I recently had the opportunity to be a guest on a radio show. I was caught a little off guard when I was asked, while on the air, how to use “selling skills” to get a job. I hesitated, since that really isn’t what I do. Since the radio host was familiar with my program, he felt there was a lot of synergy. After I did the show, I got to thinking about the idea he brought up, and how getting a job really is so similar to sales … and life.

Here are five steps to help you land the job of your dreams:

§  Network. Use the contacts that you have as extra eyes. Let them know what you are looking for. Be specific and get out there.

§  Set up one-on-one meetings with people that you know. Get coffee, a drink, etc. Help people understand what you are looking for, and give examples of the type of organizations and specific job descriptions. Again, make sure you are specific. People can’t think for you, even though you think they can.

§  When applying for a job, you must do something unique. Today, there are just too many people looking for the same job you are applying for. So, how do you rise above the rest? Sending a resume is so last century. I would suggest that you try to be different. One way is to send your information (resume, if you must) in a unique way. For example, I was once applying for a job with Procter & Gamble. I was in college (about 100 years ago), and the career center had the interviews set up, but P&G booked up quickly. So, I called ahead and found out who was coming to do the interviews. I silk-screened my resume onto a T-shirt, rolled it up and slid it into a Colgate toothpaste box, and mailed it to the sales director, signature required. I got the interview.

§  When you are set up to be interviewed, do lots of research in advance. Spend time researching the company and interviewer. Create questions about the organization’s vision, what customers/clients say about them and what competitors say about them. Ask the interviewer about their experience with the company, what they like best about the organization, their job, etc. This gives lots of good insight to how the employees feel, and shows you have a real interest in them, too.

§  Follow up. There are several ways to do this. I think e-mail is fine, but does that really differentiate you? Here’s an idea: a talking e-mail. You can talk into a video e-mail message and really make an impression. Try www.talkinemail.com. I love it and have been using it a ton.

Remember, the best time to look for a job is when you already have one. If you are in a situation where you are out of work, your job is to look for a job eight hours a day, five days a week!

Question of the Day
I enjoy reading your column as a marketer and small business owner I appreciate all of your good advice.  Have you ever addressed the issue of getting buyers, or your potential decision makers, to answer your phone calls or emails? One of the most frustrating parts of my business is connecting with a potential customer and then they never return calls or emails. Any suggestions? At what point do you stop trying to connect? Example, several weeks ago I was at a networking event and a woman gave me her card and said to call her to set up a meeting, we spoke at length and she was very interested in my services. I called she suggested we get together the first of April and gave me a list of questions I needed to be ready to answer. First week of April I contacted her she said call her April 8th, on April 8th she said call her the 15th...etc, until a week ago when her assistant said she will call you back, of course no call. I am sure I am not the only one who experiences this. Your thoughts?

-Joan

Well first of all Joan congratulations on networking. That is of course your best opportunity for you to find opportunities. When you speak to someone at a networking function you always want to ask about them first. The questions I recommend asking to everyone you meet are;

“What do you do?"

“How long have you been doing it?"

“What do you like about it?"

And “What is a good referral for you?"

The reason these questions are good is because networking is not just about you it is about learning about the other person. You are not trying to sell, you are trying to learn to see if you can help them and potentially build a “strategic alliance”(a strategic alliance is someone you build a relationship with to try to help refer business to each other).

There are times when someone will say, “Hey you sell web design, our company really needs a new web site, why don’t you call." Then you call the next day and leave message upon message and nothing happens. People are willing to say lots of things to be “nice." In a networking environment, people often think of themselves being in a somewhat social atmosphere so people say what they might socially with not a lot of meaning.

I recommend when someone does approach you about your product or service, always pull-back a bit. What I mean by that is if someone says they need a new web site, say to them, “wow you guys are a very well known company, I can’t imagine you need help with your web site?”. You will either hear something like, “well, you never know…” which means there is really no need they are just being nice or they might say, “ no we really have been looking into updating ours. We really don’t know what we need but we talked about making some real changes”. I would ask a few more questions to pre-qualify that this is real and say, “ Well if you want to sit and talk a little about what your needs are, I would be more then willing to learn more about what you need to see if I can help. What do you think?”.

It is important to pre-qualify any opportunity to see if it really is one. Pulling back with a few “take-away” questions with assure one way or the other if it is a true prospect or not.

You know the concept of six degrees of separation?  The idea is that someone knows someone who knows someone who knows someone.  The reasoning is that everyone is no more than six steps away from know another person.

I don't know about you, but I would bet dollars to donuts that, in your community, it is about two degrees.  It seems everyone knows everyone.  Once you meet someone, you can bet someone else you know already knows them.

With this knowledge, I am always amazed when I'm in a seminar and I ask for challenges, someone always says:  "My challenge is I can't get by the gatekeeper." Before I even get to address this silly issue, it seems someone else always has some brilliant answer, like: "Tell them you want to talk to John.  If they ask what it is in reference to, tell them you are a personal friend."  Are you kidding me?

Deceit doesn't seem to me to be the way to go.  I don't think tricking someone to get on the phone with you is a long-term plan for prospecting.

What is?  Using your networking sources.  Networking is a very successful way to do your business.  I am not saying you shouldn't cold call.  There are certain industries, and certainly at the beginning of most careers it is necessary to build a database of potential customers.  I am saying you should work yourself out of the cold call business over time.

How do you do that?  Through processes of networking and forming strategic alliances. Networking is something most business people do, but few do well.  We will talk more on networking in future months.

What is a strategic alliance? Someone you can share referrals with who is out and about in the community and can introduce you to the people you are trying to meet.  This is who I recommend looking to meet at a networking function (as opposed to just a prospect).

Introduce yourself by being remembered.  You are in competition with everyone in that room.  What I mean is that we can only remember 10-15% of what we hear.  Don't you want to be remembered?  If you are a travel agent, you may want to introduce yourself by saying,  “I am the only person who can tell you where to go."  Or, an office products sales person might say, "I get into your drawers."  Though it seems silly, just remember:  bringing the human factor will help people remember you and break the ice at the same time.

Follow-up is very important in networking and forming strategic alliances.  You are trying to be remembered and to form relationships.  One of the ways to do this is to follow up with a hand-written note after an initial meeting.  Another option is to use an online tool called Followup-cards.com.  You can set up a file to easily send a card to everyone you meet at the event.

This is not a sales opportunity, so don't sell here.  You should follow up with all the people you met with a little note, not just the strategic alliances you set up.

So getting referrals can be done very effectively if you use a process to do it right.  Or, you can always cold call.

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