Create Opportunities With Your Business Card

Television star. Movie Star. Famous Comedian.

What do you do when you’re at a restaurant and a famous person sits down at the table next to you?

A. Pretend he’s not there.
B. Whisper to your friends that a famous person’s sitting next to you, but do it so subtly that he doesn’t know you’re talking about him? (But of course he does.)
C. Say ‘Hi’ and tell him how much you enjoy his program?

Last week I was having breakfast with my good friend Stuart Goldenberg at the pancake house down the street from where I live.

Stuart and I were talking about some creative ways to market and promote his clothing store, Tessuti (If you want some beautiful suits, visit Stuart the next time you’re in Chicago.), when in walks Jeff Garlin, the star of HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”

[In the past year I’ve met Bill Clinton and Darryl Hannah at the pancake house. Guess I should go there more often.]

He looks around, as if he’s supposed to be meeting someone, and then decides to sit down at the table next to ours. Within moments the restaurant is abuzz.

Stuart looks at me. Gets all excited. And in a loud whisper says,”That’s him. That’s him. The guy from HBO. He’s the funniest guy on TV.”

“You’re right.” I said, trying to contain my enthusiasm.

“What are you going to do now?” I asked.

“I don’t know.” Stuart sheepishly replied.

“Why don’t you say ‘Hi’ and tell him what you just told me?” I suggested.

Stuart took a deep breath, turned his head, looked at Jeff, and said in a soft – timid – tone of voice, “Excuse me, I just wanted to tell you that I love your show on HBO and I think you’re the funniest man on TV.”

And with that we had a brief – and entertaining – conversation with one of the funniest people on TV.

Jeff told us that he was in town to promote his new DVD of the TV show and to do a weekend performance at a local comedy club. He’s originally from Chicago, but now lives in LA.

Not to pass up on a wonderful networking opportunity we exchanged business cards with Jeff and his producer, who had joined him a few minutes later.

Capture Sales Opportunities
As you go through life you must recognize and capture the opportunities that come your way.

In business, it’s called networking. How does networking work? You meet someone and exchange business cards.

That’s not too complicated, is it?

Here are three networking rules:

1. Always carry your business cards.
2. Pass them out to everybody you meet.
3. Always get the other person’s business card.

If you’re not actively promoting yourself and your business, and looking for new prospects, who will?

Always Be Prepared
I regularly attend networking events, and am amazed at the number of people who come to the luncheons, dinners, meetings and conferences without bringing business cards.

It’s as if they want to sabotage their career. They aren’t there for the food, drinks or presentations. They forgot the ‘real’ purpose of these meetings: to network and look for new opportunities.

All you’ve got to do is say, with a smile, “Hi, my name is…  It’s so nice to meet you.” and as you introduce yourself hand the person one of your cards and ask for one of theirs.

Yes, it’s important to give someone your business card, but it’s even more important for you get one of theirs. Here’s why.

The other person will probably place your business card in the lap drawer of her desk, where it will forever remain, never to be looked at again. Or, it will end up buried in a pile somewhere on the desk where it will remain lost and forgotten for the next six months.

Following Up
When you meet someone who you think is a prospect, it’s your job to follow-up. It’s unlikely that they’ll follow up with you.

Think about this. The #1 reason why people don’t capture their opportunities is that they fail to follow up with the people  they worked so hard to meet.

Why? Because they’re afraid – or uncomfortable – picking up the telephone.

They don’t know what to say. They feel that by calling they’re going to ‘bother’ the other person. (That’s an attitude/perception problem.)

So they never make the call. The opportunity is wasted. And they wonder why they’re working so hard as they try to make a living.

But whether you’ve a hot lead, warm lead, or a just a name and phone number, you’ve still got to have great telephone techniques. With great phone skills you turn those sales opportunities into sold business.

With poor skills, it’s easy to run through a month’s worth of leads in a single day.

As Stuart and I were leaving the restaurant, he stopped briefly to chat with the wife of a friend. He casually handed her a business card and mentioned that he had some new things that her husband would like.

She stopped in later in the day and bought some shirts and ties.

The sales opportunities are out there. It’s your job to go out and find them.

– Jeffrey