Just last night I had the privilege of leading a roundtable discussion at Showcase Business Network (see end of post for more information about this great networking group). I had originally titled the program “Lead Generation 101″—until it occurred to me that there is a world of difference between a lead and a referral. Ideally we have an endless supply of both coming in to our businesses. This article is the result of the notes I took while facilitating the discussion.
The first topic of discussion was:
What is the difference between a lead and a referral?
In a word, a referral is qualified, a lead is not. Also, typically leads are pursued by you while referrals are invited by someone else on your behalf. It is this inviting that qualifies them. I don’t have the statistics at hand, but I read once that it is orders of magnitude easier to close a warm referral than a cold lead.
So should we only seek referrals? Well, yes and no. One strategy discussed was to turn leads into referrals by simply engaging them in friendly conversation to get to know them better. It is quite possible that they are not good prospects for your business but could easily be referred to someone else’s business.
The benefit of attending networking meetings
The discussion turned to how to find leads. The first reply was to attend networking meetings, such as chamber-of-commerce events, business-after-hours gatherings, and more formal organizations such as BNI and similar groups. But leads can be found at other meetings, as well: church, the grocery store line, in an elevator, anywhere.
The goal is to strike up a conversation and simply be friendly. It’s all about building relationships. And follow-up is key. It does no good to attend a networking event, come home with a pile of business cards, and then watch them gather dust in a corner (not that I have any experience with that 
).
Sometimes simply being helpful while out and about leads to a profitable connection, if not for you then for someone to whom you can pass the referral. As the saying goes, “Give it out in slices and it comes back in loaves.”
Networking etiquette
Several of us recalled an incident at a business-after-hours event (about which I wrote several months ago), where a woman was bouncing around from person to person, shoving her (poorly typed) brochure into people’s hands, vomiting her information all over them, and then heading off to the next unsuspecting victim. She didn’t bother to listen to the other people at all. It was so sad to see her alienating an entire roomful of people. I hope she has since learned proper networking etiquette.
Again, relationships are what it’s all about. Engage people in conversation, especially people you don’t already know. (That is the point, isn’t it?) Get to know them. In my own case, I always ask questions of the other person first before saying much about my business at all. Even if he or she asks what I do, I’ll often say, “I am with USANA Health Sciences, and I market a line of top-rated nutrition supplements founded in human cellular research. But tell me more about you and what you do.” This immediately take the focus off of me and puts it back on the other person. If something I’ve said has piqued his or her interest, the conversation will ultimately come back around to me. And if not, so be it.
I attend networking events as much for myself as for my colleagues in other businesses. I love passing referrals, as do most of the people I network with. This seemed to be a common theme around the room. One person suggested that his goal was to schedule a follow-up one-to-one meeting, rather than to expect to learn everything about the other person right then and there at the networking event. Another person remarked that he follows up after ninety days with anyone he has met with.
A great strategy that one person follows is to ask for a testimonial. Of course, he’ll also give his own testimonial in return. But testimonials go a long way in enhancing one’s legitimacy. This is a strategy I have begun to use on LinkedIn, a site that makes it easy to give testimonials to the people you’ve connected with.
So what about leads?
One person mentioned that she uses the phone book in her cold-calling. Others use direct-mail campaigns. Still others prefer the three-foot rule: if someone is within three feet of you, he or she is a legitimate target. Again, though, it’s all about building relationships, so simply be friendly and start up a conversation. Learn about the other person first. See what needs you or someone in your network can fill before simply spewing your information over an unsuspecting target.
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It was a great discussion and a great evening. If you are located anywhere near Stratham or Exeter, New Hampshire, put the second Monday of the month in your calendar. Showcase Business Network meets from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at the Jade Palace Restaurant in Stratham, N.H. The cost is $5.00 and includes a plate of Chinese food. Most people add a dollar tip, and a few treat themselves to a drink from the bar. It is very casual, and some wonderful connections have been made. Join us next month and see for yourself.
