eWomen Network Event with Robyn Spizman: Is Your Business Gifted?

Last night I attended the eWomen Atlanta Network meeting at the Ravinia Club. I attended for two reasons: because I have always been curious about this organization and to hear Robyn Spizman give a presentation on “Is Your Business Gifted?” The overall event exceeded my expectations. I have spent the last seven years in sales (which means I’ve been to hundreds of networking events) and can maybe count on one hand the number of events in which members walk up to you proactively to greet you and walk you around to meet other people. It was a very friendly, engaging group.

My notes from Robyn’s speech are below, but first I wanted to highlight the non-verbal features of her presentation which were equally impressive as her message. And I’m not saying this just because I work for her at The Spizman Agency.

Here are a few things worth mentioning:
-Robyn’s words were so effective in part because of her presence. She used NO notes or teleprompters and walked around the entire time.
-she was present; meaning, in her presentation she wove in names, situations, and stories from people she interacted with that very night. This resulted in a very engaged audience.
-we left the event with actionable takeaways. That’s the difference between a good speech and a great speech.
-Robyn elicited a lot of emotion in the audience through her storytelling. It was excellent.

And now, to share a few highlights from the presentation:
-before launching into her content, Robyn promised to increase our business platform and help us find out what our gifts are. This is using the inverted pyramid approach that I use in copywriting – “tell ‘em what you’re going to tell ‘em.” People’s attention spans have evolved and you have to capture their attention and know what they’re getting out of something from the beginning.
-she began with such a simple, yet powerful (and underutilized) practice: learn people’s names and use them which she broke down into simple steps:
1) Learn someone’s name
2) then practice
3) then rhyme it
-know that tomorrow is a gift
-examples of personal gifts can be as simple as the ability to say hello and make friends to the ability to make the best chocolate chip cookies
-people need to concentrate on “budget conscious gifts that reflect our ability to sustain them”
-how does your business serve someone? That’s your benefit.
-leave a message of goodwill; do something out of the box that says “I love you.”
-business building words: How May I Help You?
-people have to communicate and show up
-show up by giving
-Robyn’s gift is her enthusiasm
-in your life, where do you involve what you love? Start there
-you don’t always know what to give, but study the person, study the business
-tell a story, don’t sell a service
-you only succeed if you find out what someone values; ex. Give their PET a gift if they are a petlover
-play with words – ex. “you’re the smartest cookie I know” and give cookies or Starbucks gift card saying “I love you a latte”
-wake up your words, your business
-you’re not selling a product but building a relationship
-when we give, people see us as a leader
-you have to love your service; otherwise you’re doing the wrong thing
-give before you get
-finally, don’t be shy; know how people can help you and communicate that

Sales/Prospecting tips and ideas for small businesses and entrepreneurs

This week I attended a meeting with ReFocus on Careers, an Atlanta-based group that helps people practice their networking in a comfortable environment and provides great educational content for a reasonable price.
The Atlanta Business Chronicle’s Circulation Director, Michael FitzGerald, spoke to our meeting and offered these tips for people looking for jobs or sales prospects:

-the paper offers an index of all companies and people that are featured. If you see a prospect, send them a congratulatory note or follow call. Most importantly, tell them what about the article caught your eye.
-handwritten notes are an extremely under-used tool; people don’t always read their email, but they will read a note sent in the mail on professional stationary.
-who is advertising these days? These companies have money.
-this is more of a publicity tip, but if you would like to get your company featured in the paper, call up the appropriate contact, and in a very non-salesy manner, tell them you have a unique idea you would like to share with them and then in 30 seconds communicate your idea and why his/her readers would be interested.
-if there’s an interesting article (book review, leadership article, industry trends, etc), send that article to the client and write a handwritten note WHY you thought he/she might be interested.

Other tips for the holidays
-clients are doing their budgets in December and will budget in your services or position
-business is slower – this is a great time to make some personal calls
-people are happy!
-look up “odd” holidays and send your prospects/friends/clients something interesting about it
-January: send New Year’s cards
-to create a relationship, ask your contact “how can I help you?” Don’t make it all about you.
-crash holiday parties – it’s a great way to meet employed people.
-it takes 7-8 times before someone will give you a referral or lead.

Re:FOCUS on Careers and Daniel Silva Book Tour

The past week I attended two great, but very different, events. The first was the Daniel Silva book signing at the Barnes and Nobles in Buckhead. There were a lot of fans there and the discussion was great. I am interested in Daniel but have never read his books before, which I hope to do soon. You could tell by the Q&A and lively interaction that his fans are very loyal though, which is great.

The second event I attended was with Re:Focus on Careers. There were over 95 professionals in a packed room listening to expert storyteller Mike Wittenstein share tips and advice on how to brand yourself and to literally, tell our own story. Then for the first time I participated in speed networking. Whew - I have A LOT of follow up to do now! As I have learned, working the room is only half the battle. The majority of what networking is all about is the follow up.

Networking vs Working the Room

I have been thinking a lot lately about Networking. I have been attending networking events, have gone to events specifically on Networking education, and am reading a few books right now on the subject. It finally dawned on me that Networking is extremely different than Working the Room. Yes, it took all that but I finally get it.

I went into my quest for knowledge on networking specifically looking for information on how to approach and build rapport with strangers. I have always been shy to walk into a room full of people already grouped together in discussion when I know no one. But after some introspection this perceived idfficulty I now have the confidence to hold my head up when walking into a room and engaging with a person standing by himself or can walk up to a group and join their conversation (which is more difficult). However, I didn’t realize that the follow-up and relationship building is the more important part of networking. And that you can’t just follow up once, you have to put it on your calendar to follow up again and establish yourself as a resource based on a rapport-building topic or something you have in common. And that has been harder for me – to uncover something in an initial conversation that gives me a good reason to follow up and be a true resource, friend, partner, supplier, etc. Does anyone have any good books on that topic?

Networking Bootcamp - AWRT Event

This morning I attended a very educational event, Networking Bootcamp, put on by the Atlanta Chapter of American Women in Radio and Television (AWRT). The speaker was Debbie Rodkin, Executive Director of re:FOCUS on Careers.

Two interesting things: 1) although I was the only person NOT affiliated in any way with AWRT, they had opened it to the public which I thought was great. Next month they are featuring a meeting on “Reverse Mentoring,” which is where the younger people mentor the older people in technology and social media. What a great idea and I’d love to attend that meeting for the sole purpose of gauging its effectiveness and attendee reactions. 2) The speaker, Debbie, has a full-tie job in addition to her Executive Director job at re:FOCUS. I asked how she managed her time effectively and she said that she averages about four hours of sleep per night. WOW.

Here are some notes I took from this morning:

-show up early, act as a host and greet others coming in. Use the time to mentally prepare what you want to get out of the meeting.
-what is the purpose for being there? For every event you should know why you’re there, who you want to meet, etc.
-small talk: use this to influence the conversation; make it about the other person and have questions ready. A GREAT question to ask in the course of a conversation is “what would be a good referral for you?” I have been asked this a few times recently and it really takes the conversation to the next level and reflects very well on the person asking.
-make conversation about the other person, but talk about topics that interest you too.
-do not be afraid to go up to a group of people who are already in conversation. This is intimidating but can produce great, unexpected results.
-know when to disengage and move along in a polite manner
-having an elevator pitch is extremely important; people cannot help you unless you can clearly communicate what you do
-don’t leave the follow-up to others; be proactive and touch base as soon as possible before life and work get in the way. **** This is a crucial, much-overlooked part of networking****
-be in the know and position yourself as a resource.

To sum up, I attend a lot of events around Atlanta and network quite a bit – I highly recommend this seminar and the useful takeaways that can be applied immediately.

Good Quotes in "Meetings and Conventions" Magazine

Last night I read an article entitled “Defending your Event” from Meetings and Conventions Magazine.

As I know not only from the perspective of a planner but also an attendee, half the value of meetings, tradeshows, and events comes from the socializing portion where attendees put on their casual clothes, loosen up, and become their true, authentic selves. There is nothing like bonding with your fellow colleagues out on the dance floor or at an off-site event.

So I enjoyed this article quote by meetings tech guru Corbin Ball: “There is no such thing as a virtual beer. It is for this reason that face-to-face meetings will remain viable for the future, despite recession-induced drops in attendance.”

Another noteworthy quote: “When Obama was trying to get his budget passed, he didn’t go do a webinar and he didn’t get on TV, which he could’ve done. He met with people, let them look him in the eye and ask questions. Face-to-face is still the main way to get business done and will be for a long time to come.” Vicki Hawarden, VP of Knowledge and vents MPI, Dallas

Read the full article here.

Confidence vs Cockiness

I have always been a “fake it until you make it” kind of person when it comes to confidence. I’ve also always been jealous of those who seem to have been born with the innate talent for being very sure of themselves without crossing the line to cockiness. It’s a fine line for sure.

Right now I’m reading a great book that I randomly picked out at the library called “Lions Don’t Need to Roar: Using the Leadership Power of Professional Presence to Stand Out, Fit In, and Move Ahead.” It’s a very good read that give short bursts of tips and advice without overloading the mind. These are all things we know, but don’t make a conscious effort on in business situations. I’ll share more as I continue with the book but here are some things that apply to me (I think!):

-Give slow, deep, and purposeful nods; don’t nod your head like a bobble-head
-Eye contact is very important when you meet a C-level executive or someone you hope to impress
-maintain eye contact 1 second longer than necessary
-enter a room purposefully as if to say “I know who I am and I know what I’m doing”
-When at a networking event, size up a room, then move directly and deliberately to the person you want to speak with.
-confident people pause; learn to use strategic silences
-hold a handshake a split second longer than necessary
-extend my hand consistently to both men and women in all situations

There’s much more but I’d like to leave you with something that I heard Beyonce say in an interview: she said that she doesn’t feel guilty for everything she has in life and deserves it all because she works harder than anybody she knows. As an example, she gave a run-down of her activities the past 48 hours and whew, she does stay busy. My husband thinks she is very cocky but I think it is admirable that she said that and has the confidence to do so.

LinkedIn and Social Media Tips from David Nour

So I heard a great keynote speaker the other day who is a Social Media/LinkedIn/Networking expert named David Nour. He had some great advice and tips that I wanted to share with ya’ll. I hope you find it useful and please let me know if you have any questions or need clarifications.


LinkedIn:
-less than 10% of people know how to use it (use it for growing a network and for business contacts).
-to search for a target person do an “advanced search.” Example, type in “Current VP at Disney.” The number to the side of the list that pulls up is the degree of separation between your network and theirs.
-advanced search also lets you filter by geography.
-if you are looking for an introduction to someone in your friends’ network, don’t ask for an introduction unless you know your friend very well. Ask “what can you tell me about him/her” and get creative.
-build a content rich profile
-recommend others and get recommendations for yourself
-on your profile promote what you’ve done and what you want to do, projects, etc.
-use bullet points
-join groups specific to your industry and interests. Then contribute relevant information to questions, discussions, forums, and start initiating your own thoughts and questions.


Websites to visit:
-slideshare.net is the YouTube of presentations. Visit slideshare.net/dnour for the speaker’s page.
- http://www.relationshipeconomics.net/RENetworks.html. (This is his social network/community site)
-aNobii is a social media site about books
-American Well is a social media site reinventing healthcare

Other information:
-when utilizing social media, have a voice and a perspective. Get yourself out there!
-Enterprise 2.0 is defined as “The Business Web” and you will want to be a part of it.
-Google your name and know what’s out there about you.
-Specificity drives credibility
-social media is not the place to be humble
-use social media to gather, compile, and share best practices

Elevator Statement

Random person I meet out and about: “So, what do you do?”
Me: “I work in the event planning industry. It’s great!”
Random person: “Oh, that sounds like fun.”
Me: “It is.”

Yes, I am very guilty of having an awful elevator pitch in the past and not initiating an interesting dialog about my job. In the book I’m reading now, “Book Yourself Solid” by Michael Port, it talks about crafting an elevator statement by answering two questions: “Who I help” and “Why I do it.” Here’s what I have so far:

Who I help:
I help people who manage strategic events
I help corporate marketing and communications managers
I help people who plan face to face business events

Why I do it:
I love bringing people together
I love educational events
I love helping people with their business needs
I love communications
I believe in face-to-face business
I believe in making face-to-face business experiences the best they can be
I know that face-to-face opportunities offer people personal and professional development

I’m still not sure how to bring these together or even if this makes sense. It took the author six months to perfect his pitch, so I guess it will be a work in progress.

Iron Chef and PRSA

I love networking events. It’s a chance for me to learn something new and meet new colleagues, clients, and friends. I always go to events looking to meet people and am constantly surprised at how many attendees I see standing in the corner and generally being very unsociable. Especially being in sales, I notice this a lot since I’m always looking over the room to learn from and seek out who the people are that are having animated conversations and who look interesting.
Today I attended two very different, interesting events. One was Marriott’s Iron Chef competition at the Renaissance Waverly. Because I have never watched the show before and having arranged a lot of teambuilding events over the past few years, I was pretty skeptical. It’s hard to impress meeting planners and put on events since that is what we do for a living. I was very pleasantly surprised at how fun it was and the quality of people the event attracted.
After that I attended the PRSA luncheon to hear economists talk about the region and the economy. The panel included economists and speakers such as Sam Massell with the Buckhead Coalition and A.J. Robinson with Central Atlanta Progress. Sam and A.J. are both great speakers and I’ve heard them several times throughout the last few years.

As a first-time visitor, I enjoyed myself and the people I met. A few recommendations I have would be that there are handouts in our seats promoting the next few events or highlighting the speakers and topic, and also to integrate guests and members. Overall...great day!