This is a fascinating method of prospect generation that isn’t my strength. I am a better one-one-one person and not much of a mingler but I have many agent friends who I discuss this with and will share what I have learned from them. Let’s start with a video that explains why you should one, grow your network and two, reestablish your weak ties.
If you find this subject interesting, google “Weak Ties Social Network” for more in-depth explanation of it.
Real estate is weird in that we are constantly looking for a job and literally everyone is a possible client. So networking with people, especially business people make a ton of sense. What most people consider networking is going to a local city’s Chamber of Commerce, Rotary Club, or a paid networking group.
The idea is that you all gather. usually in the morning, share information about yourself, hand each other leads, and support each other. There’s usually a structure of some sort and some have standards that not only will you absolutely be there every meeting, but you will also be handing out a referral to someone.
Trying to create your own group is attractive in that you can pick and choose who is in there but many groups fizzle. Sometimes the paid ones are better because of the commitment level.
The Do’s of Networking
Go consistently, not just when you need business or have something you need to share like a listing. Like many things, you get what you put into it.
Make it about the other person. Find out about them. A clever question to ask is, “What are you working on right now?” Their mind will take that to what is most important usually. They might be an insurance agent but love making wood kayaks on the weekend.
Remember FORD. Family, occupation, recreation and dreams. I’m not good at promoting myself. The closest I think I have at this early stage about myself on this site are my social links. If you asked me about my recreation and dreams, I’ll bore you for hours. And after a while, some people get bored with talking about their business. As a real estate agent, if you know where they like to vacation, now you know where they might want to buy a second home.
Figure out who the ambassadors are. Ambassadors are the people who just met you and will introduce you by saying, “Oh, you have to meet Bob! He’s killing it in real estate! Weren’t you going to sell your home?” Your time spent with ambassadors is worth 10 times the time spent with an average person. The average person doesn’t think of referring you automatically or they have a reluctance.
The Don’t’s of Networking
Don’t latch on to one person. The introverts that go do this because they were told they should are likely to do this.
Don’t make it about you. Everyone likes to talk about themselves, even the introverts if you hit what they are excited about.
Don’t be afraid of other agents. We have agents going to chamber events with our top agent. Everyone connects with different people. No one has the market on everyone. You will find your connections.
A Few Tricks
Ask people what was their favorite vacation memory or place. The brain is amazing. When we are with someone, whatever emotion we have around them kind of gets branded to them. By putting them in one of their happiest memories, which you triggered by your question, connects you with their happiness and liking you.
Watch the feet. Joe Navarro, former FBI agent, and body language expert, says the feet show you where someone wants to go.
For example: you walk into a party, someone you know smiles at you from a distance, perhaps they even track you with their eyes as you move across to the other side of the room, but their feet never move. Or as you come closer, you find their feet begin to shift so that they are still looking at you but their feet orient away from you. I don’t mean they turn 45 degrees which is a good sign the person wants you to join them. I mean one foot will turn 90 degrees away from you, usually toward an exit and the other soon follows, all while they are looking at you. This is a behavior not to miss as it often reveals that there are issues between you and this individual.
As I noted in, What Every BODY is Saying (HarperCollins, 2008), the brain is saying to the feet prepare to flee, I don’t want to see or spend time with this person. This is a subconscious behavior that I have found to be very reliable.
Look for one person looking around sheepishly in the corner. They aren’t likely connecting well and are lost and might like a friendly face to kick it off. Once again, they were told to be there to get business but they don’t know what to say or how to introduce themselves and are telling themselves all kinds of crazy stuff.
Look for two people. Look at the body language of two people. Look at the feet and distance between them. What I have heard multiple times is that twosomes very often would love someone to come in and break the monotony. This could be a latching person issue or just two people who always connect and don’t meet new people.
Connect Outside of the Event. I think it’s hard to just build the relationship well enough in organized meetings. Connect outside and it will mean more than the convenient relationship you have there.
Ask for business. I think that is something a lot of people miss. As much as I am a giver, I believe in Gary Vaynerchuk’s concept of Jab, Jab, Right Hook.
Exercise: Add 5 people to your database that you were telling yourself you don’t know well enough to add them.
Do the work, get the results.
On to Section 3