The Marketing Mix | official blog of the Marketing Mentor community

Networking Tips: Why to Wear Something Unusual

My “Welcome” session at the Creative Freelancer Conference in Boston on June 21 will focus on some new networking ideas and techniques I’ve been devising because, after 4 CFCs, I’ve gotten feedback from attendees that what they need most at the beginning is how-to, practical strategies to try out and, especially, permission to try them out on anyone they come across.

My new ideas this year come from my new favorite book, “The Most Human Human" by Brian Christian, which I would sum up as a book about how not to become a robot.

In it, he talks about conversational techniques that either invite more conversation (like a human) or stop it in its tracks (like a robot). One idea I especially like is about using what he called “holds” -- those jewel-toned rubber blobs you see at a gym on a fake rock climbing wall. “Each is both an aid to the climber and an invitation onto a certain path or route along the ascent,” he writes.

It reminded me of the crazy scarf I used to wear to networking events. What I didn’t realize is that there is a principle behind why it works -- until I read this book. Christian explains that wearing something unusual provides a “hold” for someone to grab onto. “You give the other people an easy first hold – a simple and obvious way to initiate a conversation with you, if they want.”

So whether you’ll be at CFC next month or are attending any networking event, be sure to bring something unusual to wear – a scarf, a hat, a pin – especially if you’re one of those anxious networkers.

I’m developing a few more ideas about how not to be a robot. Watch for them here…in the meantime, how do you avoid robotic-ness?

 

Should I quit Facebook cold turkey?

Hi, I'm Deidre. In my posts, I talk about my voyage down the road of self-employment as a web copywriter, my achievements and roadblocks along the way, and what I’m learning as I go (with Marketing Mentor as my guide).

Last week, I realized my Facebook-checking twitch was out of control. I didn’t realize how bad it was—until I challenged myself to check it only once per day. I kept track. (This is me, ACTUALLY TRYING to check Facebook only once per day over the last two weeks.) 

• Thursday - 13
• Friday – 8
• Sat/Sun - 4
• Monday – 3
• Tuesday – 5
• Wednesday – 2
• Thursday – 4
• Friday – 7
• Sat/Sun - 4
• Monday – 3
• Tues -  5
• Wed - 6

That’s 64 times over the past two weeks. (And I’ll say it again … this was me trying to not check Facebook. Let’s say I spent 2 minutes per visit. That’s 2 hours over two weeks! And that doesn’t even factor in the mind-clutter factor. (How much Facebook-fluff is floating around in my mind after these visits—keeping me from thinking about productive things?) 

Many times, I found myself on Facebook before I even realized it. It was like, Click. Oh crap! For those of you who joined me on this challenge, I hope your results were better than mine.

What did I take away from these visits? 

Useless

• Over the top details of a love triangle from a girl I was in school with.
• Random information about people I hardly know.
• People fighting about sports.
• Farmville requests (thankfully, I still have no idea what that is, but I bet if I started, I’d have to quit that too). 

Valuable

• Cute pictures of my friends’ kids.

What am I going to do?

Cheryl and Damien commented on the CFC blog, and I love their suggestions. I’m disabling my Facebook profile. I’m going to call my friends, and hope they call me. And if something life-altering is happening on the Facebook front, surely somebody will tell me. As for the cute kid pictures, I’m going to ask my husband to show me all of them. He can be my spam filter. 

 

How's your business?

One of our favorite partners, Cameron Foote, Editor of Creative Business, would like your help gathering information for the fifth annual CB survey of business conditions in the North American creative services industry. 

It only takes about a minute to answer twelve multiple-choice questions. Your responses will be confidential; your name or e-mail address will not be recorded. Survey results will be published in the July/August issue of the Creative Business newsletter, and available free on request to other respondents at the end of July.   

Take the survey here: 
http://www.surveymethods.com/EndUser.aspx?92B6DAC496D0C6C6 

Check out all of the Creative Business products in the Marketing Mentor Toolbox, including some of the best sellers: Contract, Estimate, Letter of Agreement, or Proposal?, Determining A Client's Budget, and How Much Would You Charge?

Is it tacky to request work in a first meeting?

Recently, I’ve been providing email mentoring – either per question, or via monthly subscription. It’s essentially for anyone who has one-off marketing questions and doesn’t need a full consultation. (If you're interested, email me for details at ilise@marketing-mentor.com). Here's a recent question I received: 

Q: I'm going through the cards of the connections I made at an event last week. One woman said I'd be a good connection for her daughter, who works for a large non-profit. She did take my card but I don't want to wait to hear from her.  Is it tacky to ask for work for the first time you reach out? 

A: That sounds like a pretty good lead. The approach is not “asking for work” but learning more about the needs of the non profit. I would request a quick chat to find out what she knows about their needs and who she can put you in touch with. If she doesn’t have time to talk, you can offer the alternative of giving you the name of the person you can contact. 

Need advice on a marketing situation? I’m a few clicks away… 

 

Self-employment: See if you have what it takes on June 14th in NJ

Are you considering self-employment, but not sure if you have what it takes? Are you moonlighting, but unsure about going full-time freelance? Or are you considering a career in marketing? If so, this event is for you. 

On June 14th, I’ll be taking part in the New Jersey chapter of the American Marketing Association’s Panel Discussion, Developing Your Career in Marketing.

Self-employed for 24 years, I’ll be discussing whether or not self-employment is a viable career option. (Hint: It is!) Because of the high unemployment situation, people are seriously considering starting their own business, and I’ll be there to share my advice and answer questions.  

My fellow panel experts will provide further guidance on developing a career in marketing. Experts include: 

• Larry Jacobs,  Rutgers University Assistant Director of Career Services, Professor of Psychology at Rutgers, Montclair State, Middlesex County College  
• Judy Kroll, Executive Outplacement Coach and Senior Consultant at Lee Hecht Harrison
• Lonnie Williard, Vice President of Marketing at Mediterranean Snack Foods 
• Shen Yeniyurt, Professor of Marketing at Rutgers University 
• Dr. Michaeline Skiba, Professor of Marketing at Monmouth University 

Developing Your Career in Marketing
Thursday June 14, 2012 - 5:30 pm - 8:30 pm
The Visitor Center, Rutgers University
100 Sutphen Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854

More details and sign up here: http://www.eventbrite.com/event/3334039201?ref=ebtnebregn

 

Growing A Small Business: Hire an Employee or Subcontractors?

If you need some inspiration, the new-to-freelance Jeff Tara, from Brand Vue Design, is back with his upbeat attitude. Jeff has been in business only 4 months so far. He’s been reaching out to companies he’s wanted to work with -- and his efforts have been warmly received and are evolving into actual business!

Guess what else? Jeff already has more work than he can handle, is already subcontracting, and is actually considering his first hire.

In today’s interview, we talked about how to hire employees…

I told Jeff:

It’s not an automatic given that when you need help, you hire someone full time.  Often, what makes the most sense to start is giving people subcontracted/freelance jobs to see if they’re a good fit … from there, perhaps you move to part time. If that works well, then you think about maybe bringing someone on full time … But another way many creative professionals are growing now is by putting together virtual teams based on the project. 

On the topic of when to hire employees, things are less exact. I don’t think it’s based necessarily on a certain amount of money in the bank, or a certain number of clients on the roster. As a matter of fact, I have seen people wait too long to take that next step because they weren’t sure when to take it. Sometimes you have to make the leap of faith. Surrounding yourself with a virtual team can be the least risky approach.

Listen to this 14-minute interview here.

Are you a virtual agency? How has it worked for you? 

Have you hired employees? When did you know the time was right? 

For more on this topic, don’t miss Luke Mysse’s session at the Creative Freelancer Conference, Options for Growth (June 21-22 in Boston)! And when you sign up, be sure to use “CMM12” promo code for an extra $50 off. 

Marketing Q&A: How to follow up after meeting in person…

Lately, I've been offering a new a la carte service of email mentoring – either per question, or via monthly subscription. It’s essentially for anyone who has one-off marketing questions and doesn’t need a full consultation. (If you're interested, email me for details about how it works at ilise@marketing-mentor.com). Here's a recent question I received:

Question:

I attended an event this morning - first to show my support to the director and staff I work for, but second because I knew that the executive director of the highest scoring prospect on my list would be speaking. I hung around after the program hoping for an opportunity to introduce myself …

An acquaintance did introduce me and talked about some of my community work – but my prospect stepped away before we got to my design work. So I said to my acquaintance, " I want to WORK with him." She said, "OH! Well just write him a note and mention that you met him today, etc. etc."

I would like your advice on what to do. My sometimes-propensity to be direct makes me want to jump in and just say, "Hey - we have this connection, and I could help you..." But I think sometimes it is smarter to make an initial "sincere" connection and work that a little bit before making it all about business.

This is not one I want to mess up. I have reached out to their marketing person twice over the last year or two via email (though without the benefit of your training) with no response.

Answer:

Sounds like a great opportunity and I can understand not wanting to mess it up.

I think a combination of the two approaches would work. Remember, it’s good to be always in research mode, curious to find out all you can about your prospects and your target market.

So you can do what your colleague suggested in the follow up and then, ask if you can speak to him and/or someone on his team about their design needs, etc.

This might also be the perfect situation in which to offer a case study of what you've done for an organization just like theirs. Even if that marketing piece is not ready right now, you can offer it. That might motivate you to do it sooner rather than later, too.

Have you ever been in this situation? How did you handle it?

What if we ignored the twitch?

Hi, I'm Deidre. In my posts, I talk about my voyage down the road of self-employment as a web copywriter, my achievements and roadblocks along the way, and what I’m learning as I go (with Marketing Mentor as my guide).

How much time, exactly, am I wasting on Facebook?

I ask this because I had an incredibly productive week—yet I was pretty much working half days. But since I had work to finish, within a shorter time period, I was avoiding everything else I usually do on the computer.

All week, I kept feeling like I was forgetting something.

What was I forgetting? My work was definitely done. Where was this feeling of “missing something” coming from?

I think I was missing the influx of unnecessary information I usually fill my head with during a normal day.

I had been ignoring the twitch. Do you know which one I’m talking about?

The twitch that takes you away from work to check Facebook, look for a new eggplant parmesan recipe, see if those shoes went on sale yet, or see what Kim Kardashian ate for breakfast? It tells you to check your bank account –again. Find a video on YouTube. Read a restaurant review. Find things to buy on Etsy! Check your email, for the 57th time today…

Was the twitch filling up the other half of my day?

I feel like an explorer who has just uncovered a new world. A world where there might actually be plenty of time! Could it be?

The only way to find out: Keep ignoring the twitch.

And start checking Facebook – once –a –day.

Can I do it? It’s this week’s experiment. Wanna join me?

Should you do a newsletter?

In our latest interview, foodie/writer, Bryn Mooth, and I talked about newsletters.

For people who aren’t in the habit of creating “content,” the idea of putting out a newsletter can seem overwhelming. But I was amazed to hear Bryn wonder if she has enough content to produce a regular newsletter—she’s a content machine!

But there’s good news… it doesn’t have to be overwhelming. In our interview, I talked her down a bit…here’s a bit of a highlight:

How frequently should you send it out?

Monthly is the most frequent a newsletter should be. Bi-monthly or quarterly is fine too. Don’t over-commit yourself at first or you will never get any momentum going.

Where does the material come from?

In my opinion, your material should come from your market. It comes from out there – not in our heads. The clearer you get about who you’re talking to, the better your content will be and the more people will respond to it, which in turn will give you more ideas -- until the point where, trust me, you have way too much content…

For more about this, listen to our 16-minute interview here.

I also discussed this exact topic with Jim Blasingame of the Small Business Advocate yesterday. Listen to that here: http://www.smallbusinessadvocate.com/small-business-interviews/ilise-benun-12923

If you need help starting a newsletter, my next Basic Marketing Group starts May 14th.

The trouble with talking to everyone

“When you try to talk to everyone, you end up saying nothing.”

Peter Levinson from LevinsonBlock said this in his recent newsletter, and I couldn’t agree more.

What I love about this newsletter:

• Peter starts by making a personal connection to his butterfly garden, and then relates it to a great business point.
• He gives specific, meaningful, practical advice.  
• From his blurb at the end of the message, it’s evident that Peter’s not trying to talk to everyone either and so practicing what he preaches.

Newsletter writing tip: Don’t assume your clients know what they’re doing—even if they’re big, corporate marketing people. What you have learned about marketing and targeting for yourself –can also help your clients.

Have you chosen a target audience yet? If not, my next Beginner Marketing Group starts May 14th.