Where do you find the right people for a business relationship?

Finding the right people may not be as difficult as you may think. Quite often they are in your neighborhood and within your inner circle. There are three things that you can do in order to find the right fit for a business relationship. First, you will need to define the ideal customer. This ideal customer will have a number of criteria or traits that must exist before you will want to do business with them. You should list all the details and be sure to add the industry in which they will exist. Second, you will then need to list all those organizations in your geographic area that fit the profile you have just created. This process will be on going, as once you have identified local firms, you will want to expand the list to those beyond the local jurisdiction.

Third, you will need to place this list in order of preference and then start with number one. Do some further research and determine who it is that you need to meet. Spend some time discovering what events they attend, what community activities they are involved in, and also find a way to get yourself introduced as an expert in your field. This process will take a lot of energy but you do not have to make an exhaustive list at the onset, you can start with the five businesses where you see a fit and where you think you can get an introduction. Remember that your inner circle may have a tie to someone in that organization.

The important thing in getting to the right people is to educate yourself about their business so that you can tailor your services to fit their needs. If they have a fleet of cars and you discover a way to save them money on fuel, then you will have something they may wish to purchase. You do need to get that introduction first, as a cold call will only yield a 1 to 2% return on your time.

Bette Daoust, Ph.D. has been networking with others since leaving high school years ago. Realizing that no one really cared about what she did in life unless she had someone to tell and excite. She decided to find the best ways to get people?s attention, be creative in how she presented herself and products, getting people to know who she was, and being visible all the time. Her friends and colleagues have often dubbed her the ?Networking Queen?. Blueprint for Networking Success: 150 ways to promote yourself is the first in this series. Blueprint for Branding Yourself: Another 150 ways to promote yourself is planned for release in 2005. For more information visit http://www.BlueprintBooks.com

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