Sales is all about meeting people, having conversations and building relationships, and this makes business networking a very effective tool for any B2B lead generation company. Your network is used to get in touch with the decision makers, find new opportunities, ask for advice and take referrals. However, sales persons tend to make some common networking mistakes that can sometimes prove costly for a B2B lead generation company. Let us take a look at some of the most common mistakes that sales people and organizations make while developing their business networks and ways to avoid them.
Lack of a clear strategy:
Developing business network is a long-term objective that you cannot expect to accomplish in a day or two. You need a clear, long-term strategy to make your network more effective and useful for the B2B lead generation company. A lot of time and effort has to be invested with a clear sense of direction before you can achieve your objectives and develop a network that fulfills all your requirements. You need to have an exact idea about the people you want to connect with, types of companies you want in your network, people you already know in these circles and the way you are going to approach your task.
Networking only with a selfish motive:
Sales is a business of give and take, you are going to lose out if you are considered “too selfish” by your customers and peers. No one likes to stay In touch with a person interested only in “taking” and never in “paying back”. When you are developing your network, you should look for opportunities for helping others whenever possible. This help could be in terms of shared information, a much needed advice, a referral or a useful contact. This would help you build credibility and make you a much sought person who is always in demand, and naturally a lot of opportunities would be knocking at your door.
A B2B lead generation company relies heavily on the business network to create and unearth new opportunities. We shall continue this topic in our next post to discuss about more common networking mistakes.
