As an entrepreneur you need to get out of the office and continue building business connections. Toward this end though you need to make the most of business meetings. If you attend an event or a business luncheon and walk away, hours later, with a sense of “that was a waste of time” you need to sharpen your skills to see if you can determine beforehand just who might be wasting your time before you schedule time out of the office.
Make The Most Of Business Meetings
It’s all about them. This is a red flag you should notice up front. If you meet someone at a networking event and they launch into their elevator pitch without even a “getting to know you” question or two. You can rest assured that if you meet up again, the conversation on your end will not be furthered, but their agenda will be continued. As a side note, make sure when you meet people that you aren’t the one who is monopolizing the conversation.
Future planning. If they say, “well, at some point in the future” or “we aren’t at the point of bringing on vendors” or “we don’t have any plans currently” you will know that it might be a good getting-to-know you time, but you won’t walk away being any closer to a new business deal than you originally were. This is not to say that “future” promises should be discounted, but know that you’re not getting a contract signed any time soon.
I’d love to pick your brain. When someone says this, they KNOW you have a product or service that they would benefit from BUT they are not willing to open their checkbook and invest. Sharing insight and information isn’t a bad thing, but you don’t want to continually accept invitations to, “brain picking” sessions. You deserve to be paid for your expertise. Bottom line.
What raises red flags for you when you’re scheduling a business meeting with a potential client?