Brush Up Your Networking Skills for the Holidays

Chances are you’re going to be at all kinds of holiday parties this year, and if they’re not Aunt Gladice’s tree trimming party, they are probably business related functions.  Instead of making cocktails, maybe you should make contacts instead. Here’s a few tips on how to make the most out of these festive occasions through networking.

#1 Have a Plan

Not all parties are created equal so make sure you have an agenda for the evening. Ask yourself what your goals are. Are you looking for a partner, an investor, or just looking to get educated or inspired? Asking yourself these questions will help put you in the right frame of mind while mingling and will turn that party into possibilities.

#2 Be Your Own Wing-man

Yeah, it’s always great to bring a buddy with you to social gatherings, but doing so hinders you from meeting new people. When you go at it alone, you’re more likely to interact with others and are less intimidating to approach.

#3 Work the Room

Step out of your shell and meet as many people as you can at these events. Simple math will tell you that the more people you meet, the greater the likelihood of striking networking gold.  Here’s a tip: Don’t spend more than 5 to 7 minutes per conversation. That’s all the longer it takes to figure out what the person in front of you is about and if you guys could be beneficial to each other in any way.

#4 Jot Down Some Notes

This is a tried and true strategy. It’s nearly impossible to remember the specifics about everyone you meet at parties, so the best thing you can do is take down a few key notes on the back of their business card, but don’t do it in front of them. Directly after leaving the conversation find a discreet place to take down a few notes. Don’t have that luxury? Put in a few keywords on your phone’s “notes” section  and it’ll look like you’re sending a text.  

#5 Watch What You Sip

Moderation is key and for good reason.  Yes, there’s usually a nice selection of beers and wines to choose from at these events, but that doesn’t mean you need to drink them all. Yes, alcohol can make it easier to loosen up, but too much and you’ll wake up the next morning wondering, “What did I say to those people?” Don’t be that guy (or gal.)

#6 Follow Up

This is the most important step in making new connections, but is almost always one of the more difficult steps to actually complete. To make things feel less awkward when following up, reference a highlight of the party in your email, tweet, Facebook, or whatever. In addition to following up with your new contacts, be sure to thank the hosts of the party for inviting you, too. It’s a nice way to show them you appreciate their hard work and will hopefully land you in their good graces so that you’ll be invited to their next big shindig!

#7 Put that Contact in Your CRM System ASAP

Just because you have your contact's card with some notes on the back, doesn't mean you're making the most out of that information. Put all your contacts from the evening into your CRM system to keep them organzied and protected from the washing machine. This extra step will help you in the future if that contact becomes a client, a sponsor, or a great golf buddy.  If you're worried you're going to make duplicates try cleaning up your data with Cloudingo or stopping duplicates at the point of entry with Dupecatcher.

photo credit: PetitPlat - Stephanie Kilgast via photopin cc

Sorting out a Project's Complexities

In reading through Innoveer blogger  Adam Honig's analysis of whether is it best to use CRM software that is running on the premises or in the cloud, I found some points  very noteworthy.

First, it's interesting that the author changed his mind since his article on the same topic last year. The 2010 analysis came to the conclusion that it would, in many cases, be best for organizations with complex environments to stay the course with traditional, on-premise CRM software while the 2011 article reaches a different decision.   With the fast pace of development in the cloud over the past year, cloud CRM is now a solid, reliable choice for companies with more complex needs, according to the author.  He says that companies with more users, more departments, lines of business will benefit from the enhancements made in Cloud CRM over the past 12 months.

The article does delve into the question of which software is best but it stays away from a specific recommendation.  You know I almost always am in the corner for Salesforce.com but I do agree that steering a company toward doing some research on it's own needs, goals, and complexities is the best way to come to the best conclusion for your company and its current needs.  In determining the complexity of the project, the following questions are recommended by the blog post and will help develop some guidelines for decision making:

1. Users: How many people will use the CRM application?
2. Approval: How many people get to approve the final CRM application?
3. Change: How much organizational change is required to deliver the targeted business benefits?
4. Scope: Will CRM support one group — sales, marketing, service — or multiple groups?
5. Data: How much data migration is required? More data requires more conversion, manipulation, data quality checks and thus effort.

1. Integration: How much will the CRM application integrate with other applications?

As you ponder the above questions (now that's a complex project) I will leave you with two final statements from the post  that, in my opinion, are the take- aways from the article--

• don't shy away from complexity. In fact, a good CRM project often resolves a complex or challenging situation
• No matter the complexity, or whether it's running on-premise or in the cloud, don't obsess over the technology. Instead focus on solving business challenges.