Networking With The Media: Give If You Want To Receive

I just returned from a wonderful week at two powerful net marketing conferences.

One of the key functions that happen at these type of conferences is networking. In fact, unlike most industries where people use networking time as an excuse to catch a quick nap, savvy nap needers skip out of the sessions instead of skipping the networking time.

And once again, I learned the key rule of networking - give if you want to receive.

It was very plain to see who subscribed to which networking philosophy at this conference.

There were the "may I have your business card" people - who's conversations never lasted more than 3 minutes before exchanging business cards and they're off to the next victim. Those people are forgotten as quickly as the conversations ended.

There there were the "I want something from you so I'll just be blunt and straight out ask you for it" people. Their level of success was equally as dismal, as I'm not doing business with someone I don't trust, even if their offer is pure gold. (Though I must admit, sometimes I fall into this trap myself.)

Then there were the people who engaged in substantive conversation about your business and life and theirs, creating a relationship upon which future transactions can be based. These people enjoyed pretty good success.

Then there were the platinum players - those who walk around giving freely of their knowledge and ideas, not looking for return.

I experienced both sides of this powerful method several times during the week. Here's a couple of examples:

First was a conversation I had with copywriter Michel Fortin. We started talking about the sales letter for one of my products, and the conversation quickly turned into a critique/brainstorming session on how to improve its response. In about 10 minutes he came up with 10 ideas that will definitely kick that site to a much higher level of sales and profitability.

I didn't pay him for the work, nor did he ask for compensation. Plus a few days later he went out of his way to introduce me to someone else which will hopefully result in another business partnership.

I can guarantee you that Michel is now on my short list for copywriters next time a project comes up. He gave, and someday, he will receive. Here's a link to his site, use it if you're looking for a copywriter who generates results.

The other conversation of note was with the lovely Leslie Karsner of goromance.com/

Leslie specializes in helping people improve the level of romance in their relationships. She's bright, innovative and fun to be with, and she offers some great products that I recommend to those trying to inject some more romance into their relationship.

I commented to Leslie that I had some thoughts about her business, and that we should get together and talk. She took me up on it at lunch. In about 15 minutes, we went wild on her business, exploring strategic alternatives, bridging her current offerings into totally new markets, and even renamed one of her books.

It was one of those exhilarating conversations where everything just flows. Of course, most of these ideas weren't new to her, but they helped to confirm thoughts she was already having.

Will I ever hear from Leslie again? Absolutely.

Will that relationship put money in my pocket? Probably not directly.

However, and this is key: I'm convinced that God keeps a balance scale that measures what we give versus what we get in life.

And that scale is always tipped in our favor.

In other words, any time we give, God rewards us with greater blessings than those we gave away.

It's just one of those laws of the Universe. If you want to receive, then give.

That's why tithing, service, and loving work.

And it's also the way that networking is supposed to work.

Now, of course, wisdom is a good thing, and the banker is happier if we give him our mortgage payment every month rather than saying that we spent the month just giving everything away for free.

One place this works especially well is with the Media. So many of us mistakenly believe that the media should only be bothered when we want coverage. Consequently, we're always asking to receive without giving.

But journalists need information too. And what better way to generate a relationship with journalists than to give them stuff.

What can you give to journalists?

- Story ideas: call them and let them know of a hot story that you couldn't possibly contribute to, but wanted to pass along the idea.

- Leads: steer them to people who are more qualified than you to answer a question. And even if you are qualified, give them additional resources too.

- Pre-written content: give them pre-written stories (tip sheets, quizzes, articles, etc. - *not* press releases) so that they can simply lift your work and file it without having to do any work. (for more hints on this powerful strategy, which is a fantastic way to generate ink, see our reports:

How to Write Tip Sheets That Catch the Media's Attention

Briefs, Fillers and Quizzes: The Shortest, Easiest Articles You'll Ever Write

and
How to Write How-to Articles that Position You as an Expert

One other point - when we say give, we don't mean giving stuff, food, or even tickets to games. That is seen in most media circles as a violation of ethics standards. Give them something really valuable - something that will help them to better complete their job, get promoted faster, and remember you in the future when they have even more power.

Want more information on how to network effectively? Check out our report How To Reach Your Business and Career Goals Through Professional Networking

Good networking!