clear of ‘pairs’ as well. Why? Because in most cases three’s a crowd. Two people having a ‘deep and meaningful’ usually won’t thank you for interrupting them.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t go up to people in groups of  two or three or more. I’m just saying that they are more difficult to approach.

So, here’s the way I approach someone on their own.

From a distance, I catch the person’s eye and hit ‘em with a friendly smile. Then I saunter up to them and say, “Hello. How’s your day going?” That’s my go-to opener in any situation and it never fails.

Depending on the circumstances, here are some other openers I use:

“Hey. How are you. How you doing?”

“Hi there. How’s it going tonight?”

“Hi. Are you enjoying yourself?” (Unless they look uncomfortable.)

“Hi. My name’s Ron. Ron Gibson.” or simply “Hi. I’m Ron.”

“Hi. Please may I join you? or “Please may I introduce myself?”

Nothing too clever here ― and no-one has ever run away from me.

I have a strong handshake. Not too strong, but strong enough to show that I’m keen to meet the person.

See my e-book Making The Most of Your Business Networking Conversations for a host more openers to add to your repertoire.

So after I say my name and they tell me their name, I do an ice-breaker. Something like, “So where have you come from today?” or “So what’s your connection here? How do you fit in with this group?” or “So how long have you been coming to these meetings?”

When it comes to ice-breakers, I particularly like using “What’s your connection here?” or “What’s your connection with the host?” (substitute the host’s name). It’s a good early question to get the conversation rolling. It can also throw up mutual acquaintances and interests and that gives my new contact and me something to build rapport on.

CLUE: The idea is to grab something s/he says and keep rolling with it.

As the conversation warms up a bit, I always ask people where they grew up. “Are you from around this area? Where did you grow up?” This is one of the most endearing and engaging questions to ask because everyone is willing to talk about it. It also gives you  personal insight as to what type of person you’re talking to. There’s a big difference between growing up in a small country town and a big city ― or growing up in Brisbane versus Melbourne.

The next thing I want to know is how they got started in their career or in their business. “How did you come to be a chef/project manager at X (or whatever)?” “How did you get started in your business?” This is also revealing because it’s not just what they say ― it’s their tone, their passion (or lack of it).

I like to know “How’s business?” You can almost tell a person’s response by how quickly they answer you. If they have to think about it, there’s usually a problem or two. Maybe even one that you can help resolve.

Once you have information about where they grew up, how they got started in their career or business and the state of their business then you can begin to develop a meaningful and engaging dialogue that will help you click with one another.

There at many more questions you can ask when you’re meeting new people in a networking environment. The following are some of my favorites. They work like a treat. Use them. They’ll work like a treat for you too.

• “So what do you like to do for fun when you’re not working?” Deeper connections are often formed through finding commonalities that aren’t work related.
• “You got kids?” It’s only natural to want to know if you’ve got kids of your own. It’s a great way to carry a conversation deeper?
• “What’s going well for you?” Variation: “What’s going on in your business lately? Anything new and exciting?” Invite them to talk about positive things that they’re feeling good about. They’ll like you for that!
• “So what brings you here today/tonight?” Everyone has a reason for being there. Their answer, will lead you easily into the next question to ask. It might throw up commonalities and perhaps even potential opportunities as well.
• As a follow up or an alternative to the previous question, I like to know “What would make this evening/today/this conference valuable for you?”

When I’m meeting people, a part of my brain is thinking what can I offer this person; what one piece of information or idea can I share with this person; what favour can I do for them; how can I help this person. I recommend that you adopt a similar mindset. This is what makes networking work for you. My motto is give a bit more than you take. I’m a giver by nature and I find that when I give more than I take I receive more than I expect.

• “What did you do today/this morning?” or “What have you got lined up for the day?” Better than “What do you do?”, these questions give the person a choice of telling you about their job or not. Whatever they tell you grab it and run with it.

Note: With all the company downsizing, rightsizing and closures happening these days, the ‘what do you do question’ can be downright uncomfortable for a person without a job. In addition to this, there are some people who just don’t like being asked what they do. They believe there’s a whole lot more to a person than his or her job.

Variations of “What did you do today?” are “What did you do on the weekend?” ― if it’s a Monday morning and “What are your plans for the weekend?” or “What are you looking forward to this weekend” ― if it’s a Friday afternoon.

HERE’S YOUR GOAL: Try to find commonalities with your new contact. Personal things in common or natural affinities such as you both have a passion for tennis – or your kids both play basketball in the same league – or you both went to the same university – or you both grew in in in a country town – or you both love dogs – or perhaps you both service the same type of client with non-competing services ― makes it easier to establish rapport

and trade stories. And eventually, you may finish up in a discussion about this person’s business issues or needs because a bit of trust has be established.

The exact questions you ask will depend on the circumstances and what you already know about the person. But questions that have always worked well for me when I’m meeting new people include:

• “What are the big challenges you see in your industry right now?” Substitute the name of their industry or sector. Notice I ask them about the challenges they see in their industry generally, rather than in their business specifically. That doesn’t cause the person to feel vulnerable or threatened. But most times they’ll answer by telling you about other own specific challenges because they are the ones they know most about. A variation of this question is: “As you think about the future of your industry, what worries you the most?”

This question can reveal so much about a person’s business and their current needs. You might uncover something you can help them with or someone you know can help them with.

• “Are you working on anything interesting right now?” Generally, people enjoy talking about their latest projects and initiatives.
• “Do you have any big goals or ambitions for your business over the next year or so?” It’s much easier for a person to talk about an ambition or a goal than a problem. Again, you might be able to help the person achieve what they want to do.

If the conversation goes well you can suggest meeting for coffee “to continue this”. Now’s the time to ask for their business card. This sets you up for the follow-up.

I hope you find this helpful. If you’d like to dig into a bit more detail just drop drop me an email and I’d be happy to discuss over a coffee or the phone ― whatever works best  for you.

Until next time.

Author: Ron Gibson, Alliance Advisor with ATL Network

Ron runs a Web-based Business Growth Masterclass for Professional Advisors. Next Program is scheduled 6th July. More information: CLICK HERE

It always intrigues me how little attention we pay to the words we use and how this can have such a significant impact on performance and relationships.

I recently facilitated a series of training workshops on problem-solving with the team of a two-partner accounting practice in suburban Melbourne. We talked about how the managing partner wanted to see higher levels of teamwork in the practice. As I like to work on real problems in the business, rather than theoretical case studies, this was an opportunity to get our ‘teeth’ into something ‘real’. The team were keen because it was meaningful to them. And they had another agenda: they wanted to show the partner that they already worked as an effective team.

But they were not sure how to start. I suggested starting with getting a deeper understanding of the problem from the person who flagged the problem. They were a little perplexed by this; after all, everyone knows what ‘teamwork’ means.

However, they agreed to ‘interview’ the managing partner. The key word that came back from these interviews was ‘proactivity’ – dealing with problems as soon as they arise, seeing what needs to be done, especially for clients, and doing it irrespective whose role it was. It was about not ‘stepping over or around’ problems but taking responsibility for them. They then asked him for some specific examples, which helped clarify his meaning further.

Everyone expressed surprise when we got together to discuss the results of the partner interview. “We would never have seen teamwork as being about proactivity” one participant said. “We would have tackled the problem in a completely different way,” said another. This would not have satisfied the managing partner. More than likely it would have increased his frustration – both with them and with me, as the facilitator.

One of the key challenges facing leaders in engaging their team is turning intangible problems into tangible ones. This is what we did, in this case, by interviewing the partner. Without clarifying the nature of a problem it is impossible for people to understand what is expected.

We all think we agree on what teamwork means, but when we investigate the specifics, we can find that no such agreement exists. And it is the specifics – the devil is in the detail – that often makes the difference in implementation.

In my experience, this lack of precision in communication causes some of the most significant problems in implementing strategy. And once the implementation gets onto the wrong trajectory, it is hard to get it back on track.

Strategic planning workshops are notable for developing general concepts with little detail or substance. You will regularly hear words like ‘teamwork’, ‘responsibility’, ‘accountability’ and ‘trust’ but little exploration of what these terms actually mean to the participants.

Whenever you are stuck at an impasse, ask yourself two questions:

• What does the word or concept, that we are discussing, mean?
• What would be happening and what would we notice, different from today, if we had this?

This provides a solid foundation for the next question – how will we know (measure) that we have this? It is often said that, what you can’t measure you can’t manage.

When we ask these questions, we arrive at a much clearer idea of what is expected and how we should implement the strategy.

How many intangible slogans, phrases and concepts stand in the way of your organisation consistently implementing its strategy?

About the author: Warwick Cavell, an Alliance Advisor with ATL Network, is a thought leader in communicating for results and strategy implementation. For over 25 years, he has helped leaders improve business performance by changing the way people communicate and work to solve problems – both internally and with their clients. He is a highly respected facilitator, coach, speaker and trainer, and author of regular blogs.

As with all aspects of networking, a thoughtful approach to follow-up one-on-one meetings will significantly increase your success from meeting new people at group events.

Note that the following is specific to networking with new contacts for the purposes of building a strategic referral partnership. While there are elements that can be used with an old friend or new potential client, the focus of this article is to qualify new acquaintances for referral partnership purposes and then start the relationship on the right footing.

Making the Connection

Asking questions when meeting someone new is a good way to make friends. Asking about the person’s business, inquiring into his or her interests and talking about their loved ones builds rapport. And if you find common interests or natural affinities with the person ― favorite teams, kids, attended the same university or maybe you both have a passion for tennis ― you’ll elevate the conversation and move the relationship forward. You’re off to a good start.

Are they a potential referral partner?

Now you want to ask some questions to qualify (or disqualify) your new contact as someone with whom you should invest your networking time. Revealing questions to ask are:

• How long have you been in business?
• What do you look for in a strategic partner for your business?
• What can you tell me about your networking activities?
• What can you tell me about the types of people you usually help?
• Whom do you currently partner with to give and get referrals?

The idea behind asking these questions is to gain an understanding of your contact’s ability to act as a ‘giver’ (of referrals) and possibly as a long term referral partner for you. If you find that the individual is ‘newer’ to the networking, is clearly out only for himself or herself or already has an established partner in your industry you may not want to invest much time, if any, connecting further with this individual.

One very good question to ask a new contact at a networking event is What should I be listening for to know if someone is a good referral for you?  In fact, this is an important question because it accomplishes a few critical things. First, it’s a sign of generosity that you’ve shown interest in helping someone else. Second, it’s a very professional question that is rarely asked by even the most experienced networkers. Third, it shows genuine interest in helping someone to find good referrals, which builds trust. While accomplishing all of these things it doesn’t commit you to taking immediate action. Remember, you asked “What should I be listening for”, which demonstrates interest without making an actual commitment to provide a referral.

MAJOR INSIGHT: Should your new contact ask you back the same question that would be a good sign that they see networking as a two-way street.

The Next Step    

If you feel that there’s a potential referral partnership to be had it will make sense to suggest a follow-up one-on-one networking meeting, say over coffee or a bite to eat. Before ending the conversation, you might say something like, I’ve  enjoyed meeting you. I’d love to get to know more about you and your business. Would you be open to a conversation about how we might mutually support each other’s business? Odds are your new networking contact will agree to this.

Networking tip. One of the best ways to end a conversation when you’re at a networking event is to be up front with the other person and say, I want to talk to some people here before they leave. Please excuse me.

Make your one-on-one meeting count 

Since time is money in business, we must be careful about those we choose to meet. In your call or email to arrange a meeting, I always recommend that you requalify a new potential referral partner. Ask for the contact’s agreement that the purpose of meeting one-on-one is to see if there’s a ‘fit’.

Isn’t that what this is all about anyway? You’re looking for a win-win relationship and need to establish a ‘fit’ as the goal for your meeting. You just say, I’m looking for a win-win relationship. From my perspective, the purpose of us meeting is for us to determine if there’s a ‘fit’ to work together. Does that sound good to you? In my experience, people respond well to the word ‘fit’.

When you actually meet with your contact start with some small talk. Have you always lived (or worked) around here? As you both warm up a bit, ask How did you get started in this business?

Be prepared with other questions that night help further qualify the contact as a strategic partner or prospective client. I’ve had many meetings that started out as a potential strategic partner meeting, but soon turned into a prospective client meeting due to my questions. There are also questions that might uncover the types of leads the contact has in his or her network that might be fruitful connections for you, including:

• With whom do you network to find new business?
• Where do you find you get the best networking results?
• What are some of the networking methods you use to advance your business?
• What referral sources are best for you?
• Who are some of your best strategic partners?
• What industries or ‘verticals’ (groups of people within a certain industry) do you serve?
• What size companies do you typically work with?
• Who at the client companies buys your services?
• Can you describe your clients? Who is an ideal client for you?
• What makes you or your company unique?
• Who’s your competition?
• What are some of the challenges your company faces every day?
• How does the economy affect your business?
• What are your expectations from your best strategic partners?
• Where do you see yourself or your company in 5 years?
• Can you tell me why you love what you do?
• How can I bring you/your skills/services up in conversations with my clients?
• Is there anything more you’d like to tell me about you/your firm that might help me refer business your way?
• Have you referred any of your clients to people in my field in the past?
• How can you see me providing value to your clients?
• What can I do to help you refer clients to me?
• What can I do to earn referrals from you?
• If one of your clients asked you to recommend a good (your skill/service) is there someone you trust that you’d recommend to them?
• I’m very interested in developing win-win relationships with other professionals who are mindful of two-way business. Do you see any barriers that would prevent us from working together in this way?

While there are hundreds of questions you can ask, try to zero in on three to five that make sense for you and the person you’re meeting with. Your ability to listen, ask questions and dig deeper will dramatically improve your success in these one-on-one networking meetings.

If there IS a ‘fit’…..

At the end of the meeting if both of you see that there’s a clear fit for you to help each other, suggest you try taking a small step forward together, such as making an easy connection for one another or inviting one another to attend an upcoming event. Then ask your contact, How would you feel about that? Again, in my experience people respond well to a suggestion like that.

The reason this is so effective is because it advances and emphasizes the quid pro quo of the ultimate goal in meeting: connections. Think about what your new contact might be seeking from you. Most likely it’s the same thing you’re after: a positive connection that benefits both parties. By agreeing to start small you’re not investing too much of yourself and not receiving so much that you might walk away with a sense of obligation to the contact. The goal of the ‘baby step’ is to test the connection without over- or under- committing, much like tasting a wine before buying the whole bottle.

What if there ISN’T a ‘fit’?

If the meeting isn’t going well and you realise that there’s not a fit, don’t hesitate to speak up and gain the contact’s agreement to move on and not work together. Remember, not everyone will be a good fit for you, and that’s okay. If prospects for a mutually beneficial, two-way business relationship aren’t looking good you might say, In lining up this meeting we agreed that the purpose was to see if there was a fit to work together. Based on our conversation so far, it doesn’t appear there is a good fit. Take another 30 seconds to explain why there might not be a good fit and help the contact understand. If you’re completely uncomfortable bringing this up to someone, just let the meeting run its course over the hour and simply move on.

It’s not always black or white.

With some people, it can take years to develop the type of trust and relationship that makes the person comfortable working with you. Sometimes being in the ‘number two’ position pays off when the person’s current referral relationship falls away. You’ll want to be there and come into your contact’s mind when someone else drops the ball. In which case, you’ll want to keep the connection ‘alive’. Plan a follow-up contact with this person. Put them on your calendar to contact them again in four to six weeks. Take note of any special events they mentioned and call around these times to ask how the event went. From time to time, send a note on something pertinent. Look for something helpful, interesting or relevant that you can forward to your contact. Ideally, you identified an issue where you can be of assistance and you’ll communicate on that topic.

Networking Is Not a One and Done

Remember that one meeting does not make a referral partner. It’s essential that the first meeting lead to a second and to a third, a fourth, a fifth and on and on over the long haul. That’s how productive strategic referral partnerships are built and maintained.

And by the way, you’ll want to implement a system to manage your relationships and stick to the system.

I hope you find this article helpful. If you’d like to review some of the main points and dig into a bit more detail just drop me an email and I’d be happy to discuss over a coffee.

Some last words…..

The golden rule in making referral partnerships work for you is your partners need business too. They need referrals to quality prospects, just like you do.

If you fail to generate opportunities for your partners, their commitment to referring clients to you will fall and the relationship will dissolve.

If you can’t refer business to your referral partner, help find him/her someone who can.

Author: Ron Gibson, Alliance Advisor with ATL Network

Ron runs a Web-based Business Growth Masterclass for Professional Advisors. Next Program is scheduled 6th July. More information: CLICK HERE

Procrastination is your worst enemy. Accounting practitioners face a crisis if they don’t make significant changes.

A recent survey revealed that less than a third of practitioners reported having a strategic vision and plan. Of those that did have a plan approximately 50% shared it with managers and staff.

When asked why a plan hasn’t been prepared, the most frequent responses were:

1. “We don’t have time – we’re too busy!”Client demands inevitably take priority, even though a large proportion of these clients are non-profitable (see my blog on the 140/20 Rule), to the detriment of your own firm.
2. “We can’t get partners to agree on a vision.” Without a process to do this properly it is likely that individual partners and even staff will have their own personal vision wherein ‘pillars’ are developed with lists of clients rather than any sort of business model.
3. “We really don’t know how to complete a plan.” I do see plenty of evidence of this where firms attempt to do some sort of planning themselves at a ’Retreat’ but inevitably they become talk fests with no serious actions determined.

Firms, across the profession, that are unable to retain quality staff are unlikely to attract them and today’s best talent expect a digital environment, a clear vision, a change-ready organisation with fast decision-making at the leadership and management levels. Successful firms are adaptable, learn quickly and move with a sense of urgency. Results are directly impacted by employee experiences. Experiences impact their beliefs. Beliefs impact their actions and their actions impact your firm results.

WHAT ARE YOUR CORE VALUES?

Your skilled, experienced people want to know where the firm is going and whether they will personally be able to play a significant role and grow professionally. There are plenty of choices for them in this fast changing world and reliable economist, Phil Ruthven, was quoted as follows:

“For those fearing the disappearance of jobs, don’t. Over the past five years, Australia created six times more jobs than it lost, and it is well placed to do the same over the next five years. And, yes, the new jobs are in new industries. So the message is don’t just stand there, do something!”

….and they will. The war for talent is just beginning! Young accountants have grown up with an abundance mentality, rather than a scarcity mentality. A vision, mission and core values are integral to a firm’s strategic plan. Potential employees simply do not want to work for firms that do not align with their own core values and beliefs. Partners often insist that they have a vision, mission and core values, but is this really true?

1. Do partners agree and live up to the core values?Imagine a situation where two second-tier accounting firms that were merging wanted to set aside a day to discuss and identify core values. Imagine if every single partner (a very large group) wanted to list their own specific comments which resulted in pages of ‘values’ for their new merged firm. Would you conclude this process was way overdone and would probably never be implemented? Unfortunately, this was a real situation. Unfortunately, this did happen. And yes, unfortunately the ‘values’ were never implemented. The firm demerged not long after.
2. Do your employees know the core values and are they held accountable?
3. Does your firm share your business plan with your staff and key clients?

OVERCOMING OBSTACLES

Of all the reasons given above the most revealing is that partners can’t agree. Arriving at a shared, agreed-upon business plan requires a lot of planning, thinking and allocation of resources to a limited number of prioritised strategies – usually no more than three. Your first attempt might only be 80-90 percent complete. This will not limit your success. Over time the task becomes easier, the planning gets better and the achievements escalate. In our experience it always helps too to have an independent part-time facilitator to keep everyone accountable and on track.

NOT ENOUGH TIME?

We hear this a lot. Many practitioners are prepared to allocate time to developing strategies but never follow through. With the right processes and commitment of all partners, a plan can be prepared in as little as one to three days (contact us for an outline of a process and, if you wish, facilitation of the process). Remember it should be about progress and not perfection. We use a range of ‘tools’ and processes to engage partners and staff and implement action.

Simplicity is the key and one-page plans and many of the simple tools referred to above ensure a far better outcome.

MAKE PLANNING A PRIORITY

We are convinced that facilitating the planning process within your own firm is a monumental task. Over great many years we have facilitated in the development of hundreds of plans. Engaging an external facilitator helps to expedite the internal process and provide valuable external expertise. Too often practitioners are convinced of their own ability to attend to this. A great facilitator ensures that strategic action is followed through with implementation and accountability.

ATL Network’s Strategic Planning Process is built on the core tenets of Strategy – Growth – Implementation – Accountability.

Authors: Vale David Connell and Colin Simkin

Advisory Thought Leadership Program