The unrivaled power of your book of business
If you're lucky, you've been there: that moment when you finally meet a colleague you've been working with face-to-face at the company kickoff.
One of the best things about field kickoffs is that they bring focused teams of people together within a physical space, representing their company's investment in the mutual growth of the business and its people. As a human being, it feels great to be a part of something bigger than ourselves. To belong to a unified mission.
In the years before the COVID-19 pandemic shut in-person meetings down, we were often out and about to meet customers and prospects as a matter of course. Although our business benefitted from the upswing of interest in digital selling techniques after March 2020, we, like so many others, lamented the loss of face-to-face interactions.
Business has always been a human endeavor. Business is personal. It's a social activity rooted in mutual trust and relationships built in person, on paper, and online.
We've seen a few LinkedIn pundits muse, "When was the last time you closed a deal on social media?" Every business operates differently, but we don't know anyone who's signed a contract on a social media platform. For us, that typically happens via DocuSign or email.
But when was the last time we built a relationship on social media that turned into a contract we signed via DocuSign or email? Last week. And twice the month before that and a couple of times every quarter before that, actually.
In-person interactions are priceless. Social platforms like LinkedIn, when used respectfully, can facilitate them. They're two sides of the same relationship-building coin. Technology is a facilitator, but it’s not the answer to creating a meaningful career or business.
Despite the constant and unrelenting stream of “AI is revolutionizing everything” content, every thriving business runs on the power of human connection. Beyond transactions and negotiations, the essence of business lies in the relationships we build and sustain.
When genuine and nurtured with care, connections become a wellspring of opportunities, insights, and support that can propel our career or business forward in ways that effortlessly endure the blistering pace of technological change. When blatantly transactional, ignored, or largely one-sided, the last thing on our minds is, “This is someone I want to stake my reputation on.”
Platforms like LinkedIn are powerful tools for networking, but they can’t make you charming or trustworthy. Technology requires a thoughtful hand to use it. In terms of LinkedIn, that means personalizing your connection requests, engaging with content genuinely, and taking the conversation beyond the digital space when possible.
The goal is to build relationships, not just a list of contacts to spam.
And just like going to the gym once or twice won’t produce dramatic results, networking is also an ongoing process. Keep in touch with your connections through regular updates, congratulate them on their achievements, and use any reason you can to check in periodically. Nurturing these relationships requires time and effort but is essential for a vibrant and supportive network.
A well-curated network can be a source of new opportunities, advice, mentorship, and more. It can open doors to potential collaborations, job offers, and partnerships that you might not have access to otherwise. Moreover, being surrounded by a diverse group of supportive professionals can inspire innovation and motivate you to push beyond your limits.
Company kickoffs are an easy way to get started. Since everyone’s a coworker, introverts or those who are less experienced at making conversation have an easy topic in with the crowd.
View networking as a journey of continuous learning. With each interaction, you gain insights into different perspectives, industries, and practices. At company kickoffs, this information can include tribal knowledge that you wouldn’t have been able to find on the internet or knowledge portal, which can enhance your understanding of your field, inspire new ideas, and improve your problem-solving skills.
If we can leave you with a tip—well, you know what we're going to say, right? Connect with every single person, every single day, with whom you have a meaningful professional or personal interaction.
Connections are your book of business. You never know when the colleague you finally met at last week's SKO could be your coworker, manager, economic buyer, or champion at the next job.
Revenue Forward
Numentum is a B2B enterprise sales training company that integrates social selling into existing sales processes to engage today’s hyper-informed buyers. Our programmatic approach maximizes the utility of brand, marketing assets, and sales technology to generate predictable pipeline and revenue. We partner with forward-thinking brands to bring focus, routine, and accountability to their sales teams. Our customers include SAP, Workday, Vodafone Business, Verizon Business, Broadcom, and RELX.
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