What is it? Like anything else to do with sales and selling, one of the big keys to success is effective networking. And to be effective in networking - or sales, for that matter - follow-up is a big ingredient.
And yet, that's the hardest part for sales professionals..."the follow-up". We're good at accumulating the stack of business cards, good at making the initial call...but when it comes to follow-up? Yikes, we stink. At least a lot of us do.
Networking guru Ilise Benun has a few tips that might seem obvious at first glance, but still need to be followed to the letter when it comes to building a successful network of business contacts:
Step 1. Meeting new people (in person) and making a connection with them by learning something new or finding something you have in common.
Step 2. Following up (via e-mail, phone, or snail mail) to remind your new contacts of the conversation you had or the project idea you came up with.
Step 3. Staying in touch (via e-mail, phone, in person, or a combination thereof) so they don't forget about you next month or next year. (This is crucial.)
Again, its that last step that really gets us most of the time. Make sure its not "getting" you, because if it is you're going to struggle with expanding your network.
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