The other day during my seminar ‘Set The Stage Follow Up Training’  I had one of those ahhha moments. You know the kind .. when you stop dead in your tracks and think .. gee I never thought of it that way. I love it when that happens! Kinda sheds a new light on things doesn’t it! Or maybe what it really does is light up a forgotten corner.

A lady shared with me  ‘I am an entrepreneurs and my business is a startup. I have never had to sell before. What do I do if I haven’t got a stack of business cards yet? I attend networking events but I seem to hang around on the edges and come home with maybe one business card”  

You know, I have forgotten how brave I had to become to get past that thought and start not only making 1st contact and meeting people and generating leads, but following up with everyone I met. So I decided to take a closer look where the light was shining and pull back the sophisticated drapery and rediscover some tips that I developed when I first started out in sales.

I rediscovered 5 Networking Tips - To Start The 1st Contact Conversation.  You can use them to get the conversation going at the events you attend!

1. Arrive early and talk to the person standing next to you in line.
2. Make eye contact and SMILE. Humans are genetically programmed to respond to smiling.
   If you need to practice , find places to say hello during your daily routine, like the grocery store check out line.
3. Take a cue from the guys, put out your hand and say your name and ask theirs. 99.9% of people will not ignore you!
   Make sure to raise your voice and speak up. Do not apologize if you do not have a company name for example, just say I am into sales support (put in your speciality). Ask for their card and offer yours.
4. Keep talking to them as you enter the room! Ask another question. Good prefaces are “That sounds interesting. How did you get started in that?” Ask for their card. You can always revert to the old classic, the weather.
   99.9% of people will not abandon you if you keep talking to them. Play to their good manners!
5. If you do lose your conversation partner, go and get a drink of water or coffee. Take a cup and offer it to the person standing in line behind you. SMILE. Go to Tip 2 and follow through to Tip 4.

If you found these tips useful, find out more about   ‘Set The Stage Follow Up Training’.
You will discover strategies you can use to follow up beyond this 1st contact to the 5th contact where 80% of sales are made.

Register for the next ’Set The Stage Follow Up Training’  Saturday April 10th, 9 am – 12 Noon & April 26, 6 pm – 9 pm at Hampton’s Restaurant at the Quality Inn on the SW corner of Bronte Road and QEW in Oakville.  The training is 2.5 hours and  $89.00. There will be time for questions and answers.